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WHEN
YOU THINK OF THE CIVIL WAR, what battlegrounds
come to mind? Perhaps Antietam, Bull Run, Richmond, Shiloh
or Fort Sumter. I had the good luck to visit them all on my
way across the east and down the coast.
None, however,
was as fascinating as the home of 19th-century Southern propriety,
Charleston, SC.
Every inch of
that town was like a movie set. Of course, one must deal with
the fact that all the colonial architectural beauty was just
that — colonial — and as such, was built on the
backs of slaves.
When I visited,
it was roughly three-and-a-half months after the terrorism
strikes. Yet, as is the case today, patriotism was running
high. Still, it struck me as odd when I found a "God
Bless America" sign in the window of the same building
in which South Carolina signed the Ordinance of Secession
from the Union. Perhaps the "American by birth, Southern
by the Grace of God" bumper stickers I saw in rural South
Carolina were marginal to the unity this country is feeling
now.
See below
here to learn if anyone can golf in three states
on one day. >>
I TRIED,
but like in many of my intended adventures, I ultimately failed.
The plan was to tee off in Summerton, SC for nine holes at
6 a.m., followed by nine at noon in Savannah, Ga., and a closing
round in Jacksonville, Fla., just before dark. In the room
of my ramshackle roadside motel the night before, I had plotted
every mile and every minute, convinced I could do it.
And then the weather
came. Of all things, an early-winter freeze in the Deep South.
Ugh!!! So I waited in the clubhouse of this dinky, flat, short,
straight cattle pasture for the frost to burn off so I could
tee off with the first group. Finally, at 11 a.m. the starter
furnished me with a motorized cart and access to the first
tee for the sum of $8. I guess the Yankee dollar has some
pretty strong buying power down in those parts.
In the last year,
the single-best investment I've made is a set of individually
fitted golf clubs my friend Bruce made in his barn. Throughout
the summer, I played at least twice a week, watching my scores
come down consistently. This winter, I shot my lifetime-best
nine- and 18-hole scores: a 40 in Summerton and an 83 in Pecatonica,
Ill. My goal for 2002 is to average 88 and break 80 at least
once.
Click here to
learn how one toothless man chums with
George Steinbrenner, works an overnight security shift, farms
urban tangerines and leads the world's production of Spanish
Moss. >>
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