The Lucky Strike!

Already the phone calls and accolades are making their way to my email box, and thanks. But you're all a week early. The 16th shall be the big 42. I am ready to get back into old hobbies I haven't partaken in in a while. Take last night for example...

One mile from my place there is a bowling alley. As a resident in Seattle there was a 24 hour locale called 'Ballard Bowl' that afforded me the luxury of enjoying as many as 30 games a week for as little as ten cents a game. I attended there often. Right before I moved I made a great bowler out of the Princess.

Jenn was just as obsessive about learning the game and kicking my ass in the process. My proudest moments were the day in 2000 when she hit 171 and I cranked out 233. Like riding a bike, once you throw it all comes back. Even so the 5 and ten pins were my biggest adversary...

I found a comfy 16 pound ball. The heavier the ball, the more spin I get when throwing. Ordered a pizza and a coke from the concession dude and it was on! First two games I was hitting spares but was finishing flat. Scores of 143 and 149 for the Master. Not bad, but not to my level of satisfaction. Then the magic returned...Game 3 looked like:

9/ 7/ X X 9/ X 9/ 7/ X 9/8 only one bad toss in the round and no open frames until my final throw for a 201!!! Yes! I was yelling like a happy banshee. Then the final game I had a bad start then finished on fire:

7/ 9- s8- X X X s8/ X 7/ X 9- I had never tossed back to back 200 games. This should have been it! If it weren't for an errant pin in the lane causing a 5 minute delay between shots, and two damn splits, I would not have taken so long to think about that fact! Instead I was a little off and finished with a 194. After a year away, HELL YEAH! It appears I have found me a new place to call home when there isn't a sporting event going on. And to the Princess, let me say I was sure to let the 'Spin, Ball Spin!' take effect...

Now to get my golf game in order...

Over and out in Big D

Mr Will