Eric and I Played at Torrey Pines More Than Ten Years Ago

     Because it's Eric's birthday today, and the pros are playing at Torrey Pines for the Farmers Insurance Open, I am posting this entry from over ten year ago...

Written on 6-18-09.

   Well, they do have wi-fi here at the Inn at Sunset Cliffs, but they have it for only half of the building.  Unfortunately, it’s on the half of the building that we aren’t in.  So, I am sitting in the room next to the office where the wi-fi is strong, the U.S. Open is on a big Gateway flat screen television, and it’s nice and quiet.  Except for the cars going by outside.  And the guy in the office talking on the phone. 

   This is our last night here.  What a trip so far!  We’ve done a bunch of touristy activities since we’ve been here.  Let me see if I can recap. 

   On Sunday, we left for Las Vegas.  We spent one night there at the Hilton.  Before we left for San Diego on Monday, we rode the ride called Insanity on the top of the Stratosphere.  James and Kyle went first.  It was expensive!   Wow!  For James, Kyle, Eric, Danielle, Rebecca, and I to go up to the top, and for James and Kyle to ride one ride, it cost $95.00.  It was $15.00 just for people to go up to the top.  To describe the ride, I’ll just copy and paste the explanation of it right off of the Stratosphere web site…

Insanity the Ride is a truly mind-bending experience! A massive mechanical arm extending out 64 feet over the edge of the Stratosphere Tower at a height of over 900 feet, Insanity will spin you and several other passengers in the open air at speeds of up to three 'G's. You'll be propelled up to an angle of 70 degrees, which will tilt your body into one position - facing straight down! If you're brave enough to keep your eyes open you'll be rewarded with a breathtaking view of historic downtown Las Vegas. Experience Insanity and walk away to tell the tale!

   James, Kyle, Rebecca, and I lived and walked away to tell the tale.  I didn’t mind the height so much, but the spinning was not so great for me.  I became dizzy enough to have my vision blur, so I wasn’t “rewarded with a breathtaking view of historic downtown Las Vegas.”  When it was 3-G spinning me around, it...

My First Birdie in 2020 With My S7K Putter

Written on 1-18-2020.

     I’ve got some updates after reading and posting my last entry.  First, the PED visit got cancelled for Project Alpine.  They chose not to risk the trip with the snowy weather, so I didn’t have to go to work yesterday.  I got a chance to sleep in, do a workout, and get some stuff done instead.

     Second, Em is still sick.  We spoke with James yesterday, and he was away on a road trip with some friends, but he let us know that she was still feeling puny after her trip back to her home in the UK.  I am betting she will be back to work next week, though.

     Third, I didn’t play golf on Tuesday after I set that tee time at 10:10.  I got an opportunity to go see the dermatologist on Tuesday (a cancelled appointment opened up a spot), so I played on Monday instead.  I didn’t tell the others, though, because I thought I might just go practice with my new putter, and the weather wasn’t predicted to be as nice as Tuesday.  I love that new putter even more now, and here’s why…

On to golf…

     Before I chose to go play, I tried my new putter on the practice green, and I had some real success with it.  With five golf balls, I dropped them in a line starting from four feet away, and then three feet or so in between all the way back to around fifteen feet.  During one round of five balls, I actually made...

Second Post in 2020, How I Will Swing Better This Year

Written on 1-12-2020.

     It’s a Sunday night, and we are getting ready for the week.  Belinda walked the dog, and now she is washing the mud and dirt off his paws in our bathtub as I type this.  He doesn’t like it, but he puts up with it.  We always give him a treat when he is done, though.  I have to be the one to lift him into the tub, because…well…because I am the man.  B could lift him, but why?  

     I have a busy week with work coming up. I go to Gallup to visit Twin Lakes and Lincoln on Wednesday and Thursday, and then we have the PED joining us (Alexis and Abena) on a trip to Newcomb to see Oliver and some other candidates along the way.  They just want to see some of the faces that are tied to the grant.

     I just spoke with James briefly on Messenger Video.  He is at work, but he’s going to see Em tonight. She got back late Saturday, but she has been feeling sick since returning to New Zealand, so he’s going to cheer her up and hopefully make her feel better.

     I just exchanged texts with Danielle, too.  She and Matt are in San Diego visiting his brother.  They are watching The Wedding Singer together, and that’s the way it is when it comes to communicating with the kids.  A short conversation here, and a few abbreviated text messages there.  I’ll take even snippets of conversations here and there, though.  It’s just great to hear from them.

On to golf…

     I set a tee time on Tuesday at...

First Post in 2020!

Written on 12-31-19.

     I’m supposed to be writing letters to my family.  Not just any letters, but really special letters.  Letters for them to read upon my death.  

    No wonder I am procrastinating.  I accidentally told Danielle I was writing them for my To Do List before the new year, and she freaked out.  I shouldn’t have told her, but I just forgot because of the stroke.  

     It’s really because of the stroke that we are so focused on things we need to do in case one of us dies.  Or if both of us die.  It seems morbid, but we are actually preparing gifts, a selfless act.  

     When Belinda was cleaning out Dale’s house, she secretly wished for a goodbye letter…but she never found one, of course.  She knows how much he loved her, but it would have been nice to have a final goodbye.  More closure.  Wasn’t meant to be, and Dale really wasn’t a writer.

     I will get to it right after I finish up here, my last entry in this year’s golf journal.

     Boy, September 25th came and went, and I didn’t..