Getting Back To Notmal

I am sure that's what we are all trying to do this Monday AM. As much as I like the holidays it is always nice to resume a regular schedule. The nurse and I spent the last two and half days filled with family and friends and having a lot of fun. After a quiet Christmas day with my father for dinner we ended everything with my family gathering on Sunday. We all gather at the Masonic Complex in Fostoria (lots of room for the kids). My three great nephews (aka The Wrecking Crew) are 7, 5, and 3 were in normal form. I'm sure you can image where their nickname comes from. Miss Emma is the only girl in the group and gets a lot of attention from the women in the family. And, of course the Rabbit Wrangler is the old man of the group but can still stir the pot.

Traveling was no picnic yesterday. Not much snow , but what we had was blowing and creating slippery conditions on the roads. We did dodge a big bullet with the storm that hit on the East Coast. Looks like a real mess and I'm glad we aren't a part of it.

Looking forward to the new year and a short winter. See ya later this week.

Three Wise Men

Well we think we are wise but I'm not sure the rest would agree. Twinkle Toes, Jimmy E and I showed up for lunch yesterday and had a lively discussion about the rest of you ( just kidding). Now we didn't solve any world or local problems, but had a good time trying. I'm not sure but the last time we can assemble our august group at the BCC training table in 2010 is probably next Thursday or Friday. With the SD in California we may have to use the coconut telegraph to get the word out. Stay tuned.

Not much else for now. Have a MERRY CHRISTMAS and be safe.

O. B. Insanity

The other day at lunch we were discussing this situation and I promised to clarify it for all you rules officials. The names have been changed to embarrass the guilty.

The situation - While playing the second hole during the JR/SR Championship Gilhooley nearly Schwiers one OB by Dr. AH's patio. Next to play is Twinkle Toes who hits a Schweir very close to the same spot but is out of bounds. While Twinkle Toes is standing OB looking at his ball to make sure it is really OB Gilhooley Schwiers his second shot and hits Twinkle Toes in the shin and his ball goes onto the patio (which is definitely OB). As Twinkle Toes is howling in pain and dancing around on one foot (demonstrating why he has the name) he exclaims that Gihooley will incur a penalty for striking him with the ball plus one for hitting it OB. Of course Gilhooley takes exception to this. LTG happens to be in the group and tries to render a decision from a legal perspective.

What do the rules say?

Decision 19-3/1 spells out what exactly should happen in this situation. This decision states a ball in motion that is stopped or deflected by your opponent through the green can be cancelled and replayed from the original spot of the shoot without penalty. The fact that Twinkle Toes was OB makes no difference. The only person happy about the out come was Laurie who got a bunch of unhappy people off her patio and could go back to reading her book in peace.

We all know the golf gods don't let any good break go unpunished. Gilhooley dropped and hit his replay into the lake. Thereby giving LTG another opportunity to demonstrate his legal skills in interpreting where Gilhooley should drop.

Surviving The Circuit

Well it is the Sunday before Christmas and I've survived another holiday party season. This realization is always bittersweet. First I'm kinda of glad everything is going to return to normal in few days. Try as I might not to, I always seem to overeat or at least consume too much of the wrong food groups (even though I like them) and on rare occasion drink too much. But then I also realize the winter doldrums will soon be with us. But it is always great fun to see everyone, eat too many cookies, and do a little entertaining. Given a choice I'll take the party season over sitting at home watching bowl games with teams I've never heard of.

Since the club will closed for an extended period I thought it wise to bring the SOTD money home and put it in the safe. I did perform an audit and found we actually have one more dollar than I originally thought. So now all I have to do is con troll the urge to buy lottery tickets or take a quick trip to Greek Town. Hence the safe, since I can't remember the combination half the time. So at least it's safe half the time.

It looks like we can squeeze one more lunch in this week. Watch for the email from the SD, but in the meantime be safe and have fun.

PS - I made the mistake of running an errand yesterday around noon. The economy must be getting better. Everyplace was very busy and traffic around Crossroads was really heavy.

Winter's Ugly Head

We knew it had to happen and yesterday winter raised it's ugly head. The first major snow of the year always leaves me with mixed feelings. First it really kind of neat in a way. Everything looks so clean (for about 24 hrs.) Then reality sets in when I think about getting the snow blower out of storage. As most of you probably do, I have that love hate relationship with mine. It either won't start, needs the belt changed or some other crazy thing. This year was no exception. To my surprise it started right up and worked fine. At least until one of the handle bolts vibrated loose and fell off in the snow somewhere. Now mind you, I specifically checked them before I started. So it's off to The Anderson's today for a replacement. It seems like this is the 3rd time I've had to do this over the years. I probably should pick up a spare drive belt while I'm there.

I talked with Dr. AH yesterday. He came back just in time to catch the snow storm. He said it wasn't going to be much warmer in Florida for a while so he didn't mind the snow. I think that's a bit loony, but suppose being home for Christmas and family is really what it's all about. I'm sure after a few days of this cold it will reinforce why go to Florida in the first place.

Well, off to The Anderson's and hope they have my parts.

PS - New golf term - A Dick Van Patten; picking up your ball when eight is enough.

Were You There?

The call went out from the Social Director for lunch on Friday and they came in droves. I think we had eleven in total; the largest group since golf in October. There were so many conversations going on you couldn't keep anything straight. The topics were varied but suffice it to say we all know a lot about nothing. Or maybe nothing about a lot. Anyway plan on doing it next week.

The weather has definitely turned to winter. The forecast this AM is calling for snow across the area. I imagine there won't be any carts next week unless they're equipped with chains. LTG said he could probably tolerate the snow until January before taking a quick trip south for a golf fix. Uncle Bob said he was ready to head back to Florida even though he had been here less than a week.

Not much else to tell you. Be safe this week and hope to see you Friday.

PS Yesterday's SOTD money went to Joe as a tip. He had his hands full trying to keep us all straight.

Yikes, Snow!

Wasn't expecting snow on I75 last night. The Nurse and I were coming back from Findlay early last evening with some light snow flurries falling. Just north of Bowling Green we hit what was basically a whiteout for about two miles. Fortunately there weren't any problems but it was a little dicey for a few seconds ( especially when you aren't ready for this). I guess winter isn't far away. I guess I'd better check The Farmer's Almanac for the long range forecast.

Saturday night was the annual Winter Dance. This was our 19Th straight dance. I wasn't planning on attending this year until the Nurse told me she (we) was the Chairperson for the event. I think everyone had a good time. The Home Wreckers came out of retirement and we were their first gig. There was a lot of dancing and a generally good time in the living room. I didn't know Rocky had such great moves! As usual the staff did a great job. They all deserve a big pat on the back.

Come on guys where were you Friday? LTG and I were the only ones who showed up for lunch. TTS tied to use the baking cookies excuse and I'm sure the Social Director was counting cash. Jimmy E has a legit excuse with Rotatory (he is the Prez), but the rest of your were AWOL. So, mark your calendars for this week.

Missed Opportunity (?)

The weather yesterday was pretty mild and may have been an opportunity to tee it up one more time. But, the intermittent drizzle convinced me that wasn't a good idea. That and the fact I had a dental appointment to have crown installed. One thing I did do was put out some of the outdoor decorations. True to form, one set of lights is not working. Today it isn't a consideration. As I look out the window there are flurries and a dusting of white on the ground. Looks to be pretty typical for the first of December.

Since we can't play golf we might as well meet for lunch on Friday. Hope to see you at the club at noon.