My beloved Honda CRV. image by author

And no. It’s not about big biceps.

I don’t have the use of my left hand for now, but will shortly. The Internet isn’t set up yet in my new house either. Lots of things need doing that might have to take a back seat.

Two days ago, while driving 65 mph westbound on Interstate 84 just outside Twin Falls Idaho, I had a (second) kidney stone attack.

Sudden movement plus momentum plus physics. You can see what happened, above.

Pretty spectacular loop-de-loop.

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Right after I landed in the oncoming traffic lane, I shoved the glass out of the window, crawled out and started finding all my ID, which was scattered to the four winds.

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Bruises, lacerations, a few stitches and staples. Tore up a finger. No shock, no tears, just whadda we gotta do here?

Sh*t happens. Deal with it.

I’m 67. I’m an athlete. A clumsy one, but I am limber and strong. When people bark at me that the only reason I do it is for bragging rights, I am going to show them this photo.

They are missing the point.

I got out of this with scratches. That’s not bragging.

You and I are ever one split second away from something completely unexpected.

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While I would never say that a head-on collision would leave me with a mild headache (and I hope to never find out), I would argue that being fit gives you and me a lot better fighting chance to survive.

Not about being thin.

It’s about being strong, limber, and resilient at any age.

image by author

Because that gives you a fighting chance.

Being fit gives you options.

The option to walk away from flipping a car on a major highway at 65 mph. Just a few bumps and bruises.

I stay fit so that I can survive.

Because life hands us sh*t sandwiches for lunch sometimes. Being thin doesn’t give me an edge.

Being fit does.

That’s why I work out.