It’s amazing how music can bring back memories. I was thinking about this – and by now you already know that I always have to say where I was when I was thinking something, which, I’m thinking as I sit at my desk looking at the Bobby Orr photo must be because thinking per se is such an usual activity for my brain that I have to geotag it – as I was walking up the hill from the gym last night, listening to a tune.

The soundtrack of my life right now.

So, I’m climbing up the hill, listening to that and feeling my heartbeat go up and my legs start to move faster and faster, I’m running in place and my fist is pumping in the air, and I’m feeling invincible, when it occurs to me that once when I had just taken a math test in high school, a little unsure of how well I had done, and as I closed the door to the classroom, I found myself mouthing the words to this:

And especially the part, “you don’t have to worry, baby don’t you worry anymore.” And I felt better. Of course, I had aced the test. Then, this morning, I was driving back home after having dropped the kids to the day care and school when I heard this:

And it reminded me of the night my Mom was driving me to hockey practice, and we stood at the red light, and I heard this:

But of all the songs and places that I put together, this the oldest one. This, too, has my Mom in the picture. She’s actually cleaning up the apartment, and I’m on the floor playing with the toys that I always tell people I never had, and she plays this song on the reel tape machine we had.

And now I’ll listen to that Queen song once more. Right here, in my office, with the sun shining right in, onto my skates on the floor.