Alternadad

Is This Thing Still On?

A touching account of Elijah's first email here.

Also, this week, I took the courageous step of writing something snarky about baseball. Read my LA City Beat cover story on the Los Angeles Dodgers.

San Francisco Events, April 26-27

I'll be reading at Red Hill Books on Saturday night, April 26, from 7-9 PM. That's a lot of reading! Info here:

Then the next day, April 27, I'll be introducing the Sippy Cups at TWO SHOWS at Bimbo's, 1 PM and 4 PM. All the details can be found here.

Meanwhile, check out my legendary Slate piece on the evils of sports lists and power rankings.

Also, there are usually about three new posts a week on Parents.com.

And if you're not living at Offsprung yet, what's taking you so long?

Important Recent Developments

Elijah discovers an egg in the potty.

I give him a steam cure.

And so much more!

Swingin' With The N Word

Elijah redefines epithets here and here.

And my accountant redefines the meaning of tax time.

All this and more. Do the thrills ever end on Parents.com?

The War In The Park, The War At Home

This week:

I do battle with a tennis pro.

And I do battle with my son.

Nobody wins.

This Week in Domesticity

Elijah is learning to read!

We lost our TIVO remote!

Check it out on Parents.com.

Elijah Vs. The Archenemy

No, I'm not doing any original writing here yet, but I am continuing to blog over on Parents.com. Here's a link to today's hilarious and revelatory post, Elijah Vs. The Archenemy. A big bonus prize to whoever finds the word "nipples" first.

Alternadad Paperback Tour Schedule

Thursday, February 21 / Chicago, IL
7:00PM
Quimby’s Bookstore
Reading and Signing
1854 West North Avenue

Saturday, February 23 / Baltimore
10:00AM – 1200PM
Rock-n-Romp Baltimore event
With Thrushes.
2640
2640 St. Paul Street

Saturday, February 23/Washington, D.C.
1:00PM
Rock-n-Romp event
With Julie Ocean.
McGinty’s Public House
911 Ellsworth Drive
Silver Spring, MD

Sunday, February 24 / Boston, MA
3:30PM
Rock-n-Romp event
With Bon Savants and Wonderful Spells.
Great Scott
1222 Commonwealth Avenue
Allston, MA

Tuesday, February 26 /New York, NY
7:00PM
KGB Tuesday Night NonFiction
Reading and Signing
KGB Bar
85 East 4th Street (between 2nd and 3rd)

Alternadad Paperback

Today's the day! For the ten of you who haven't yet bought your copy of Alternadad, the paperback edition is now available for sale everywhere!

Fresh Pollack blogaliciousness today on Epicurious and Offsprung.

Alternadad For A Better Life?

Though the number of people who check this space every month is probably down to the single-digits at this point, there's no better place for me to announce that Alternadad is a finalist in the childcare/parenting category of the Books For A Better Life awards, sponsored by the Multiple Sclerosis Society. "The Awards recognize excellence in self-help, motivational, and self-improvement books," according to Bookreporter.com, and who am I to argue? If you want to improve yourself by founding a doomed punk-rock band, stumbling your way through the early years of parenthood stoned out of your gills, doing battle in online parenting flame-wars, and forming an intermittently-successful neighborhood association, then Alternadad is the book for you.

In all seriousness, I'm very flattered to be nominated, though bemused at being placed in the same cultural nexus as Suze Orman and Dr. Wayne Dyer. Not to diminish their works, of course, but I never set out to inspire anyone. I do, from time to time, get emails from people who say that Alternadad helped get them through the first months of parenthood, or prepare for the reality of what's about to hit, and that always feels nice to hear. I tried to write as honest a story as possible.

Personally, I think I'll be hard-pressed to knock off Peggy Orenstein's Waiting For Daisy, but then again, I've been wrong when handicapping the Books For A Better Life award before.

Highly Evolved

Right NOW, at the inimitable Jewcy.com, read my piece about my attempts to make sure that my child grows up believing in evolution. The false intelligent design prophets lurk in nearly every curricular committee, my friends. Be wary.

Parenting On The March

Welcome to the six of you who found this site because of my latest sad attempt to create a viral-video phenomenon.

Let me point you toward other stuff. There's Offsprung, a community and humor magazine for "parents who don't suck." And then there's my usual nonsense at Parents.com and Epicurious.

The fun never ends, until it does.

On The Pickets

Slate published a piece about my experience during the first week of the WGA strike today.

If anyone from Miami reads this before Sunday, I have a panel at the Miami International Book Festival on Sunday at noon, with Erica Schickel and Evelyn McDonel. We'll be talking about parenting books, believe it or not.

Tonight In Pollack-Land

Elijah and I play Guitar Hero.

We practice writing our name.

I get my ass kicked at a birthday party.

Meanwhile, check out Regina's fabulous cakes.

Also, French toast, and donuts.

Hotman--the video!

There's a new Hot Man (Bhotman) video on Offsprung. Enjoy.