Manager Development

Today is my first of two full days of Manager Development to prepare me for my promotion. It should be easy compared to all of the homework & testing I've had to complete over the last couple of weeks. Some of it was brutal!!! This was the shadow cast on the wall outside the Golf Course Properties conference room.

Here's some of my stuff ...

Happy Anniversary to WTD!

Today marked the 100th strip for Aaron Johnson, the talented creator of What the Duck. He gave away some freebies & had a live chat. Long live the Duck! Here's the cast poster:

Yay! The Magnifica is here! :o)

Mary shipped me my new Magnifica espresso machine yesterday & it arrived today. I still have some of the 16 shots left that I bought on Sunday. I watched the DVD & fired it up. Works like a charm, but I won't really put it to work until the weekend.

Here they are side-by-side ... the broken Digital Italia & the new Magnifica.

Dead Digital Italia :o(

Today my Starbucks Digital Italia died. The display said it needed to be primed, but after an hour & a half on the phone with Starbucks, we determined it was dead. Ugh! I went to Starbucks in Jax Beach & picked up 24 shots of espresso to hold my house guests & me for a couple of days. I told the barista I was gonna order a drink that I was sure nobody ever ordered before. He didn't think I could shock him, but I did. The good news is that Starbucks will give me a full refund since it's less than 2 years old. Mary's gonna pick up a Magnifica from the Starbucks in Weston & ship it to me.

Jax Sunset

Today we went to check out the San Marco area of Jax. After that we went back up to Fernadina Beach. This was the sunset on the way home.

Thanksgiving

Mary came up to PVB for Thanksgiving. Since the weather was nice we decided to take a trip to the airplane graveyard for an early morning shoot. Just like the last time I went there, the police showed up to check us out. This time the grouchy cop ran my tag & I started hearing my address being blasted over their radio. I told them we were just taking some pictures since we thought it was really cool. The nice cop said, "you mean like for a camera club?" I said, "yeah." Then they left us alone & we went back to shooting. It was great.










After shooting the abandoned planes, we took a ride up to Amelia Island & Fernadina Beach.

Mary was pretty happy when she found a rare Santa shell. We determined it must be native to Fernadina Beach.

After the beach, we went to the Homestead for the Thanksgiving buffet.

TOUR Academy revisited

Shooting golf instruction can be very humorous. I guess we're all a little giddy after four days of shooting. A blind person might have thought they stumbled upon the set of an adult film.
Here are some of the quotes of the day ...

Sam said, "Neil can always come in & tweak me." (referring to fixing her hair every time it fell in front of her face).

Sam said to Neil, "Just stick it back in." (referring to sticking her hair back behind her ear).

Sam thinks the quotes I'm compiling are funny.
Neil tries to control her unruly hair, so she stops talking dirty.

Stan shoots in some interesting positions. He must've been a gymnast in a former life. No wonder he likes using a tripod!

When I straighten Todd's trousers, Stan amuses himself by pretending to pinch my butt with his shadow.

Kyle looks on while Neil & Travis examine the pictures & Stan finds out the fate of his Powerbook.

some more quotes:

Todd said, "If you see that thing poking out, let me know." (referring to his infamous thumb).

Stan said to Travis, "There are little people walking between your legs." (referring to golfers on the fairway in the distance).

Travis said, "Let's see if i can get my fingers in it. It's a little tight." (referring to putting on a golf glove that was too small).

Travis said, "That one felt a little sticky. That one felt good". (referring to his drives).

Travis said to Caryn, "Can we go in & take a peek?" (referring to dumping the cards & looking at the pictures).

Jana is ... Dancing with the Stars!

I was a little surprised (& initially disgusted) with myself for watching some of this season. For the record ... I have never watched this show before. In all fairness, I only watched Emmitt, Mario, Joey, and due to a sick curiosity, a little Jerry Springer. When I told Mary she should watch it, she said I was creeping her out & she didn't ever want to hear me utter the phrase "Dancing with the Stars" again. I told her to pretend it was football & just watch Emmitt.

It was Jana's sheer hate of Dancing with the Stars that caused Deborah & me to go all out & decorate her desk while she was at a meeting. Deborah made a replica of the trophy, while I made a glittery "I (heart) Dancing with the Stars" sign. We topped it off with pictures of Emmitt Smith & Mario Lopez from TV Guide. I strategically covered her keyboard with today's USA Today articles about last night's finale, so her keyboard wouldn't get covered in wayward glitter. She was irate that USA Today considered it "news". She wasn't amused by our creativity, but everyone else was. Jana said we better beware of retaliation!

Gone fishin'

This morning I went fishing with John before sunrise. Actually he went fishing & I shot a pinflag on the beach. It was really dark when we got there. We stayed about 2 hours ... it was cold & very windy.

John heads back to his rod after kicking a dead fish out of my photo.

Pinflag at sunrise.

Look at that championship surfcasting form!

The unsuspecting fisherman loses his hat.

A flock of pelicans admire John's bluefish.

The photographer & the fisherman.

Shelby ... the conedog!

Today I dogsat for Shelby while Chris & Beth went to Orlando. I was pretty jazzed when Chris told me she'd be wearing a cone. I knew I had to bring a "real" camera. I LOVE cones! I couldn't believe she could fetch with that thing on. I wore her out. She begged me to go back inside.

Fit to a Tee

We had a health fair at work today. I went to get a flu shot, a blood test, a massage & a close-up picture of my eyeball.

TPC Sawgrass

I was excited to see this red cement truck heading right into my photo..

The first footprints & cart tracks on the new driving range.

Some unsuspecting trespassers get hosed on 17. The PLAYERS Stadium Course doesn't open until next Monday.

Poignant

During his press conference prior to his Hall of Fame Induction, Larry Nelson made a poignant assessment of the game of golf. "... every day when I go out on the first tee until I finish the 18th hole, it's a life. It's a total life between those ... from the first hole to the 18th hole because you are going to have good shots, you're going to have bad shots, you're going to be happy, you're going to be sad, you're going to want to just play forever and you want to quit on the next hole. I mean it's just a little mini-life every round of golf you play, and if you can't wake up the next morning and have a new life, this game will kill you."

I haven't hit a ball since I lost the "pink" ball on the final hole & disqualified my team during employee golf on July 19th (see blog post).
I suppose it's time to wake up & start a new life. Thanks Larry!

Night of Legends

Tonight I went to photograph an intimate dinner for 400. It was the Night of Legends Tribute Dinner at the World Golf Hall of Fame. I was pretty jazzed when I saw the sunset projected backdrop on the stage.

Dinner was fab. Here's the menu ... The Starter: Elegantly seared Sesame Tuna, Lo-Mein Salad with a Honey Sesame Ginger Vinaigrette & drizzled with Cucumber Wasabi Cream. The Greens: Romaine with Italian Cheeses, Croutons, Pears & Apples topped with Parmesan Cheese Crisp. The Ultimate Pairing: Sea-Salt & Herb Rubbed Tenderloin Medallion and Horseradish Sea Bass with Chorizo Mashed Potatoes & Grilled Vegetables. The Finish: Key Lime Mousse with Coffee Service.

I did get to hear some really funny things when the servers were being coached before the dinner. "When the salad is put down on the tables, the croutons MUST be at 7 o'clock" and "Don't carry the plates stacked up your arm like you work at the Waffle House." I was cracking up! Here's a photo of my croutons at 7:00.

TOUR Academy ... the final chapter (for this week)

While we were waiting for a group to play thru, our reflector blew into a steep bunker. Stan was jazzed he was able to snap a photo of me fishing the Sunbounce out of the bunker.

Travis & Todd practice their synchronized bunker raking routine.

That black blob on the left is Stan.

Travis decides to check on Stan after he failed to come out for air.

Self-conscious of his curved left thumb Todd thought it might be better to simulate an amputee.

After lunch we went to the Hall of Fame to shoot the exhibits of the new inductees. If his photography career doesn't pan out, Stan shows he has a future as a carpet layer at the WGHOF.

Henry Picard's golf clubs at the World Golf Hall of Fame.