Thanks for the Ride, Green Callaway Golf Ball!

Written on 3-23-24.

      It’s a Saturday afternoon, and B and I are having some quiet time.  She is resting in our bedroom, and I just moved from our computer room to the living room in order to stretch out on the couch.  My back is aching a bit after sprinkling in a few of the 21-Day Fit Extreme workouts in the past couple of weeks and a crowded ride to Albuquerque in the Edgerton’s truck.  Normally, that wouldn’t be too bad, but like I wrote above, we brought a lot of stuff to give to the kids and it was a bit cramped.

I have so many things to write about I don’t know where to begin, so I will simply start.

I finished my last day at Newcomb on Thursday, so I am done with work for this year.  I submitted my invoice and my travel reimbursement, so the only final “to do” items have to do with some follow-up with some teachers at both schools.  It feels surreal to be done with work in March, but I have plenty to do in April and May.  Of course, I have more time freed up for...

Another Birdie at Moab!

Written on 3-17-24.

      I am riding in the back seat of A’s and E’s GMC Sierra, and I am being jostled about.  Eric is studying for a series of Certified Flight Instructor (CFI) tests next to me.  He takes the first of four tests next Friday.  We joked about how he is becoming a teacher after years of putting up with all of our teacher talk.  A is driving, and B is happy in the front seat with her twin sister. 

We are heading to Albuquerque to pick up Becca, who has flown out to show off her big baby belly before she delivers “our grand-baby” around May 23rd.  Exciting stuff!

We have brought cookies, taco salad, Cheez-Its, and more.  We sure spoil our kiddos.

Back to golf…

Hole 10-Eric hit the best tee shot on this par three.  He was just off the green on the left side, and although he left his putt short of the hole, he made the longer par putt to earn the point.  My tee shot ended up short, but I chipped it to within eight feet.  I had a real chance to cancel out his point with my own par, but my putt missed left.  Greg got a bogey after hitting his tee shot short and into the bunker on the right side. 

Hole 11-I won the hole for Greg and me with a bogey.  My 7-iron approach was skulled, but it ended up on the green.  It was far from the hole, but...

My First Birdie of 2024 in Moab!

Written on 3-13-24.

      I am in our Alto sitting at the dining table.  My keyboard is cool from the nighttime temps here, but I will warm it up soon with some clacking.  Amanda, Belinda, and James just pedaled off on their bikes towards the city of Moab.  We are set up at Group Site B at the Goose Island Campground with the Edgertons and Greg and Nan, and it’s been just great.

James surprised us all by appearing two nights ago.  Some college kids have Group Site A next to us.  Nan counted nine tents, and over a dozen twenty-somethings swarmed the site with multiple rented Chrysler Pacifica mini-vans.  When James pulled up, I thought he was one of them.  He was driving his Kia and using his phone to video out of his window, and I thought this young man was silly.  When he pulled into our site behind Eric’s and Amanda’s RV, I thought he was coming to talk to us or apologize for their impending loudness again.  I didn’t even think that he wasn’t driving a mini-van.  A girl had approached us earlier to inform us that they might get a bit loud at night, but it they did, please just come over and tell them.

Oh, wow.  Sleazy Bed Track just came on on my phone, and that’s a song that always makes me think of James.  Not that he is sleazy, of course, but it’s a song we both appreciate.  Hey, I’m not sleazy either.

And, there was much rejoicing when we realized it was him!  It felt so wonderful to see him, and he came with super news.  After passing the two required insurance tests, he now has a potential job (more than likely) with Grant’s company selling insurance premiums for businesses.  He drove here from Albuquerque immediately after his two-hour interview.  He only has to talk to the owner of the company on Thursday.  

Those kids next to our site, by the way, would peter out well before we did the past two nights.  We should have been the ones to go over to their site to let them know that if we got too loud, they should feel free to come ask us to quiet down a bit.

I was able to text Danielle to see if she was alive when we had boys’ night out at the Proper Brewery.  She was.  She said she was a tired girl.  She had survived four weeks and two days.  Keep going, Dani-Girl!

On to golf…

Greg, Eric, and I played at the Moab Golf Club yesterday.  Greg called in advance to set a tee time for 11:30, and we arrived an hour early to warm up.  It was a bit chilly despite the weather reports.  Yesterday was supposed to be the best weather day, but it was breezy and brisk at times.  

I recommended that we should pay the "King of the Beach” type game that we have played before, and they agreed.  It’s perfect for three players.  I was the first to play by myself, and it was a rough start.  I will do a hole by hole retelling, since the rest of the round went well for me.

Hole 1-I pulled my tee shot...

We Witness a Personal Best

Written on 3-3-24.

      It’s another Sunday here at home, and I am watching ShyShay’s team, the VA Elites, playing a match from yesterday’s tournament in Florida on balltime.com.  They are getting beat rather soundly, but Guy did say some of the opponents were already committed to play at D1 schools like Oregon and Tennessee.  Shy’s teammate, Anna, is out, also, and she is one of their better players, if not the best, in my opinion.

Danielle has made it through three weeks at the Albuquerque Fire Academy, but Friday was a rough day.  She sobbed in James’s arms later that day, but she has since recovered.  She did say that they would have to make her quit, because there is no way she would make the decision to quit.

James gained some of his confidence back by passing an insurance test.  He has another one coming up on Thursday, and he needs to pass both to be able to apply for a job where Grant (last name) is working.

Belinda and I have one more week before our spring break.  I work at McCoy this Tuesday, but after that, I’ll only have two more visits, one each to Newcomb and McCoy to finish out my year.  I will get those in during the week after spring break.  We are looking forward to getting Baker Street de-winterized and ready for a trip to Moab and a group site.  Yes, golf will be included!

On to golf…

Greg and I played at Pinon Hills again.  He had his best nine holes on the front, shooting a 43!  He was playing so well that it went by unnoticed.  I played lousily on the front after a decent start.  After four holes, I was only down by one stroke, but then he went one way…and I went the other.

I rebounded on the back nine, and I shot a 46.  I only had two bad holes, #15 and #16, but I had five pars, and that really boosted my confidence with the new clubs and the Arccos sensors.  Greg manage a 46, too, but he texted me later that he forgot a stroke on hole #14 where he had a bad blow-up hole.

Two of my pars came on the last two holes, which are the #2 and #4 handicap holes.  On both, I had drives of over 260 yards.  Yes, those can give me some confidence going into my next round, also.

We played with a young man named Easton, too.  He had just graduated from Piedra Vista, and he was on the golf team.  He said he was a JV player, but he shot his best round with us.  He earned an incredible eagle on hole #8, and he backed that up with a birdie on hole #9, the two toughest holes on the front nine.  He drove the ball far and straight most of the day.  He was even on the front nine, and he ended with a 79.  Greg and I commented that it was like playing with a pro and getting a front row seat to the action.  He was so excited about his score (as he should be), that he was saying over and over again as we walked off of #18, “I’m geeking.  I’m geeking about this.”

It was fun to see.