Let The Chips Fall Where They May

Disney Cruise Item Number 4

One of the afternoon activities they offered on this cruise was a golf chipping contest. In the main lobby they laid out a rug designed with several point values on it. Sometimes it is plus 15 and sometimes it is minus 3. You get three shots a round and a couple of rounds to get your final score and then they declare a winner. The day before this contest I wasn't able to make the time for the chipping contest and heard that a 12 years old girl had won. The cutoff age for this event was 12.

The ball was one of the whiffle balls with Velcro strips around them. The yellow one was for double points. That strip made the balls hit and stick. No rolling at all. where you hit it, that is where it stayed.

Check out that form! We got to practice a few before hitting for good.

On this contest day that 12 year old girl was there again! Her name was Lexie (probably for Alexis) and was an athletic person who played soccer and other active games in school but not golf. There were probably six contestants for this test of your skills and take a wild guess who won? Well, it wasn't me! It was Lexie again. Then they had a "chip off" for the two next highest scores and that was Lexie's dad and myself.

We both got one shot. The highest score got second place. We both hit the same spot! So a tie was declared and we each got a prize of two Disney Cruise golf balls and some tees in a case. We also won a medal to hang around our necks that said "I'm A Winner" in the shape of (be surprised) Mickey's head and ears. I wore mine the rest of the afternoon. Why not brag a little?

Dick and his prize winnings. I know exactly where I can lose them!

Lexie's Dad, Lexie, and Dick. Organizer of the contest is in back.

Lexie and her family live in the San Francisco area. Nice family.

Ryan & Alan From Tahiti

Every Tuesday afternoon is reserved for me and golf. Ann is usually working on her computer and this gives me a few hours to leave the home and commune with nature -- a walk in the green pastures!

I used to have a regular foursomes and twosomes that met every Tuesday. The last twosome I was in met at 3:00 p.m. at the David L. Baker Executive Golf Course in Fountain Valley next to Mile Square. We aren't meeting now so I pick and choose what course to play each week. Sometimes it is Baker, sometimes Casta del Sol (Mission Viejo) and many times it is Newport Beach Golf Course, an executive (par threes and fours) located at the end of the John Wayne Airport runway.

This past Tuesday was one of those times I went to Newport Beach. I get to play all 18 holes for the senior rate of $13 if I am there before 3 p.m. Takes about 3 hours to play on most afternoons. Since I don't have a regular standing time with anyone now, I either play the 18 holes by myself or join someone at the starters window.

This time there were two young men that I joined and we all played 18 holes. They were Ryan and Alan. I asked if they were from around here and they said they lived in Tahiti and worked for Air France as flight attendants. They come to America twice a month sometimes spending 24 hours and sometimes have four days between return flights. This was one of the times they had four days and they spend it playing golf. Tough life! I asked them where else they fly and they said this is it -- two times a month.

They spoke good English to me but French to each other all around the course. So on number 18 tee I got an idea -- call Ann and let my new friend talk to her in French. I called her and said I wanted her to meet my new friend Ryan. Turned the phone over to him and he started talking French to her. Both had a laugh at that and then he switched to English to finish the conversation telling how he met me and enjoyed the round of golf.

I saw an opportunity to get a hit on my BLOG from Tahiti and gave both fellows a card with my web site address. They promised to check it out when they get back home. I told them that I have had hits from Romania, Switzerland, Canada, Korea, Netherlands, England, Australia, Finland, Italy, Indonesia, and Ireland. I needed someone from Tahiti to look at my BLOG too! I was pretty excited when I got five countries that found me on the internet and my son put me in my place -- he said he has 85 countries that have read his BLOG which is HolyCoast.com. He writes and comments on political and current events and my BLOG is about the past and my memories. More people are searching for his information than mine.

Since they come into town a couple of times a month, I asked them to give me a call and we'll play golf again. Imagine, my golf partners come in from Tahiti to play golf with me!

It's A God-Thing -- Divine Appointment

This story was originally posted on HolyCoast.com in September 2007.
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Once a week I spend 3 or 4 hours on the golf course to clear the cobwebs out and to get some exercise honing my golf skills. On Thursday afternoon (9-13-07) I visited a favorite course, David L. Baker Executive Golf Course in Fountain Valley. I used to have a regular game with a friend of many years but we haven't been playing for a few weeks.

So I join anyone who is available or go out by myself if the course isn't too busy. It was really busy Thursday and I was teamed up with a grandfather and his grandson. We said our usual "hellos" and started play. The grandfather was from the San Francisco area and was visiting his daughter, son-in-law, and grandson. They decided to go out for a game of golf on a very nice day.
As we traveled around the various holes we had time to wait and engaged in conversation. I mentioned I have four grandchildren and one was in college. It was in his area of the state and he knows the college well. I mentioned she was involved in music and plays the flute, piccolo, and Irish Whistle. She is now learning the piano in college. The grandfather's name is Joe Linn and he has been in music all his life as a quartet member, church music arranger, and has a singing group called "The Joe Linn Trio". We were off and running on what each of us has been doing for our entire lives.

I mentioned I was a founding member of The Watchmen Gospel Quartet and sang with them for 11 years turning my bass singing part over to my son, Rick, who held it for 8 years before starting his own group - Crimson River Quartet. I've been involved in choral music for many years up to 1998 and have sung solos, duets, trios, quartets, ensembles, choirs, and was for eighteen months involved with a semi-professional chorale called Masterworks Chorale. Joe's involvement kind of followed the same pattern. He was 14 and I was 15 when each of us sang in our first quartet.

We started to find common ground and even people we both knew. Joe asked where I attend church and I menioned Saddleback Valley Community Church. Even though 20,000 attend there every weekend, he asked if I knew his son-in-law, Tim Davis. I know who Tim is and I have talked to him a couple of times but Tim wouldn't know who I was. Might recognize me if he saw me but not by name. Tim works with the music department of the church and specializes in vocal training for specials. He sometimes leads the singing. He has a great voice and does a fine job leading the contemporary songs that dominate the music program. The grandson I played golf with is Tim's son, Christian, age 10.

We found another connection with Bob Krogstad who arranged and produced a Christmas CD called "A Christmas Celebration". He knew Mr. Krogstad. I worked on the CD in a group called "Long Beach Festival Singers" that became "Masterworks Chorale" led by Ron Colvard.

I said the Watchmen Quartet started at the Garden Grove Church of the Nazarene. He said he has done a lot of church music arranging for Lillenas Publishing Company of Kansas City which is the music company sponsored by the Church of the Nazarene. Well, I asked if in his dealings with Lillenas he has met Harlan Moore who had a very responsible position with that company. Joe said he had been with Harlan many times and knew him very well. Harlan is my cousin. His dad was my "dad" for the last three years of high school in Kansas City.

I was able to share with Joe that Harlan's wife, Barbi, was having surgery the next day for a brain tumor that has returned after five years. Joe also knew Barbi and will keep her in his prayers for healing and recovery. Joe had cancer surgery two years ago and could understand what Barbi is going through.

Joe Linn was here to help his son-in-law arrange and produce a personal CD. Joe is an Executive Pastor in his community church in the Bay Area.

Small World - but connected.

UPDATE: I have Tim Davis' CD that Joe worked on and it is great. It is a Christmas solo album titled "Christmas Dreaming". You can check it out on http://www.timdavischristmas.com/ .