WHITE RIVER DISC GOLF COURSE

It's been a while since I've played at White River.

I headed out this morning in 31ºF chill and was on the course before 8:00 a.m. I had the park to myself, except for a couple of walkers. When I left, just before 9:00 a.m., it had warmed to a balmy 35ºF but the sun was shining so it somewhat countered the cold.

If there was a tree, I hit it. And this course has a LOT of trees. To my credit, though, I had a lot of chain skims and basket hits. But those don't count as in, so those extra easy shots added up.

I had an excellent time, so the cold and trees and misses were all worth it!

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Hole 1 - 3
Hole 2 - 3
Hole 3 - 3
Hole 4 - 5
Hole 5 - 6
Hole 6 - 5
Hole 7 - 4
Hole 8 - 4
Hole 9 - 3
Front nine - 36 (+9)

Hole 10 - 5
Hole 11 - 4
Hole 12 - 4
Hole 13 - 3
Hole 14 - 4
Hole 15 - 3
Hole 16 - 3
Hole 17 - 4
Hole 18 - 4
Back nine - 34 (+7)

Total - 70 (+16)

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Since the last time I played, they put up new signage for the "short" course (red course), which was helpful. Plus there are red arrows hanging in the trees near baskets, pointing you to the next hole. Thanks to whomever took the time, energy, and effort to make the course very navigable.

BREATHING UNDER WATER

For the past few years, I have felt myself to be in spiritual exile (which is a bit ironic since I work for a church), so I finally decided to do something about it. I have enrolled in a 15-week online course: Breathing Under Water through the Center for Action and Contemplation, based upon the work of Father Richard Rohr.

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In addition to course work, videos, discussion forums, and the like that open each week, the core texts I am reading: 

1. Breathing Under Water: Spirituality and the Twelve Steps.
2. Breathing Under Water Companion Journal, which is really a study guide with additional explorations and questions.
3. New Seeds of Contemplation by Thomas Merton.

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What is fascinating to me, is the overlap of mystical Christianity, Zen Buddhism, and the Twelve Steps of Alcoholics Anonymous. I'm intrigued by the places where they find common ground, where they differ, and where they move forward into a better, beautiful world, lifting up others around them and into fellowship with the Divine (God).

PLU MEADOWS

My best 9-hole round of disc golf at PLU Meadows today! Two under par!

Hole 1 / par 3 - 3
Hole 2 / par 3 - 3
Hole 3 / par 4 - 3
Hole 4 / par 3 - 3
Hole 5 / par 3 - 3
Hole 6 / par 4 - 4
Hole 7 / par 3 - 3
Hole 8 / par 4 - 4
Hole 9 / par 4 - 3
Front nine / par 31 - 29 (-2)

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My body felt loose. My mind felt empty. The discs went where they needed to go.

I didn't overthink what I was playing. I just followed the discs down the fairway and into the basket.

POOR THINGS

The Wife and I saw Poor Things (2023) directed by Yorgos Lanthimos, at The Grand Cinema in Tacoma.

Poor Things is perverse in many senses of the word, an absolute delight, and peak Lanthimos. The film is a coming-of-age story with a twist. It examines the prison of existence, misogyny, and freedom. Prepare to see a lot of naked skin. It takes place in a steampunk Europe that easily could have been. Highly enjoyable!

爪 / TSUME

A new sword joins my family of weapons. The "fourth beast" is different from all the rest, in that she is a Chinese sword rather than Japanese. Also, she is a one-handed weapon and double-sided. She is used in tai chi, qigong, and meditation.

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爪 / tsume / claw

jian / unsharpened Chinese straight sword

Then I desired to know the truth concerning the fourth beast, which was different from all the rest, exceedingly terrifying, with its teeth of iron and claws of bronze, and which devoured and broke in pieces, and stamped what was left with its feet.

—DANIEL 7:19

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頤 / ago / jaw
"Musashi oar" suburito / heavy oak wooden sword

Then he found a fresh jawbone of a donkey, reached down and took it, and with it he killed a thousand men. And Samson said, “With the jawbone of a donkey, heaps upon heaps, with the jawbone of a donkey I have slain a thousand men.”
—JUDGES 15:15-16

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舌 / shita / tongue
katana iaito / unsharpened long sword

In his right hand he held seven stars, and from his mouth came a sharp, two-edged sword, and his face was like the sun shining with full force.
—REVELATION 1:16

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牙 / kiba / fang
wakizashi iaito / unsharpened short sword

Fire and hail and famine and pestilence, all these have been created for vengeance; the fangs of wild animals and scorpions and vipers, and the sword that punishes the ungodly with destruction. —ECCLESIASTICUS 39:29-30

THE KING

The King (2019) directed by David Michôd. A coming-of-age film focused on Henry V's rise to power, moving from drunk laughingstock to warrior king. Loosely based on historical foundations and likewise loosely based on Shakespeare's play Henry V, the plot ultimately satisfies during Henry's transformation from Hal to Henry, King of England. The beauty of the muddy Battle of Agincourt as the central tableau is that the confusion of the battlefield feels more true than most cinematic depictions. Recommended.

Streaming on Netflix.

KINGDOM III

Kingdom 3: Flame of Destiny (2023) directed by Shinsuke Sato. A bit slower than the prior two Kingdom films, this one provides us with significant background information. It also sets us up for Kingdom 4, coming later in 2024. This doesn't work well as a standalone, but is important as glue for the whole. Mostly for the diehard fans.

Streaming on Netflix.

BLUE EYE SAMURAI

Blue Eye Samurai (2023) is a series of eight episodes of great anime, with spectacular storytelling and stunning animation. It's a balance of violence, comedy, family (and its attendant problems), and quest, all wrapped up in the historical setting of Edo-era, Shogun-run, medieval Japan. Quite the wild ride.

Streaming on Netflix.

SALTBURN

Saltburn (2023) directed by Emerald Fennell. Moral bankruptcy and masquerade. Perversion. There are echoes of similar films and novels that I catch: Dangerous Liaisons, Cruel Intentions, Marie Antoinette, the books of Bret Easton Ellis. But this is it's own slow-burning beast. It's beautiful and melancholic until the mask slips, and then it is all death and decay. (Or maybe it always was.) 

 Streaming on Amazon Prime.

ALCOHOL-FREE in 2024

The Advent Beer Calendar is complete.

I've taken a vow of no alcohol for 2024, for personal and spiritual reasons. I had a couple of recent prayer walks where I lamented the losses associated with this, but I'm ready. Here's to a sober life for at least a year!