September 23, 2020

 

I started the day with a 6:30 am shuttle to the Disney Magnolia Golf Course.  This was going to be a good day. The temperature was cool, the air was dry, and the sky was dark.  We had a 7:39 am tee time scheduled so we thought we would take our time warming up on the driving range for a while then meander over to the number one tee box at our scheduled time.  Upon our arrival we discovered the driving range was closed due to saturation and we would not be able to practice as planned.  That was okay by us so we followed the twosome that went off at 7:03.  It was still dark when they teed off, and with no one behind us our group of five started our round about 7:20am.  Over and over we commented thankfully about the great weather, the course was near perfect with only two fairways unable to accept carts on them, and the leisurely pace we had been afforded.  However, one of our players, Ted, was unable to continue playing after the second hole.  His back had tightened up and it was too painful to swing the club. Nonetheless, he took over as our course DJ, linking his phone to my Bluetooth speaker and played selections from his playlist.  I don’t think anyone wanted to endure another round of golf with my library playing in the background.  When I gave him my speaker I could sense a sigh of relief from the other golfers.

Unlike the six plus hours it took us to play our last time out, we finished just under four and a half hours.  Joe and I wanted to play another eighteen but the NBA green zone protocol wouldn’t allow that.  At a prescribed time of day they open the course to the public but insure that no public duffers come within five or six holes of those of us in the green zone.  It is not a pure secure bubble but what they had devised had worked thus far.  We returned our complimentary rental clubs, cart, and downed what remained of our meals and beverages provided by the NBA, and boarded the shuttle back to the resort we have learned to call home for the past two plus months.  Those four and a half hours outside the boundary of the Coronado Springs Resort were heavenly, truly heavenly.  That is not an exaggeration.  That is a fact.

Later that day I participated in another Zoom call with my friend Kristi Staab.  It had been over a month since we had spoken last so we covered a lot of the history that occurred during that time.  We talked about the shutdown, the BLM movement, the isolation that occurs, almost another hour of open, honest conversation.  The interview can be viewed here:  https://www.facebook.com/krististaab/videos/10157620302827584.

After the call I discovered the officers that were involved in the shooting of Breonna Taylor were not charged directly with her death.  One of the officers was simply charged with wanton endangerment of Ms. Taylor’s neighbors.  The fallout of that decision had begun being felt in Louisville, the location of her death.  However I had not been made aware of any statement or response from the NBA or its players.  Breonna had been immortalized on the shoes of many players during the restart along with assorted t-shirts that bore her name and her case was one of the cornerstones of the previous work stoppage.  It will be interesting to see moving forward what happens, if anything, within the bubble.

I had been asked to participate in a live interview on Facebook with @Media Essential Workers at 8:00 pm.  They reached out the day prior to get a perspective from inside our unique environment.  I really didn’t have any idea what to expect but I agreed anyway.  I love sharing my version of the story and hope to not only inform those that are interested but try to share experiences that may not actually be part of the questioning. I have a tendency to stray from the original question and perhaps share more than is required.  I think I would do well in politics as I can effectively answer the question but my response may often have nothing to do with the question!

The interview lasted just under an hour but it felt much shorter.  Talking with Raza Siddiqui and Jeremy Ross was like conversing with two guys I might have known for a long time. I thought their questions and comments came naturally and I never felt I was placed “on the spot” at all during the process.  I did get a lot of mileage from one of my responses.  I was asked what I wanted to do first when I am released from the bubble.  I replied that I just wanted to touch the face of my wife.  Oh boy, that was an award winner with her and several of my friends that texted or commented on Facebook.  That was not a calculated response, just a factual one.  The interview can be viewed here: https://youtu.be/Pebu4PKxtk4.  By the way, when I enter the MLB bubble during the American League playoffs they want to do another session.

Later that night I watched what remained of the first half of the Celtics Heat game in the dining area with a few of the Turner family as I ate some carrot sticks and an ice cream bar for dinner.  I had missed the dinner period so I had to rely on snacks to get me through until the morning.  The Heat did to the Celtics what I want the Lakers to do to the Nuggets tomorrow night.  I want Los Angeles to go up three to one and mirror the Eastern Conference series.  I’m not a Lakers fan per se, but I am a fan of an abbreviated series.