Euro Travelers

The three amigo's, deep in the Swedish woods!

A Top 10 Finish and more....

We are at Heathrow on our way back to the States. Sorry for the lack of updates, no access to a computer on the 800 year old farm!

I have it all in a journal and will begin to post when I get back from the lake next week.

Out of 28 players in the Amature Division, I tied for 10th. Not bad. Had I played better the first two rounds, I could have done better. My first two rounds on Saturday were tiring. It was humid, I had little sleep, etc. The third round yesterday morning, I shot 8 over 65 and scratched my way into the top 10!!!

My friend Pete on the other hand lead the Am's after the first round with a smokin' 57, even par. He was second after two rounds and played in the championships. The top 5 players play an extra 9 holes, he ended up tied for fourth.

The course we played on was beyond words. I have over 500 photos and will share many of those as well. There was one hole, 'the Hypotenuse', that was 800 feet long, but had an elevation drop of over 160 feet! It was incredible! I threw my drive over 1/4 of a mile! Impressive but not a good shot on this hole!

It was a great time - more updates as time allows.
It's going to be great to get home!!

latitude 64

We played 54 holes today, we must have walked 56 Kilometers...or whatever......
We were able to play until 10pm again. The directions we printed are not very good and/or the Swede's just don't know their way around their own city?

This second course is carved out of the woods, there were no other players there, none! There were people in the park itself, but they were campers, swimmers etc. It was very beautiful, again, many pictures to follow. Joe kicked our tails shooting a 50 on one round.

We stayed up way to late, had a few beers, ate a great meal, it's off to the Open tomorrow after playing 36 more!!

Disc in hand, 75 minutes post touchdown

We were two hours late leaving London so we did not land until 7:10. However, in just over an hour we were on the tee and tossing the disc! We were able to play until 10:30 pm! After missing the turn for our hotel we were able to get checked in and had dinner at about 11:30 PM.
More tomorrow!!

The center of the world....

New York City... Wow! We walked around for four hours today; the UN, Rockefeller Center, St. Patrick's Cathedral, Central Park, Columbus Circle, Lincoln Center and more. Of course, it's the hottest day of the summer here in New York. We didn't let that slow us down though.

Many, many thanks to Phil for putting Pete and I up for the night.

We're off to JFK Airport in 45 minutes. The next stop is Heathrow, London and then Stockholm. Pete's ribs are feeling better (bicycle accident) and hopefully he'll be able to throw the disc comfortably by Tuesday night.

Next update - from Stockholm.....

It's the final countdown!

As much as I never liked that song, it's the best I can do for now. Creativity is lacking today!

This might be my last entry for a week or more. Though I'll try to post a few updates from internet cafes, I'll have a few other priorities:

1) Call Mary daily
2) Call Mary daily
3) Have fun
4) Play a boat load of disc golf
5) Did I mention call Mary daily?
6) Post blog updates

I love keeping you all updated, but sorry, you're a distant 6th!

The web site for the British Open is: http://www.bdgaopen.co.uk/
I share that reluctantly. If they post scores on Saturday and Sunday (July 22-23rd)
I hope my name's not at the bottom of the Am's!!

Here is where we are staying our first night in Stockholm; http://www.rica-hotels.com/index.cfm?oa=hotel.display&con=561 Notice the farmer's market right out in front!! After that, it's fly by the seat of your pants baby!!! Seriously, we'll have a car and a map to the disc courses, but that's it! [Sounds a little crazy now that I write it down!!!]

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The television appearance went great, though I wish we had more time. In the end, we got our message across and got in a few plugs for the foundation and the golf tournament. The host, Jack Harry was very sincere. He was invited to be our honorary chairperson at the golf tournament! I'll get the clip converted when I get back. I owe my Doc a huge thanks, not many people would take time away from their family to help a patient! Truly a world class guy!

This appearance has already led to a follow up. The same station runs a show from 10-11am called 'Kansas City Live". I'm scheduled to make an appearance on August 10th. More details to follow upon my return.

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Some things the same, some not

We spent the weekend in St. Louis. I just got home via Southwest Airlines, Mary and Brad are driving back tomorrow. They are spending another day with my family, my sister and nephew from Ohio. We only get to see them once a year for a week, almost always in St. Louis. This year I had to cut it short since I’m taking two weeks starting next Sunday.

The time flies whenever we go to St. Louis, but I always seem to get a lot accomplished. My two brothers, Dad and I played golf on Saturday. Mary, Brad and I stopped in to see my uncle and aunt on our way in Friday night, they live about an hour outside of St. Louis. I took my sister disc golfing Sunday morning (I didn’t keep score, just played 6 holes to show her what it’s all about). I helped my dad with computer and thermostat problems and fixed a nasty Windows XP issue my brother and sister in law were having.

We visited my grandmother. She’s 100 and was doing great until recently. She has osteoporosis really bad and is on a lot of pain medication. They changed her dose and now she is starting to show signs of dementia. It was very sad. At one point she pointed to my blue FLHW bracelet and asked “What’s that for?”, I replied “To raise awareness about Prostate cancer”. Her response was a punch in the gut if there ever was one, “Oh, David’s going to die.” She immediately turned to my sister and asked about a box of Kleenex or something else totally unrelated, but for me the words hung in the room like a foul odor.

This woman is a saint. To see her like this, at what is likely nearing the end of a wonderful life, is heartbreaking. Two stories about her; first, as a teenager she took a steamship to Egypt with a friend and the friend's parents and was able to visit King Tut’s tomb! Second there is a very funny story from around the time she was ten; a girlfriend and her snuck into the neighborhood Catholic Church one day and put a kitten into the baptismal font. She is a wonderful, wonderful woman. I prayed on my flight home that God spare her anymore pain, if ever there was someone who deserves to be spared, it is her.

I have to run now - I have to get my thoughts together for the big television appearance tomorrow night. I’m going to tape it. At some point I'll figure out how to get it from tape onto the internet for those of you who are not in KC.

Put me on "the Spot"

Next Tuesday night at 7:00pm I make my television premier. Technically, it's my second time on television, years ago I was on 'The Today Show', but it was a non-speaking part, I was just in the background as Al Roker interviewed two twins from Biloxi.

For those here in Kansas City I will be appearing, along with Dr. Davis, on '38 The Spot' with Jack Harry. Jack is a long time sportscaster here in KC and after sharing my story, he was more than willing to put us on the air. I can't believe Dr. Davis agreed to join me, just another example of him being the best!! My goal is to spend as much time as possible talking about PC and increasing awareness rather than talking about my specific case. There are numerous statistics and facts to cover and we only have twenty minutes!

For those with Time Warner Cable, 38 is on Channel 8. It's a live studio show, more of a casual, conversational setting. I'm already getting a little nervous.

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On another note, 8 days until we leave, more on that later.

Turning a corner, a mental one

Perhaps it was this past weekends events, perhaps it's just the heat of summer getting to me or maybe it was the encouraging news this weekend about the benefits of pomegranate juice, but something has renewed my vigor to fight. I had never lost it, it was just in a lull as the weeks and months continued to fly by.

Coming into work today a song, the lack of traffic, something reminded me that I am fortunate, blessed and free. We live in the greatest country in the history of man. Leaving the politics aside, the blessings our freedom alone provides cannot be argued. I am surrounded by a loving family and friends that are willing to do next to anything for me, and for complete strangers. Though we all spend a little to much time on selfish things, when push comes to shove, we're there for each other.

I try to limit the amount of advice I give here, it's not my motive, it's not the purpose. However, I have to mention this, if yourself find yourself in battle such as this, you have to let it go at times. Your mind can’t deal with the constant stress every minute of everyday. Maybe that's why Saturday mornings have become so important, disc golf provides a diversion for a few hours. Some could argue I'm not facing reality during these few hours or by taking the trip to Sweden/Great Britain. I say you're wrong. In my humble, opinion these types of events are exactly how one faces the reality of this type of situation! Mary and I spend countless hours a week with the weight of reality firmly placed on our backs, and sometimes unpacking for a few hours, a few days is exactly the right prescription!

It has now been seventeen month since I started this blog, what a journey it has been! It's a journey that is just beginning, I feel it, I know it, I pray for it. My upcoming trip overseas is a diversion, albeit it has potential to be one heck of a diversion, but a diversion none the less. By mid-August the blood tests will recommence and a major part of my life will be guided by a number. However, that's about six week away!

Tomorrow, as you lay on a blanket, stare into the heavens and watch the fireworks, say a silent blessing to your health, your family, your friends and your freedom.

Peace