Open Golf post-mortem
OK, let's check my tips for the top then. Yes everyone knows Tiger won with a score of 270
(18-)
Colin Montgomerie -
Ben Curtis -
Darren Clarke -
David Duval - 289
Strange, I can't find the other 3 on the final leaderboard. Surely they can't have all missed the ..........( gulp ) cut.
We all had a quite excellent day in Hoylake on Sunday. The organisation was superb, as were the travel facilities. Well done Liverpool. We saw Miguel Jimenez a couple of times, then we watched Phil Mickelson saunter past. Had a bite to eat ( mm, very tasty but well expensive! ) then headed off to the grandstand at the 3rd hole. We watched all the leaders go through and were impressed with Ernie Els, Hideto Tanihara and Chris Di Marco.
But there was a mix-up with the last pairing because Tiger was playing with the winner of the Tour De France, or at least it seemed like it from where we were sitting!
Thanks Ju and Keith ( and the rest of the clan ) for making it an excellent weekend all round. The boys were very unhappy to leave ( not sure whether that was more to do with the animals or the bevy of beautiful girls they found themselves surrounded by! ). Will write more about our adventures.
Roll on October when I am bringing Scarlett up to the 'Pool.
Triumph - Step 1
At approximately 1:45 p.m. today I received my Motorcycle Theory Test Certificate. I had scored 33 out of 35 points on the multiple choice test ( pass mark 30 ) and 56 out of 75 on the hazard perception test ( pass mark 44 ). But what a weird test.
Most of the multiple choice questions are so insane:-
You are riding along on the motorbike and approaching a pedestrian crosing with an elderly couple waiting to cross. Do you :-
A) Speed up and get through before they start to cross?
B) Wave at them furiously to get them to cross quickly?
C) Slow down and eventually stop so that they can cross?
D) Hope that they jump out so that you can mow them down on the crossing?
Answers on a postcard please.
The hazard perception was weird as well. You get to see video clips where you have to press the mouse when you see a potential hazard cominp up. Then you have to press the mouse again if the hazard starts to develop. I thought you had to keep pressing the mouse as it developed but I lost out because I was trigger happy.
C'est la vie!" But I have my certificate now!!
Open Golf 2006 Day 1
Why am I bothering about the
Open Golf championship? because me and the boys are coming up to Liverpool and have got tickets for the last day on Sunday. Not that we are probably going to seee very much but then it's the atmosphere that counts. That and the promise of free pro lessons for children! Do I want the boys to get into golf? Absolutely 100% gold -plated definitively----"yes".
So Day 1 dawns and what does the British weather do? Thunder and lightning! I hope Hoylake doesn't turn into the Glastonbury of golf.
My tips for the top? Colin Montgomerie / Ben Curtis / Darren Clarke / David Duval. I will keep track of these 4 as they progress up the
leaderboard.
Gambling Man
I can't believe I haven't posted since Friday. How remiss and many apologies to the hordes of visitors to this Blog. ( yeh right ) What has been happening in my little world since then?
Quite a lot I suppose, but mainly centered around the family. Swimming, football, piano, dance group, etc - all these things seem to take most of the spare time up.
So I will only update you on the special things.
Michael has asked for tickets to the
Elements night club Under 18s disco again on 25th July so that obviously went down well the first time! Luckily it is in the school holidays so watch out for pictures of grumpy-drawers the morning after.
Scarlett has been wanting to join a drama group for some time now. (should suit her natural drama queen tendencies ). We have found one now called Act Now and it meets in Iford United Reformed Church. Yes, the same church we got married in 17 years ago. Spooky huh? She went along on Monday for a free trial. I was concerned that she wouldn't like it but she came out of it and her very words were "That was so FABULOSO!" I think she liked it. We have signed her up for a 1 week summer course with them as well. They are there Monday - Friday and then stage a production on the Friday.
It was our 17th wedding anniversary on Saturday. I took Deborah out to an exclusive restaurant in Barton-on-Sea called
Pebble Beach. As you can see from web site it is run by a top master chef who has taught some of the current well known TV chefs. Although the menu was a bit over-fishy for Deborah the food was excellent. It is the first time I have tried sea bass and I think I have been spoilt now.
I was out with Michael at Speedway last night to see Poole Pirates vs Belle Vue Aces. Yes we whooped them! So much for Southern Softies.
Finally I have my
motorbike theory test next week. Fingers crossed. And I have booked my
CBT practical for 29th July. Yippee I get to sit on a bike for a day!
Oh the reason for the title? I have installed PartyPoker and PartyGammon but am only playing with play money not real money. What great fun! But it has awoken my love of Backgammon. So if anyone out there fancies a game just leave me a comment and I will get back to you.
My "TOP 10" wishlist
I started this list a while back and it has definitely focused my mind on some of the contents.
Funnily enough I started writing it here and then I realized that I wasn't really as positive as I should have been. After all, this is the list of things that I want to do over and above anything else in this life at the moment.
So I have now put "I will" in front of all of them.
- I will learn how to develop my relationship with Deborah, to handle the bad times, and to maximize the good times, and to identify activities that we want to do together.
- I will learn how to ride a motorcycle, buy a motorcycle, see parts of England and Europe that only bikers can see.
- I will look to sort out a job / career path that enables me to help others in desperate need rather than shareholders of large corporates.
- I will recommence my Open University course and aim to have it complete in 3 years time.
- I will continue my piano practice and start to learn how to play the guitar.
- I will go to live sporting and cultural events and also involve the family if they are interested in them.
- I will buy a new set of golf clubs, start playing again and look to join a club and get lessons.
- I will sort out my personal, and the family, financial situation to ensure regular saving but to have money to spend on good holidays, days out, clothes etc ( and on the rest of the list! ).
- I will go ski-ing regularly with the kids and try out snowboarding.
- I will start exercising again and join a gym, hopefully with the boys.
Daniel, St George and the Dragon
These 3 pictures just about sum up the state of the weekend, outside plumbing and bathrooms.
Ju came down from
Liverpool (by plane no less! No sooner was she up in the air than she started coming down again) and yes it did take us longer from the airport back to
Bournemouth than the
flight itself.
Apart from visiting the family we had tickets to go see Elton John perform the last date on his current tour at AFC Bournemouth's ground at Dean Court.
But it was also the day that England met Portugal in the quarter-final of the World Cup.
They had the game on the big screens at the concert and we arrived just as the extra time was coming to an end. We always seem to have to try and conquer the Everest of footballing challenges. Beckham was off injured and realising that his World Cup was over at least. Then the Rooney incident. Now that wasn't a very good place to kick the guy ( and didn't every man watching the game visibly wince at the replay) but the referee would not have sent him off if Ronaldo hadn't inflamed the situation. Especially when the BBC showed the clip of him before the game winding Wayne up and looking as if he was telling his teammate that he was ripe for the plucking. That and the sly wink to the Portugal dug-out that was captured on camera after the incident told a million stories.
I am not one to advocate violence but I am with Alan Shearer and Elton when I expect Ronaldo won't have a very happy time when ( if ) he comes back to United next season.
At the concert Elton told his version of the story. We didn't really deserve to have got that far with the way we played but at least we didn't cheat ( but with far rosier language! ). He took a cheer /boo sample of the audience for the last 4.
4th - Portugal ( wonder why? )
3rd - Italy
2nd - Germany ( although he thought Klinsmann had done a great job )
1st - France
The crowd went very flat after the game and I felt sorry for the support group "
The Storys"
But Elton was great. Some old ones ( hence the "Daniel" in the title ), some new ones, and then he ripped through the old favourites, such as Crocodile Rock, Saturday Night's Alright ( for fighting ),
Sacrifice,
Rocket Man. We both had a good bop.
Plumbing Epic Day 5
Well well! We have a fully functioning bathroom. Toilet, Sink, Bath and......SHOWER ( which chucks water out at you at a rate of more than a drop a day ). All functional parts have been tested and christened and 100% effective so far.
Kevin and Jono are coming back on Monday for a tidy up day. Ceiling to be skimmed, light to be put up, tiles to be finished and grouting to be completed, old electrics to be disconnected. All in all we are mega-made up.
If anyone wants a recommendation for a plumber and his mate then we can give it.
On, on to the loft conversion epic days now!
