"Go to a Happy Place"

The weather forecast starting this evening calls for yet more snow for my area. This follows the most recent string of days featuring snow melting and even some sunshine. Man, we can not catch a break with this intense winter weather. As my way of coping with yet more oncoming snow, I figured I'd share something I really hope to get accomplished should the snow ever melt around here.

Starting at the beginning of last semester, but greatly picking up my pace during this semester, I have been hitting the weight room regularly. I feel like it's paid off so far; I have bulked up to a fairly solid 175 lbs., while at the same time making noticeable improvements in my flexibility. I'm not ready to proclaim myself, baseball spring training style, in the "best shape of my life," but I feel great about my progress.

Why dedicate myself so much to the weight room now? The self-confidence and health benefits are great. However, I'm also an extremely competitive person, and I always like to have some way of channeling my competitive nature into something I enjoy. Of course, the things I enjoy most where I can be competitive are sports (I think you've been missing the point of this blog for quite a while if you've thought otherwise). That being said, I hope to vastly improve my golf game by the end of the summer.

I'm certainly not foreign to the game of golf. I played in the summer rarely while in grade school and in high school, and played fairly often over the past few summers since I entered college. Still, I do not feel like I have dedicated myself enough to begin to make major improvements in my game. I want to get to the driving range as often as I can (much more so than last year), practice my short game just as much, and continue to improve my fitness level. Also, my current clubs (especially my driver) have endured their share of shots over the past few years; I may break my personal bank to go to a club seller and get new clubs fitted for my body type and swing. Lessons certainly aren't out of the question; if the greats of golf have swing coaches, I'm pretty sure I could not possibly be above getting swing tips. Also, I may try to avoid the free course around me more often than usual; I'm not sure if its ridiculous tee boxes and inconsistent fairways are very helpful to improving my game.

Despite the obvious costs involved with the game, it seems to me that playing and making improvements in golf is easier than a great deal of other sports. Every single facet of the game can be worked on both alone and in the presence of friends and others. A huge yard is needed for working on drives (if you plan on using regular balls for practice), but there are areas that one can practice even from the comfort of home. Hopefully I don't sound too antisocial saying all this; I love all the golf outings with friends that take place during the summer.

I'm not sure whether talking so much about my big golf plans has excited me more for the spring and the summer, or just made me more impatient in enduring this snowy winter weather. If you actually read this, I hope you stick around, as I have another fun idea coming soon...