Tom Watson, at age 59 almost won the British Open, if just one more putt had fallen, we would be talking history being made. But it didn’t happen; what did happen was he gave all of us hope and reminded us that we are capable of doing anything we desire, regardless of our ages…
When you consider that most of the commentators are YOUNGER than Tom Watson, and that Tiger Woods didn’t even make the cut, it just makes the performance more special. Tom Watson won his first major golf tournament before many of the players had even been born!
Thank you Tom Watson!
In other news, 40 years ago Apollo 11 landed on the moon, and Neil Armstrong uttered those immortal words, “one small step for (a) man, one giant leap for mankind”. I remember being in a bar in Rome, off Via Barberini, sitting with a few other American kids, huddled around the bar. We were watching the landing on Italian TV, and finally found a guy and his daughter walking up the street about 9pm that spoke English. We offered him money to come translate for us, and he and his daughter came and sat in the bar until something like 2am, with him translating the Italian into English for us. I remember us cheering the landing and those first steps, but to me the iconic picture was Buzz Aldrin standing by the American flag…
The other thing I remember is walking back to the Pensione at about 3am and the streets being filled with people of all ages, and every store with a TV having that TV in the front windows of the stores with people crowded around them…
The little bar was down the street in the right background, and this piazza was filled with people. And the statue is the statue of Triton by Bernini for his patron Maffeo Barberini, who had become pope as Urban VIII (just a bit of history).
Now we have to go back to the normal battles… sigh…
Y’all have a good week and remember, you CAN do anything you want, don’t let the assholes hold you back!!!
Great comment. I remember the moon landing, where I was, what I was doing, how I felt…as if it was yesterday. It was one of the great historic moments of my life.
I was in the Air Force at the time having just arrived at Keesler AFB, MS for initial training. The landing was on Saturday as I remember. A bunch of us had just arrived from Lackland AFB. VN was at its height and we didn’t get any Delay Enroute. I remember sitting in the base hq waiting for something—temp quarters I think and watching the landing on a small TV with the NCOD.
What a wonder! In addition to the landing was the scenes around the world of celebrations. It wasn’t an American triumph but a triumph of the world. Nothing like that had ever happened and hasn’t since.
I was out of the Army and back in college working part time as a bag smasher for Braniff. There was a small black and white TV in a break room. The group watching included flight crews, mechanics, agents and ramp workers. Several jokes about Russians with wands guiding them in were made.
No flights came in. If so, they would have waited. No one was moving out of that room. I remember a feeling of quiet satisfaction and pride filled the room.
Just for S&G- I wasn’t even born then. 😀 << Big toothy grin.
hehehe Snigglefrits .. i was born (just) … but certainly not at an age when I can remember what I was doing …
LL/Crucis/WSF- We ARE defined by what we remember… Sadly that for me includes the Kennedy and MLK assinations too…
Snigs/Julie- Phbbbttt! 🙂
Well, I existed, but I was -7 months old. 😀
Seriously though, I was wondering why all the flack about the moon landing being a contrived story was all the talk everywhere recently. I’d forgotten it was nearly the 40 year anniversary.
Some of my older relatives thought it was bogus. One of my great-uncles swore it was a big conspiracy, why I’ll never know. James’ grandmother was convinced it was a lie as well. He quotes her as saying, “There ain’t no man up there! If there was, I could see him!”.
This goes back a ways, but…
I can remember as far back as the Korean War. I was 4-5 at the time. My folks had a floor standing Philco radio that included the SW bands. I remember hearing news reports from Korea. The trigger was a radio commercial that started with a woman saying, “This is 1953!!”
Still can’t get that outa my head.
The normal battles seem to be the toughest.
I watched Watson play while entertaining guests and his professionalism was simply superb.
It’s a shame he lost, but that’s the game. He certainly showed class and grace.
I was 15 when the Armstrong stepped on the moon. I was in awe.
Snigs- yet another dig at the USA, of course we couldn’t do it, so we faked it… sigh… Mythbusters took on the three biggest “lies” about the moon landings and disproved them all, but that doesn’t stop the wingnuts…
Crucis- You’ve got me by a couple, but the one I always remember is the ad for Playhouse 90!
ADM- Ever so true!
Paw- He did, and not a single club was thrown, nor a single curse (that we could hear)… A true Gentleman!
Fuzzy- I’m STILL in awe… Having seen what they had to work with, and this was all done on slipsticks and analog systems is even more amazing! And Armstrong was right, it was not about him or Aldrin, it was about the 500,000 people who put the whole shooting match together! THAT was the success!!!
I don’t think the old folks thinking it didn’t happen was because they were wingnuts so much, as I just think it was entirely over their heads. These were simple country folk whose most mechanized operations were drawing a bucket out of a well. Don’t know about James’ grandma, but my Uncle Rob was a very patriotic fella. (His folks were as well, as his name was Robert Toombs Danner.
Snigs- you’ve got a point! A lot of these folks had seen the FIRST airplane flight, and just couldn’t grasp that amount of progress in their lives…
That was a year and a half after being retired out due to wounds.
I’d gone over to the folks to watch the event.
Listened to the “error” codes as they happened, then the landing.
When Niel finally exited, he pulled a lanyard which released the camera.
It took a few seconds to realize…the picture was UPSIDE DOWN!
It was flipped a few seconds later.
What a great night.
Skul
Skul- No question! And it was one of the FEW times since WWII the country pulled together as one…