It's FUN

Why do we play golf? A question that was raised recently that has stuck in my head and now needs to be addressed. So why do men AND women play golf? I can only speak for myself when I say because it is fun and anyone can play golf. Just like anyone can play other sports like basketball, baseball or soccer. Sure, just like ANY other sport, it takes time to learn the basic fundamentals. In addition to the fun, there is something magical about being the first person on the course in the early morning when the dew is still glistening on the grass and the day is new. The walk around the course in the majesty of nature is almost a spiritual experience. But, once you understand the basics, have the proper equipment, and practice, it is fun.

From the time we are young and choose to play sports, we learn valuable lessons about life. It does not matter if you start by playing baseball, basketball, football gymnastics, volleyball or soccer; we learn through sports that life isn’t fair. Sometimes you win and sometimes you lose. That’s it! Get use to it! Learn how to prepare. Learn how to do the little things right. The fundamentals are the keys to success. It does not matter, once again, which sport you choose. I was very lucky to have the best high school football coach in the state of Arizona as my father, but he never forced me to play sports. All he ever told me was, “If you are going to play, give it your best.” As I grew older I realized the value of his words. He was teaching me about life.

When I was younger I played baseball, basketball, football and I wrestled. If you want to argue about which sport is the toughest…I will argue until I am out of breath that it is wrestling. However, for the sake of this particular expression of my thoughts we will stick to the topic of golf. The origins of the word “golf” are some what disputed as is the origins of the game. The majority opinion is that the modern version can be traced back to Scotland. It is considered a “gentleman’s” game. Not to imply that only men can play the game, it is because it is one of the only games (I know of) where you call a foul on yourself! You have to be honest and have character to play by the rules. You will find yourself in many situations, during the course of a round of golf, where you have to make an honest call on your own play even though no one is around. There have been many famous incidents in golf where a foul was self imposed during a final round of play that had a direct impact on the outcome of the tournament. In some cases, the self imposed foul, cost the player millions of dollars in tournament winnings. Honor, character and a true sense of fair play are a very important part of the modern game of golf. More importantly, lessons we should apply to every aspect of our lives.

On the public courses around the world average men, like myself, and women, assemble to play the game of golf because it is fun. We do not play for millions of dollars in winnings; we play for fun because we understand we will never be on the PGA or LPGA tour so that takes all the pressure off! We play because every once in a while they make a great shot like the ones we see on TV. We play because every once in a while our favorite professional player makes a terrible shot. And that makes us feel a little better about our own level of play. Then there are those moments we witness a miracle shot that makes us realize we are in the presence of greatness.

Phil Mickelson is one of these players that has left us with our jaws on the ground. Not only does he entertain us with his somewhat inconsistent play, but he is an artist at making shots when they count the most. Nothing illustrates this like his 187yd(almost the length of 2 football fields!), 2nd shot, from the trees, over water, on the 13^th hole during the final round of the 2010 Masters at Augusta….enjoy.

....and BTW Phil is a Sundevil Class of 91 :-)

Have an AWESOME New Year!

"Resolve to be tender with the young, compassionate with the aged, sympathetic with the striving and tolerant with the weak and wrong. Sometime in your life, you will have been all of these." 
— Siddhārtha Gautama (Buddha)

My mind is a whirlwind of thoughts as I sit to write something on this last day of 2010. I have never been a big believer in New Years Resolutions. If anything is something worth changing in your life then why wait for a special day? The changes I made in my life several years ago were not based on any particular day on the calendar.  They were based, quite simply on my need to express my true nature. My nature is rooted in love.

I look back on this past year and ask myself if I have followed Buddha’s words of wisdom to the best of my abilities. This past year, I have lost my patience from time to time. I have said things to people I wish I could take back. I have been a little less tolerant than I should have been. However, when I look on the entire year as a whole, I feel that I have shared my love and compassion with everyone in my life. I have tried to be the best friend and father possible.

In looking forward to 2011 and beyond, I know I will express more compassion, be more tolerant, be more sympathetic and love a whole lot more than I did this past year.  Thank you to all of my friends who have made this past year an amazing time in my life. Of course, it helps to have found a beautiful woman who inspires me every day. This woman has helped me to realize that if you do give unconditional love, it will come back to you in return.

Thank you, Sharon. I love you.

I hope all of you have an AWESOME New Year, full of Love, Laughter and amazing new Memories!

all signs

When you’ve counted all the sheep

twice done the do bleep

heart pounding

head swimming

just cant seem to slumber

the reality you face

puts your dreams in their place

as you fiddle

on facebook

or twitter

like a VanWinkles maze,

while relaxing on chaise

you think

you thunk

you ponder this thought

perhaps it’s the hand

that fits like a glove

could it be?

I certainly see

all signs point to love.

Paper cuts

This past Sunday night I returned to my part time job at FedEx Express. I work at the main sort facility at Sky Harbor Airport here in Phoenix. We sort packages that come in from all parts of Arizona, and the United States, and re-direct them to destinations all over the world. This requires me to scan, stack, or move, a large volume of cardboard boxed packages into various size containers for transport by air or ground. During my shift a few nights ago, while I was filling a container with these boxes, my left hand slipped on the edge of one of the larger boxes and I got a deep paper cut on the tip of my left pinky finger. Because this happens all the time, I had several band aides already in my pocket and quickly applied two of them to the tip of my finger to prevent the blood from getting on the packages and prevent the obvious risk of infection. Within a minute, I was back to stacking, scanning and loading the boxes into the container as if nothing had happened. 

When I finally got home for the night, I removed the band aides before taking a very long hot shower. Once out of the shower, I inspected the cut and begin to think about the simple, yet obvious metaphor of my paper cut. I have had 10 operations in my life. I have been through 2 divorces. I have had many moments in my life where I felt like nothing could possibly go right and yet I kept on going. When it all boils down to the basics, almost everything that happens to us in our lives that is painful or difficult, is like a simple paper cut. The pain never lasts, it always heals and eventually we forget that painful moment it happened. There are painful moments in life that will always leave a scar. There are moments that we should not forget because the pain and the lesson we learn from them makes us stronger in some way. However, in life, the little things that sting for only a few minutes, or hours, are like paper cuts. We can’t and shouldn’t make a big deal out of them. Apply a few band aides and keep moving forward.

That is NOT my forearm!

I had my first appontment with a dermatologist today, it was NOT what I expected. The doctor's assistant came in to the room first to ask me some questions about my history of sunlight exposure. Of course, after mentioning that I grew up in Arizona, she made several notes and then asked about the reason for my visit.
I have had a spot on my forearm that I had been concerned about. After she took a few more notes, I got a little concerned when she asked to remove ALL of my clothes and sit on the table with one of those little paper sheets...at this point I am beginning to wonder "Why do I have to be naked to inspect my forearm?" No biggie, I thought, when the doctor comes in I will show her the spot on my forearm and that will be it.

When the doctor came in she was very nice. I showed her the spot on my arm and she looked at it carefully and explained that is was most likely a scar that had continue to build tissue and I shouldn't worry about it at all..WHEW!...I am done...or not. The doctor then asked me to lay back and relax...I asked "Aren't we done?"...she smiled and said "No"...."This is your first visit to a dermatologist office and, since you have been exposed to a higher than average amount of sunlight, we are gong to make sure you don't have any other spots of concern".....O K?!?!?
She began at my feet and worked her way up. When she got to my crotch she asked if there was anything in this area I had concerns about...after biting my lip from fighting back the range of hilarious remarks I could have made I said "No". She then worked her way up the rest of the way to my head where she combed through my hair like a mother Silver back gorilla looking preening its offspring.

She then asks me to lay on my stomach. The process started over once again moving her way up from my feet. During this whole time we are having casual conversation about growing up in Arizona. As it turns out, she grew up in Phoenix and went to the UofA while I grew up in Tucson and went to ASU. The usual rivalry remarks were made back and forth.When she got to my ass I was surprised to feel her hands spreading my ass cheeks to inspect MY ASS HOLE!!!! WTF!?!? At that moment I had to speak my mind. I very calmly stated "I don't know what they teach in anatomy at the UofA, but THAT sure as HELL isn't my FOREARM!!!

The silver lining to my surprise proctology exam is that I have no skin cancer and I am very thankful the doctor had warm hands.