Spring?

It's been a rough spring, weather-wise. No... I am not necessarily complaining. And I am not surprised either. But after a "warm snap" in February caused us to cancel the ice skating portion of Boo's birthday party... you can definitely say the weather is keeping us on our toes.

And I am SO glad I haven't attempted to "put up" the winter clothes yet. Just to give you an idea of the roller-coaster ride we are on...

View from my office window on March 31, 2008:


View from my office window on April 8, 2008:

In between the sporadic snow days, Scott is finding lots of opportunities to play golf. Since temperatures are supposed to reach the 60's and 70's by this weekend he already has a couple of tee times.

I am taking golf lessons in two weeks. Wanna take any bets on what they weather will be like by then? Yeah... me neither!

Kinzua

We are back from another fun-filled weekend at Kinzua.

It was a much quieter weekend. The last time we went it was for a couples' tournament and it was really busy. This time there were only six of us at the campground. Pat, the groundskeeper, lives in his trailer up by the clubhouse. And there were a few other golfers that came in for the day.

On Saturday we arrived late in the morning. Scott went right out onto the course to start playing. I rode along to heckle and take pictures. That evening we played a friendly scramble-format tournament, with five people on each team. We made it through twelve holes, then it was time to kick back and relax.

Our friends treated us to a kicking BBQ dinner of London Broil, potatoes, and asparagus. We brought some corn, and everyone had plenty to eat. We proceeded to sit around and drink and laugh into the night.

The next morning the guys went up and tee'd off at nine in the morning... waaay too early for me. I think Scott played 30 holes on Sunday. He just hated that. ;) I stayed around the campground to hang out with Divot, sit in the sun, sit in the shade, and relax with a book.

I think we have definitely decided on buying a family membership for next year. The next natural step (I hope) will be the purchase of a smallish tent trailer. My bones are just too creaky for golf after a night sleeping (or not) on the ground.

Thirsty

OK folks I am ready for something new and I need your help!

We are going to be spending some quality time with our golfing buddies this weekend... which will be bringing out the lush in me. (Not that it's difficult to find, I know!) I am definitely bringing the makings for my latest favorite: Blueberi Stoli & Lemonade. Here's where you come in...

What's your favorite drink recipe? Maybe it will be my new favorite too! Keep in mind I am lazy, so the fewer ingredients and less work... all the better. And since we are golfing, it must travel well in my Nalgene bottle.

Don't worry I will be taking plenty of non-alcoholic liquids with me too! :)

Kinzua

This weekend Scott and I played in a couples' golf tournament at Kinzua Hills Golf Club. Where's that? Well... it's here. About as close to the middle of nowhere you can get in Oregon. And yes, there is a golf course there. It has six holes so you play it three times around.

Saturday
We left Bend early and arrived at the golf course at about 10am. Our group wasn't due to start until 1-ish, but by arriving a few hours early we had the opportunity to settle into our accommodations (set up a tent), rent a golf cart (no pink ones available), and start drinking. Exhibit A:
It was a warm day, so we were plenty thirsty. Our friend whipped up a batch of very refreshing mojitos. By the time we tee'd off it was (surprise, surprise) about 75 degrees outside.
We played scramble format, and things went OK. We started off with a birdie, and things went up and (mostly) down from there. I could tell the golf lessons I took last month helped tremendously. But I still have a lot to work on - consistency being first and foremost. Scott won both the men's KP (closest drive to the pin) and the men's long drive contest. That should tell you something about Scott's golf game.

After dinner it was time to socialize. And at Kinzua that means...KaraokeDancing and, well, much more.

Sunday
After a great night's sleep, we awoke refreshed and ready for the morning round. Ha! More like after going to bed much later than we should have, we spent the night tossing and turning on our under-inflated air mattress, freezing our a**es off during a 40 degree night. When I got up I had exactly two things on my mind and neither of them were golf. Coffee and Advil. Good to go. The format was Scotch which means that Scott & I shared a ball, and alternated who hit it. So whoever didn't putt the ball in, made the next drive. Confusing? Yes. Wish I had rested better the night before? Definitely.

Let's just say, there were highs and lows. My lowest was a stunning 4 inch drive off the 11th tee. On that particular hole we got an 8 (aka "the snowman"). Scott's lowest was at the 5th hole (yeup, same one since the course is only 6 holes). His first shot went waaaay off to the left. Who knows where it went, but it was definitely out of bounds. Then his second attempt (now stroke #3) went into the rough about 20 yards away from the tee box. On that hole we got... a perfect ten. Yikes.

But the good was really good. Good enough that we could just sit and laugh about the lows. On the first tee I was driving yet again (since we started on #6, this was our 14th hole). I am getting better with my driver, but things are pretty inconsistent (thus, the 4 inch drive). I smacked the ball about 200 yards, right at the pin. Wow! At that hole the tee box is up a hill from the cart path, and the guys had waited for us down below so I had to shout "that was JEN'S drive!" just so they (and everyone else) knew. We drove down and Scott took his shot, which landed about 10 yards from the green. I stepped up with my wedge (which had been working pretty well for me on BOTH days), and hit the ball. It bounced up to the green and rolled... right into the hole. I think everyone in Kinzua (and maybe even some folks in Fossil) heard my "Woo hoo!!!" It felt really REALLY good to write down that birdie!

In the end... we weren't first but we also weren't last. It definitely felt good to be a contributor to our team score, instead of Scott having to play it well and play it safe in order to make up for my golfing deficiencies.

And it was a BLAST. We are definitely going to make it back to Kinzua for the tournament next year, if not sooner. If you like golf too, maybe we will see you there some time. And if you go... tell them Spike sent you.

Mulligan

(In golf speak that means "do-over".)

Last night was like final exam time for golf lessons. Over the first two days the class was coached in hitting with irons, then chipping and pitching, and finally hitting with woods. We went over etiquette, safety, and general guidelines. Then they let us loose on the links.

We played scramble format. (From about.com: In a scramble, each player tees off on each hole. The best of the tee shots is selected and all players play their second shots from that spot. The best of the second shots is determined, then all play their third shots from that spot, and so on until the ball is holed.) The instructors stayed with us for the first hole, then wandered between groups. Some played only one hole. At about 8:45pm my group - cold, shivering, and laughing - finally headed for the clubhouse.

If you are thinking about taking golf lessons, I would highly recommend this program as a good place to start. I will probably return for another lesson at some point in the near future. For now I am confident enough to play on my own for a bit, and practice what I have learned.

Big thanks to Bob and Dylan at Lost Tracks for a great class!

p.s. Complete Ashland coverage is coming soon!

Golf

I am taking golf lessons.

Scott is an avid golfer. And he is a great golfer. And sometimes (who knows why) he wants me to go golfing with him. Usually this means we meet up with another couple, and I am embarrassed for 18 long holes. With a sigh I pick up my ball after each sorry shot, and put it up with Scott's well-placed shot. Once we get to the green things go a bit better - I am actually a fair putter.

I like the experience of golf. I like being outside. I like driving the cart. I like drinking beer. I just don't do well at the part where I actually have to PLAY golf. Scott tries to coach me, but sometimes I think that does more harm than good. He says things to me like "hit down on the ball". But he can't tell me HOW to do that - just that I should. Huh?

This year, I resolved to try to be a better golfer. I found out that Parks & Rec offers golf lessons. I signed up for a women-only class. Why bother embarrassing myself in front of a bunch of guys? The first class was last night.

While the weather wasn't great - and class was actually over early due to lightning - I already feel like I am going to get my money's worth. The instructor (Dylan) is great. He can tell me HOW to do all those things that Scott says I should be doing.

And... I hit the ball with my 7 iron further than I have hit any other golf ball... Ever!!! It was very cool!