I find myself constantly second-guessing Mother Nature on her mood as far as the weather is concerned. It is a silly battle. The rain and sun are always giving me grief in planning my day. I’m talking about laundry days and not my golf games.
When the sun is out, it’s a good laundry day. But sometimes rain clouds would unexpectedly creep in. This situation then spoils the after-wash drying conditions. I love sun-dried clothes because they feel fresh and have a lovely sun-baked scent. Non-sun-dried clothes pale in satisfaction.
So, over the years, I have learned to look at the sky and gauge the cloud formations before I do laundry, although I could rely on the Weather app on my iPhone XR for better planning.
Yet, despite my efforts, Mother Nature still wins. Yesterday’s laundry load did not have enough sunshine to smell good. They will be out again today to catch some rays. Hopefully, it will stay sunny.
It looks like a silly battle, but instinct and technology cannot compare with Mother Nature.
DIY project number 31 is coming along slowly. Besides building, there are pieces of furniture and accessories that require painting to complete the composition. Otherwise, the set will look different from the picture on the box unless I want a total change. Unfortunately, as much as I enjoy building my miniatures, I find customizing tedious.
Whenever a set requires a paint job for the loose items, I use my acrylic colors. Sometimes, the DIY sets do provide little pods of colors to use. So, I use those because they are of the right colors instead of having to mix the shades myself.
Recently, I discovered a new trick to shortcut this step. Instead of painting, which requires several layers, I use a color marker! And since I have two brown shades, typical for pieces of furniture, it has been okay. The pieces look just as natural. However, I need to replenish my markers soon because they are drying up fast!
The weather of late has been wonky, going from dry and hot, suitable for outdoor activities like golf, to wet and cold. It creates a sense of melancholy, yet to be home and be a couch potato seems okay to enjoy the wet and cool conditions.
After that eagle achievement, I am not aiming to be a couch potato but raring to play some good golf, only to have the weather derail my plans. We abandoned our game yesterday afternoon after the rain came rather quickly. Sigh.
Recently, I went for several therapy sessions to address my plantar fasciitis problem. It turned out to be a pinched nerve on my spine, causing pain in my right heel. My spine? I never suspected this at all!
Initially, I thought it was plantar fasciitis because the pain occurred almost daily – in the mornings, throughout the day, and especially after playing golf. I even thought my golf shoes were not right for me. Well, this is a thing of the past now.
Immediately after the treatment, my recovery was spectacular, with an eagle shot on a Par 4 the next day! If I had understood my pain better to address it correctly, I could have avoided my recent golf downward trend. Oh well, better late than never, and the Eagle achievement has made up for all the past performances.
The lesson learned: always be aware of your body if something is wrong. Being a dinosaur, we cannot take things for granted. If there is any physical pain, take the proper measures to address the issue immediately to avoid months of suffering. I’m glad I am now cured and happy.
The golf game on Saturday, 19 August 2023, will forever be etched in my mind, for it was during this game that I holed out from the fairway for an eagle! A two on a Par 4.
Saturday’s game was the Carlsberg Classic tournament held at my club. I played well despite performing poorly on all the Par 5s again. This phobia is hard to get rid of. Slowly, perhaps to change the mindset.
Thankfully, I fixed some issues I had earlier, and it helped. I was sharp on the short game, and my Scotty putter was good. I also had good company on my flight, and the camaraderie eased our waiting for each shot.
I told my buggy mate we should all aim to finish with a par on Hole 1 because we started with three pars and a birdie on Hole 2 during the shotgun start. With that in mind, I teed up and launched my ball.
Typically, my ball would fly to the left, but that morning, it went right. And actually, it was a much better position to approach the green. I brought two clubs with me when I walked to my ball on the fairway. The distance on the Hole 19 app on my AppleWatch showed 119m. The hybrid choice came to mind since it was a white flag, so it is better to land the ball short for a one-chip, one-putt strategy.
But when I stood still at the ball again, the reading changed! Aiks. It became 125m. Maybe I better use my wood instead. One last effortless hit and a par is still within range.
I lined up my shot, took a test swing with my 5-wood, and struck the ball. It flew beautifully, landed on the green, and rolled a bit before disappearing into the hole! I saw the whole scene unfolding in slow motion. Holy moly, what just happened?
Retrieving my ball from the hole-out eagle shot.
OH WOW! I could not believe my eyes! I just holed out for an eagle. Everyone on my flight whooped and shouted, and I was ecstatic! After twenty years of playing this game, this eagle achievement is my first.
After the game, the club presented a dozen golf balls to me, and I will get an Eagle Achievement certificate too. Nice! Sometimes when the going is so bad, a little surprise pops up, like this one, and you love the game all over again. I am officially an eagle achiever, be still my beating heart!
After a lengthy pause from crafting, I have decided to start on DIY project number 31. Number 31, wow! It’s been three years now that I have been building miniatures, and I find this activity very therapeutic. It’s nice to be immersed in my little miniature world, away from all the noise and disruption of reality!
However, sometimes it can be very aggravating because things are all so tiny, but I take the challenge head-on. Deft fingers and patience are a must. My biggest bane now is storage. Where do I keep the completed sets? I should consider acquiring a second Ikea display cabinet to house all my completed miniatures.
So project number 31, a kitchen, is a small set like projects number 25 and 26. They are from the same series. Three weeks tops to complete this, barring disruptions or travel? We shall see.
The golf game downtrend has continued. My handicap has recently gone up at an alarming rate! It’s disheartening and embarrassing. Have I been playing so bad? Reality check here to relook at my game performance.
I should not focus on putting stats only because it does not reflect the whole game. I should look at all aspects of the game and see how to play better. I recently resolved my approach shots, but unfortunately, not helping to return with better scores. Then again, I do find lately, even in Jakarta, the passion to excel at the game is not quite in me.
Separately, my weight is also on the uptrend, like my golf handicap! It’s just as disheartening and alarming. I have not been eating a lot nor binge drinking beer after my golf games. Something is causing an imbalance, thus the uptrend.
I have to do something to tackle these two issues because they are bugging me to the core. Perhaps a little more disciplined with food and well-being to manage the weight, and be more focused to improve all aspects of the game and rediscover the passion again.
It is a Monday but a public holiday today, a bonus one. Over the weekend, it was Election Day for six states in the country. Our state of Selangor was one of them, delayed from November because of Covid, although the federal election went on.
I voted for the State Elections
With the outcome of the state elections maintaining the status quo, the nation has to move on now that this is over. I feel so tired because of this.
Or could it be that the neighbor’s dogs are the culprit of my lack of sleep? Every morning before my alarm rang, without fail, they would bark the street down and spoils the sleep-in. So this bonus public holiday is pointless because the dogs were at it again. Grr.
The past few days were tiring! I did not have time to gather my thoughts on the golf trip, and before I knew it, we were back in KL yesterday.
The third day’s schedule was slightly better, waking up a wee later for an eight o’clock tee-off. I found Suvarna Golf Club not as picturesque as Royale Jakarta. But the course was challenging, as I ended up in the sand bunkers more than ever.
Suvarna, the satay was super delicious!
I was aghast each time my ball went into the sand bunkers until I developed a phobia! Shivers. It was a forgettable round of golf with far too many bunker nightmares. Oh well, we had one more day of golf.
The last round was at the links course, Sedayu Indo Golf. I’ve never played at a links course before, and it was quite an experience. How quickly the golf fortune changed with a different golf course and new challenges.
My Bebek lunch was good, course was excellent
There were no bunker issues but the wind! Despite the strong wind and the undulating terrain, the last game was most enjoyable. The course layout next to the ocean also made this experience the best compared to the other two courses.
The five days, four nights golf trip was coming to an end. After three games, I did not lose any balls to the course challenges, which was a morale booster. My putting had its ups and downs, but generally pleased. However, sand bunker shots need improvement, likewise, my approach shots.
Our tour operator treated the group to a sumptuous farewell Indonesian dinner on the last night. Soon it was time to say goodbye to new friends and the city. The horror stories of being stuck in the traffic jam were not too bad. Kudos to the tour operator for selecting Hotel Santika, which was quite central to the three courses we played at.
Messy power cables
The city impressed me, although certain older parts reminded me of Bangkok. Generally, Jakarta looked like a developed nation’s big city, if not better, and not what I envisioned. Golfing in Jakarta is now a happy memory stored away. Hubby and I enjoyed ourselves tremendously and look forward to returning soon or another golf escapade.
Yesterday after lunch at the club, we went for a day tour of the city. We visited the Jakarta Cathedral and the Istiqlal Mosque.
Beautiful architecture
Both places of worship had very different and fascinating architecture. I even felt a sense of peace upon entering the premises, which was unexpected but embraced nonetheless.
Then it was time to head back to the hotel to rest. But some of us detoured to have body massages and foot reflexology. I opted for the foot massage to ease my pain from the plantar fasciitis. My masseur was excellent, as it did help tremendously.
The final touch using a hammer to my legs!Simple yet satisfying
By nightfall, I was drained of energy and had an early night after a simple Bakso dinner. So far, I am very impressed with Jakarta. We play Suvarna Jakarta Golf Club the next day.
Angieneering 
Remarks