It is only recently that I stopped introducing my brother as Mikey. And even more recently that I stopped calling him such. I never thought that would happen. He has and I thought, will, always be Mikey. Not Mike or Michael, but Mikey.

I think it has been the past few months that have done it. Mike got a job 3 blocks from my work. My old work. The place where I spent the past 10 years of my life. So, enter this new element to my life. Well, this new old element. My brother. My baby brother was now a man in khaki pants walking toward me on the street. Mike, not Mikey, was now coming to my office at lunch to watch "The Office" on the big screen in the conference room with my co-workers. Telling me not to repeat that I loved the opening theme song because I had already told everyone this. Laughing with me over crap workaday lunch time foods.

When Mike, nee Mikey was little, he was such a Mikey. A problem child, 7 years my junior, I was always trying to make sure he didn't get in trouble. Taking the blame for things he did, covering up things I didn't want to take the heat for. I watched his back. But there were times like when he took a meat cleaver to the countertops or hit my sister with a hockey stick that I just couldn't take the blame. Mikey was super skinny when he was little and I remember he used to wear pajamas until they were so threadbare that you could see through them. Skinny legs sticking out of the thinnest jimjams on the planet, I remember. It makes me think of my Rachel now. Mikey loved to drink coke and eat ceral in front of the TV in the morning, watching the Disney Channel. Oh how I hated Pooh Corner and all those other insipid shows with people dressed up in big animal suits. Live action, too happy, cartoons with terrible songs.

When Mikey was 14 or so, Jeff and I started dating. Mikey had always hung out with my friends and I, helping one boyfriend with a magic show, riding around in another friend's car on a Saturday night. But Jeff and I were interested in giving Mikey experiences we wished we could have had. Taking him to the Black Cat to see a band play, taking he and his friends to see Green Day at some big arena, going to see Clerks in the theater when it came out. Mikey was never really interested in these things, actually, which was a bit of a disappointment to us. But we tried so hard to make him cool!

The years went by and I didn't always see my brother that much. He worked at an ice rink, managing and driving a zamboni, so his hours never really matched up with mine. It has been rare that he, my sister and I have all been in the same room together as adults. I remember looking up at my baby shower and seeing them both and saying it was so wonderful to see them both within one frame of sight.

But this likely won't happen again for a long time. Mike is moving to San Diego where his soon to be wife, Sarah, just got a job. He gets to leave behind these east coast winters. The lucky bastard.

On his last day in the city with me, last week, we met at the girls' daycare at lunch time. I was late as usual, so he started walking in my direction. I notice him half a block away. All grown up. And I wave franticaly to which he says, "Do you think I won't notice you?" This makes me laugh. And I know I will never be this close to my brother again. And I feel what I have been feeling a lot of lately. Happy and sad and enchanted with the change of it all.

I knew that someday Mikey would become Mike. But I never knew he would be Mike far and far away.