This morning, I had that lovely mortality reminder, the annual physical -- getting stuck, poked and prodded in various unpleasant ways to make
sure everything is in order for another year. Every time I go through
this, I can't help thinking about one of my all-time favorite
singer/songwriters, the late great Warren Zevon,
who might still be alive if he'd taken a little more care about things
like annual physicals. Zevon died of cancer five years ago this
September. During a poignant farewell appearance on "Late Show With David Letterman," Zevon joked that not having seen a doctor for 20 years "was one of those phobias that really didn't pay off."

So after I get home tonight, I'm going to pay tribute by firing up Zevon's final album, 2003's "The Wind." For more on that, click through.