When You See This...

…do you pay attention?

Not a random inquiry, but relevant to my most recent battle in The Vale of Everlasting Sorrows (also known as my local links where I practice the black art of hickory golfery).

Happily, this was a decent round, much better than my first two because I was consistently finding the fairways.

Credit goes to my therapy session with The Guru...

...to wit:

"I have said earlier that you start the clubhead first by giving the left wrist a gentle half-turn toward the body.

"This is important, because it will put that wrist at the top of the swing into the only position in which it is capable of doing its work properly - that is, arched inward under the shaft, instead of arched outward."

Of course all of this bores you to tears.

He's expounding on some minutia about which only hickory golfers care.

But I mention this because the greatest hickory golfer of his era - the only man to ever win the British Open 6 times, The Stylist himself - specifically instructs the reader "this is important".

So, having read this important advice a half dozen times, have I been "starting the clubhead with a gentle half turn of my left wrist toward my body" ?

Well...until this last outing, nope; have not.

"And why is that, O wise one?" you sneer sarcastically.

I offer by way of excuse this from my Bible college days:

One of our profs told us our brains are like empty tin cans with both ends removed and a light coating of glue on the inside.

Learning is sorta like someone throwing a handful of sand through middle of the empty tin can.

Each time that happens, a few grains of sand "stick" to the sides of the can.

If you repeat that process enough times...

Congratulations!  You learned something!

I know my "brain glue" ain't as sticky as it used to be, but my word is this ever depressing.

Happy to have finally picked up on something that works, but how long have I had this book?

And how many times have I skimmed over that part without heeding its instruction?

As Jed Clampett used to opine:

We've finally arrived at the most beautiful month of the year here in Michigan...

an old pic but serves the purpose

...Magnificent May, when Nature bursts forth in her glorious hymn of florescent regeneration:

two things going on here...the blooming of our lower patio garden thanks to Karen's tireless efforts, and new leaves on the trees finally restoring our backyard privacy.

yes, they're thinking about what you think they're thinking about, and Loki's keeping a watchful eye

if memory serves, these are known as "purple flowers"

oak trees get (and lose) their leaves later, but at least they're making a start

courtyard coming into focus under Karen's consistent care...especially appreciate our pretty little Japanese maple

"wallflowers", aka "where wiffle golf balls go to hide"

our 2nd Japanese maple

The really spectacular thing about this?

May is just warming up...there's so much more to come in the days ahead.

Absolutely love this time of year!

Another event accompanying the beginning of May is either the best or worst week of the year here in Holland, depending on whether you're a retailer or just a regular ol' citizen of this fair town:

Tulip Time!

You're either giddy at the sound of your cash register cha-chinging!  -or-  you're <geergerd> with the unwelcome influx of 600,000 tourists.

here's something you don't see every day - Mexican Klompen dancers, but yep, we've got 'em

Holland, with its odd layout and labyrinth of one way streets can be confusing enough for its 35,000 residents...

how would you like a good swift kick in the <achterste> with a wooden shoe?  yours for the asking at the always popular Volksparade

...but layer on enough strangers to populate a city the size of Las Vegas and you've got a pretty good working definition of chaos.

This year we tried to get approval for a new sign as you're entering town:

...but for some reason, we were denied.

I guess we're reduced...

...to grinning and bearing it for another year.

In the interest of digital humanitarianism (no, I did not just make that up), we are foregoing our usual sashay through 23 Skidoo...

...and instead opting to simply flee the premises.

As you do, consider this truth from God's Word...

...and keep that muzzle handy.

later, mcm fans...