Golf, Laundry, & Unique Neighbors

I had planned to play golf today.  But we are tight on the budget this month.  Could I be disciplined enough to forgo it?  Yeah right.  :)

It was already in my head, and being the child that I am, I was playing.  The only question was where.  I had heard so many wonderful things about the courses at Callaway and a PGA event used to be played there.  But the price is out of my range now at $90.

I found I could play for $55 after 3:00, but really didn't want to wait that late.  Mike & Gerri told me about another course called The Fields about 10 miles away that was a much better value.

I checked my Golf Card directory.  Both The Fields (rated at 3 1/2 stars) and Callaway (rated at 4 stars) were listed.  I could play Callaway for $60 anytime or The Fields for $28.  Easy decision right?  You would think.  :)

So Linda dropped me off at Callaway - I know, you're not surprised - while she hauled the laundry into the town of Pine Mountain a mile up the road.

I went inside to pay and the guy says that'll be $96.  Before he could get the "six" out, I was flashing my Golf Card.  Hold on there buckaroo - "I've got this here Golf Card I told you about on the phone."

He said "That'll be $48."  Huh?  That's better than my directory said, so I paid quickly.  It's a good thing it was $48, because it was worth that, but it was not worth $100.

The tees and fairways were very nice.  The greens were okay and the course was pretty.  But it was not manicured like a $100 course should be, the driving range was too small to hit anything other than irons, and the scorecards did not even have pictures of the holes so you could tell where the trouble spots were.

Minor things, yes.  But I know my golf courses and these are reasonable expectations.  Also, I have been on a lot of $30 courses with much friendlier staffs.

Still, it was a good day.  I was paired up with a couple from Hilton Head, SC - Ron & Sue.  They had already played 18 holes earlier.  They were both former teachers in New Jersey.  Now they live in Hilton Head where Sue sells real estate and Ron works part-time at Sea Pines Plantation.

By the time we were finished, I had scrounged out an 85 (on a bad driving day), and had also received an invitation for free golf in Hilton Head next time we are in the area.  More nice people - thanks for a good time, Ron & Sue.

Linda had completed her four loads of laundry (we were a little behind) and was back at the rig relaxing when I called her to come pick me up.

In addition to the dime and bottle cap she found in one of the washers, - I forgot to check the pockets - she got a surprise in one of the dryers as well.  She stuck her hands in to take the clothes out and was quite startled when she grabbed ..... a worm!

You see, when I went fishing a couple of nights ago, I used my pocket as a tackle box and stuck a couple of extra plastic worms in there.  Oops.  Forgot to take those out, too.  Sorry Honey.  :)

I grilled the steaks that Mike & Gerri brought to us.  Linda had marinated them overnight.  Yum!

Then we were hearing that storms and rain were moving in, so we packed up most everything for our move tomorrow.  As we were finishing up, we got new neighbors.

Billy & Jessica, their two kids and a 4 month old Fox Terrier pulled in with their travel trailer.  They are from southern Alabama, close to the Florida line.

Billy runs a competitive barbecue cooking team.  They (the whole family) travel to Canada every summer to cook and sell barbecue at festivals throughout Ontario.  They live out of their travel trailer and have a large flatbed gooseneck trailer for their cooking set-up that they haul as well.  That's their source of income - they work 9 weekends out of the year!

Unfortunately for us, they are not working this weekend.  I told him that we might stay an extra couple of days if he was cooking.  :)

Very interesting.  It was fun talking to them and asking them questions about how they get all that done.  They don't full-time, but they could.  It sounded like Jessica was quite willing to go on the road and home school the kids, but Billy wanted no part of that discussion.  As a matter of fact, Linda was invited to leave when she brought up that topic.  :)

We finished our packing and I got one last shower.  This has been a milestone six days for us.  We made it the whole time without using the bathhouses at all.  We conserved a little, but not as much as we had in the past thinking we were limited to four days on tanks.

Well, that's about it.  Oh, one more thing.  Those pesky wood-boring bees have bored two holes in the foam rubber on our outside hand rail by the door.  What's up with that?!

Not only are they messing with our rig, but can you imagine grabbing the rail and getting a handful of giant bee?  I'm not happy with that part of nature - and one particular bee is now quite aware of my discontent.  Well, he was aware up to the point where he crossed over into bee heaven.  :)

Wish us luck on moving day.  It will be one of our longest drives and will, it appears, be in the rain.

Comments

[Jimmie Guinn]

Hey Howard,

I'm not sure that I understand how Billy & Jessica tow their rig.

Is it a pickup truck towing the gooseneck trailer with the travel trailer behind it?

[Howard]

Jimmie,
Sorry I wasn't clear on that. They pull their travel trailer with their Ford F350 and they pull the gooseneck with the BBQ cooking set-up with their Ford F450. Two trailers and two trucks they move around for the summer. :)