Could It Get Any Worse?

Why, yes! Yes, it can!

I have been so enthusiastic about my new bowling ball. Right after I got it, my score increased by 30 points. I was rockin' it! But since those initial games, my scores have radically dropped. Over the past few days, my scores have been abysmal. I have been averaging around 65.

Monday night, I went to see Mr. Perkins at J&J Pro Shop in Northgate Mall. I had to get the thumb hole on my ball enlarged due to what Mr. Perkins' calls "bowler's thumb." While waiting my turn, I met a Jackie who had recently wanted to learn to bowl since that is what her husband did all the time.

She was having Mr. Perkins fit her for ball. It was pink and purple, her favorite colors. She had only bowled one game in her life, which was last weekend... with her TUTOR! Her husband and Mr. Perkins (and I) convinced her to go with a fingertip grip. While waiting for the drilling and such, Jackie and I sat and talked about what we're learning... the stance, the number of steps on the approach, the release, etc. Her husband bowls close to 200.

After leaving J&J Pro Shop, I headed to Village Lanes for our league's handicap night for the newcomers. I just wanted to practice a little more. My scores dipped again... 57, 61, & 96. Ugh. I was frustrated and disappointed, but still determined.

Last night, I went to the lanes again after work before heading to Chapel Hill for a rock show. Jackie was there! We bowled side-by-side. She was bowling in the 80s and 90s. I was bowling in the fifties and then I hit a new low... a 47. I wanted to cry. Even the guy working the desk at the bowling alley laughed at my score. In response to my 59 score of my first game, he said, "Man, I can bowl better than that left-handed."

Jackie and I discussed her bowling coach and she called him to see if he would be willing to coach me, too. He was. He is going to give me and Jackie a lesson on Sunday afternoon. Just the two of us. Maybe, he'll have a cool clipboard like this one.


In the meantime, no more bowling this week. Instead, I am going to concentrate on ukulele practice. It's time to just give the bowling a rest as practicing is not helping.