Arnold

Looks like I will be flying out to Maryland next month for my significantly older brother Mark's 50th birthday. When I called him yesterday he filled me in on the details. Turns out Mark will be competing in the master's division bodybuilding extravaganza in Annapolis. Yes, you heard right. Speedo, tanning oil, big fake smile while he's flashing those stellar abs. I should mention here that Mark is the inspiration for my young adult novel coming out next year - Brothers, Boyfriends, and Other Criminal Minds - and there is a scene in the first chapter where he is 16, shirtless, and flexing in front of a big mirror until one of his friends calls out in an Austrian accent, "Hey Arnold, enough pumping iron! Give your reflection one last kiss, and let's play some ball!" Some things never change.