Saturday, July 20, 2002

More Open comments. Just saw Monty hit a 3 wood on a 203 yard par 3, and came up 20 yards short due to the stiff wind and rain. Plus Woods is struggling, hitting balls right into the deep rough. He just took a double on a par 5! Unbelievable. I take my earlier comment back - I'd shoot 200. Muirfield www.golfeastlothian.com/07.htm is on the "golf coast" of Scotland, otherwise known as the Firth of Forth. We were there a year ago, and played Nairn on that same coast. It was one of the coolest golf experiences ever. Today it's literally "cool" - there's a 38 degree wind chill on July 20th. Got a headhunter referral today for a job that allegedly pays *very* well, heading up the healthcare practice for a pro-services company. That would be perfect for me, so I'll check it out. I need to start thinking about how to recover from the blow suffered in my transition from The Firm, so a big paycheck for a couple of years is worth exploring. I'm seeing a lot of Sun Microsystems www.sun.com references all of a sudden. First Orlando, then Sun's rapid drop in the market yesterday (lost 25% of their already low value), some Sun commercials on the Open today, then a comment from McNealy about Sun's newfound commitment to healthcare. What does it mean? Is it a real cluster of coincidences, or have I just become sensitive/aware of the term? There's probably a formal term for this. comment []7:35:59 AM

Watching the Open this morning from KY. This is my favorite golf tourney of the year, and this year, the course is playing unbelievably hard. So much for Bethpage Black being the toughest course we'll see this year. Just saw Mark O' Meara chip from a deep bunker onto a green, and then spin back 40 feet into a deeper bunker. I imagine I'd shoot 150 in the conditions they're paying in - tough course, high winds, cold rain, 3 foot rough...aacck. I guess this is my first post from the Bluegrass State. Quite a bit to write about today. First is the strangeness of this dual mode life I lead. Switching gears from CA to KY is always tough, but I'm finding it tougher and tougher. Last night I enjoyed the drive in from CVG, with rain, lightning and the usual pastoral scenery of the AAA highway. It was a fine moment. But this AM, the reality of the time shift (tired), the need to run out and stock up on food, and the need to do LOTS of lawn maintenance have made the weekend a lot less fun. Reality bites. I'm getting company this evening - my old, old friend Mark Steffen and his family from Cincinnati, plus Dad and Phyllis. We'll have a semi-traditional summer cookout and swim party. Cookout for me; swim for the kids. We may also get some of Em's friends as well, though they won't likely want to spend time with the old folks. I wish Kathryn was here to enjoy the gathering. comment []7:33:01 AM

© Copyright 2002 Jeff Nichols.