How does a person de-stress after a week of telecom regulatorydevelopments and related activities on behalf of telecom providers with state and federal entities?
Much has been written about the traditional game of golf, ranging from the near poetic to the frantic. However, miniature golf has never achieved such a devoted cult-like following. There is no shame in the unabashed fun of silly, whimsical, putting prowess. Whether you knew it as “Mini Golf” (as in Northern California and Michigan) or as “Putt-Putt” (in North and South Carolina) every kid has badgered parents to take them to one of these funky little golf courses when the warm weather beckons. Why should children and teenagers have all the fun?
In Central Florida we have “adventure” golf courses like Congo River, Pirate’s Cove, Disney courses with all your favorite characters, and even a glow in the dark course. You don’t have to be a child to enjoy this activity. One can attain a near meditative Zen like state while experiencing tropical breezes and contemplating caves and rock outcroppings that are painted colors never found in nature. There are even skills that you can hone and use in a more corporate environment, such as:
- Patience – when waiting for a herd of pre-teens and a parent to play through a hole as they all stand on the green to determine whose turn it is to putt. This skill can be applied when in line for the coffee pot at work and you find, when you advance to the pot, it is empty and you have to make fresh brew that you cannot wait for because you have a meeting.
- Strategy – identifying the best strategy and plan to retrieve your golf ball from a water hazard that contains liquid dyed the blue color of toilet bowl cleaner (hint: always carry latex gloves). Well, shoot, this talent can be utilized in almost any company meeting.
- Calm in the Face of Adversity – realizing that no matter what plan of action you have developed for the three hole hazard, the putt you have just initiated will go into the hole that the park engineer designed it to fall into, not the one you think it should be. An admirable ability that will come in handy in most high intensity contract negotiations.
- Embracing and Learning from Defeat – finding that state of grace even though you have sent your attractive hunter green golf ball into the parking lot on the last hole, witnessed by no less than 25 people. Shrug your shoulders and take that bow. Channel this if you find that you have brought the wrong report to a meeting, for which you arrived late, and your jacket is tucked into the waistband of your slacks in the back.
Find your happy place. Entertainment that is multi-generational, has healthy competition levels, no death defying stunts, is affordable, has wheel chair access, and opportunities for unbridled play time appeals to all types of people. A round of miniature golf may relax and rejuvenate you after dealing with FCC Special Access Data Collection or preparing for your 477 Broadband reporting.
