Notes to My 1989 Self

So on the occasion of a birthday I'll drop me a line, some things that I think I would have been better off knowing in 1989:

1. Neither driving a pickup truck nor listening to country and western music is going to be as painful as you think it will be.

2. Hope you enjoyed that '85 World Series, Royals fan...

3. Your alma mater will make it back to the Rose Bowl in your lifetime. Winning it, however, will be another matter.

4. You still have your hair, and about 85-90 percent of it is the same color. You will want to let your high school classmates know this as often as you can.

5. You will keep in touch with them via something called "Facebook," which is on something called "the internet." We'll talk more about it after you've run out and bought some Apple Computer stock.

6. Brother, are you in for a career change.

7. That guy who wouldn't shut up during his loooooong speech at last year's Democratic convention? He's going to serve two terms as president.

8. So's the guy who just started running the Texas Rangers.

9. Buying that CD player will turn out to be a good move; the new turntable, not so much.

10. You'll weigh about what you do now, but it's going to take a lot more work than you think it does.

11. Next year there'll be a program called Law and Order show up on your TV. Get used to to it.

12. Misty-eyed nostalgia may catch you in weak moments and make you wish you could turn the clock back, but most of the time you'll realize you wouldn't do it even if you could.