T-Day

Remember a few months back when I wrote my post about my 'dek-toe'? Well it happened almost exactly 3 weeks to the day of the initial injury...yep, my toenail fell off today.

Here is what happened:

The other day I did my daily toe inspection to check their progress. Now that I painted them up all nice, it is more difficult to keep an eye on them, so the inspections have to be more frequent. I notice that the bottom of it started to appear raised and was turning into, what I felt was, the beginnings of it coming off.

Well, today as I got out of the shower I was just about to head out, I gave it a bit of a squeeze and to my surprise, some little bubbly water came out the bottom of it! It was really separated now and ready to come off. My sister said that I would find it in my sock some day, but now that I saw an opening, I couldn't wait so I went and got some tools.

After retrieving my swiss army knife off my key chain I started with the 3 p's: poke, prod and pry. I was a little nervous because I felt like if it was still attached, it might hurt if I try to force it. As I pryed the tool under the side of it, I could see the nail really raising up...it was ready to come off, but I was scared of that weird pain that you could only imagine would accompany pulling your toenail from it's nail bed prematurely. Before I knew it, however, it was completely raised and in my hand. It was off and all that was left there was this strange looking naked unprotected half formed nail in an mucky looking nail bed. Yuck! Talk about the heebs.

I was immediately worried that maybe I shouldn't have messed with it and that the air might do something crazy to it. It felt weird for a second or two, and now I am pretty much scared to touch it for fear of getting some sort of crazy nail pain, but it seems like it is okay. I have even gotten a bit used to the way it looks.

Here, see for yourselves:


...and...(there is some air brushing in this photo, but it was toe hair related only)...



...and


How about the underside?


Pretty weird, eh? The nail on my right foot is still intact, but that injury didn't occur until about 2 weeks after this one so I will let you know how that one progresses.

I am definitely going to have to get some cute band-aids to wear becasue I can be walking around in flip flops unprotected.

We ARE listening

As a kid I remember getting up on a Saturday morning and joining my dad at the kitchen table where he was drinking his morning coffee. After he would say good morning the next thing he would say to me was almost always: "go put some socks on". I never understood it, and it was often annoying to have to go all the way back up stairs and find some socks when my feet weren't even cold. Even if they were cold I was far too lazy for all that. I had just woken up. He was relentless so I would begrudgingly climb the stairs and do as I was told.

Often immediately after that I would grab a bowl and fill it with an inhuman amount of chocolate ice cream and sit in front of the tv for the next few hours to which he would say nothing. Warm feet were far more critical than nutrition and mental stimulation I guess.

The thing is, the first thing I do when I get up now (well, second really...I sure you can all imagine what the first thing is) is find my fuzzy socks and put them on. It would seem, dad, that whatever you were trying to get across worked. And that isn't the only thing that my parents tried to beat into my brain when I was a kid that has carried into my adult life.

I remember making toast and then heading straight to the family room to sit on the couch to eat it...no plate, no napkin, no nothing. Needless to say Mom was never pleased with that. "Go get a plate!" I never really understood that because often when I did have a plate it would just sit on the arm of the couch while I ate the toast anyway and the crumbs would free fall. Now, however, it is seldom that I eat anything without a catcher like a plate or a napkin. In fact, I worry about my impact on the environment with the amount of napkins I go through. I seem to be a little addicted to using them.

"Don't let her lick you in the face" my Dad would say anytime our dog Fee-Fee would try to show us some love. I never understood that one either. Why not? It is just a little lick and dog's mouths are cleaner than humans, right? Ummm, no. When was the last time you saw a human eat their own poop/vomit, lick their you-know-what, or chewed on some gnarly bit of old bone? Plus, dogs never brush their teeth and I have a hard time believing that chewing on a 'Milk Bone' really has the same effect as my Aquafresh/Reach combination.

Now, however, if I see the dogs lick my nieces I get it. I get that totally grossed out feeling that he was feeling and I freak out. "Don't let them lick you in the face" I say.

Mom always used to have a fit about turning all the lights out. I remember being three flights down and mom forcing me to turn the light off in my room. Gawd, how annoying that was...but now, if I am in the living room in my house and the light in the bathroom is on, I can't relax properly. Don't get me wrong, I pay the same money per month no matter how much energy I use so it isn't a money issue. For me it is exactly what I just said: an energy issue. I try to conserve it as best as I can. Now if I can only abandon my paper towel addiction I might be able to get to carbon neutral.

So, Mom and Dad's all around, keep being your relentless (annoying) selves because even if what you are saying seems to be falling on deaf ears, it IS getting in there. It might not be until years later that they realize where all of their strange little habits came from, but they will stop and figure it out one day.

Thanks to sound parenting, I always have warm feet, a clean face, and crumbs on my couch are non-existant. Thanks Mom and Dad.

Still around

I saw my little buddy the lizard yesterday. I had just gotten home from practice and was standing outside of my garage talking on the phone when he scampered by. I know it was him because he had the same blunt tail.

I am sure he is mad at me because I filled his home with that foam stuff, but he obviously found a place to hang his hat nearby. Maybe he likes the fact that I didn't smash him to his death, or maybe he reads me blog and likes the media attention.

Down the drain

I have been feeling like I need to eat more fruits and vegetables of late. I just haven't been into making the big meals lately and so I have been making the easy/quick thing. Not that steaming some veggies is very difficult, but you know what I mean...

Last night I decided to make some cajun shrimp (come to think of it, it would make a great seasoning for chicken or fish as well...) and thought I should have some broccoli and cauliflower with it. I put a bit of water in my teflon pot (I know what you two are thinking...yes you two, you know who you are) and chucked the veggies in there. I got a bit busy with my cajun seasoning and probably left the veggies in a bit long. I went to drain them out and because I have a white sink, I saw all the vitamins and goodness go literally down the drain. The veggies tasted like mushy bits of nothing. What a waste.

I need to get myself one of those fancy pots that don't require water for cooking so I can preserve all the goodness.

Like nothing I have ever seen before...

Today I was a stand in for a friend in a charity tournament that raises money for Kidney disease. The tournament was like nothing I have ever seen before.

Upon registration, you sign a card with your name and address and decide what type of Nike irons you would like. They have three sets to chose from and once you fill out all your specs. they will appear in the mail. Now, because I was a stand in for Peter, I didn't get the irons, but I did get the free Nike jacket, hat, shirt and box of balls to start the day with. Not bad.

I played as an 'am' in Pro-Am portion and was able to play from the forward tees with the other women. I felt a little guilty initially but after a drive or two and the way I hit it, I stopped feeling that way rather quickly. Considering this was to be my first 18 holes since October, and the first balls I was going to hit since last tuesday, I was a little sketchy at best. It doesn't help that I have a bit of a cold and my senses are somewhat dulled.

Anyway, we started on number 2 which was a par three. The hole prize for that hole was a 65" LCD tv. Yes, thats right, a 65" tv for a closets to the pin, NOT even for a hole in one. Our pro hit it great, but it just ran through the green so nobody was really all that close on that one. The prize for that was won by Jeff Gove. Apparently his wife said to him when he left the house: go win me a flat screen tv, honey! And he did. She is going to be thrilled.

Next hole was a 'straight drive' challenge. There was a rope that ran through the middle of the fairway and the person who was closest to that rope, won a free MacBook computer, just like the one I am typing this blog on. Yes...a Macbook.

The next hole was a par 5. The prize? A Macbook computer for the person who was closest to the pin in 2 shots. Next hole, a 42" LCD tv. The next hole, an Ernie Ball electric guitar. The next hole, another macbook...and on it went. It was unreal.

On the 13th hole, a short par three I hit a shot that I didn't particularly like, but it ended up great. 3'2". The prize was a 42" LCD tv and I wanted it baaaaad. I didn't want to get shut out! Along with the closest to the pin prize I won a Nike driver for being the closest in my group. Pretty cool.

My cart mate was already in the running for a Macbook from her long drive so she was really pulling for me. We were all excited as I wrote my name on the placard and headed to the next hole. We were teeing off when we heard a loud cheer from the group behing. It wasn't your average--'wooohooo it is close!' kind of cheer, it was a full on 'wooohoooo it's in the HOLE!!' kind of cheer.

Sure enough, there was a hole in one by the tournament organizer Sterling Ball so, needless to say, there went my closest to the pin. I feined happy for the guy, but I wanted the TV!!

Now, it was on...I was going for it. Forget about the team score, I wanted to get a prize!

On 15 there was a chance at a long drive. I was 2nd long drive on that hole and it was our understanding that there would be 3 long drive prizes on that hole. I felt like that would be good enough. On 17, I cranked a drive and got 1st long drive for a laptop...I was sure that would be the one. I started to imagine what I would do with my 2nd macbook. Sell it? Keep it? Give it as a gift to someone? Who knew, but I was going to enjoy trying to figure it out.

The day came to a close and our team won 3rd low net and got this cool trophy:



Then came the announcement of all the premium prizes...laptop's, tv's, and electric guitars.

Some of the pros who were there were: Jeff Gove, Jason Gore, Scott McCarron, Mark Brooks, Pat Perez (fresh off of his Bob Hope victory), Dave Stockton Jr., Cliff Kresge, Dean Wilson, Stephen Ames, Bo Van Pelt.

Other notables who were there was 'Luke' the guitarist from the group Toto, Scott Hamilton (the figure skater), and Huey Lewis...yes, 'that's the POWer of Love' Huey Lewis. They all seemed to leave with something and they were all excited to do so. I overheard Bo Van Pelt's paycheck from the Hope was $179 000 but he was happy as a clam to run up and get his macbook. They all were it.

When they ran through the 'Am's' prizes it was a bit nerve wracking thinking that you might come up empty, but I put my name on enough placards that I thought I should end up with something...or so I hoped...Finally came the closest to the pin on 13..and the winner is: Corina Kelepouris!! I won a Sharp 42" LCD tv!!! Apparently the organizer felt like he didn't need the TV so he gave it to the next person on the list which was me!

I filled out a card and it should be here in a week or so! Wow. Can you imagine?

I have never been a part of a tourney that had such great prizes on every hole. I called Peter after the day was finished to offer him my tv (which he adamently refused) and to thank him for the opportunity. What a great day it turned out to be.

The Bob Hope

Another year of the Bob Hope Classic has come and gone, and I once again, caddied for my friend Peter Murphy. I first met Peter at the Quarry and have been caddying for him ever since. I think this was our 5th year together! Initially it was fun to be inside the ropes with the pros and so on, but at this point, I have more fun hanging with Peter. Peter is in his late 60's or early 70's but typically hits the ball very well. This year, however, he is about a week away from hip replacement and was in agony for most of the way. I felt bad for him because he is really competitive and wants desperately to help his teammates. This year, he had trouble doing so but for a few holes here and there and I know he felt badly about that.

The Hope tourney is a pro am where the pros are paired with a 'team' of three amateur players for 4 days, and the 5 and final day is pro's only. In my group, we had a Canadian guy 'Ben' from Toronto and 'George' from San Diego. It was Ben's first Hope and George's 2nd and Peter's 15th.

Ben was our 'A' player at a 3 handicap. Let me just say that if he is a 3 handicap, I should be in the Hall of Fame. Ben was by far the most annoying guy of the group. He really thought he was something special as did his wife. He tried to come off like he was 'happy go lucky nothing bothers me' but he was quite the opposite.

He started the tourney with a cold topped drive that didn't reach the opening fairway. He admitted he was very nervous which is understandable and I felt bad for him. In the end, it took him until the 3rd day until he hit a shot that wasn't accompanied by a glob of dirt that was dug up before the ball. It was late on day 3 until he made a putt, and it was deep into the back 9 yesterday before he hit a chip that might come from a 3 handicap's bag.

On the 2nd hole of the third day after yet another chunked shot that ricocheted off yet another tree I hear him mutter: 'I really can't wait until this is over'. Nice teammate, eh? Early day 3 and he is mailing it in. I didn't like that at all so I told him on the green that his team needed him to keep fighting and that when he was on a team that he didn't have the luxury to pack it in. He actually responded well to that and seemed to keep his head more in the game.

In the end his fist pumps for par and silly comments after both good and bad shots became quite annoying. Typically after 4 days with the same people I get pretty sick of at least one of them. Last year it was this old guy who wore 2 gloves and had no idea of any golf etiquette or awareness of anyone around him. I hated that guy by the end of the week.

We played with some nice pro's this year...2 of them were repeats from years past though. You would think that after Peter has played for 15 years, he would start getting put in a more favorable portion of the draw, or at least guys who he hasn't played with before. The sad thing is that Peter wants desperately to be in the same rotation as the celebrities and in all these years, he hasn't come close. Poor guy.

I started to feel a bit sick yesterday--stuffy and a bit sore in the throat, and didn't sleep great as a result. I had been sneezing quite a bit and feel like this little spell was coming on for awhile so hopefully I can fend it off in the next 24 hours. Peter has entered me in an annual golf tournament that takes place on the monday after the Hope so I hope to be feeling okay for that. I haven't hit balls since tuesday and am a bit nervous to go into a tourney unprepared, but at this point, I haven't much choice. I would like to get some golf in today, but don't have the energy for it at this point.

The Next Level

Over the years I have worked very hard to improve my golf in all areas. I went from a shallow swinger to someone who can hit the back of the ball. A person who couldn't get it in the air, to someone who can pitch a high softie. From someone who had the yips to someone who feels like they are going to make everythig. Anyone who plays golf knows the elements in golf ebb and flow. You hit it well, and you don't putt great. The next day you putt great, but don't hit it that great. That's golf.

There has been an element within my golf game that has been a constant, however, and although at times it has been better than others, it comes back to the same issue: My impact position.

For a brief run down of what happens is that the club typically comes too much from the inside, the hips come toward the ball, the arms raise and come above the plane and consistently hitting the back of the ball becomes a bit of a challenge. It has gotten a lot better in recent years with my work with Steve, however, it really doesn't make sense why it is so difficult to change that move. I know what is happening and where it is happening, but WHY does it continue to happen.

I started reflecting on my swing and golf game from year to year, and have deduced that no matter how strong or flexible I have been, it comes down to the same thing, that impact position. Why? There has to be a reason for it and a few weeks back, I the reason why came from an unlikely source, former NHL player Adam Oates.

Adam was one of the best passers in the game, and it was often stated that he was a better passer than The Great One. He had a 19 year career and the reason for this would be his dedication and discipline to physical fitness. Now, Adam a true golf fanatic, will always do what he can to make up for lost time with his golf game. He started talking to me about the fact that we all have patterns in our movements, created over our lifetime. The way we stand affects the way we move which affects how or why we have tightness in certain areas. He was talking about the Feldenkrais method.

For example, my hips and hamstrings have always been tight. No matter how much I have tried to loosen them, they always go back to their original tight selves. Why? My shoulders, on the other hand, are loose as can be. Why? Because of deeply ingrained patterns in my movements.

Yesterday was the beginning of a change coming to those patterns. I had an assessment with Daniella who went over my entire body from how I stand to the way I walk. For example, I have developed a bunion on my right foot. I always thought it came from a set of insoles that were given to me a few years back that smashed my feet into my shoes in an effort to create better alignment in my body. Although the insoles my have sped up the growth of that bunion, it was likely bound to happen sooner or later, based solely on my weight distribution when I walk and stand.

The majority of my weight gets held on the inside of my right foot and on my first two toes so if you think about it, no wonder that right toe is going to start moving inwards hence forcing the joint out--hence the bunion.

In the end, I learned a lot about why I have trouble getting to my left hip (which would help me stay level through the ball and keep my arms on plane through impact) and how we are going to fix it. Daniella takes this data and formulates a program specifically designed to address your personal needs.

I have had many workout plans in the past and some have been better than others, but I feel very enthusiastic about getting a program that will pinpoint and address my needs 100%. I am looking forward to seeing the progress over the next few months. More than anything, i am looking forward to finally reaching a level that I knew I had, but always seemed to have trouble attaining.

Giving me the business

Yesterday as I was coming back from my appointment I was catching up on the cell phone about day to day with my good friend. I am peacefully driving along when I notcied a car to the right of me who had their lane end and he did't play it very well. He didn't slow down, he didn't get in front of me, he just stayed where he was. Thing is, when your lane ends, there isn't room for two cars. Needless to say he was finding it a bit difficult to find space, so when I realized this I sped up and he tucked in beside me. No problem, right? That's what I thought...

Suddenly I heard some beeping and noticed it was a women in a little yellow Mercedes taking issue with the fact that I was on the phone. Granted, it is illegal in California to be on the phone, and not particularly safe either, but I don't think it is necessary to create a large scene on Hwy 111 from your own car in an effort to police fellow citizens. Here is what happened:

After I noticed her taking issue with me and having a small fit in the car, I flipped her the sustained bird. The bird with one hand, the phone in the other, a smirk on the face in the middle. I was totally obnoxious and loving every minute of it. She was now getting flustered and I recognized that she was trying to get my license plate number.

She sped up in that attempt to get my number, but was disappointed to see that I don't have a plate on the front of my car. Ha! Sucker. By this point, it was on. She then slowed down to try to get behind me, so I slowed down. She slowed down more...I countered and just stayed right beside her. We are now traveling at about 25 mph on a road that normally clips along at the rate of 55 or so. Cars behind us are starting to honk and get irritated, but I just stayed with her, mirror to mirror. Finally she picked up her pace so I followed. A light was now approaching and I quickly took inventory of where I would be in relation to her so I figured the safest place was to tuck in behind her, so I did.

Next thing I know, she pulled into the turning lane, so I again, followed. The last thing I wanted to do, however, was to turn into some housing development and fortunately for me, the light turned green and I did a quick lane change and went in around her. I could see her prop herself up as if she was getting ready to catch a better glimpse of my plate. Yeah, right. I gassed it and just like that, I was gone.

It was a funny little interchange and I am sure she was shocked that I was so persistent in the game that she decided to play, but she didn't realize that she is dealing with the girl who threatened to smash into a girls car if she 'didn't drop the attitude' haha.

I had been meaning to get myself a hands free device for the car, but this confirmed it. Not because of the idiot in the yellow Mercedes with the matching yellow hair, but because it is the right thing to do. Next stop, the Verizon store for the 'jawbone'.

New Roommate

Yesterday I was heading out the door to practice and I opened the door that leads to the garage and bam! There he was, a little lizard having a rest on my running shoe. Now being in the desert I see all kinds of gecko's and lizards all over the place so I am pretty used to it. What I am not used to are these little guys being in my space and enjoying my things. The thing that made me feel even more creeped out was his rounded tail. I am not sure if you know this, but if a lizard gets attacked by a predator, his tail has a quick release system which might allow it to get away. The tail will eventually regenerate over time. Quite frankly it gave me the heebie-jeebies.

How did that little guy get in there? My garage door is opened for all of about 2 minutes max. per day. Regardless I wanted him out, but I didn't want to disrupt his rest too much because the last thing I wanted was to get him running and have him run in the house. If that happened, I might have to move. I grabbed a nearby golf club and tried to insert the shaft into the opening in the shoe and hoist it up and out. The problem was, the shoe was on it's side and the tongue of the shoe was inhibiting entry. Surprisingly enough, my rustling around with the shoe didn't bother him one bit. He just sat there daydreaming about all the bugs and flies he was going to eat later that day. I was really struggling with getting the shoe hoisted up, so I had to grab another golf club to chopstick it (I am sure you can figure out what that is). Meanwhile, the lizard wasn't bothered at all. He was just hanging out relaxing enjoying the ride. He might have thought it was just another minor earthquake so he didn't bother fleeing the scene. I was glad for that.

I ended up just pushing the shoe all the way out the garage to the driveway and when I got to the driveway, the shoe toppled and the little guy barely noticed. In fact, I had to give him a little poke on his rounded tail to get him going. Finally, he sprung to life and headed for cover in the bushes. I shut the door and that was that. Or so I though....

Fast forward to today.

I came home from a very enjoyable round of 9 holes and was set to watch the jackets game when I saw movement. What the heck??? I saw something scamper to just behind my golf bag. Of course I jump back and then peer around the corner and see him again. I know it is him because of his rounded tail. How did he get in? I look along the wall and what I thougt was just a flaw in the concrete surrounding the garage, ended up being a hole. He lives here. With me. In the walls of the garage. Worse yet, is there is some kind of outside access to that spot. That, or he hangs around until I come home and wait until the garage opens so he can sauter in. I highly doubt that.

Initially I didn't really worry about him being there, but as I think about it, if he can get in there, what else can? Another lizard? A family of them? A snake? That was it, I have to buy some of that spray foam that plugs holes. Hopefully I can track the little guy down so that he is out of that hole before I do it, but regardless, he needs his access blocked.

If a friggin' snake comes slithering out of there, that surely would send me into cardiac arrest. No way, this has to be done, and done quickly.

UPDATE:

Shortly afer I finished this blog entry, I went to see if I could catch the little guy out of his home. I opened the door cautiously so as to not scare him and have him jump into my house, grabbed a golf club and rattled it around a bit. Sure enough, there he was. He used my golf shoe as a bit of a hiding spot this time, but I saw him. Now to plug the hole. I decided that a plastic bag would serve a good blocker for now as I could mold it into the hole. I then taped it on. (Looking back now, I suppose I just could have put tape over the hole and left the bag off, but hey--I've never had to fend off a lizard before).

Again, I used a golf club to hoist the shoe up and out of the garage, and off into the darkness he scampered.

Major hand injury waiting to happen

What is the deal with packaging these days? Why is it so important to package things in such a plastic that you need a vice grip and a razor sharp knife to cut into it safely?

You know the type of encasement I am talking about. Where the plastic is sealed by some sort of plastic welding devise so you can no longer pry it apart. The plastic itself is so thick that if you do get a part of it separated, it could slice your hand practically in half.

I bought a little cheap knife set from wal-mart a few weeks back because my knives were getting dull, but I needed a knife to get into my knives. ????

You can get this special little cutter that will help you get into this type of packaging, and you need it. Scissors aren't strong enough and you practically need a Ginsu to get into this packaging. Is it really necessary?

Heavy Traffic

It seems my little video has gotten around a bit. Mr. Leonsis himself linked it on his blog which has created quite an influx of new visitors to my little blog. It has over 3500 views on youtube in just over two days. My blog traffic is seeing numbers never seen before.

Not sure if that is a good thing or not...I mean, do people who don't know me really care to read about my 'dek-toe' or people slathering sunscreen on their faces?

Nice to see people are enjoying it and that Leonsis (and the Caps fans) can take a bit of ribbing.

Ted Leonsis reacts to loss to Blue Jackets

He wasn't happy:

Movin' and Shakin'--***CONFIRMATION***

***The 'quake last night was confirmed as a 4.5 on the richter scale and the epicenter was in San Bernadino (approx. 90 miles from here).
--------------------------------------------------

At approximately 7:50 pm pacific time, I felt an earthquake.

It always feels like someone is pushing the couch, which makes me jump because I think someone got my house. I don't think further explanation as to why that would freak you out.

Since living in California I have felt a number of shakers, but nothing major (thankfully). Usually they just feel like it is super windy out which might be giving the house a bit of a shake. When it lasts longer than a few seconds, it becomes clear that it isn't the wind. The worst thing about it is that you don't know if it is the beginning of 'the big one' or how long it is going to last. The one tonight only lasted a few seconds and it wasn't even strong enough to knock an empty water bottle off of my end table and you know how easy it is to do that.

All is well here in the Coachella Valley...

It's not okay to me.

Why is it socially acceptable for people to walk around with sun screen slathered across their cheeks? Mostly it is the men who do it when their wives aren't around.

First off guys, it is never a good idea to apply anything to your face unless you are standing in front of a mirror. If you must, however, you need to apply it small amounts and be sure that everything is adequately rubbed in so as to avoid large collections of globs around the inner ear and nostrils and lotion in the brows.

I saw this guy in the parking lot at the golf course yesterday, and if I didn't know any better, he was getting ready to perform as a mime. Is that really necessary? I have never read anywhere on a sunscreen bottle that has said: the thicker the better. If you have S.P.F 15 it won't turn it into a 30 S.P.F. if you apply it an inch thick.

Go to a mirror and apply it properly so I don't have to look at a white face and globs of sunscreen that got caught in your orifices.

Thanks in advance.

Downfall, NHL stlye

One of the most hilarious things I have seen in awhile. How are people so clever? (for those who speak German, this one might be a little tough to decipher)

3 Things to avoid

The Rattle Snake bite, Black Stiletto bite, and a bite from the Brown Recluse Spider.

On animal planet last night there was a show on called 'I've Been Bitten'.

(I was going to post some pictures of the individual bites, but it is way too gross).

The show is pretty self explanatory, it has people on there who have been bitten by various things and the trauma and injuries they sustain with some actual footage included.

The first guy saw a rattle snake on the road and he and his buddy decided they should keep it. The one guy grabbed it by the tail (because he didn't think it could rear up and bit him--I know, right? Hasn't this guy ever watched the Crocodile Hunter?), and put it in a plastic bad and threw it in the back of the truck. Did they seal the bag? Nah...it won't get out...just gave it a few twists and that was that. In about a minute the snake was out of the bag and roaming around the back of the pickup in an agitated state.. The next part was a bit unclear...I am not sure if he was riding in the back of the truck with the snake or not, but either way, he decided to pick the snake up again, but this time much closer to the head, but again, not all the way to the head. The snake had had enough at this point, reared back and planted his fangs into the back of his hand. How terrifying. Not only did it bite him, but it had to be pried off because it really latched on. Man, I come right unglued when a grasshopper sticks to me, let alone a rattle snake.

Once the snake was removed, all the guy had was 2 little dots of blood on his hand so he didn't think much of it. Being that they were 40 minutes from the ranger station, he started to feel worse on the drive. He started to have trouble breathing, tingling in his muscles and his hand started to swell up.

By the time the paramedics got to him, his throat was all but shut and they were having trouble intibating him so they had to perform a tracheotomy. His hand, arm, chest, throat and face were now swollen beyond the point of recognition. The arm swelled up so badly the doctors were afraid of some kind of syndrome where basically the arm might pop so they had to slice it open to releave the pressure. When it was all said and done, he had to have multiple skin grafs and his arm is permanently disfigured and has reduced range of motion in his hand and arm. The whole thing was gripping and tough to watch...so I watched the rest of the show.

The Brown Recluse spider is very poisonous yet only transfers a very small amount of venom and will only bite when it gets swished or threatened. This spider is found in the southwest, midwest and has NOT established itself in California (don't think for two seconds that I didn't immediately find out where these little suckers lived). The guy who got bit was in bed, reached for his blanket that was on the floor and which the spider was mixed up in. He felt something crawling up his leg, smacked at it and then felt the pinch immediately after. Initially he had some swelling, but nothing major. The next day, it got worse, and worse, and worse again. Eventually doctors had to remove a 12 " diamater section of his leg to dispose of all the poisoned flesh.

The Stiletto snake bite is another one you don't want to mess with. The guy who got bit by this nearly had his thumb rot off. Part of the venom that this snake releases is a digestive enzyme and it literally 'ate' a large portion of this guys' thumb. The doctor didn't think amputation was going to be necessary because he felt there would be live flesh underneat the surface. When he stripped back the layers, he found a bone that was, in fact, being digested.

Fortunately, he was able to save most of his thumb, but here is the weird part: the guy had his thumb sewn into his groin for three weeks in order to aid the skin grafting. The thumb was so badly damaged and needed so much flesh, sewing it into the groin area would help that skin and flesh attach to the thumb more readily. They showed a picture of it but I couldn't figure out what part the thumb was sewn into. It looked like he was all shaved 'downtown', and the thumb was sewn into the portion just inside of the inner groin. That bit, however, tends to grow hair. My question is this: if the skin regenerates there, and now it becomes part of his thumb, will the folicles go with the skin, and if it does, will his thumb start to grow pubic hair?

There should really be a follow up on that part. Inquiring minds want to know.

Can't think straight

I was chatting with a friend today on facebook and started talking about adult ADD (attention deficit disorder). It is a fancy term for having the attention span of a gnat. I think I might have it.

I can no longer sit and watch tv anymore, I have to sit and watch tv with my computer on my lap and be surfing whatever random sites. I can no longer just drive to a destination, I have to drive and check messages on my phone or even get on my phone (everytime I do it, I think about how much I need a hands free device.) I can't make dinner without having the tv on and something decent to listen to. Having a shower? Put on the music. When I am practicing, I need to have my ipod handy to listen to music or my latest podcast. What is that all about? Why does the brain need to be so stimulated these days? Why have I allowed my focus to stray so that concentrating on one thing at a time is basically extinct within me?

Maybe the yoga will help get me centered again. Focusing on the task at hand allows you to fully experience what you are doing. Continuing to divide my focus will have detrimental long term effects. It is like when you fold a piece of paper in half and then again in half, and then a gain in half until you have this little hard ball of what used to be paper, but now feels like a rock and is rendered useless. I don't need my brain hardening up on me.

Maybe this is why I am so tired at the end of the day and go to be before 9 pm every night. I am going to work on that.

Tragedy

John Travlolta's 16 year old son died yesterday from hitting his head on a bathtub after experiencing a seizure while on vacation in the Bahama's.

I can't think of anything worse that this family has to go through.

Back at it

After my sweat class yesterday, I headed back to the golf course for the first time in a few months. Knocking the rust off is always the worst part of the season. It usually takes about 21 days to get feeling somewhat normal again and starting slow with it is the key.

I joined The Palms (looking at picture to the right, you don't have to wonder why it is called The Palms) in May when most of the snow birds have left the desert so there was never many people around. As the summer wore on there was less and less, hardly more than 4 or 5 cars in the parking lot at one time. As I drove in yesterday the parking lot was loaded and there were people everywhere...on the range (both ends), the chipping area and the putting greens. It was great and I got a lot of energy from that.

I began putting and ended up chatting with 'Eric', a friend of Anthony Kim's. My stroke felt great, like I never missed any time. Even better actually, because my mind was clear. I then chipped and then went and hit some mini-9 irons while listening to the newest Ricky Gervais podcast. It was hilarious and I probably looked like a mental case standing out there smiling and laughing to myself the whole time.

It was a shortish practice session, but an enjoyable one. I ran into a few guys who I had met from being out there in the past. Among those people I also saw Adam Oates.

I first met Adam in the gym a few months ago and we started working out together and did so for a few months. Adam was great in the gym, better than having a trainer. His fitness level is, and always has been, remarkable. It is how he was able to play in the league for as long as he did. Adam is a passionate guy in whatever he does and believes in and one of those passions lies in hating Hank Haney and Tiger Woods. Being an acquaintance of Hank and a believer in what he teaches, it made for a bit of a strain in our budding friendship to say the least. Regardless, we are cordial and polite but he is still a bit awkward socially.

It felt great getting sun on my skin again.

Old Lady

I wanted to go to bed at 5:30 last night, but I couldn't let myself. I stayed up until 8:30.

I finished reading my new book: Karlology and shut it down after that--about 9:00. What is that all about, eh?

Could I still be on Columbus time? Maybe, but I sleep until around 6 (set my alarm to get up for Yoga) so it isn't like I am up at 4 or anything. The desert does that too you though. I am convinced it has something do with getting dark so early and the level of darkness. By 5:30 it has been quite dark for about an hour and a half and your mind is telling your body that it is time to start gearing down for bed. I understand why people go to dinner at 4 o clock and are in bed by 7. It makes perfect sense to me and I could easily get into that routine.

I am 35 years old and live like a 60 year old. What will I be like when I am 40, 50, 60? Wow. Scary thought sometimes.

Me at 40