True, not many all-Americans choose to start a Sunday with three rounds of bowling, but, suffice it to say that when Ed said this morning “we should bowl,” I acquiesced. At Union South – the student hangout.
It’s a little downscale as compared to the suburban alleys from last week. The scoring board makes mistakes. The balls are chipped. But hey! It’s cheap. And I can work on my score. So that I don’t get LOL in my comments when I report my final count. (59 last week, 81 this week. That’s good, isn’t it? Isn’t it??)
It does not take long to feel weariness in the hand and body. I know it’s time to move on.
I suggest we head for the giant expo (at the Alliant Energy Center) of orchids. I used to grow these back in the days when I had fantasies about being a serious gardener. But mine never looked this complicated.
Yes, yes, I do indeed purchase an orchid. It is a statement of hope. I can grow these again. I can. Just you wait.
At the other end of the hall of the Alliant Energy Center, there is an RV expo. Flowers for the ladies, RVs for the guys. Predictably, Ed tugs on my sleeve and pulls me over to the big vans. I refuse to take photos. These machines are huge and sort of creepy looking. But I do like the little ones alright and Ed is clearly enthused by the mechanics involved.
I ask him – so, supposing we loaded up one of these guys onto your (very old) (very very old) pick-up. Where would we go? What would we do?
Well, you can park overnight at any Walmart parking lot in the country… or you can go to an RV park, charge up and head for the mountains and leave the RV and hike up for a few days of camping.
Now which part of that was supposed to excite me?
Still, I can see this is a tad more adventurous for him than, say, southern France and so I do not close the door on the possibility. It’s good in life not to close doors.
Similarly, I do not object when Ed suggests that we stop by Dane Brewery for a beer and a peek at the kick off. A shocking idea, given that we both hugely dislike football. And what do I say?
Sure! A nice pilsner and a plate of fries with gobs of ketchup! Why not?
It’s like reading a different blog here, on Ocean, isn’t it? You have to stay open-minded to get the full bang out of a Sunday in February.
Soon you'll be fishing, I suppose...
ReplyDelete81 is about what I bowl, and I took Bowling I in college
ReplyDeleteExcellent! Now that's a date.
ReplyDeleteYep - you'll be fishing in no time... (Well when it warms up a bit)
81 is fine if you aren't taking it seriously. Did you go with the heavier ball? Also, did you find one that fit your hand and fingers? When you put your thumb into a hole that fits, the other 2 holes should line up with the first knuckles of your middle 2 fingers. We'll tackle approach and release in the next lesson.
ReplyDeleteGlad to see the beer and fries in the bowling post, but the protocol is beer AND bowling, not bowling, then beer later. You'll get the hang of it.
Barry
I did use the heavier ball (10, not 8). Forgot about the brew. Darn.
ReplyDeleteI should have been more explicit: use at least 12 lb., or 14 if you can, which promotes more rolling and less throwing. The max is 16 lb, which most men should use. The physics of the game favor heavier balls thrown with a lot of spin towards the "pocket" - the space between the head (front) pin and the next in line.
ReplyDeleteMany years ago I was in a family and place that took bowling seriously. I wasn't allowed to bowl until I was big enough to use the 16 lb balls, at which time I was taken to a local pro to have my own ball made to measure for my hand. It makes a huge difference to have those holes fit right.
BTW, did Ed convert that very tough split?
Barry
Funny you should ask: he had me take the photo IN CASE he knocked both down. (Perhaps as a result of the pressure, he knocked down neither.)
ReplyDelete