Month: September 2012

I figured that I still had just enough time to play one last round of golf in California before I had to catch my international flight back to Amsterdam. I was really looking forward to playing with my old golfing buddy, but he was nowhere to be found. Having already waited at the clubhouse for thirty minutes, I was getting pretty impatient. I was worried about the flight that I might miss if we started our round of golf too late.

The golf course was jam packed with millions of people all over the place. Lines were forming at every tee just like the long lines at theme parks during busy weekends. The place was one big confusing labyrinth. The fairways twisting around like a ball of spaghetti and there were greens located every which way. The trees were thick and twisted together, and the rough formed a thick tapestry of greenish spikes jabbing into the sky. There was a slight wind, nothing out of the ordinary, but there was something in the air that made one feel like some disaster was about to take place.

I then realized that the first tee box was way down at the bottom of this steep hill, and I had to negotiate my way down a winding dirt path. Pushing past the people walking the other way was not easy, and although I felt like pushing people to the side because I was in a hurry, I remained patient and cordial. Finally I saw him, there was my friend entertaining a large crowd of people with his various antics and spectacular golf tricks. I put my bag of clubs in the golf cart and waved at him to indicate that I was ready to go.

I pushed my way through the thick crowd and realized I had gone the wrong way, so I tried to turn around and head in the right direction back to where I thought that my friend should be. However, by the time I had got to the tee box, my friend had already hit his drive and was wheeling his way quickly down the fairway in the golf cart. He'd left me behind in the suffocating crowd and everyone was applauding except me.

I tried to push my way through but it was impossible, there was no way that I would ever be able to catch up to him. So I gave up knowing that I had to leave right away in order to catch my flight in time. Going back up the hill was steeper than I remembered coming down. It kept getting steeper and steeper, until I was forced to negotiate a sheer vertical climb by pulling myself up with my arms using this long rope that was hanging down from an overhanging branch.

I somehow pulled my way up to the very top. When I looked down I realized if I let go I'd fall hundreds of feet to my death. With a dangling left leg I raised my foot barely high enough so that I acquired enough leverage to pull myself up to safety. If I managed to wave down a taxi fast enough and there were no traffic jams, I'd barely make it in time to the airport.

That's when I realized that my favorite set of clubs were still on that lousy golf cart that my friend was driving down the first hole. By now he was probably rounding the bend to the second hole. I'd have to leave my wonderful clubs behind or miss my flight, which was a real predicament. I was angry, worried and frustrated at the same time.

I never knew what happened after that, but I can only wonder. When I awoke and the first thoughts of the new day started bubbling on the liquid surface of consciousness, I had already forgotten the end of this interesting episode.

First of all I would like to understand better what all of the commotion is about. Alot of people running around complaining and things are about to get out of control.

There is the emotional aspect and there is also the pragmatic intellectual aspect that need to be kept in balance with each other. Many people are upset but it is still unclear what the root cause might be.

All hands on deck, and even more.

At this moment in time that does not seem to be the case nor will that be the case within the near future. So what is there to do and how should one react? Each and every situation has its own particular reasons, so let's focus on the most important matters at hand.

The key is to remain cool, calm and collected, also known as the three C's. I learned this very important message from my parents when I was a kid, and it has stuck with me ever since.

Such sound advice is just as applicable back then as it is now.

Stop being angry. Be aware. Remain postive. Try and be a better person. Mediate and use relaxation techniques. Be yourself no matter what.

Whatever the situation might be, it's time to resolve your life according to the following 3C protocol: Cool, calm and collected.

I was pleasantly surprised to discover that my new handicap is 4.9, which is now the lowest it has ever been since I was eighteen years old, which was more than thirty-six years ago.

Two years ago my dream was to achieve a single digit handicap. Now I've even dipped below that seemingly unattainable and magical five handicap boundary.

My last two stellar rounds of 75 and 76 from the back champion tees certainly helped to get me down there. What a great way to end the golfing season.

Feeling overly cocky and in an up mood, I signed up for the "Heren 1" golf team for next year. I wonder if it's possible to decrease my handicap even further, or to discover that there's a lower limit for me.

Someday I hope to shoot my age (and get a hole-in-one).

I played exceptionally well in the Davilex Open 2012 at the Liemeer golf course, shooting a stellar round of 37+39=76. In the end I came in at fourth place, not bad for a field of seventy low-handicap players from all over Holland.

If it wasn't for that out-of-bounds ball (double-bogie) and those two birdie putts I just lipped out, I would have tied for first. Well, I did have a couple lucky shots inbetween and a super long 30 foot birdie putt, so I cannot complain. Only four over for the day from the back championship tees is something to be proud of.

Proud winner!

I was hitting the ball very well, slamming a couple screaming drives way out there and my short to medium play was fairly accurate. It's a great feeling knowing that you can still play great golf once in awhile, makes all those frustrating rounds worth the hassle. The last two holes were very nerve-racking: bogie, par (long putt).

I was sitting in the club-house afterwards with only two flights to go and had the best finishing score so far. Feeling cocky, I already had my speech prepared in my head, including the Dutch jokes I'd make to the laughing crowd, thinking that I'd come in first place. Wishful thinking. Counting down from tenth place, six people before me, and then the lucky fourth place went to me.

It was a good day which I'll remember for a long time. Here's the official tournament video, see if you can find me.

It's been a long day and I figure it's time to go home. Most everyone has left already, and as one can see the parking lot is mostly empty. Too bad that I still have a long journey back home and won't be there for at least an hour or so. When I finally get back home I will be happy and relieved that it is weekend again.

Under increased pressure from my family, I finally gave in and voted this afternoon for the current Dutch elections.

Actually, it's only the second time in my life that I have ever voted, the first time being way back in 1976 when I cast my ballot for Jimmy Carter. Back then it wasn't so much about which policies he represented, but more the highest chances of winning. I figured it would be very symbolic for me to choose a winner the very first time that I voted, and indeed it turned out to be a very significant unique moment in my life.

The second time I voted is here in Holland, where politics is so complicated with many parties fighting for seats that's it's impossible to follow who's saying what. There's even a website for confused people that you can go to and answer a bunch of questions in order to discover which party best matches your beliefs.

So I went with Lennart on our way to playing squash together, stopped by the voting center, and I cast my vote for the PvdA, De Partij van de Arbeid.

At first I was against socialists and figured it'd be better for me to vote for the more liberal democratic party VVD, De Volkspartij voor Vrijheid en Democratie. But if I did that, then I'd just nullify Lennart's vote with mine. I didn't want to make our fun father-and-son outing meaningless by making our efforts to go out and vote completely useless.

Afterwards, Lennart showed who was the boss by killing me 3-2 at squash. The first match was pretty embarrassing, I was leading 10-2 and he came back to win 15-13. By the fifth match I was pretty burned out, Lennart's youthful stamina and perseverence no match for me.

Driving back home after work, staring directly into the setting sun, moments of thinking about nothing, reflecting on times past, the unknown future, and best of all just plain living in the present. I should get home in just under half an hour if I am lucky.

I've been raised in a traditional family environment in which I have been taught that I am soley responsible for what I do. I must face up to all the consequences of my actions or what I might say.

But what does this mean exactly? How far can one justify this when there are so many unpredictable factors and indirect effects of which we cannot be held responsible?

If you truly believe that you are responsible for everything and the world around you, then if this world confronts you with unexpected and undesirable things, then logically you have no one else to blame but yourself.

A tremendous feeling of guilt overcomes you and you cannot understand what it is that you are doing wrong and why you should be suffering. By fighting it and resisting reality, you become frustrated and depressed.

A much better belief is that most external motions and actions are beyond your control, and the most you can do is influence them ever so slightly and never enough. Feeling good about yourself is important, and remaining as positive as possible in a world of suffering is the best way to proceed.

Your influence is strongest on the inner spiritual world, followed by your own body, following by your immediate surrounding, and the farther you get from the center of your being the less powerful your influence.

Concentrate most of your energies where it counts and where you can exert the most influence, and realize your limitations. You cannot change everything, only the things that you were originally meant to change.

I figured out that there are three reasons why we die:

• We have to make room for the younger generation, so that they can take over, and try and clean up the mess that we left behind.
• We have to call it a day, atone for all our mistakes and come back later in order to keep improving ourselves.
• We have to make haste because there is an inevitable end coming soon, meaning that we are challenged to do as much as possible before it's too late.

Actually, when I think about it more closely, there's one more good reason, namely:

• We have to be thankful and appreciate as much as possible during the finite time that we can live in this wonderful paradise.