MainNewLook

All trip ratings are on a 1 - 10 scale: 1 the worst, 10 the best, 4 roughly equivalent to watching Jeopardy on t.v. with my mom.

12/25/96

Finally getting on plan for Florida at 1AM: 9.975

Sleeping the entire way to Dallas: 9

Having to wait for an hour in Dallas on three hours sleep: 3.5

Sleeping the first two hours to Miami: 9

Getting to Miami ON TIME: 9.25

Not seeing Hal at the gate and worrying where he was: 2.5

Actually seeing Hal near the baggage claim: 9.99975

Going outside and feeling WARM: 9.999999999995

Checking in at Shula's: 8.5

Bagel at bakery near Shula's: 1.5

Anticipation on the way to Key Biscayne: 9

Hal's friend Andrew who met us at Key Biscayne: 5

Not finding the first tee for ten minutes: 2

Paying less than $25 each to play: 9.5

Making par five on the first hole: 9.975

Having pull-cart break during second hole: 3.2

Losing concentration from cart breaking: 1

Getting in twelve holes before dark: 9

Losing to Hal upon hooking three straight water balls on #12: 1.75

Number of pre-dinner beers drunk at Shula's Steak 2: 2

TV not showing a basketball game when Shula's Steak 2 was supposed to be a sports bar: 2

Wating an HOUR for our food to come at Shula's Steak 2: 2

Sleazy waittresses at Shula's Steak 2: 2

Food quality at Shula's Steak 2: 2 -- Other than potato, which was an 8

Having it still be pretty warm, even at 10PM: 9.5

TV Camera during Bulls/Pistons: 1

Exhausted Sleep: 9

12/26/96

Having cough, and Hal having cold: 1.85

Seeing sun and feeling warmth: 9.975

Golfing with Hal at Grand Palms: 8

Bagel from Brooklyn Brothers Deli: 1.75

Z's plane not being TOO late: 9

The Shula's executive course being free for hotel guests: 9

Killing Z on the executive course: 7.5

Cough getting worse: 2

Trying (unsuccessfully) to get cot: 1.5

Beer at the Roadhouse being $1.50: 8.75

Beer at the Roadhouse soothing throat: 9.25

Peanuts at the Roadhouse: 8

HOT rolls at the Roadhouse: 9.5

JAR of ICE cold soda at the Roadhouse: 9.75

Salad at the Roadhouse: 3 -- It had cheese and bacon on it

Rest of dinner at the Roadhouse: 9

Lookng unsuccessfully for grill at numerous places: 4

Getting lost temporarily in Miami Lakes: 2

Hal getting us home: 7

"Sleeping" (not really too much) on couch: 2

12/27/96

Waking up with cough AND bad cold: 1.5

Hal's cold being better: 9

Hal pointing out that he was better when I was worse: 3

Seeing sun and feeling warmth: 9.975

Golf at Shula's pre-rain: 9

Golf at Shula's DURING rain on holes #9-#11: 2

Rain going away: 8

Course (and us) drying out in like 15 minutes: 9

The tremendous island-like hole: 8

Us all hitting the green on that hole: 9

The sensational hero-shot par-5 eighteenth hole: 9.75

The match being totally tight going into #18: 9

My tee shot getting between the first set of narrow palms on #18: 9.95

My tee shot hitting a narrow palm on the second set: 2

The shot actually bouncing back into the fairway: 8.75

Hal's tee shot on #18 being better than mine: 9.5

Z's tee shot being better than that: 9.75

The tremendous feeling as we were all alive in the match going into the green: 9.5

Seeing Hal effective par to win: 9

Realizing Hal had won and I had come in third: 1.2

Having to listen to Z talk to work for an hour: 2.5

K-Mart having a grill for us: 7

K-Mart itself: 1.0000001

Z making us stay there longer than necessary to try to get $7 off: 1

Cookout at Joe Robbie Stadium: 9

Z's hamburgers with green peppers: 9.5

Billy Ray Cyrus concert before Carquest Bowl: 2.25

Needing an HOUR to get Carquest Bowl game tickets: 3

Finally getting into the game for reasonable cost: 8

Joe Robbie's sightlines: 9.95

Sodas in bottles at game: 9

Game itself: 8.5 -- By far the best minor bowl we've seen so far

Miami team shimmying to 'Respect': 9

Virginia nearly bringing ensuing kick back for TD: 9.5

Actually having cot in room: 8

Being unable to beat Hal in Tetris: 2.5

12/28/96

Having cold be even worse: 1.25

Seeing sun and feeling warmth: 9.975

Winning golf at Raintree: 9

Seeing Hal's partner break sand wedge around tree: 9.5

Bagel from Einstein Brothers: 8

Finally winning Tetris against Hal: 7

Going to CocoWalk: 9

Frozen Lemonade at Fat Tuesday's: 9.75

Drunken walk to car to feed meter: 9.9975

Hooters for ten minutes: 1.25

The ice in the beer: 9

Hooters only being for ten minutes: 9.75

Dan Marino's (including drinking and dinner): 8

12/29/96

Seeing sun and feeling warmth: 9.975

Meeting Ricky at Grand Palms: 6

Playing my worst golf in years: 3 -- we were still playing golf, after all...

Losing to Ricky and Hal: 3

Drinking a ton of beer during 49ers/Eagles: 8

Having throat feel better from beer: 8.25

Anticipation for Shorty's: 8.75

Z getting us to Shorty's in no time flat: 9.25

Dinner at Shorty's: 9.9999999999975

Ribs themselves: 9.95

Fries: 9

Rolls: 3 -- I couldn't eat them, they had butter on them

Z's performance of eating TWO ENTIRE FULL-RACK of RIBS, a complete order of fries, and at leas three rolls IN LESS TIME THAN IT TOOK A STARVING ME OR HAL TO EAT ONE ORDER: 9.99999999999999999999999999999999875

12/30/96

Seeing clouds on the way to PGA Reserve: 4

Ride length to Reserve: 3

Beauty of Reserve: 8

Everything (including Range) being free: 9.5

Rain during first hole of day: 2

Rain clearing after first hole of day: 9.5

Playing really well: 9

Getting an extra 9 holes after our 18, still free: 9.5

Looking for a place for dinner during ride home: 4

Waiting for service at Fat Louie's: 1.25

Hal getting the wrong dish at Fat Louie's: 1.15

The food itself at Fat Louie's: 8

Going to Jai Alai from there: 9

Cashing my first-ever winner at Jai Alai: 9.75

Exhaustion after Jai Alai: 2

12/31/96

Having to get up before 6AM to get to Key Biscayne: 2

Anticipation for Key Biscayne: 8

Seeing sun and feeling warmth: 9.975

Overall beauty of Links at Key Biscayne: 9.5

Difficulty of Links at Key Biscayne: 9.999995

Not hitting into water at #12: 9

Watching Z not listen to our warnings and hook a shot into water at #12: 5

Having to listen to Z talk to work for over an hour: 2.5

Getting to Orange Bowl tailgate: 8

Nebraska fans: 3

Virginia Tech fan who hugged Zin: 9

Realizing that there were no hamburgers in the groceries: 5 -- I wasn't that hungry or else this could have been much lower

Getting sick during tailgate: 1.5

Going into stadium early: 3 -- Great clean stadium, at least, thankfully

Being sick through the first quarter: 2

Feeling better after that: 8

First half of game: 9

Halftime spectacular: 7.5

Getting hit with silver streamer: 5.5 -- Kind of interesting

Not getting to take streamer home 'cause Nebraska lady wanted it: 2

Second half of game: 7

Z FLYING to Coconut Grove: 3 -- I was scared to death

Z getting us there before midnight: 8

Free champaign at Marino's: 9

Rest of New Year's Eve: 8

Z FLYING home: 2 -- I was REALLY scared to death.

1/1/97

Sleeping late: 9

Seeing sun and feeling warmth: 9.975

Beers at Shula's Steak 2: 2

Overpriced club on South Beach: 6

Look of Huge-size margaritas on South Beach: 8

Flavor of Huge-size margaritas on South Beach: 3

Price of Huge-size margaritas on South Beach: 1

Watching end of ASU-OSU at other bar: 8

Wandering around while Hal, Z, E all smoked: 2

Finally getting to place for dinner: 2

Food quality: 2.5

1/2/97

Sleeping reasonably late: 9

Seeing sun and feeling warmth: 9.975

Doral Park beauty: 9

Dream of us owning a condo at Doral Park by 1999: 9.95

Realizing in reality that it probably won't happen by then: 2.25

Island green at Doral Park: 9.75

Us all missing the island green:2

Golf being all tied up with on day left after Doral Park: 9

Goofy Jim: 3

Shorty's: 9.975

Z not going all-out at Shorty's 'cause game had started: 2.3

Hal wearing Florida shirt and FSU hat, yielding many reactions: 5

Goofy Jim looking at, talking about, or hitting on women: 2

Elise being there, at her flirtatious best: 8

Z using "Goofy" in conversation, not about Jim: 8.5

Drinks at Fat Tuesday's: 9.5

Us getting seats at Fat Tuesday's: 9.75

FSU-Florida game: 3

Post-game crowd at bar: 2

Post-bar crowd getting out of garage: 1.5

Sleeping 'til Z got us home from Goofy Jim's: 9

Having batteries run out in Z's Game Boy, leaving Hal current Tetris Champ: 2

1/3/97

Seeing sun and feeling warmth: 9.975

Ride length to Emerald Dunes: 4

Emerald Dunes' beauty: 9.5

Free range at Emerald Dunes: 9

Me being a little dizzy early at Emerald Dunes: 2

Satellite yardage in carts at Emerald Dunes: 5 -- I can't decide if I liked it or not

Diet A&W from Beverage Lady: 8.5

Me playing well all day: 9

Me winning the three-way overall title: 9.5

Z having the Hertz gold club car: 8

Hal having to leave: 1.0000000000000000000000000000000000000001

Know Hal's leaving meant I would have to leave soon: 1

Wait for dinner at Tiramisu: 2

Dinner itself: 7

Warmth on Miami Beach after dinner (at 10PM): 8

Sitting on chairs on Miami Beach with Z and E while drunk and exhausted: 6

Singing new verse of E's song to her on beach in this state: 9

Falling asleep on beach: 3

Having to go back to hotel: 2

1/4/97

Seeing sun and feeling warmth: 9.975

Z and I being paired up at Bayshores: 3

Our partners being two old Jewish guys who loved Miami: 8

Mike -- age 93: 9.3

Herb -- approximate age 85: 8.5

Z dominating me on the front nine: 3

My exercising my demons of a bad break two years ago on #16: 9

Me sensing, then executing, par on #s16-17-18 to win from 5 points behind: 9.95

Me actually narrowly missing a 6-foot putt on #18 to bogey and tie Z instead: 8

Having to go to the airport: 1.000000005

Sitting with Z having a beer in the lounge during the football game: 6

Having to see Z off: 1.0000000000000000000000000000000000000001

Having to actually leave myself: 1

Feeling freezing cold air in Dallas jetway: 1

Deciding at that moment that if Hal opens the coffee shop, I'll quit my job and work for him for $5 an hour: 9

Arriving back at SF: 4 -- Better than freezing Northeast, way worse than Miami

Overall Ratings:

Hal: 9.9999999999999999999999999999999

Zin: 9.9999999999999999999999999999999