I apologize in advance, dear reader, but I won’t be writing today.

My intention was to weigh in on Giants receiver Plaxico Burress’ return from a one-game suspension, but I’m just too busy. I had to pick up my younger daughter from soccer practice, because she wouldn’t have been able to get home otherwise. I hope you understand. And I hope the boss understands, although I didn’t call in to let him know I wouldn’t be writing, because … well … because it was really important that I pick up my daughter … and I really don’t care what the boss thinks, anyway.

You see, family is very important to me. In fact, it’s so important that there are times when I really don’t feel like working if it means missing out on picking my daughter up from soccer. Or picking up my older daughter from marching band practice.

Hey, I try my best to juggle everything, and I’ll always be around on game day, so what’s the big deal? If you don’t understand, well, that’s your problem. And if the boss doesn’t understand, well, too bad.

You get the point.

The Giants’ 31-year-old receiver admitted Monday that he didn’t show up for work two weeks ago because he had to take his son to school. Not only that, but Burress didn’t bother calling in to let the team know and showed remarkably little remorse.

“I ran into some family issues as far as taking my son to school and things like that,” Burress told reporters Monday on a conference call. “It was not like I purposely missed out or that was my intention. It just seemed to happen that way, and I didn’t feel any reason to explain to them what happened or why I missed because I don’t feel it is really anybody’s business.”

Nobody’s business? The Giants just gave Burress a five-year, $35-million contract extension.

Sorry, Plax. It’s someone’s business. That’s why coach Tom Coughlin and general manager Jerry Reese decided to sit you down for a game and dock you two weeks’ pay. A subsequent appeal knocked down the fine to a week’s lost wages, but the point had been made. The Giants had had enough of the repeated absences and tardy arrivals that led to a reported 40 to 50 previous fines.

They hoped that by taking Sunday against the Seahawks away from Burress, he’d finally understand that he is accountable for his actions – not only on game day but when it comes to practices and team meetings.

But Burress still might not have fully understood the point, especially after indicating Monday that he’d do it all over again if faced with similar circumstances.

Hello?!?!?!

“If I had a decision to make as far as my family and my son and things like that, I wouldn’t change anything about it, and I would still make the same decision to do that,” Burress said.

But at least he would have made a telephone call, so perhaps that’s progress.

“Maybe I would have put a phone call in, but that probably would have been the only thing,” he said. “As far as things like that, I am going to always put those things first, and I think that is one thing that people have to understand, but I don’t have any regrets for it.”

About the only time he did acknowledge he’d screwed up was when he admitted he’d let his teammates down by not being in the lineup Sunday.

“I definitely let them down,” he said. “When I can’t go out there with them, I am definitely letting them down.”

Now it’s time to show them – and your coaches – that you’ve learned from this mistake, the latest in a series of them.