Funny thing happened on the way to the golf course. Okay, on the way to the kitchen.
I’m minding my own business, getting ready for golf, drinking coffee, the typical routine…
When I’m not playing golf, my summer footwear is mostly snappers – you may know them as flip flops – so when I play golf I have to bring socks to put on when I change into my golf shoes at the course. I normally grab some when I’m getting dressed in the closet and put them on the table by the front door. Did that as usual. Check.
The routine on any morning involves a nice walk with Vito. Check. (I missed a step here, a crucial step. But I’ll get to that in a minute.)
As I’m getting ready to leave, I’m on my way to the kitchen to grab the lid for my coffee cup and get a treat for Vito and … whooooooosh… my snapper slides across the floor, I slip and swear and wobble and catch my balance as, seemingly in slow motion, a tsunami of coffee goes flying from my mug.
It’s not until I’m on my hands and knees cleaning up the mess that I discover the culprit. The offending “object” that caused me to slip. When I saw it, I busted out laughing. Have you ever seen the movie Turner and Hooch? Well, there, lying on the tile, was a gigantic shoestring piece of slobber. Not mine. And Vito is my only roommate. Here’s where that crucial step in Vito’s walk I mentioned comes in. Vito is a big dog. With big jowls. Some levels of activity or excitement when we walk cause him to drool more than others. When I see he’s had one of those walks, I tickle his ear while we’re still outside so he shakes his head and tosses those goobers to nature. Either way, when we get inside, he goes to get a drink and I wipe his mouth with a jowl towel. Obviously, I missed the tickle step and he dropped his load in a dangerous spot before we reached his bowl.
It may have been my responsibility to get him to shake it off, but he should have had the courtesy to drop that honker in a low traffic area, or at least warn me about it. My routine was disrupted, then I was scrambling to not be late and forgot my socks. Thanks a lot, Vito.
Although, as my friend Ron said when I told him the story on the golf course, that would have been a funny coroner’s report. True. I didn’t split my head open. I like to imagine that my recovery was a lot more graceful and slo-mo matrixy than the panicky spazz it probably really was. Ultimately, the whole thing makes me giggle. And I got a new, comfy pair of Footjoy socks at the pro shop out of the deal.
Did I really just blog about dog slobber?
Goober Bliss
Above are some of the fabulous ball markers I’ve gotten from PBM. The necklace pictured is my own magnetic necklace, not sold by PBM but they do sell some beautiful styles of their own. One thing I really like is that the back of the ball markers have that handy arrow for when you have to move your marker out of someone else’s putting line. You simply flip over your marker and point the arrow in the direction you need to move it back to your spot so you don’t forget. Always a nice feature of a ball marker, in my opinion!
as a team) but somehow in the best ball format we have managed to pick up each other’s slack more often than not. This year we are both playing from the white tees which means I will be getting a few extra strokes but losing the distance advantage. We’ll just have to see how that works out.
Will Annika retire on top?
Annika Sorenstam is playing with confidence, grace, and determination. She looks like the Annika we know and love from before her injuries. Her dominant win last week in Virginia keeps her solidly in second place to Lorena Ochoa and the momentum is on her side. More on that in my latest Golf For Women post on Swing Thoughts.
Now there is a rumor that Annika will retire at the end of this year, and she’s supposedly going to make a statement today. We all know she is marrying Mike McGee and wants to start a family. While most of the working world has to work more to support a family, she has the luxury and probably the necessity to do the opposite. She’ll still have her business to run but to make time for a family, something’s got to give. Since she has already accomplished so much in professional golf, it makes sense that playing regularly on tour would be the thing to drop. I mean, she’s not going to get rid of that cat. *Side note: Vito actually likes cats. I told you he had snags.*
Of course the retirement issue is of greater importance. Whether she will or won’t, I’d love to see her back in the #1 position before she goes. This year would be just fine with me. The LPGA has a lot of great competition, with dominant Lorena Ochoa leading the pack, so Annika’s got her work cut out for her. I think we’re going to see a lot more stellar play out of Annika this year, and maybe with retirement beckoning at season’s end, her focus and determination will be that much stronger.
Update: It’s official. Annika made the announcement today, citing “following her dreams” of business and family as her reasons for stepping away from competitive golf. She said “I have given it all and it’s been fun.” You can watch the press conference at the link above. She also talks about the state of women’s golf and even gives a nod to Brett Favre for their similarities in reasons to retire (they love the competition, they’re just “tired of the daily grind”). It’s an interesting speech and she also discusses her plans to stay involved in the game of golf and inspire future golfers. As for the next seven months, her goal is to win many tournaments, including majors. That’s what I’m talking about. That’s what I want to see.
Thank you, Annika, for all the years you’ve given us and everything you have already done for golf.
Next post.