Tonight we go to see the unique Leo Kottke at the BellyUp Tavern in Solana Beach. I bought these tickets a while back not knowing if we’d actually be in town, but here we are. I hope his talent has held up through the pandemic and the slow inevitable decline of age – he’s 76. I love guitar music and guitar players, and Kottke is in the very top tier. It’s been a couple of years since we’ve been to a music venue, and I sure hope we’re not making a mistake by going to this one at a time when BA5 is hitting San Diego pretty hard.
And speaking of COVID hotspots, we’re making final plans for our late August cruise to Alaska. We cancelled the cruise to S America and Antarctica earlier this year because of the worst case scenario of getting stuck very sick out of the country. Somehow cruising up the Canadian coast and then back into US waters seems a lot safer. We’ll see…I plan to spend a helluva lot of time walking round and round the ship on the outside track, sightseeing while getting some senior exercise done.
On the golf front, earlier today I read the first non-bullshit explanation of why someone would leave the PGA tour for the LIV tour. Many pros have said “it’s not the money”, when we all know it’s the money. But Charles Howell III mentioned that he looks forward to playing on his LIV team, playing golf as a team sport rather than an individual competition. Now that makes some sense. Being part of a competitive team is one of the most fulfilling activities in life, and LIV offers that every week, as opposed to one or twice a year for the traditional tour. Maybe they’re on to something.
Finally, I’ve started reading books collected at the recent Louisville Imaginarium conference. They’re not all great, but two authors in particular stand out – Trace Conger and Jeffrey James Higgins. Conger, based in Cinncinnati, writes excellent crime novels that remind me of Elmore Leonard (high praise, for sure). Higgins has written a good thriller set on a sailboat, titled Furious. I enjoyed meeting them and have enjoyed their work.