Golf and graveyards, a classic combo.

A couple days ago, I described a mysterious white object plummeting straight down from the sky and hitting my car as I was driving on the Speedway, the road that cuts between the two graveyards here in Madison. I wondered if it was a solitary hailstone. Today, I received this email:

I'm a UW alum, and an occasional reader of your blog. I really enjoy the Madison pictures and stories; almost makes me miss the place.

If no one else has told you, I figure you might like to know: there's a city golf course overlooking those graveyards on Speedway. One of the holes is positioned so that it would be fairly easy for a very bad (or malevolent) golfer to plonk your car.

Hmmm... I know they often say "hailstones the size of golf balls," but this seemed to be more like a hailstone the size of a Monopoly hotel. But it happened fast. Maybe it was a golf ball. Wouldn't that have left a mark on my car? I'm not sure if it hit the windshield or not, but I'm guessing a golf ball, falling hard, would not break a windshield. So now that I think about it, it probably was a golf ball. My memory of seeing a smaller thing is probably a memory of it at some distance before it hit. I must have blinked as it was hitting. I know I cringed reflexively. And it did fall in the manner of a golf ball. (I've never golfed, but I've been a spectator on numerous occasions, because my nephew is a professional golfer.)

Anyway, I've been driving between the graveyards and past the adjoining golf course for many years. Golf and graveyards have a long association here in Madison. I think a lot of people are devoted enough to golf that they'd like the idea of being buried by the golf course, and I'll bet a lot of cremated remains are scattered on golf courses.