So I've taken up a new sport, even though I don't even have time for some of my old favorites, tennis and golf in particular. Due to my ever advancing age, I decided that I need more consistent cardiovascular exercise, and I think cycling is the answer. So far I'm really enjoying it and I don't even mind wearing the super tight clothes (sadly, I even find myself shopping online for new outfits). The first ride was very tough, as I was struggling to find the right gear on the hills and then I hit a big wall at 20 miles. Every hill after that point caused my legs to freeze up. But now, a couple of rides later, I'm starting to feel good and I'll soon be closer to the pace of my cycling buddies. The timing of this new endeavor is unfortunate though. Since the Tour de France is currently underway, some of you probably think that I am simply Tour fallout. For those of you not familiar with the term fallout in this context, I'll explain with a story (don't worry, it won't be that long). When I was 12, I took tennis lessons and became fairly proficient at the game (yeah, my non-slice backhand is shaky, but let's try to stay on topic here). So I learned to play and really enjoyed the game. The problem I had, however, was that there were no decent tennis courts in the town in which I lived. None. Not one. It just wasn't a tennis town. The courts at the high school were right next to a busy road, so they were very noisy and aligned such that in the morning or evening there was always a blind side thanks to the sun. Oh, and there wasn't enough room around the court, so a kick serve could hit the side fence before you could hit it, or a good lob could bounce over the end fence. Finally, it was coated with some sort of slick paint that caused the ball to skid. Basically, you couldn't make a tennis court worse than this one if you tried. What I'm getting at is that no self-respecting tennis player would ever actually play tennis on this court unless they had no other choice. The courts were empty almost all the time, unless some kids were skateboarding or something. But every year in mid-summer you'd see people getting out there with their wooden rackets and dead tennis balls to hit it around after watching Wimbledon on television. Every year, like clockwork. It would invariably turn into home run derby or something, I'm sure, but they went out there to play tennis. And the worst part was that they would spread (like a plague) onto the good courts of neighboring towns, preventing us from playing in peace. These people are what we would call (with disdain) Wimbledon fallout. So please don't consider me Tour fallout, it's a disgrace I simply could not bear.

Happy Independence Day! It's a great day to reflect on how lucky we are to live in this great, free nation. Yes, our national soccer team had a disappointing World Cup, but I'm still proud to be an American. As much as I enjoyed my recent trip to Italy, I still have so much to see right here in the USA. And when I need a little taste of Europe, in just a few minutes I can head over to Waterfire in Providence during the summer. Speaking of Italy, my best friend and his new bride are in Rome right now celebrating their honeymoon. I was lucky enough to have been bestowed the honor of being his best man at the wedding. It was wonderful to stand with him on such a joyous occasion. They are two of the nicest people I have ever met and I was so happy for them that I couldn't stop smiling.

P.S. Italy won an exciting World Cup semi-final match today against Germany, 2-0 in overtime. They scored the first goal with only a couple minutes left in the OT. ESPN showed video of a crowd watching a big screen at the Circus Maximus in Rome and it looked like an exciting time. I hope the honeymooners were part of the fun!