Snapshots

Don Grose
" Looking through some photographs
I found inside a drawer,
I was taken by a photograph of you.
There were one or two I noticed
you would liked a little more,
but they didn't show your spirit quite as true.

You were turning around to see who was behind you -
And I took your childish laughter by surprise -
And at the moment that my camera happened to find you,
there was just a trace of sorrow in your eyes.

Now the things that I remember
seem so distant and so small.
Though it hasn't really been that long a time.
What I was seeing wasn't really happening at all -
Although for a while our paths did seem to climb.

When you see through love's illusions,
there lies the danger.
And your perfect lover
just looks like a perfect fool,
So you go running off
in search of a perfect stranger,
And the loneliness seems to spring from your life,
like a fountain from a pool...

Fountain of sorrow, fountain of life.
You know the hollow sounds
of your own steps in flight.
You've had to hide sometimes,
but now you're alright.
And it's good to see your smiling face tonight.

Now for you and me it may not be
that hard to reach our dreams
But that magic feeling never seems to last.
And while the future's there for anyone to change,
Now you know it seems
It would be easier some times to change the past.

I'm just one or two years
and a couple of changes behind you.
In my lessons in life's pain
and heartaches too
Where if you feel too free
and you need something to remind you.
There's this loneliness
springing up from you life
Like a fountain from a pool.

Fountain of sorrow, fountain of life,
You've known that hollow sound,
of your own steps in flight
You've had to hide sometimes
but now you're alright
And it's good to see your smiling
face tonight..

Fountain of sorrow, fountain of light,
You've known that hollow sound,
of your own steps in flight.
You've had to struggle,
and you've had to fight.
To keep understanding
and compassion in sight.
You could be laughing at me,
You've got the right.
Cuz you go on smiling,
so clear and so bright..."

Jackson Browne - Fountain of Sorrow

It's really good every once in a while to go back -
peel back the layers - uncover - smile at the
things that once made you smile - reach way back -
search - laugh at the things that once made you laugh -
feel the things that once made you feel - touch the
things you once lived to touch - breathe deeply -
feel with everything you have...taste, smell,
exhilerate....now rested and comfortable you are
in a better place to make today as good a memory
down the road as it can be...cherish the things
to be cherished and bring them with you -
sometimes the best just can't be found in a fountain.

Imagine how Wayne Gretzky must feel today...
What a year it's been for him. I'm sure most of us
look at the Gretzky's of the world and wonder what
it would be like ...now in the wake of his most
dismal failure he has nowhere to which to escape.
Frankly..so Canada didn't win a medal at the
Olympics. Canada's day of dominating world hockey
has come and gone. We love our hockey at a nation
but that simply is not enough. It's not Gretzky's
fault...it's not Pat Quinn's fault, it's not Hockey
Canada's fault...Canada doesn't have the population
to sustain supremacy in any athletic endeavor over
the longhaul...But there is no one to whom the sport
of hockey and hockey in Canada mean more than Wayne
Gretzky....Hockey Canada should begin chasing Gretzky
now to get him to commit to carry the banner the next
time we decide to enter the fray.
Having said all that I have to ask the question...was it
me or were the Swedes and Finns robotic in the way they
approached the game in the final ? It could very well be
that TV has ruined hockey..I think hockey is sport best
enjoyed on radio. One of my criticisms of the game before
the NHL lockout was how monotonous it had become. My love
of hockey stems from raucaus hits, daring, blitzing end
to end rushes and goals that were the results of nifty,
lightening fast, little dekes and howitzer - like shots.
I don't see those anymore...occasionally maybe..but nearly
as frequently as Foster Hewitt used to tell me they were
occuring. I conclude that I the sport I loved so well, is
one that existed solely in my imagination - thanks to
Hewitt and radio broadcasters of his time...what a
marvellous instrument for creating dreams and heroes...
Radio...if it were any better you'd need a prescription
to get it.
I'm excited about the rapidly approaching golf season.
In fact we're headed to Ottawa in April and I'm hoping that
some of the courses there might be open. I doubt it, but
they'll open here within a week or two of our return
so that's okay. I am absolutely convinced that this is
going to be the best season ever...
I've been working on a new logo for my radio program.
I once took a course in graphic arts..the only part of
this process that's been graphic has been my language
trying to get Powerpoint to understand what it is
I'm trying to accomplish..I will triumph..having said
that if...if anyone has any suggestion for what I can
do, graphically speaking, with,
" The Golf Shop Radio Program with Don Grose"
I'm very willing to entertain them.

Ben Hogan once said,

"One of the greatest pleasures in golf -
I can think of nothing that truly compares with it
unless it is watching a well played shot streak for
the flag - is the sensation a golfer experiences at
the instant he contacts the ball flush and
correctly."

Happy Trials

Fantasy

Don Grose
Is it me or has the temperature fallen five fated,
failing degrees ?
The dampness seeps into every pore - a deathly chill
takes over....darkness...silence...nothing...it
wants to hurt but simply can't...the toothless bite
of night...an empty, discarded bag, fastfood
wrappers, swirl in the intensifying wind - and then
it too is gone...they too fade into blackness...
The thirst is gone...the lustre clouded...the edge
is dulled and spine gone limp...pageless books of
poetry, voiceless choirs, colorless canvas...
Can you tell I'm on a diet ?
Now that's therapy !
Have to share this...and yes this falls under the
heading of advertising...most commercials I see on
TV leave me somewhat unfullfilled - to put it mildly.
But I have seen two that deserve to be acknowledged.
One is for Lexus...it may be the best car commercial
I've ever seen...If you've seen it you'll know what
I'm talking about..I won't do it the disservice of
trying to describe it...but watch for a Lexus
commercial that comes at you from a very different
angle.
The other makes me smile just to think about it.
It's for Deliccio Pizza...middle aged pizza delivery
fellow is greeted at the door by the sexily clad
middle aged female who invites him in..he complains
he's not supposed to and then follows her in...the
next shot they are sitting together at the table and
she purrs erotically something to the effect of
"Now this is pizza.." At which point the bright
overhead light comes on, a teenaged boy is standing
in the doorway and says, " You're not a pizza guy,
Dad, and it's not delivery..it's Delissio" He turns
and storms off muttering, " No wonder I don't have
any friends!" What a great commercial !!!
For the record - I hate frozen pizza but if I were
going to buy one it would be Delissio just
because of the commercial.
Boy I hate the NBA's Slam Dunk contest - ban it !
Good for Rory Sabbatini coming back from the
brink of letting it all slip away to win this
past week's PGA Tour Stop...Fred - you were soooooo
close...what a shame.
I came, I saw, I forget....
Happy Trials...thanks for dropping by.
Don

The Seasons

Don Grose
"Well, I guess that's it..we're done for the season.
Ahead..Six months without the game we love..."
Olymic Hockey is on TV this afternoon - the Americans
Matts and the Swedes are battling it out right now..
I'm half listening, but I'll be paying more
attention in an hour or two when Canada takes on
Finland. What happened yesterday when Switzerland
beat our Canucks 2-0. Proof once again that the
combination of desire and playing like a team
is pretty hard to beat. There wasn't much question
yesterday which team was charged with a sense
of urgency. But I digress..the game we love
that I alluded to off the top , was of course,
the game of golf...One of my favorite quotes is
attributed to Arnold Palmer...
" What other people may find in poetry I find
in the flight of a good drive."
There is no question that when golf gets in your
blood - it's a hard master to please - and an
even more difficult compulsion to shed.
And at the end of last golf season, it did
seem as though we were bidding goodbye to a
companion, not quite certain when that
companion might return...but I have noticed
something over the past couple of years..
It's increasingly difficult to harbour any
feelings of forboding based on time..the hours
turn to days, the days to weeks, weeks to months
and suddenly 30 is 50...Certainly with all that's
happened you know you were there as a participant
for the entire time - but where has it all gone ?
So, as one golf season comes to a close , you
look only to feelings of optimism that something
miraculous is going to happen in the months
ahead that will somehow make you soooo much better
next year. It is that misguided spirit of optimism
that keeps me going - and has me so looking forward
to April through November 2006.
By the way - put away your Farmer's Almanac - forget
Environment Canada - and don't listen to the all
snowmobilers and skiiers you know. This is
going to be a great season weather wise. It may be a
little drier than the farmers in the Annapolis Valley
would prefer - but for golfers...remember you read it
here first...and you can tell your friends where you
read it too...the last two weeks of March the sun
will shine and it'll start to warm...we'll get
overnight showers, weekdays through April, but
they will be very moderate. May through August are
going to be among the warmest on record in the
Maritimes, and then it'll get nice for September
and October...and then I'll be writing this blog
all over again from the other end of golf season.
I have concluded that the reason that I like golf -
check that - love golf - is that it is by it's very
nature - so similar to the other activities I enjoy.
Golf, guitar and bridge..my three passions.
All provide me with exactly the same...there is
a complete lack of predictability - a surprise
factor that is very drug like. I never know
how well the notes are going to come together
when I sit down with the guitar. I'm never sure
when I am going to happen upon a melody that
results in that all too rare tingling in the
spine - a feeling that makes it impossible to
turn down the corners of your mouth - and
put down the guitar until the chord changes
are firmly enough implanted in the mind and
fingers that it can not easily be forgotten.
The same is true with golf. Your best game is
invariably followed by disaster - because in
the effort to commit to exactly the set of
circumstances that led to the mind frame that
put you where you had to be to perform to
such an intoxicating high level - you create
pressure that cannot be ignored - or -
overcome. But three time NS Amatuer Champion
( I think he's won it three times ) Leon
Carter once told me that the thing he liked
about golf was, " You can be playing horribly,
having an awful time, and all it takes is
one pure six or five iron - and there you
are, loving life again." So very true..
Bridge is like that as well - you just never
know. Even on the bad nights usually there is
one hand that stands out - one play that
makes the rest of it worthwhile - and even
when there is no good hand - there are always
good people with which to chuckle and share
a joke or smile...
The surprise element - the fact that there is
never any ceiling on the level to which you
can perform - and the fact that all can be
enjoyed on a very personal level, but are
best savored in a social setting - these are
the things that all of my hobbies share.
Advertising Tip of the Day....
Do what you do well...or...often phrased -
Don't spread yourself too thin...I often
hear potential advertisers talking about how
small their ad budget is and that they can't
afford to spend enough to do something
significant because they have to be in the
paper, on TV, on radio and they like to do
their direct mail a couple of times a year.
My advice to them.... while they may enjoy
seeing themselves in all the different
media - and while may enjoy having friends
mention that they saw, or heard, their ad,
this should never be confused with their
advertising producing results.
In order to be successful with your
advertising - you have to rely on an
element of trust. Decide in very specific
terms what you want your advertising to do.
Do you want to increase revenues by 15 %
over the next 12 months ? Do you want
to change the prevailing image of your
business ? Maybe you want to increase your
traffic by 25 %. Whatever your goals, your
advertising should be tied directly to
them.
Budget based on where you want to go - not
what you have already done.
I guarantee you one thing. I have never
spoken to a business person about
advertising, who is all over the place, who
has any idea what their advertising is
doing for them ( or to them ). Those that
take the shotgun approach are typically
afraid to make a mistake - so try to cover
all of their bases - and invariably don't
do a credible job anywhere.
Pick a target - decide how you are going to
reach that target - and then talk to them over
and over and over again.
You are consciously or unconsciously hit with
thousands of advertising messages each day -
and the only way you are going to have any
impact on a potential consumer is to battle
your way into their hearts and minds with an
unending barrage of invitations to do business
with you. Say it right and say it often
enough with passion and consistency, and when
the consumer decides there is a need for your
product or service, it is you he or she will
call.

" Indeed , the highest pleasure of golf may be
that on the fairways and far from all the
pressures of commerce and rationality, we can
feel immortal for a few hours."
Colman McCarthy

Happy Trials
Don

Trying

Don Grose
I think there's a song in the title of this blog...
I've been suffering with a bout of writers' cramp for
the past several decades. I get lots of ideas to put
to the many riffs and melodies I stagger across on the
Gibson Gospel and Larrivee - lots of messages I want to
communicate - but it's the co-ordinating the two that's
the challenge...I need to add a couple of titles to the
songlist...focus...focus...focus..
Well, I must doff my cap to the folks at Neptune Theatre in
Halifax. After being disappointed with the last show - last
night , six in our group, attended Neptune's latest offering,
and all six emerged raving.
Robert Benson and Nicole Underhay - the entire cast of
"Trying" were sensational. I have to admit that my palate
for theatre is fairly limited. I like to be entertained.
I'm not much into the opera and I don't like the ballet.
I have no desire to go out for a night to be a critic or
to study " the moves" of those I'm there to watch. I
have no need to go out for an evenning to be challenged.
If the actors are credible, and the story line provides
me with an opportunity to exercise emotionally,
I'm a pretty happy guy.
"Trying" may prove to be Neptune's surprise hit of the season.
If Evita and Virginia Woolf manage to out duel Benson and
Underhay's performances , our subscription will have been
an investment worth the making indeed.
If you live in Halifax and you have the chance -
go see Trying...it's a treat ! Light,
entertaining, lots of giggles, very good performers, and
I defy you not to see some of one of your grandparents in
Benson's portrayal of Judge Biddle.
Excellent night out.
Our evenning began with a meal at the French Quarter which is
across the street from the Prince George on Market Street where
the Velvet Olive used to be. It was much quietter than the
cuisine dictated it should have been. If you like a quality meal
with a touch of spice, Cajun - style, you'll like the French
Quarter. The French Quarter is not what the sign out front says.
Their sign says taste of New Orleans or something, but they've
decided to avoid the direct reference to the recent Louissiana
tragedy. At any rate, the meal was excellent, the service,
while not great, didn't manage to detract, and all in all it was
a welcome change of pace.
I am going to make one comment, underlining the fact that this is
strictly personal, about the quality of service I notice in most of
the places that we have gone to eat in the past couple of years.
Even the good servers, with very rare exception, all address their
customers, " Hi guys - How are you this evenning ? " " Everything
all right guys ?""Can I get you guys some drinks ?" Youth can be an
excuse and I am not asking for "stuffiness" but is there not some
other way to address your clientele ? "You guys" sticks in my ear
in very much the same way as " Youse" with apologies to " My Cousin
Vinny." If I ever opened a dining establishment I would spend as much
time and money promoting service as would in the kitchen. Again,
strictly personal opinion, but in Nova Scotia and the other Maritime
provinces we have a long way to go in the area of customer service in
the hospitality industry. I beleive that if the service was on a par
with the food we have to offer the price of gas, booze and tobacco would
not be enough to keep tourists away. On the other hand, travellers who
brave our prices ( and road conditions )are guaranteed to go home with
tales that fall short of testimonial support, unless we create that
"WOW" service environment - and that will not be reversed by all the
advertising in the world. Trying - we need to illustrate that we are
trying.
We'll know later today, but I tend to be more productive early in the
day so I can't wait until the tournament's over...but I'm anxious to
see if Mike Weir can hold on and win the "Crosby." Like most Canadians
I'm always very disappointed if Weir plays badly - and Lord knows we've
had lots of disappointment over the last couple of years.
I began to believe that Weir had reached his peak - and after winning the
Masters - had achieved everything he'd imagined possible, and had consciously
or otherwise made the decision to "play out the string." And who could
blame him were that the case ? Financially set for life,a young family
to enjoy - why should he deny himself all the privilege - that came with
his success ? What's left to prove ? I hope from the fan perspective that the
pride and ambition and the need to compete that spirited his ascent to the
top of international golf continues to burn. I hope that Mike Weir will
be as big a story as the season I continue to believe we're going to see
from Tiger this year and that his play at the Crosby is just a hint of
what's to come. My ideal would be to see three or four Canadians among the
top 50 golfers on the tour..then it wouldn't wound the National psyche as
severely when Weir's game goes south.

"I have not failed..I've simply discoverred thousands of things that don't
work...." T. Edison ( I think )

Happy Trials...Keep Trying.

Tiger and Stuff

Don Grose
" Sometimes he wonders - where his wandering will lead
Sometimes he ponders - just how much of what he wants he needs"

Moments of clarity so frequently follow - doubt, concern despair.

His eyes are fixed on where the skyline meets the ocean
drawn to where the ripples rub the pebbled shore
Everything so ordered, rhythmic, timed , predicted -
Expecting to decipher what it is that lies in store.

Looking for direction, questions deep within his soul
He's got it all, or so it seems to those who know him,
But there's so much he can't know..

Moments of clarity so frequently follow - doubt concern despair.

Fields of grasses, bending uniform in breezes...
rich in green and warm, soothing in their endless flow.
darting finches, taking perch on weathered fenceposts,
singing songs that only feathered finches crow.

Sometimes he wonders.."

There's a really nice little guitar lick that ends that song - and
hopefully someday you'll trip upon a copy of the CD, "Just Another Diet That
Didn't Work Very Well" ( or whatever I called it ) and you'll enjoy it.
But enough.

I really, truly, admire people who create...people who have that wonderful ability to
take an idea, a concept, inspiration, and turn it into something uniquely theirs that
others can enjoy.
We had friends over a couple of weeks ago and Sandy had mentioned a calendar that
Charlene had hanging in the kitchen. She mentioned that the pictures were pretty enough
to be framed by themselves...funny thing...I'd always liked the calendar, I'd often
looked over from the dining table and just looked at the picture no concern whatsoever
for the date - and just looked. The picture that's there right now is of a vase, containing
a single large flower, on a table, with a picture on the wall behind. The colors are warm,
there's a lot of openness to the picture, it's very uncomplicated. I'd never given it a lot
of thought but I'm attracted, I think, by it's simplicity , it's lack of pretense and it's
warmth.
The Super Bowl is about to start...Everyone seems to be picking the Steelers - they are solid..
frankly, I don't think you can be disappointed with either winner. Both teams have paid their
dues to get there...Both teams coaches are admirable people, both starting quarterbacks
appear team leaders that can be respected, and both teams appear to understand the "team
concept." Go Steelers - or Seahawks - should be a good game and I won't be at all surprised
if Seattle has one more win in them.
Now to golf...did you see the end of the Dubai Desert Golf Classic ? Tiger's second consecutive
tournament win...in two starts this season. Do I detect a new look of confidence ? Do I detect
a look that says, " I will not be denied." I have a feeling that the golf fraternity is in for
a PGA Tour season unlike any that has gone before. It's no great secret that Tiger has been
once again re-working his swing. While many questioned him, Tiger has taken his record tracking
technique, driver through putter, and put it to the anvil. Last year he seemed to be coming around - but he had yet to achieve what he was seeking - and that in my mind is perfection.
He'll never find pefection - but that will keep him looking - and in the meantime I think what
we can expect to see is Tiger's Career Accomplishment Chart somewhat like a roller coaster.
He'll absolutely dominate for a season or two - and then he'll go back to the drawing board -
to iron out wrinkles that others haven't even yet found. He'll seek answers to questions that
no one else has ever thought of much less asked. In the meantime, I think Tiger may establish
a high water mark for success in a PGA Tour Season unequalled even by the likes of Jack
Nicklaus. I just have a feeling.
It's kind of like the Steve Nash TV Promo where the NBA's reigning MVP says something to the
effect that excellence is the result of knowing the importance of relishing your victories and
superior performances - and then going out to practise.
The Super Bowl has started. I don't think I'll watch it..but I will listen to it. TV's a great
sports medium, but the players all became way too ordinary when they moved from Radio to TV.
A good play by play man and a transister radio, car radio, or set of headphones is far
more intoxicating way to savor sports...check that...curling and golf are a challenge on
radio...but football, baseball, basketball and hockey...radio..that's where they belong.

Advertising Tip for a Monday ( on a Sunday )

This actually happened very recently - again..and anyone in advertising upon reading this will
say..yep..happens all the time....and the sad part of it is...most advertising people will
feel pressure to surrender to the old " the customer is always right" and let the customer have
his way...and no one wins...the salesman gets the sale, the client gets the satisfaction of
having pushed someone around and " shown him a thing or two" and his ad campaign runs -
and is ineffective.
Obviously in radio - the sound of the commercial is important. The sound of the commercial
has to be consistent with the message. If the commercial is warning the consumer that
something undesirable is about to happen unless they take the steps you are recommending -
then the commercial should not sound like a day at the carnival with sunshine and cotton candy
and little girls with pigtails and all kinds of laughter.
What I'm talking about is very closely connected to the last Advertising Tip I included.
With few exceptions, business managers and owners should not be permitted to drive their own
advertising buses. The smart ones, pay people, or find people they trust sufficiently, and
let them look after it..make them accountable, mind you, agree on what's expected, and then
let the people who understand advertising, provide you with the return on investment.
Business owners and managers are too easily tricked into thinking that what they like is what's
best for them .They don't understand that often they may not like the most appropriate way to communicate the most appropriate message(s) to the most appropriate potential customer, with the most effective vehicles.
The Tip--DO NOT CONFUSE WHAT YOU LIKE (or what you want ) with the best way to get the job done. Please.

"Sex and golf are the only two things you need not be good at to enjoy..."
Jimmy Demaret

Happy Trials...

Jousting

Don Grose
There was a time when I could hold my own in a verbal joust with my oldest
son..now to find out - after all those years - he just let me win.
Can't hold a candle to him anymore...that's okay - he's still no match for me
on the golf course even with his nice Wilson Deep Red II Tour irons and woods -
and that very expensive putter he's got...He won't beat me again until April at
the earliest - when the snow goes away -

" Candles flicker, shadows cast, I drift back into dream...
Your voice it calms my stormy seas, I rest safe on the shore.
Chasms bridged and battles won, fears are quashed - worries none -
I'll be with you, once again when the day is done.." from " You Are " A poem for Charlene 2002

So , back to the NBA...I'm not a huge fan...at 5'7" sports for tall, thin, mobile people
have never held much allure...But as a sports fan I have to tell you I support King James
turning his back on the All-Star Slam Dunk Contest. Gawd ! The NBA should ban Slam Dunking...
not from the All-Star Game - but ban it...anybody caught slam dunking should immediately
have both legs amputated at the knee. I cannot beleive that there is enough fan appreciation
for hot digging at the potential expense of your team to offset the cost of potentially missing a key basket...Am I alone here ?!? The useless theatrics that I associate with the
NBA are everything I hate about Pro Sports today." No Dunk " Carter making a basket and then suffering immediate upper body paralysis with his hands at either side of his head is the basketball equivalent to stupid end zone celebrations in the NFL...all of these things had
their place when only the very gifted performed them occasionally...next we'll see baseball
handing out awards for the most sensational outfield basket catch of a routine fly ball...
or the NHL awarding the player who can use his stick to pole vault across the centre ice
face off circle after an offside. While I'm at it...there should not be a ticket to a pro
sporting event that costs more than $ 75.00 and players should all be paid a Base Salary of
$ 500,000.00 with incentives, personal and team making up the balance of their remuneration.
There personal incentives should never equal more than 25 % of the team incentives. Now, if
everyone else could just see things my way then we'd all be very happy.

So that's it....Advertising Tip of the Day....Business owners and managers are uniquely
unqualified to make decisions in a vacuum...they are too, too close to it...they fail to
see their businesses from their customers' point of view...Before you make any decisions
study your market...find out what the value of your product is...find out what your product
is up against in terms of competition...who is going to buy your product and what are they
replacing with your product ? The more information you can gather - the better your chances
of being successfull.

Happy Trials O'Possum !