a funny thing happened on the way to the gym

"why does bottled water have an expiration date" was the question posed to me by one of the players as he was getting on the bus to go to the gym. i said "it must be marketing". the strength coach said he thought it was the plastic. i told them i knew ice had an expiration date on it and the way i remembered was after hurricane katrina fema trucked in truckloads of ice that went bad and had to be thrown out. then i remembered the civil defense used to store barrels of water and crackers and i don't remember an expiration date on them. when i mentioned the civil defense, several players asked what that was. i tried to explain but i could not find the words nor do i know if the civil defense still exists. i need to google that one. i asked the original player who brought up the subject how old he was. when he answered "24" then i knew why he and the others had never heard of the civil defense and what they were about. then, reality hit as i realized i am old enough to be these guys father!!!
i am in the process of altering my lifestyle. i broke my ankle in may of last year and except for 1 stint on the treadmill, i had not worked out since. i have a total gym xl at home and it is an incredible piece of equipment. prior to my ankle accident, i was on it at least 4 times per week. it felt good to workout and i missed it. for a while. after several weeks turning into months, it becomes a very expensive dust collector. it is in the same spot where i left it.
so, i am back in the gym with a group of professional athletes and watching them and what they do, i know i will never be able to do what they can do. youth is on their side. age and gravity are on mine and i am losing. point is, sometimes in life we see ourselves as we were and not as we are. i joke with several of the players about switching clothes so i can play in their place. i know i can't do what they do. what i can do is get them from point "a" to point "b" as safely as possible. it is still a thrill to do what i do. it is also a thrill to be with these players and live thru them. i have my own function here and i will do it to the best of my ability just as they do theirs to the best of their ability.
by the way, why does bottled water have an expiration date?
until next time...