Ah, yesterday I wrote about stacking and mowing and painting  – a change from my recent days of dudding on the sofa or in a chair somewhere with my feet propped up. Last night I noticed I was a little  . . . okay, STIFF. Stiff in the feet, the ankles, knees and hips. I was also achy in some of my larger muscles – just visualize someone stretching their legs out and moving their feet up and down to somehow work the kinks out of the butt apparatus.

I was in marching band when you had to raise your knees so your thighs were parallel to the ground – none of this little walking/shuffling along. (I’m not going to apologize; bands just don’t high step the way we did way back then.) Doing that today and coming off the field would be problematic – I imagine the EMS would be called about 20 seconds after the loudspeaker boomed: Preeeeeesenting: The 1965 XXXX High School Marching Band.

I have a vague memory of Memorial Day Parades: The road past the cemetery was left in bricks and I think when we “hit the bricks” the drums were to go to rims and the rest of us were to assume a lower step. Looking forward to the bricks sticks in my mind.

What I do not remember after any Friday at school followed by practice and then showing up for the pre-game and half-time show was being the least bit stiff and sore on Saturday. I guess it’s better than being a complete stiff, as Mr. Capone would say.