Football Epilogue

Fresh tracks. For some dumb reason, it's been hard for me to do much writing lately. At least anything beyond personal note taking. I've gotten a couple of hundred words written a few times, but nothing has really inspired or formed any kind of a hook for me to take off on. I've also been in more of an about state of things, which might create some fodder, but also increases my lack of patience for organizing my thoughts, but here I am giving it the old "college try". March has been a busy/fast month as most months feel to be lately. It started with a ski trip to Colorado with my kids. This was the fifth year we've taken a trip, and this year didn't disappoint. We did one day at Arapahoe Basin, followed by a day off while a snowstorm moved through the mountains and then skied a second day at Breckenridge in several inches of pristine powder.  The last couple of years skiing in Colorado, I'm finding I really need that first day to adjust to the altitude...

Norman Rockwell's "Triple Self Portrait". Borrowed from website: "10 Most Famous Paintings by Norman Rockwell" . Prints and such:  https://amzn.to/43OWe1H Thankfully, I've been feeling a bit back to normal lately. I'm starting to actually feel acclimated and less in a form of "survival mode". All I have to say is it's about damn time! Feeling back to normal, it's time to re-baseline, i.e. get some perspective of where I'm at and where I maybe want/need to head. I'm thinking mostly in terms of health right now, but could extend this to other areas as I ramble Physically, I'm doing okay. Admittedly, the prolonged cooler weather had put a cramp in my getting of steps (goal of 10k/day). Figuring out my new work schedule also made for some challenges. One thing is true being in more of a managerial role: I have a lot more meetings. This much different than having a technical work focus where I can set something down and go for a ...

Iconic Las Vegas,Image by skeeze from Pixabay For me, visiting Las Vegas once every four or five years for a long weekend is enough to pacify my curiosity for gambling, staying up all night, consuming too much food and alcohol, and reminding myself that I'm no longer in my 20's. This year, I found myself in the oasis-ish place twice. Once in February to golf with one of my good friends and once just last week for a conference; and to golf with that same friend. The Rio, from casino.org The conference was during the week and was held at the Rio All Suites Hotel . It was nice, however I'm starting to realize that all casinos are pretty much the same. They have the same gaming options, same types of slot machines and everything is roughly the same price; which gets jacked up during the weekend. It is a little cheaper to play during the week off of the strip, but those differences evaporate fairly quickly when it's busy. Still, the Rio did have some decent...

I think I've caught the golf itch again this year. I'm finding myself wanting to get out and hit and hit and hit. I think it started with a golf-centric Las Vegas weekend in February with one of my good friends from grad school. The view from the first tee at Siena Golf Club. We played two full rounds. The first was Arroyo at Red Rocks and the second was at Siena Golf Club . My game wasn't the greatest, but it was fun; and apparently the flame was (re)lit. Enough so that I signed up as a sub on the golf league I played on a few years ago and I'm playing in a tournament with that group this weekend. The weather here started to cooperate in early April and I was able to get to the driving range shortly thereafter. I've also started watching some YouTube videos trying to improve my play. One thing I noticed from my Vegas golf was my driver seemed dead compared to my friend and the people we were paired up with. I'm still trying to decide if it...

So on a good note, I won my match yesterday. On a bad note, the latter portion of my round was atrocious. Here's the rundown: Hole 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Tot Par 4 4 5 3 4 3 4 3 4 34 Score 4 4 6 4 9 5 8 7 5 52 One neat thing I've been enjoying is the app  Swing-by-Swing . It provides hole-by-hole scoring, a GPS (although I question the accuracy) and even some side betting. Added features for $15/year can log other performance metrics such as greens in regulation, fairways hit, etc. It's a fun toy so far and may just prompt me to generate some graphs. For a little Overtime workout, I mowed the lawn...

The weather here in MN has been excellent over the last few days. This past weekend I played par 3  Island Lake Golf Course  with a friend and then on Tuesday I played my first league round at  Dwan golf course . Both rounds were so-so. I have been better off of the tee, although I did land all three greens on the par 3s at Dwan and hit 5 greens in regulation (i.e. leaving me with a two putt for par). I three putted more than I am accustomed to though and only par'd one hole per round. The MN golf season is early and there is lots of time for improvement. This year I'm working on slowing down my back-swing in hopes of gaining some control. Obviously I need to put some work in on the putting green and at the driving range as well. I'm also hoping to play a couple of new (to me) courses this year. The St. Croix river valley is full of scenic courses and I am on the lookout for some Groupon or Living Social deals.

Yesterday was my first day out on the driving range. I always seem to lose a little distance to start the year. I think my swing gets largely out of sequence where I lose the hip rotation/snap in the off-season. It's not something that developed when I first started playing golf so I have to be more conscientious about it. Still I hit pretty well with my 3Wood landing beyond 200 yards and minimal hooking. I'm going to take a look at slowing my backswing this season as well. I'm hoping it leads to more control League play starts in a week and a half so I'll be making a few more trips to the range and try to get at least 18 holes of golf in before it starts.  Here's the GHIN handicap card to start the season, lets see if I can make that 25.9 drop substantially this year.

Step totals from Feb. 1 until now. Red lines separate the data by week and the black line is a linear fit. I'd like to stay on the upward trajectory. I've been using the Samsung Health(tm) feature on my phone over the last little while to track my steps. Yesterday was an event as I amassed over 17,000 steps!  The error in a lot of these days is pretty big as I often rest my phone on the treadmill at the gym, so a wearable might be in order. Even still, there's lots of room for improvement. Ideally, I'd like hold that coveted 10,000 steps/day goal. I'm also itching to play some golf and this is a good way to start getting warmed up for the courses.

This weekend was a lot of fun. I played a round of golf on frozen Lake Minnetonka in what is dubbed the "Chilly Open" . Essentially nine holes of golf on Ice. They had a chili tasting contest and lots of free stuff from the sponsors. It was a perfect (for winter) 30ish degrees F. I look forward to playing in it again next year.

...a new record for me (I think). I was took a mental and physical holiday last weekend and stayed with my aunt and uncle near Portland. I had a dear old friend getting married which presented the opportunity. I decided I was just going to try to be helpful, but in the moment for the duration of the trip. I was able to maintain that for the most part. As the title says I got to play a bit of golf at Tri-Mountain Golf Course in Ridgefield, WA. Admittedly my diet wasn't the best as there were many beers consumed, some from a high school friend's brewery in Seattle ( Chainline Brewery ), but it was overall good for the soul to see good family, old friends and relax a little.

Golf Season in Minnesota is short. Too short. We are now in playoff mode for my golf league and a 5:30pm tee time guarantees very long shadows on the course by the fifth hole. I bought a new sleeve of Titlest proV1X balls. I think it helped off the tee, but my mid irons and putting just killed me. Unfortunately, that's the extent of Dwan GC : drive, iron, putt on moderate length par 4s). I ended up shooting my worst round of the year...a 53 (net 40). Oh well. I'm hoping to get a few more rounds in before the snow flies...

As from previous posts, I thoroughly enjoy golf. I played nine at  Bunker Hills Golf Course  on the north end of town. My future brother-in-law (God help him) played too. It was a cloudy day which kept the course from getting too busy, it was a great outing. I played a great round (for me) shooting a 41 with no holes worse than a double bogey (on a side note I broke 50 for the first time on my "home" course  this year shooting a 48 this evening). My B-i-L on the other hand, had a rough round. Understandable for not being out for the last couple years. We are telling people he shot a birdie though...well a Canadian goose to be more exact. He hit one teeing off on the 4th hole. Fortunately it was on a bounce and really just pissed the bird off more than it already was. It had ganders so was hot tempered to begin with. He also almost took out a squirrel, but there's no golf analogy for that save he might have had himself a new head cover.

Ok. Going on day four sans pastries. Yesterday I opted for carrots with my guacamole instead of chips and actually enjoyed it. I bought some stuff to build salads at work. By the way, strawberries with a little balsamic vinaigrette (as part of a salad) is an excellent flavor combination.  I know that was just one day, but hopefully I can get back on a healthier eating trend. I just need to eat right one meal at a time, right? I also, got back into the gym for a regular workout. My schedule has been a little in flux going through this separation/divorce along with participating in a golf league. I may try going back to high intensity training for a while as the workouts are a bit shorter and they supposedly amp-up the metabolism. The  Men's Health 2008 Total Fitness Guide  has a HIT program that really kicked my butt, but also really worked. I may post some of it if I get this site spruced up a bit more. I'm also contemplating moving my routine back to mornings. I have...

Tuesday League headline: "Davies horrid on the approach, immaculate around the green: plays his handicap and eeks out the win. Not quitting day-job anytime soon."

After impressing my daughter by doing dips on some steel rails at a local sandwich shop, I hit the gym in what felt like the first time in a month. Well it was actually a week-and-a-half. Some of the slacking was from being on travel for work, getting in a few more rounds of golf and doing some yard-work/gardening with the kids, so it wasn't a total slump. What has slumped some is my diet, I'm having a hard time going a day without either the doughnut or beer fairy visiting. Also my portion control is a little out of ...control. My (ex)wife started doing Weight Watchers  and I know in the past loosely using their "point" system to at least quantify my food intake has helped. Perhaps some healthy eating motivation will rub off on me. It's key to keep looking forward and not dwell on that way too calorie-laden dessert I had the other day. That just results in a craving.

Those white specks...they're snowflakes on my first day of league play...

Not to wax sentimental, but I love golf. I'm in the process of acquiring enough "recent rounds" to get a handicap for my 9-hole league which starts on Tuesday. This morning I played 18 holes (two rounds) at the  Brookland Golf Park . The local municipal course I grew up playing. I was on the course even before the club house opened and had the course essentially to myself. I remember always being fascinated by this potentially brutal to the psyche and cost prohibitive game. I have early memories of wanting my dad to get down his clubs in the garage and hitting whiffle balls in the backyard with my next door neighbor. I think what sinched it though was playing the occasional 9 or at least walking along with my uncles in Montana. The golf was fun, the company was good and rolling dice in the bar afterward kept it interesting. Anyhow, I'm glad I have some good before Tiger (BT) experiences to make this more than just a passing fad.