Learning to expect the unexpected

According to today's plan, I was to get on a bus at noon with other City Hall employees to go play a game called park golf at Ono campus.

Well, sometimes I don't know the actual plan. It's best to just go with the flow. :)

When Liz and I got on the bus, we looked around at the unfamiliar people dressed in business attire. Something isn't quite right here. After a few minutes, we tried asking them if they were going to play park golf, and in response, we got several shaking heads and a "No. P.T.A." As in a P.T.A. meeting?!? Time to get off the bus! Good thing we asked, since they apparently weren't going to say anything!

We finally found a couple of fellow golf buddies, and discovered we'd be riding in a car with them to the course -- which turned out not to be at Ono campus. Surprise, surprise!

An hour later, we arrived at the golf course, and I learned that I'd be on a team with three people I'd never seen before. Surprise! But my teammates were so much fun, and I enjoyed playing the game that was a lot like "normal" golf, just with a bigger ball. (I wasn't exactly sure what to expect since I'd never played.)

Too bad I suffered from frozen philanges!! I seriously couldn't feel my fingers for about an hour. Surprise! (I even had gloves on.) And too bad I was over par every single time! I've determined that park golf isn't a strength of mine.

I've also determined that it is a spring/summer activity and not a game for late fall -- especially when late fall feels like the middle of a bitter cold winter!

The string is attached to the tee, not the ball. Just wanted to let you know.

After park golf, we all went to dinner. I thought we were going to a restaurant, but instead it was a small, rented building with a kitchen that was supplied with raw meat (including squid, yay!) and a grill. Surprise!

This is "Coach." (He tried giving me golf pointers, but my aim is really bad.) He's proud of the smiley face he made out of squid meat, haha. What a character!

My team! Her shirt says, "Alcoholic. Seldom or Never. Culture Fusion. Brooklyn." (huh???)

After a delicious dinner, we talked and laughed together around the table. There was a conversation that went like this:

Japanese friend: "(something that sounded like "Ricky Martin" to me.)"
Me: "Ricky Martin!?"
Liz: "Rocky Mountains!?"
"Coach": "ROCKY?!!!" *starts punching the air and humming "Eye of the Tiger"* haha

"Coach" impressed me with some of the random English words he knew -- words like "premium" and "grotesque." Surprise!

Overall, it was a good experience. I'm glad I went even though I froze. And by the way, I lost park golf BIG time. No surprise there!