My Sick Mind

... as I watched Paula's third round on the TV today, and I suffered along with her horrible round. As if it wasn't enough that she was playing with the tournament leader Christie Kerr, she had to go and triple bogey the 10th and bogey the 11th on her way to an 8 -over par round and a 6-over par tournament. Although she is only 8 shots off the lead and tied for 17th place, it's unlikely that she'll stage a big comeback and win the Open. However... And although I said that I'd go back if she had a chance to win, I realized that going back meant that I'd support her regardless, and the fact that she has a snowball's chance in Hell of winning the Open, I feel like I have to go back and walk with her again and support her in her unlikely quest to win the U.S. Open. That's just how it is. She tees off at 11:50 on Sunday morning, and I'll be up at 7 and there on time, walking the course again, with the slim hope that I will be witnessing greatness and ...

The Morning Call , the newspaper that spoke to me on Thursday ran the article . My favorite part was where they said that "he admits he follows the Ladies Professional Golf Association more closely than the men's golf tour," as though I'd admitted that I like watching children's television more than 60 Minutes - How dare you! I don't know if they ran the photo of my shirt, since I haven't seen the actual newspaper. Anyway, since Paula is in the last group today and one shot from the lead, I thought about driving back (or staying there) to see the third round, but I admit to being tired. I walked the course twice yesterday, once with Suzann Pettersen's group and again in the afternoon with Paula. Not only is it about 8,000 yards (more or less 5 miles), but it's through that high grass. The players walk on stuff that's like the carpeting in your living room. Lucky bastards. I saw a lot of people wearing flip-flops. I don't get flip-flops...

With the best of intentions, I woke up at 4:30am and was out the door by 5:30, but a navigational cock-up sent me east instead of west and what should have been a 90-minute trip to Bethlehem, PA took more like 120 minutes. So, I was a little late for Paula's 7:55 tee time. Thanks to my Garmin Nuvi, I was able to get help navigating through Allentown and around the Lehigh University campus where they had us park for the shuttle bus. I'd probably still be driving around looking for the golf course otherwise. She started on the 10th hole, so I managed to pick her up at 14. She was playing with Lorena Ochoa, so the Mexican Army was out in force and the galleries were huge. Much larger than anything I'd seen at Bulle Rock. They figure to be as large tomorrow, when their tee time is 1:25pm. All that means is that I'll be there until at least 5:30 and it will be warmer. Such is life. Saucon Valley is a nice place. Nestled in the Saucon Creek watershed , it's picturesque,...

My stay-at-home vacation is coming to an end on Thursday. The first round of the Women's U.S. Open gets going and Paula Creamer is due to tee off at 7:55am, which means I'll have to be out the door and on the road by 6:00am. Quite the attitude adjustment. The upside is that her tee time on Friday will be in the afternoon, since they flip-flop the morning and afternoon in the second round. I can sleep-in on Friday and decide whether I want to stay the night and go back on Saturday. Paula is fighting a thumb injury, so it's likely that (a) she'll not be in contention on Saturday (b) she'll withdraw or (c) she'll miss the cut. That's sad. The other upside (can there be two upsides?) is that a 7:55 tee time means that she'll be finished her round by 12:30, and if I want, I can get home at a reasonable hour. Strangely, it's only 10 more miles to the Saucon Valley course than it is to Bulle Rock, but the travel time is a half hour more - primarily bec...

Having the day off gives me some perspective on what people who have every day off have to endure. Daytime television. Regis and Kelly. Regis seems like a guy caught in a party where he's the only guy and awkwardly tries to make conversation with people with whom he has little in common. Kelly is the ringleader, the Head Yenta as it were, and an audience full of them eats up every stupid comment. Regis sips his coffee and counts the checks. Thank God for the Tour de France. Coincidentally, there's something on TV this week in the morning. It isn't for everybody, but it's the anti-Christ in a world of daytime blather television. There is so little to offer that Versus runs it continually during the day, and again in prime time. That should tell you everything you need to know about daytime television. Michael Jackson is dead. Unbekownst to me, today was his memorial service. They held it at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, presumably because the L.A. Coliseum was bo...

Paula Creamer threw out the first ball at last night's Phillies/Reds game in Philadelphia. The Reds could have used her later, as the Phils threw-up a 22-spot on them, winning 22-1 in the biggest blow-out since Nixon/McGovern. “We got slaughtered as they used to say,” Reds manager Dusty Baker said. Um --- no, they still say that Dusty. Among other things: The 21-run margin of victory was the largest in franchise history, surpassing a 26-7 triumph over the New York Mets on June 11, 1985. The 22 runs were the most scored by the Phillies since that 26-7 game. The Phillies' 10-run first inning tied a team record. They also scored 10 in the first against the New York Giants in 1948, the Chicago Cubs in 1975, and the Montreal Expos in 2002. Shane Victorino tied the team record for runs scored in a game with five. Seven players, including Jimmy Rollins and John Kruk, share that record. You'd think that a game like that would have been kind of boring, but at one point, afte...

Today is the first day of another week of vacation. Today's highlight was a dental cleaning at 9:00am followed by a sprightly 23 mile bike ride at noon. Later, I'll be taking in the Phillies/Reds game tonight. The highlight of that affair will be that Paula Creamer is throwing out the first ball. At least I hope she is. She pulled out of the Owens Corning tournament last week with a thumb injury. I suppose, if she isn't going to play the Open she wouldn't bother to come to Philly to go to a baseball game. The LPGA is playing their U.S. Open at Saucon Valley this week. I'm going to be there Thursday and Friday at least. Depending on who's on the leaderboard and what the traffic looks like, I'll probably wander out there one day over the weekend too. The tournament is a 90-minute drive along the Pennsylvania Turnpike, which has a way of turning into a 190-minute drive. Otherwise, it'll be a mundane week off work which is better than a good week...