Meeting Meb

Dear Chicken Nugget,

Yesterday I met Meb Keflezighi.  Meb is currently the best long-distance runner in America and I've been a fan for over six years now.

Meb was born in Eritrea and his family moved to the United States when he was 12.  He won the USA Cross Country Championships in 2001, 2002, and 2009.  In the 2004 Summer Olympics he finished second in the marathon and won the silver medal.  Last year, in 2009, he won the NYC Marathon in 2 hours 9 minutes and 15 seconds.

So, yeah, he's a pretty incredible guy.  He was in NYC to talk about the start of his MEB Foundation. MEB stands for Maintaining Excellent Balance and he plans on using his foundation to support various causes in health, fitness, and education in both the USA and Eritrea.  I'm looking forward to seeing what his foundation will accomplish.

Well, little nugget, I met one of my athletic heroes yesterday and it was a pretty cool experience.  He spent quality time with each individual fan and was very friendly and patient with everyone wanting pictures and autographs.  I had a good conversation with him and even asked him about what he has for breakfast before a big race.  Yes, your dad is obsessed with what the big athletes have for breakfast.  Meb's answer?  Homemade bread.  Keep it by your bedside in case you get hungry at night, he added.

So, nugget, if homemade bread is on daddy's nightstand, it's because I run to win.

I hope one day you get to run to win.

Eternally yours,

Your papa

you must speako de espanish at home

Dear Chicken Nugget,

Your mom and I have been trying to figure out what language to teach you and when.  You see, I grew up in a household that only spoke Spanish.  English was spoken only outside the home.  The result is that I grew up bilingual.  Your mom is fluent in Spanish because she spent a year living in Chile and loved the language. 

So, we decided to speak only Spanish at home.  We started this a few days ago and we've been having a hard time making it stick.   For one thing, we simply forget to switch languages when we come through the door. 

The other, harder part, is that we're surrounded by English.  The labels on food, the magazines we read, the TV we watch are all in English.  It's that much harder to stay in Spanish when your brain is being forced to process the English language. 

She and I can go home to your grandma's place in Brooklyn and speak Spanish all weekend long.  No problem.  But, we're finding it hard to do it here on our own. 

Well, we're setting the expectations early and starting to practice now.  When you're born you should be able to hear both languages and understand what's going on.  And our hope is, you'll grow up bilingual.

We hope this doesn't cause language confusion, even if mom and dad forget and break out into English every now and then.


Te queremos siempre,

Tu papa

21 weeks in the belly

Dear Chicken Nugget,

Today you have been in the belly for 21 weeks.  Hooray!  We're halfway there.

You weigh about three-quarters of a pound and are about 10.5 inches long - which means you're about the size of carrot.  You've been growing eyebrows and eyelids and have been very active.  In fact, your mom has been feeling you flutter around a lot in the last week.  I'm so excited to be able to feel you move too.  Soon!

At this point we think you can hear your mom's voice so she's been talking to you a lot.  Every night before bead she reads from a book called My First Book of Prayers so that you get into a bedtime routine while you're in the belly.  We're hoping that these prayers have a familiar rhythm to you so that when you're born you'll be soothed by them.

My favorite so far is this one:

I see the moon,
The moon sees me;
God bless the moon,
And God bless me.
Amen. 

We love you.

Eternally yours,

Your papa

your father may be wrong sometimes

Dear Chicky,

In my last letter I made a prediction that Meb Keflezighi would win the Boston Marathon in 2010.  I was wrong. 

You'll find out soon enough in your life that your father may be wrong sometimes.  That's OK.  I'll admit to being wrong every now and then.

I was wrong about the Mets winning the World Series in 2000.  They didn't.  I was wrong about my winning the lottery on a number of occasions.  I was wrong about me becoming a New York City Councilman by the age of 30.  So, yes, my predictions are wrong sometimes. 

But, I've been right on a lot of things - the important ones at least.  I've been right about my choice of profession.  Teaching is as fulfilling as it comes.  I've been right about my being able to run and complete a marathon.  Twice.  I've been right with the person I chose to be my life partner - your mom. 

So, yeah, I may be wrong on a few things here and there.  But on the important stuff, I'm pretty dead-on.  Or, very, very lucky. 

I hope my luck rubs off on you, little nugget. 


Eternally yours,

Your papa

render unto Ceasar

Dear Chicken Nugget,

Fortunately you won't have to worry about this for about 18 years but I'm here to remind you that Tax Day is today, April 15th.  And, unless there is a complete reform of our tax system, April 15th will always be the date to submit your paperwork. 

For years, once I was living on my own, I submitted my stuff on or very close to April 15th.  That was a big mistake.  There was always a rush to find all my misplaced paperwork and get it in the mailbox on time.  Since meeting your mom, I've been a lot better at this - she's really good at reminding me.  And, since I started preparing the taxes myself, I've found ways to lessen the pain that Uncle Sam brings.

Jesus said, “Render unto Caesar the things which are Caesar’s, and unto God the things that are God’s” (Matthew 22:21).  The idea is to obey the law, pay your taxes, but also to do what God wants you to do.  We can talk about the other two later, chicky,  but today the lesson is to pay your taxes.  There's only heartache and unending stress if you don't.

My suggestion is that you keep all important receipts, and paperwork in a folder.  Once you've received all of them, do your taxes.  It's that simple.  If I followed this rule I should have had ours submitted back in February, but I procrastinated and completed them towards the end of March.  I was three weeks ahead of the due date, but you should try and do them earlier than that. 

I hope that by the time you have to deal with taxes there will have been a complete overhaul of our Tax Code.  But, whether there is or isn't, always pay your taxes.  And pay them early.

Rich or poor, nugget, you'll always complain about taxes.  Just do'em.


Eternally yours,

Your papa

Team Mom

Dear Chicken Nugget,

I just finished reading an article about long-distance runner, Meb Keflezighi, and his preparation for last year's NYC Marathon (which he won) and this year's Boston Marathon.  It made me jealous of all the wonderful treatment professional athletes seem to get.

Keflezighi had a stress fracture, followed by some severe muscle fiber-something-or-other, and was nursed back to health by a team of professionals that looked after him almost 24/7 for several months.  Today I felt knee pain.  I put my feet up on the couch.  That's all I get.

Anyway, as I was reading about Team Meb and their singular focus to get him back to the starting line healthy, I realized that I am basically the captain of Team Mom.

Your mom is carrying the most precious thing in the world to us - you!  And my job is to make sure that she is healthy and happy.  I am the gatekeeper.  I am the bodyguard.  I am the personal assistant, the head chef, the massage therapist, the personal researcher, the provider of water and lotion. 

My job is to get your mom to the starting line so that she can get you to yours.

So, although I would still love to be a professional athlete some day (ha!) and be pampered and looked after by a team of experts, I can't help but love the role that I'm in right now.  I am Team Mom.

Looking forward to meeting you at the starting line.


Eternally yours,

Your papa


PS - Since you'll be reading this in the future, I predict that Meb Keflezighi wins the Boston Marathon in 2010. 

20 weeks in the belly

Dear Chicken Nugget,

Last night your mom and I went to the doctor to get an ultrasound.  We saw you!

You've grown so much since we last saw you in an ultrasound.  Last time we saw you, you looked like a chicken nugget.  Now, you look like a little person. 

We saw your hands, arms, and legs.  We saw your spinal cord and ribs.  We saw your head, face, belly, and beating heart.  I held your mom's hand and stared in awe at the monitor as we watched you moving around in the uterus.  You we very active!

In fact, I'm pretty sure you threw a jab or two - so I'm thinking you're going to be a mixed martial artist.  Your arms were bent up so that your hands were right up by your face which is a pretty good guard.  Keep your hands up and protect your face, nugget!

Your mom has gained about ten pounds and you are about 10.5 ounces now.  You measure about ten inches from head to heel, or about the size of a banana.  Your mom has been feeling you move around more often now.

You're doing great.  Punch away, little nugget!  It's the only time you'll be able to get away with punching mom.


Eternally yours,

Your papa

your dad runs like stupid - Part 1

Dear Chicken Nugget,

I wanted to write briefly about my running.  If all goes well and I manage to keep it up after your birth, then you'll see me run off every now and then and come back looking like death.  Please don't be scared when this happens. 

I started running at the age of 24, six years ago, when my doctor told me I needed to exercise more.  At first I could barely run two blocks.  No joke.  Little by little I increased my running, first by just a few blocks, then a mile at a time.  It took several months for me to be able to run four miles without stopping.  And, by the end of those runs I would basically collapse in a heap of uselessness.

Soon after being able to complete four miles, I decided to run the NYC Marathon.  When you grow up I'll make sure to point out how stupid this decision is.  You should not ever run a marathon with less than a year's running experience.  But, your daddy can be silly and he started training anyway. 

Having missed getting picked by the NYC Marathon lottery, I signed up for the Marathon in the Parks in Bethesda, MD.  I had lots of friends in the area at the time and thought it would be a scenic marathon.

Around this time I started feeling so athletic that I began playing sports like softball and ultimate frisbee.  I wasn't great at either but at least I could run across the field without getting winded.  Then, the unthinkable happened.  I twisted my ankle twice playing these sports.  A month before the marathon.

Needless to say, the marathon was a bad idea.  But, your dad can be stupid a little stubborn, and I ran it anyway.  Although it was a beautiful marathon - through the woods, with deer and racoons watching the silly runners - it was a hard one too.  There were lots of hills and by Mile 10, I started feeling pain.  I continued on, having to walk a little around Miles 15,18,20,22,23,24 and finished my first marathon in 5hours 37minutes and 46seconds. 

It took me months to recover from that.  But you know what?  I'm glad I did it.  It changed my life.  I started running for good and it became part of my lifestyle.  Now, when I don't run I feel like a slob.  I'll write in another post about the health benefits, meditative aspects, and all the other positive stuff that comes with running. 

But for now, just know that I'm a runner and plan on being one until my legs can no longer carry me.  Oh, and try to keep your distance after daddy runs, papa smells.


Eternally yours,

Your papa

boy/girl heartbeat

Dear Chicken Nugget,

This afternoon I came home to find Amanda, a friend from Chicago, and Miriam, the midwife, visiting your mom. 

Amanda is here for a wedding this weekend and happened to arrive at our apartment around the same time as the midwife.

Miriam, our midwife, is the lady who will help you come into this world if all goes as planned.  She's an incredibly smart lady, no nonsense, very sweet, with a very comfortable intensity.  We picked her as our midwife because we trust that she'll work hard to make sure that when you come, all will be good and healthy for you and your mom.

I got lucky and arrived halfway through the appointment and was able to hear your heartbeat for the second time ever.  Your heart rate was about 141bpm, which is where my heart rate goes when I run sometimes, but for a baby in the womb, it's perfect.

There are rumors that you can tell if it's going to be a boy or a girl based on how fast the heart rate is.  Yours was kind of in the middle, so you're not giving us any hints.   And that's OK, nugget.

We will love you no matter how fast your heart beats.

Eternally yours,

Your papa

Dear Little Ducky

Dear Chicken Nugget,

Last night I had a strange but cute dream about you.  Your mom and I were going to the hospital because we got a phone call saying that you had been born.

When we arrived they brought out a little bed where a little duckling had hatched out of an egg.  The duckling was still halfway out of the egg, but its feathers were dry and fluffy.  The little duckling was our baby and I was so happy that it had arrived.

The colorful little duckling was following us wherever we walked.  Everyone in the dream who asked us about our baby seemed to be completely OK with the fact that our baby was a duck.  And, I was proud of my little duckling.

So, chicken nugget, when you're older and have your degree in Psychology you can analyze the dream all you want.  But, personally, I think it means that we're going to love you no matter what.

Waddle on.

Eternally yours,


Your papa

it's OK to turn back

Dear Chicken Nugget,

Yesterday I went out for a nine-mile run and didn't finish it.  I want you to know that it's OK to turn back.

Nebraska has had its first couple of days of warm weather since we arrived and the tree and weed pollen is picking up.  Something you'll learn is that your dad has allergies.  My bet is that you probably will too.  Sorry 'bout that.

But, this is not about allergies.  It's about knowing that it's OK to not finish something if it means pain or illness.

Running is part of my regular exercise and pushing through pain or illness can lead to injury.  So, If I'm not breathing well, running with an awkward gait, or feeling pain in any way, I've got to stop. 

Little nugget, if ever you feel pain or feel sick feel free to stop what you are doing.  Go home.  Rest up.  Try again later.

Unfortunately the pollen count here in Bellevue, Nebraska has gone from High yesterday to Very High today.  Not sure a run is going to happen today.  I'll probably try, but if it doesn't feel right, I may just turn back.  Nine miles is a long ways to go when you're not breathing well.

Plus, there's always tomorrow.


Eternally yours,

Your papa