Two golf balls

Life does change. Once I had one golf ball to keep all my life. Now I have two.

The first one is from my only birdie. The Eighth hole at Dearborn Hills with Zeke, my Uncle John. August 1991. On the green, 180 yards, with a 4 iron. Then one putt, a hard left to right, about 25 feet. Drained it. Still have that ball.

Yesterday I earned my only other keeper. I hit it off the tee and it drove hard to the right. Way to the right, so that it flew into the next fairway over. My buddy Ron yelled, "Fore!", as he should have. The ball landed, took a hard bounce, grazed the brim of my friend Kevin's hat, whistled by my other friend's (yes, I have two friends) Scotty's ear, and landed in the basket of the golf cart they were in.

But the story does not end there. I ran over to them, apologizing profusely. Then I asked for my ball. Hey, those things cost, like, three bucks apiece. I wanted it back.

They said they left it off the fairway behind them. Jerks. So I walked back to the spot where it lay, and picked it up. And carelessly written on it, in indelible ink, was a message. It read: 'Nice try Marty, but we're still alive. Scott and Kevin'.

I'm keeping that ball.

Three more and out the door

It's coming: the end of the 2015-2016 curling season. A game tonight, a game tomorrow, and a game Saturday. Three more and out the door.

The season wasn't the best. But it wasn't the worst either. We should have done better in the Monday night men's league, but so it goes. Tonight, we play for third place in the Thursday Competitive league. We finished fourth last year, so no matter what happens we won't end up worse. In the Friday mixed league we play for the second half title but we need help. We must win, and the current first place team lose. Either way, okay.

Then curling wraps up Saturday with a 'swing and sweep'. That's where you both curl and golf, the scores are somehow tabulated (not by me; math makes my head hurt) and a winner is declared. It doesn't look as though the weather will cooperate; it may end up too cold and wet to hit the links. Either way, golf or not, then the hard part of the year begins.

We have to wait until October to curl again.