A lot has changed since my last blog post (but not my CPAP
filter lol), including the birth of my large son Arthur. He’s almost a year old
and has the head circumference of a hefty toddler, so its past time I start
chronicling my efforts to be a “cool dad." Part of being a parent is being
flexible, so I’m not going to conform to any format or style, but will probably
just write about fun stuff Arthur and I do and maybe offer some tips for my
fans who are or may become parents.
“Some rise at dawn to face tha day. Leaders rise before dawn to shape it.”
"Some rise at dawn to face tha day. Leaders rise before dawn to shape it." Such is a quote I made up and attributed to myself and Arthur’s
Uncle Buffalo, who also rises early. I use this line to encourage Arthur to be
a morning person like yours truly. We like to get up around 5:30-6 so we can
get outside before its too hot. Arthur usually has breakfast in bed with his
mom, then starts trying to climb out the window until I come get him. When we
get downstairs, I point to my mug and tell him I’m drinking “covfefe.” As a
baby, Arthur has no context, so I’m hoping he thinks that’s what its really
called, which will be funny when he starts talking and people think he’s making
a Drumpf reference.
With my covfefe in one hand and Arthur in the other, we step
out onto the front stoop and start saying “Good morning,” to whatever is in my
line of sight. I used to always start with “Good morning, Stump” because we had
a stump in our yard, but we recently mulched that, so now we usually start with
“Good morning, mulch pile.” We then say good morning to the no parking sign,
the evergreen tree, Sturdy Gertie and Llamrei (our cars), the ADT sign, and the
iron railing. Arthur likes to waive as we say good morning, and I am hoping
that this practice helps him develop good “SitAw,” or situational awareness,
which is important in networking tactics (e.g., identifying a bigwig to gladhand
and navigating obstacles to get within range).
Arthur gets really excited if a bus drives by or somebody is
out walking a dog. He also gets really excited for trash day. I like to think
that’s because I’ve taught him that trash day is a time for reflection about
the cycle of life, and a symbol of renewal, but it might be that he likes the
noises and activity. We always waive to the trashmen as they go about their
tasks, and their invariably friendly and give us big grins and waves. I was so
moved recently by their friendliness and hard work that I wrote an email to the
County Board Chair to compliment our garbagemen, who forwarded it on to the
County Manager. I am hoping that Arthur
learns from the garbagemen how to be friendly while also working hard.
