10 random reasons my back hurts (or not)

1) I never thought my back would actually be fucked up at the age of 31. But it is. Mostly, it's my lower back and it's all my fault, the result of 8+ years of bad posture at the desk job. So ...

2) M and I joined a gym. My past gym exploits have been laughable and ugly. (Seriously, old naked men are both.) The new gym features none of that, and possibly I'll stick with it this time. My back reminds me on a nearly daily basis to get to the gym by screaming at me in the morning and at night. Since I'm in no shape to throw down 3 grand on a new mattress set, I'll have to settle for weights and stretching.

3) Tennis: I suck. I've finally found a sport that I really like and have little natural ability to excel at. That's not saying much, really. There are plenty of sports that I know I suck at — say, football — and hence I've never given those sports much of a chance. Then there is basketball. I could go an entire calendar year without touching a basketball, then hit the court and at least do a good Dickey Simpkins impersonation. A few times out, and I'm a regular Horace Grant. But tennis is another story. There's no Roger Federer hiding inside me, but the sport is a lot of fun regardless and gets my competitive streak fired up. If only I could learn some fundamentals, like a forehand or a backhand for example. My serve is actually my best ally. I've been playing once or twice a week, and so far I'm basically oh-for-the-world. I have a lovely tendency to get up 3-1 or 3-0 and then lose 6-4. I chalk my inconsistency up to said lack of fundamentals, and hope for the best next time out. At some point, I just have to get better, don't I?

4) Beans. They don't really cause back aches, per say. But I suddenly enjoy them in varieties previously foreign to me. M's white bean salad is delicious! There, I said it.

5) Superbad was funny. Who knew the best character plot line of the year would come in the form of a kid overcoming his sketchy past as a dick-drawing maniac?

6) Big Ten Network. Fuck you. Comcast. Fuck you, too.

7) Research on the HORNS! mix is nearly at end. Lo and behold there's hardly as much new(er) music in my collection featuring horns. I'm troubled by trying to mix the old with the new, while still maintaining a congruency. Then there's the whole issue of Chicago apologists.

8) I just finished Ladies and Gentleman, the Bronx Is Burning. Good book. I wonder if the ESPN miniseries will hold up. The book wanders for large segments of time away from baseball to deal with rioting, bankruptcy, politics, and the Son of Sam. I'm guessing ESPN knows their audience and stuck with the Yankees for the most part.

9) We just went through massive layoffs at work, which is saying something when you work in an office with 20-some peeps. My department has been reduced to just me (the editor) and a designer. Good thing the title list is shrinking too, even if it's not significant enough. My guess: We'll be out of business in five months. I hope I'm wrong, but having gone through this process in my previous job at the newspaper, I have a pretty good feel for this sort of thing.

10) Guitar Hero II was an unexpected hit at a recent party. M even digs it! I had never played the game prior to receiving it as my surprise b-day gift from M. It's incredibly addictive — and fucking hard. I can't play a lick on the hard level, despite being pretty good at medium. My pinkie is just not used to such workouts. (Insert joke here.)