Reporter's Note: The Obama Administration gave great hope to progressive voters, particularly at the start. But dealing with what is coming up quite soon is going to take some progressive thought, at least about the calendar. Don’t say I didn’t warn you…in my latest letter to the president.

Tom Foreman | BIO
AC360° Correspondent

Dear Mr. President,

I made it through the aftermath of Halloween, or as I like to call it the “Candy Tsunami,” with relatively little self-inflicted damage. While I must admit those tiny candy bars truly are a “fun size” I managed to keep my intake down to a minimum and I’ll probably be better for it. I even slipped in a nice, rainy run on Sunday. A lot of people make resolutions to get into shape right after New Year’s, but I usually do that right after Halloween, because I know as soon as Thanksgiving is upon us, I will face a landslide of cakes, pies, hams, and other wondrous foods that no mere mortal can resist. So on All Saints Day I step up the workouts, cut back the calories, and start bracing for the food-alanche that will begin on Turkey Day. If I wind up weighing the same on January first as I do right now, that’s a decent balance.

That said, you have so much on your plate right now demanding more of less urgent attention, I’m sure it is very difficult to project beyond the holidays, but I still think that would be a wise move. In all likelihood, (and mind you, I’m no Alison Dubois, so this is really just guessing…) January is going to find you facing a variety of challenges:

1) Christmas sales are already predicted to be down, and that will likely be the case

2) More home foreclosures also seem to be in the offing

3) Unemployment could very well top the dreaded 10 percent mark

4) Unless something changes dramatically, Afghanistan will remain a mess

5) Heaven knows what will have happened with health care reform, but politically it looks like it will be hard for you to claim a resounding victory because it’s already so muddled, and difficult, compared to what you proposed in the election

6) And oh yes…btw…everyone and his sister will be doing the stories of “It’s been a year since Barack Obama took the oath; how is he doing?”

One of the operating principles of my life is this: If you wait until a problem is upon you before you start dealing with it, you are already too late. I think in these difficult times, all of us need to be making a little time each day to game out where we might be in a couple of months and preparing for that situation; even as we deal with each daily crisis.

Call if you’d like to join me on a run. You can come out to the neighborhood, or I can just change as work and swing by the WH. Maybe at lunch?

Regards,

Tom
Follow Tom on Twitter @tomforemancnn.

Find more of the Foreman Letters here.