Mrs. HokieCentral and I got to experience life's "common little miracle" a few days ago, when she gave birth to our first child (and future Virginia Tech and Penn State fan), Malcolm Nicholas.  And yes, he is as cute as his picture above!  And no, he doesn't get it from me.

Malcolm was carried full term, and actually went five days over the due date.  I had talked to him and told him that I wanted to watch the big Tech/GW women's matchup on Sunday, so he waited until Sunday afternoon before making his move out into the world.

Labor and delivery went very smoothly, for a first time baby.  Labor was only about 8-and-a-half hours long, and when it came time for Malcolm to be delivered, he popped out like he'd been shot out of a cannon.  What can I say?  He is very excited to see Michael Vick play for the Hokies, so he wanted to be born in a hurry.   When I told him that Spring football didn't start for another couple of months, he frowned and started screaming to be put back until then.  Sorry, kid, no can do.

He was pacified a little bit when he found out that defensive coordinator Bud Foster will be staying with the Hokies, instead of going to Florida, and then he was VERY excited when he found out that Tech recruiting target Keith Willis, the #6 rated player in the state of Virginia, had committed to the Hokies.  Little Malcolm has decided that he's good for Tech recruiting, because it has been a good week for the Hokies for verbal commitments.

It's been quite a ride, and it's hard to believe that it's only been a few days.   I guess that's because I'm not sleeping anymore, so the days feel like they're 36 hours long.  He's a cute little kid, even if he does sometimes cry as if he has just had a dream about last fall's Temple game.

If you want to email the little kid some words of encouragement, or if you want to email congratulations or advice - I SAID ADVICE - to his parents, I have set up a [email protected] email address for that purpose.  Many of you have already emailed me at [email protected] with congratulations, and even if I didn't respond to you, please know that I have read your email and appreciated it.

As you can imagine, things are hectic around the house.  Well, I wouldn't call it "hectic," actually, because my life was always hectic.  It's just hectic in a different way now.  Which brings us to the question...

Well, here's what - I need a little time off, perhaps a week or two, to get things worked out with the little guy and to help out Mrs. HokieCentral as she and I try to figure out what this kid thing is all about.  So I won't be doing a lot of work on the web site for a little while, other than posting scores and links, and keeping an eye on the message board, and working on memberships (more on that later).  But after a little time, hopefully just a week or so, I'll be getting back in the groove.

I imagine that updates will be a little sporadic for a while, so please be patient.

My top priority as far as the web site goes during this time period will be processing memberships and keeping the ball rolling there.  After all, that's where the money is involved, and that's where I need to make sure that people are getting good customer service, and are getting their money's worth.  Before going to the hospital, I was able to process all of the memberships I had received up to that point, and I'll try to get to the ones that have come in the last few days very soon.

I have issued most of the new members username/password access to the Members Only area (where, may I boast, I recently predicted in a column that Bud Foster would stay at Tech), but I still haven't ordered my first load of merchandise.  I'll try to get to that very soon, preferably within days, so that will start the manufacturing process and will get everyone's stuff to them in a few weeks.

Till then, don't worry - I am committed to this web site, and I'm not going anywhere.   I just may need a little time to get my feet back under me.  As always, the links are here to keep you up to date, and the message board is sheer entertainment, particularly when the news is nothing but good, as it has been the last few days on the Bud Foster and recruiting fronts.

So there you have it - let's keep rocking and rolling, and go Hokies!

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