The Brad Hole

Yesterday was the first croquet get-together of 2004, and all things considered it went well - that is, if you weren't me and your name is Jason Simpson. He won 2 out of the 3 games, and I managed to get knocked out first in 2 out of the 3 games.

I don't recall the specific breakdowns, but Ron, Dave, Paul, myself and Jason competed in the first game, and Beth (hereafter known as "Bed, Beth and Beyond" - thanks Simps!) joined us for the second two. Maureen and Elizabeth watched on from the sidelines, drinking and making the occasional snide comment. The weather was just about right, which was a lucky break. I was a little worried it might be too warm out, since we're nearing 100 degrees.

Chris and Heather brought over their brood, but they couldn't stick around for the game. As a result, Chris couldn't defend his title from last year. Daniela came over with Jason and brought their little monster, Aleksander(sp?) the Tiny. Unfortunately, she was running a fever and she and the baby had to leave early as well. All told, we had 3 babies over, which is broke our record for previous babies in our house by 3 (we don't count Paul, even though he whines, cries, eats, shits and farts like one).

We made a slight alteration to the rules for game 3, owing to the size of the field and Paul's propensity to run way, way out of bounds when trouble came his way. We limited the number of "intentional outings" to 2, to prevent him from whacking his ball a mile away to avoid getting killed. It definitely speeded up the end game and emphasized the basic strategy of croquet a little more.

I have also learned that Beth makes Super-Awesome potato salad. She limited the size and quantity of pickles, added bacon and didn't make it too creamy. Excellent stuff.