Happy 29th Anniversary, Belinda!

Written on 11-24-19.

     Well, this is spectacular!  We are staying in the Sunrise Casita at Blue Lake Ranch for our 29th wedding anniversary.  How did we not discover this place before?  Belinda mentioned we might want to stay at the place where Kelly and Rocky got married, but we would have to do a little research first.  We wanted to go somewhere, do something.  After a quick Google search, here we are.

     I don’t want to sound like a brochure for this place, but hardwood floors, a gas fireplace, southwestern decor, outdoor patios, gardens, vigas, latillas, and much much more comprise the many things that make this place special.  We’ve got it all to ourselves, too.  The Sage and Sunset casitas that are next door are completely vacant.  We just came back from breakfast, and we only saw one other guest.  It’s as if we have it all to ourselves.  Oh, and the veggie frittata was sublime.

     Last night, we ate at the Kennebec Cafe, and of course, our thoughts were with Dale.  He would have approved...

1  It was locals appreciation night, so many meals were discounted to $15.00.  What a deal.  We had a fantastic meal, and we even had dessert.  Happy anniversary, Belinda.  I love you so much.  

     Belinda surprised me with a letter last night, too, and it was very emotional.  I wept.  She got the idea, after the stroke, to write letters to James, Danielle, and me that we would read upon her death.  Then she let me read mine with the condition that I give it back.  She plans on writing one every year.  When she was going through Dale’s closets and drawers, she was secretly hoping to find a similar letter, but that was not his style, and she already knew how much he loved her.

     Belinda, being Belinda, however, decided to write these letters for us, because that’s her style.  If either one of us were to die, she has set things up so selflessly for the survivors.  She now knows what it’s like to leave loved ones unprepared after a death, and my stroke this fall, brought it all home for her.  Not that things were so bad after Dale died, but we had some roadblocks that are still affects us today.  Now, we are better prepared.  I joke that I will be the first to go, but we really don’t know.  With my brain surgery and my stroke the odds are in my favor to go first, so to speak, but nobody knows the day or the hour.

     Of course, now that Belinda has written her letters, I need to do the same.  I will work on my letters this break.  I asked for a late checkout today, but we are already inside an hour, so I better get writing about golf.  Checkout is 10:30, but I got until 11:00.  It’s 10:12 now.

On to golf…  

    This diary is wrapping up, and it has been an eventful year.  We switched our memberships over to Pinon Hills for the first time ever, I got my new irons, and I had the stroke.  That’s a lot to process.  I look at the rounds I played from Hidden Valley, and most are in the 80’s.  I look at my rounds I have played at Pinon Hills, and I only see two rounds in the 80’s.  I knew Pinon Hills would be more difficult, but jeez la weez.  If I can consistently score in the 80’s there, I would feel like I am doing something.  Of course, Bruce just shot an 81 there the last time we played.  He figured out how to make those short putts…and the long ones.  He made several from outside of 15 feet.

     As far as my game is concerned, I really don’t have any good news.  I chuckled when I read above, “I feel good about my golf game right now.”  Now, I don’t feel so good about my golf game.  Golf is so fickle.  Two times I played pretty well, and Mike and I actually beat Bruce and C.J., but then the last two times, I didn’t play so well.  

     The last time I played with Bruce and C.J., I finally get Eric to join us.  Finally.  He only joined us for the front nine, but hey, it’s a start.  We took them on in best ball match play…and lost 2 and 1.  He had two outstanding pars on hole #6 and #7, though, and that helped our cause.  

     On #6, he hit the green and even got his golf ball all the way to the back pin position by the rocks.  He then finished it off with two putts and won the hole.  On #7, he kept it going with another par, although he earned this one the hard way.  After his tee shot, we told him he would find his ball way over on #16.  It was that far left.  He pitched out from there, though, and got it back on the correct hole.  Then he hit the best shot on this hole, and pured it to a few feet left of the flag.