Carbon Monoxide Poisoning, Holiday Travel, On The Beach For Christmas Part 2
Christmas Eve greeted us with sunny skies and a balmy 79 degree morning. JP decided to go for an early run. I woke up at 6:30am and ran on the jogging path along the beach. There's nothing better than a tropical sunrise. The run is only 2 miles - just enough to break a sweat and feel like I've accomplished something.
By the time I came back, Maggie was already up brewing coffee. We decided it would be best to leave the house to allow Paul and Carrie to have an undisturbed gift-giving time with their kids. We went to this semi-famous Delray eatery called Luna Rosa. It's right on the beach so we ate in open air and appreciated the view. Apparently some guy from Philly owns the joint, as evidenced by their inclusion of scrapple on the menu.
After breakfast John, Joe Sr., and I played golf at The Links at Boynton Beach. It's a public course about 10 minutes away. I'm convinced there's not a bad course in south Florida. This one was a cheap as they come and it would put most public courses in the Philly area to shame. I played like garbage and shot 81. This was the first time playing since August so I decided to make that my excuse.
Back to the house for a quick late lunch, then off to Fort Lauderdale to attend Dr. James Kennedy's church's Christmas Eve candle service. Dr. Kennedy is always on TV, but he's not a normal (i.e, corrupt) televangelist. The service was just ok. A long service, yes, but I felt the program could've been a lot better.
We picked up Joe and Paige from the airport shortly thereafter, came back to Delray, took a walk around town, and went to bed.
Christmas morning - another run. This time the jogging trail was surprisingly packed. I later learned that Delray has a high Jewish population so I guess that accounted for the crowd. After breakfast, Joe Jr, Joe Sr., and I went to Delray Beach Golf Club. The renowned golf architect Donald Ross designed this course, but we were skeptical. After all, it is a municipal course. My theory of 'no bad course in south Florida' held up again - in spades. What a fun round. I dominated this time, struggling with a 4 over 40 on the front but finishing strong with an even par round on the back for a solid 76. Sustained winds of 30+mph made the conditions tough, so I was pleased with how I played.
We came back around 1pm, hung out for a bit, and left for the world-famous Parrot Lounge in Fort Lauderdale to watch the Eagles game. The Parrot is owned by a Philadelphia family and hosts huge gatherings each game day. They do their best to make it feel like home by importing Sarcone rolls, Yuengling Lager, and Philly pretzels. We felt it succeeded in mimicking south Philly because the area surrounding it is a DUMP. Fort Lauderdale seems to be the home of tatoo parlors, heavy metal music, and Biker Boyz.
Fortunately, the bar was packed with fellow Eagles fans and three Cowboy fans. Why anyone would put themselves through the ridicule of hundreds of Eagles followers is beyond me, but they received just punishment throughout the game. All in all it turned out to be one of the most entertaining games of the year and had me thinking back to the fun I had watching the team during their '04 Super Bowl run.
We're heading to Indian Creek Country Club tomorrow morning. Indian Creek is one of the top clubs in Florida. Paul is a member and has invited us out. Should be fun....oh, their winter is supposed to set in tomorrow. The temp is dropping to the mid-70s.
By the time I came back, Maggie was already up brewing coffee. We decided it would be best to leave the house to allow Paul and Carrie to have an undisturbed gift-giving time with their kids. We went to this semi-famous Delray eatery called Luna Rosa. It's right on the beach so we ate in open air and appreciated the view. Apparently some guy from Philly owns the joint, as evidenced by their inclusion of scrapple on the menu.
After breakfast John, Joe Sr., and I played golf at The Links at Boynton Beach. It's a public course about 10 minutes away. I'm convinced there's not a bad course in south Florida. This one was a cheap as they come and it would put most public courses in the Philly area to shame. I played like garbage and shot 81. This was the first time playing since August so I decided to make that my excuse.
Back to the house for a quick late lunch, then off to Fort Lauderdale to attend Dr. James Kennedy's church's Christmas Eve candle service. Dr. Kennedy is always on TV, but he's not a normal (i.e, corrupt) televangelist. The service was just ok. A long service, yes, but I felt the program could've been a lot better.
We picked up Joe and Paige from the airport shortly thereafter, came back to Delray, took a walk around town, and went to bed.
Christmas morning - another run. This time the jogging trail was surprisingly packed. I later learned that Delray has a high Jewish population so I guess that accounted for the crowd. After breakfast, Joe Jr, Joe Sr., and I went to Delray Beach Golf Club. The renowned golf architect Donald Ross designed this course, but we were skeptical. After all, it is a municipal course. My theory of 'no bad course in south Florida' held up again - in spades. What a fun round. I dominated this time, struggling with a 4 over 40 on the front but finishing strong with an even par round on the back for a solid 76. Sustained winds of 30+mph made the conditions tough, so I was pleased with how I played.
We came back around 1pm, hung out for a bit, and left for the world-famous Parrot Lounge in Fort Lauderdale to watch the Eagles game. The Parrot is owned by a Philadelphia family and hosts huge gatherings each game day. They do their best to make it feel like home by importing Sarcone rolls, Yuengling Lager, and Philly pretzels. We felt it succeeded in mimicking south Philly because the area surrounding it is a DUMP. Fort Lauderdale seems to be the home of tatoo parlors, heavy metal music, and Biker Boyz.
Fortunately, the bar was packed with fellow Eagles fans and three Cowboy fans. Why anyone would put themselves through the ridicule of hundreds of Eagles followers is beyond me, but they received just punishment throughout the game. All in all it turned out to be one of the most entertaining games of the year and had me thinking back to the fun I had watching the team during their '04 Super Bowl run.
We're heading to Indian Creek Country Club tomorrow morning. Indian Creek is one of the top clubs in Florida. Paul is a member and has invited us out. Should be fun....oh, their winter is supposed to set in tomorrow. The temp is dropping to the mid-70s.
posted by JP at 9:39 PM
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