(A) My family very kindly allowed me to realize something of a dream today…
I played golf in Scotland, the birthplace of the game!
I’ve played golf since I was a kid, and I really enjoy it. I know that golf courses are not the most ecologically responsible uses of land (to put it mildly), but I assuage my guilt by believing that Scottish golf courses require much less in the way of irrigation and fossil fuels than courses in other parts of the world do. (It rains a lot here, and less mowing is done on the courses, generally.) I suppose that pesticides and herbicides might still be in use here. I don’t know.
But I do know that golf courses — some of them, anyway — please me. I’ve seen wildlife and foliage and vistas on golf courses that I’ve not seen elsewhere. Playing a round of golf is a fine way of communing with nature, albeit a highly cultivated version of nature. Someone once said that golf is a good walk spoiled. (Mark Twain is alleged to have said that, but I doubt he did.) I’m sometimes inclined to agree with that… especially on days when I play badly. But overall, the fresh air, open spaces, and (relative) isolation make golfing a lovely pastime.
I had a great caddy too. Mia drove the cart (or ‘buggy’) and took the photos. She also kept me from feeling too bad about poor shots. It was a really great day on the links.
After that, we visited the cafe just down the road from our rental house. Mia had a milk and I had a coffee while we waited for a take away order, which we brought back to the house. Later on, I did some dishes and laundry. It’s been a pretty low-key afternoon. And that’s good, because tomorrow is going to be a busy day!