OK, YSG is on the shelf. No more golf for me. In August, I pulled some muscles between my ribs that I didn’t know I had. Note to self: maybe don’t swing so hard. One of the reasons for the injury is playing too much golf. Here’s the backstory.
This year, one of my best friend’s father passed away. He was known as “Wild Bill.” There was a celebration of his life where we were reminded about how much he loved life. A typical day, not just a good day, began with striped bass or blue fishing before dawn, playing a round of golf, playing ice hockey, painting, and woodworking. He was in his 80s.
As a kid, I remember seeing him slicing up fruit in the kitchen. I asked him why. Without hesitation, he answered: so he could live how he wanted to live. I’ll never forget that. The celebration of his life and memories lit a fire in me to play more golf and go fishing for a bucket list bluefin tuna before YSG’s son left for Milan, Italy for a semester abroad (nice life).
Prepping the Tom Sawyer for our 3 am departure, iced down, and carrying our rods, we stopped to chat with the captain of our neighboring boat, “Fish Head.” (Yes, he is). Before I could say a word, he looked at us and said, “Bluefin season ends tonight at midnight. Catch limit regs. Starts back up Sep. 1.” (That would be the day we’d be saying our goodbyes at Logan airport).
Captain explained how you don’t want to mess around with the regs. If they catch you, they could seize your boat. It would be the equivalent of shooting bald eagles from the visitor stand at Yellowstone. “Everybody down!”
While licking my wounds and pride, I’ve been reading about golf and watching fishing videos. Three books I’ve been reading: one on Ernie Els and his tempo, another from Dr. Rotella, Golf is Not a Perfect Game, and Ben Hogan’s classic Five Lessons.
Action Line: All are helpful for golf and investing. Don’t rush your swing; see yourself playing well, and get the fundamentals right. I won’t be golfing or fishing anytime soon. When you’re ready to talk, I’m all yours…email me at ejsmith@yoursurvivalguy.com.
And when you can’t catch tuna, there’s always my favorite eating fish: cod.
P.S. Read How You Livin’? Crossing on the Queen Mary 2
Originally posted on Your Survival Guy.
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