Tag: Snow

Hitting the Links

Spring comes a little later to Minnesota than it does to the lower latitudes, but we hit an important milestone this weekend, as I was able to go golfing with my middle son, Joe. Here he is about to take his first tee shot yesterday (click to enlarge):

What you see on the right is the frozen creek. And while most of the course was in fairly good shape (though still quite brown), there were a few addition “traps” around some of the greens:

Of course we were playing Winter rules, so landing in the snowbank wouldn’t have been a problem. But Joe was actually aided by the remnants of Winter on the 14th hole. He had sliced his drive, and then had to cross a body of (mostly) water. He didn’t hit it well, and it headed straight for the pond.

Fortunately for him, his ball hit one of the ice floes and skipped off to land safely on the other side, setting him up for a nice approach shot to the green:

No particular social media lesson here, except that having an iPhone (or other camera phone) along makes it easy to share fun moments that will become cherished memories. (And not just because I beat Joe yesterday.)

Winter Wonderland

Here’s part of the fun involved in living in Austin, Minnesota. With 7″ of snow so far (and the local public schools canceled for the day – although SMUG is still in session), I got to spend a half hour in some really productive exercise before catching the bus to Rochester.

The Task at Hand
The Task at Hand

At SMUG, the Chancellor also is in charge of Environmental Services.

Anyone for a Picnic?
Anyone for a Picnic?

These lights are called “icicle lights,” mainly for the visual effect they create. In our case, because our new garage doesn’t have gutters yet, we give that term a literal interpretation.

Icicle Lights
Icicle Lights

And after a half hour of shoveling, I had tamed the rugged driveway, much as my ancestors tamed the prairie. (OK, forget that. They didn’t get to go in and take a warm shower after they went out to chop wood.)

Mission Accomplished!
Mission Accomplished!

They also didn’t have wifi on the bus to work (or a bus to work) that they could use to share their morning experiences with the world.

So although we sometimes grumble about having to get up early to shovel the driveway and dig out after the snow plow has passed, we have a wonderful life. We’re blessed with a theater of seasons, and an opportunity to get out and become actors in the play.