I just got back from Northwestern Memorial Hospital.

It's been a weird day. Actually a weird 24 hours, I guess.

Some lives were changed today, all for the best. Even mine.

For I have become - for the first time in my life - an uncle.

I never thought there would ever be a baby in our family, but there he was. A nephew.

A nephew named Jackson. And now - even though I'm not the parent - I've got a big responsibility on my shoulders - I've got a nephew and he may be just 4 hours old, but he's gotta learn about baseball. Oh, sure, there's tons of stuff he's got to learn first. I mean, he's just getting the whole air-breathing thing down right now. He was bundled-up so tight that I couldn't see his hands. I couldn't tell how he would hold a ball to throw it. OK, he's getting the sleeping thing down, too. Hell, he's just trying to stay warm now, too. All I know is that he's a bit of a screamer, mostly because, well, he got a cold jolt as he came into the world, and quite frankly, he was having none of that.

He's got a lot to learn about this strange and crazy world that we're in. I figure baseball will just ground him in Americana and sports... he still has to learn to eat, though...

I guess there are priorities first. Like the breathing bit. Oh, and the eating, too. I guess he's got to open his eyes a bit more and see the world around him first. Figure out who's who. He'll spend the rest of his life figuring out what's what. I guess that would start with the blanket he's all swaddled in and the silly little knit hat they always put on newborns to keep 'em warm and such, matting down his mane of blond hair...

My sister just called.

I may have some exciting information to tell you about.

Really soon.