Why golf?

Hmm... As a golfer I shouldn't be asking this question or maybe that's exactly the question to ask. Sometimes when your game goes haywire and the shots are dispersed all over the course, the question inevitably pops up: Why don't I give up the game and do something productive with my costly spare time?
I'll give you my answer to the riddle: simplicity, complexity, improbability, refinement, gratification and play.
Golf is essentially a simple game: it's you, your abilities, your gear, the ball and the course. The ball doesn't move prior to your hitting it, you don't have to deal with opponents physically as in many other sports. On another note golf is a wildly complex game: all of the above components interact in myriads of ways not easily predicted, even less easily controlled.
Golf is probably one of the most improbable games in the world given it's fundamentals: the lenght of the clubs you use and their ridiculously small heads, the tiny ball (roughly 42 mm in diametre), the lenght of the holes (up to nearly half a kilometre for the longer ones) and the difficulties you may encounter en route to the tiny "cup" in the green, awaiting the ball. I know of no other game where the minuteness of the ball-contact area on your tools is in such stark proportion to the vast distances the ball is supposed to cover in relatively few shots (five or less for holes of nearly half a kilometre, ideally)
Once on the green, your tribulations are not over. Your objective is now to send the ball rolling into a hole of a diametre of 104 mm, on a bad day you may find your ball sitting a goodish 20 metres from the cup. Even if it's closer, as it's supposed to be, easy success is not granted.

Refinement and dedication is my answer to the improbabilities and complexities of the game. You have a gazillion tons of grooving to do before your coarse beginners mechanics are moulded into something that's usable and dependable over and over again. Ideally you have to be able to perform without thinking consiously about how to do your different shots mechanically. This can entail exercise shots running into the hundred thousands or more before the ol' autopilot is to be reasonably trusted. Moreover it's a work that never ends. So liking the hard, lonely work on the driving range definitely is, to this golfers mind, a bonus.

When everything clicks gratification sets in. Your swing works, you rotate seeming effortlessly the body around your spine, arms and hands follow suit, the clubhead meets the ball with a soft "plop" - you see the ball sail off in the air on a long, sweeping parabola, land on the green grass, hop a few times and roll to a stop. Rotation, suppleness and the strenght and grace of a ballet-dancer are the words of magic here, not brute force, mes amis.

I never play to win. I play to play - if I do it well, I win. Winning is an added bonus, but it isn't therefore I play golf. If I lose it's because I've performed badly, it is really that simple. What keeps my interest in the game alive is the joy of making all of the elements in golf: mechanics, the course, the weather, the conditions work in unison to produce a string of situations where you feel you can rise to the challenges of the game in a both physical and mental ( Zen?) way.
Although you often play together with other golfers, golf is by its nature a game for soloists, you are essentially on your own on the course. Golf can never be mastered, it's not a game to be controlled.

If you want the essentials on golf

Photography

Spring... in a moment
Originally uploaded by Joern W.

I promised (threatened?) in an earlier post to blog more about photograpy. So be it.
I've been spending a lot of time on flickr lately, I can only recommend other photo-addicts to do the same. flickr is much more than a convenient site for keeping your photos accessible to all and sundry. What to me sets flickr apart is the very powerful tools for cooperation and sharing. As a photographer - talent aside - you get a huge audience for your pics. Do the courtesy of commenting on other peoples photos and soon comments begin to trickle in to your own. This is of course always nice: I'm seen, somebody notices me and what I do!
Some comments are of the "pat-on-the-back" type, where others are more critical in the good sense of the word. If you hunt a bit for it you can get comments on your shots by people, who really are in the know. Thus you're suddenly able to learn from a goodish number of talented people in the field, get feedback on your work and give feedback in kind. I personally enjoy giving critisism - I feel I really have to concentrate in order to evaluate a photo fairly and give useful critisism the photographer (hopefully) can use constructively.
I have been on flickr now for about a month and feel I already have learned a lot. I'm much more aware of what I'm doing when i set about taking a photo. I feel I've just begun a learning process that can go on for as long as I want to partake in it.
On another note, which I will blog a little about in a coming post: I have gotten to know a number of people on flickr already - it seems many flickrites are quite sociable and I feel quite at home among them - have to come by flickr just about each day, in fact!
Thinking visually, juggling with composition, colours and shades, trying to bring out the hidden story in a scene is both a challenge and a joy. The vignette beginning this post is an example of what I do photo-wise these days and demonstrates very well the capabilites of a nimble Nikon Coolpix point and shoot camera.

Language

Readers of my blog will notice I've done a change in to ways: one in terms of layout (I like the wider layout better, a bit more dull, p'haps, stylish for others), but I digress. At the end of the day it's contents that matters(!)
The other change is more profound: I've changed from Danish to English. This is not without reasons or some considerations: A goodish number of my contacts speak and write English (on flickr the lingua franca is English) and the people I know in Denmark all have a fair command of English. That includes my two sons, who both have a strong linguistic instinct (Danish: sprogøre, English: ear for language (I tried to find an expression for the Danish variant, no luck. )). When we're together we frequently lapse into fits of mirth when we pull the stops out and let our fantasy run rampant in our's (and foreign) languages.
I do the change irrespective of the fact, that I never can gain the same command over English as I have over Danish. A number of situations will occur where I cannot express myself as well on a foreign language as on mine, corners will have to be cut and the end-result might not be entirely satisfying, merely usable.
On another note it's also a challenge and I intend to rise to that and give it my very best. I love English, as well as Danish and the glorious, vivacious French language, on which I only have a flimsy grip, alas.
Should any reader of my blog want to comment on the move, feel free to do that in whatever language you master.
:)

Saturday: shopping, photos, editing, flickr

Flyer
Originally uploaded by Joern W.

I went to Odense, (a shortish trip, I live in the suburbs) in order to take my little Nikon 5200 for a spin. When I'd done shopping I went to Brandts in order to see the photographic exhibitions there. I was quite taken with "The Sacred Legacy" but saddened too by its abundantly clear message: we're as a species not terribly good at taking care of other human beings, animals nor the planet itself, for that matter. I wonder if a contemporary Edward Curtis sees fit to come by and photograph our lives before we sink into the waves from the melting ice and snow?

The other part of the exhibition was devoted to a reknowned Danish press photographer, Tage Christensen, who for almost fifty years was active with a Danish newspaper, "Politiken". Great photographer, many stunning and evocative shots in the exhibition.
So inspired I proceeded to do my own shots, outdoors although a bitterly cold sou'easter made it quite a challenge. I stumbled on a couple of boys doing tricks with their skateboards - a godsend for a fledling photographer eager to try out his cameras finesses. At first the boys stopped and took up the usual pose, stiffly, with their boards held up like trophies. I asked them to go on skating, and within a couple of seconds they had completely forgotten me and I was free to shoot away.
Home to a late lunch and then Bach on the CD-player: "Das Wohltemperierte Klavier" in Glenn Goulds masterly rendition - a fitting musical setting for the weeding out I had to do. Inspired by JSB's clarity and stringency I set to work.
Of the whole set of 70+ photos only a few made it past yours truly's scrutinizing. The shot above is one example, click on it to go to flickr should you be so disposed. Regard them as a my first attempt at approaching that most difficult and magical aspect of photography: the unique and elusive moment. Or, more eloquently put by Henri Cartier Bresson, who defines the "decisive moment" thus:
‘the simultaneous recognition, in a fraction of a second, of the significance of an event as well as the precise organization of forms which gives that event its proper expression."
High standards, but mediocre ones are not worth spending your time on.

It got quite late before I had finished my work, Michel Petrucciani another splendid and magical pianist, accompanied me into the wee hours with his lyrical and energetic style of play. So terribly sad he is no longer with us. Thank God for CDs!

The day ended on a note of wonder: I am constantly baffled by the talent of the flickrites - there are so many talented and tremendously inspiring people out there. Originally I joined flickr because I saw it as a means to get my pics out to friends and family - this it is. But the real strength of flickr is the notion of sharing and community that really drives it all. This is supported by great programmers and other it-savvy people who pitch in to make the whole thing click. Thank you all a gazillion times!!
:)
PS - To my English readers: I'll apologize just once - in this post - for the imperfections in my English. I love the language, but I'll never be fluent in it, sorry.
PPS - To my Danish readers: I write this in English as this is the lingua franca of flickr. Fairly warned be thee: other posts may follow.

Storm P.

Storm Ps fyndige formulering: "Alle taler om vejret, men ingen gør noget ved det!" står for fald. For fuld speed gøres der noget ved vejret iflg. den nyligt udsendte klimarapport fra FNs klimapanel. Den fastslår blandt andet, at ændringen i CO2 indholdet overvejende er en følge af afbrænding af fossile brændsler. Gamle Storm er blevet gjort til skamme. Her følger et par pluk fra rapporten.

• Der kan konstateres et sandsynligt menneskeligt bidrag til hyppigere varmeperioder og at dette med stor sandsynlighed vil fortsætte i det 21. århundrede.
• Det er mere end sandsynligt, at mennesket har bidraget til at nedbørsperioder er blevet hyppigere og voldsommere, og at denne tendens vil fortsætte i det 21. århundrede.
• Det er mere end sandsynligt, at mennesket har bidraget til at områder ramt af tørke er øget i omfang og at denne tendens vil fortsætte i det 21. århundrede.
• Det er mere end sandsynligt, at mennesket har bidraget til at forekomsten af tropiske orkaner er øget og at denne tendens vil fortsætte i det 21. århundrede.
• Det er mere end sandsynligt, at mennesket har bidraget til at vandspejlet i havene er steget og at denne tendens vil fortsætte i det 21. århundrede.

Jeg fulgte indslaget i går aftes på DR TV/Horisont, hvor Steen Gade, Jens Hesselbjerg og Eyvind Vesselbo blev udspurgt af studieværten om deres syn på klimarapporten og hvad man evt. kunne stille op. Jeg hæftede mig ved, at ingen af de tre herrer forsøgte at stille spørgsmålstegn ved rapportens konklusioner overhovedet. Det havde jeg principielt forventet mig af Vesselbo, der jo er medlem af en regering, der for nogle år siden fandt det betimeligt at ansætte Bjørn Lomborg som direktør for en forskningsenhed, der bl. a. skulle se på klimaspørgsmål, uagtet Lomborg jo ikke er klimaforsker, som han ellers ofte betegnes som.

Hvis der overhovedet er noget at glædes over i den konkrete sammenhæng er det, at målt med den lille danske målestok, kunne det måske tyde på man også fra politisk hold er ved at være klar over, at den er gal. Til Maj kommer så vidt jeg ved et sæt anbefalinger fra FNs klimapanel, en vurdering af deres konsekvenser og formentlig også økonomiske overslag. Jeg hæfter mig også ved, at en gruppe på 12 store multinationale koncerner - fra dansk side deltager Novo Nordisk - er ved at lægge pres på regeringer rundt om i verden for at få dem til at sætte politikker i værk, der kan dæmme op for konsekvenserne af en klode med hedeslag. Lovende nok sådan set, men er der tid til at afvende scenarierne med stigende vande, storme og knastørre områder i sydeuropa og et afsvedet Afrika? Vores selektive døvhed har været utrolig og det er uendelig trist, at vi ikke i tide har været i stand til at lægge kursen om.
Øverst i denne lidt mismodige "post" har jeg sat det velkendte billede af Jorden, set fra rummet. Det burde vi kikke på hver morgen, middag og aften for at minde os om, at kloden er unik, og at kun du og jeg kan passe på den. Vi har den kun til låns, men tér os som om vi har fået den til ejendom.

Jeg kommer til at tænke på en gammel indianer, som i for-forrige århundrede sagde noget i retning af: "Når den sidste hjort er skudt, den sidste fisk er fanget og det sidste træ fældet, vil mennesket sande, at man ikke kan æde penge" - får han ret?
Du og jeg bestemmer.