Lower Back Pain on Mother's Day

I've been flat on my back for about five days now. I'm not sure what I did, but my lower back has been killing me. I tried to ignore it for a while, but it's been pretty loud. For the past two days, I've been getting up minimally, like just to eat. The ice is helping, and I'm taking ibuprofen around the clock. I had a similar episode about two years ago, and managed to get long-term relief with some core strengthening exercises (Pilates). But, man, when a body gets to be 40 or so years old, it takes active work to maintain it.

I did get up yesterday and headed to the Hyatt for Mother's Day brunch. It's still the best Sunday brunch on the island, combining great food, beautiful atmosphere, and good company. But over the years, the price has gotten really high, and our family has gotten really big. So, we hadn't been for five years, or so. It was an opulent experience, and I even ate flesh from some formerly-living animals. (I don't want to say "dead" because that would be too graphic.) It was good. Savage, but good.