A Year in Pictures of Working

Over the holidays I was standing in a Customer Service line at Best Buy when the man behind me started talking to me.

Man: 6'3''?
Me: Uh... oh, 6'4''.
Man: 6'4''. Christopher Reeves was 6'4''. So is Brandon Routh.
Me: The new Superman?
Man: Yes. They were both 6'4''.
Me: Well, I guess I don't mind being Superman size.
Man: Of course, you'd be short in the NBA. Your height just wouldn't cut it there.
Me: Sure. True.
Man: Frank Sinatra was an uncommonly skinny man. They called him 'the Straw.' Now, you may be asking yourself why I mention this and I'll tell you. Time gets us all. [patting his stomach] Eventually Sinatra became quite thick.

I once read in the book 'Blink' that the majority of American CEOs are tall. About a third are 6'2'' or taller. Supposedly tall people get better jobs and make more money. Studies have shown that each extra inch of height is worth an extra $789 a year in salary.

There are, of course, downsides to being tall. It's hard to get pants that fit, for instance, especially jeans. And as time continues to "get me" my height/gut combination means that most stores don't carry my size. I used to be right on the edge, but I ate my way over it, and now I have to order everything on-line. Even then the selection is limited. I ordered what I thought were some dark jeans (dark is good right?) and ended up with black jeans (black is bad, right?).

Hansen: Take them back. You're not Italian and you don't drive a Trans Am.

Which is all by way of saying that I joined a gym today. There's one right by work. It's a little expensive, but hopefully I can use some of the money my height makes to slow the expansion of my width.

# posted by Arnie : 11:45 PM