While, I would not say I mastered either, I am determined to keep working on them. For the golf challenge, I went to Ledgeview Golf Course. I played mini golf before, but never tried the big boy version. My mentor and I went to the driving range so I could learn to swing and hit a ball. I knew it would be hard but man! I was glad not many people were practicing. I often hit the ground, swung up a ton of dirt, and had pitiful hits that sent the ball only a couple yards. Even worse were the moments I missed completely. I think one problem was the clubs were too big; however, as time went on I did hit farther. Several made it out to the first flag (about 93 yards) and a couple of them made it out to the second flag (about 117 yards). By the time we finished off a six dollar bucket of balls, my hands were sore! I definitely held on too hard. The next day my arms were sore along with a part of my waist from the twist/swing motion. I did not realize golf was so physical!
The second new thing, Manual Driving or as I call it Stick Shift, was more emotionally trying. First of all, I was using another person's car. Second, I was terrified I would crash it into a pole or car. I did not. I did rev the engine a couple of times and killed it a plenty. For the first twenty minutes, I practiced in a large (empty) company parking lot on the weekend. I noticed a man watching by the building, and he later came over. He asked us to move somewhere else as it was technically private property, but I know he had a good laugh. He was nice and we moved on to find another space. By the end of my first attempt, I learned to start, stop, and shift into second gear. While I am not comfortable driving on the streets yet, I can at least begin to drive a manual car!
These two new activities challenged me both physically and emotionally, but it feels great to accomplish something new! I want to keep developing these skills, especially the stick shift driving. I'm excited to see what the month of September has to offer and I'll be sure to keep you guys posted! One thing I have already learned from this challenge is that I need to smash the word - "can't."
Have a great Labor Day weekend everyone!
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