Go With the Flow By: Liza Chmielewski, Gertens
Growing up in central Wisconsin you learn a different language. There are slang words and phrases that you don’t hear in other parts of the country. Here’s a “couple-two-three” examples for “youse guys”. A “bubbler” is another name for a water fountain. To “un-thaw” something is to defrost or thaw it. “Stop and go lights” are the same as a stop light. And “cripes” or “cripes sakes” is a phrase substituted for a swear word. My parents would use some of these phrases on occasion, along with a few others. My dad says “you betcha’” or “you bet” regularly. Last week my daughter was giving my mom an update on how her basketball tournament went. My daughter said she played well but the team got beat bad by one team. My mom’s response was “Just play your own game.” As soon as I heard this I was taken back to my high school days of playing golf. I’d get frustrated with my golf 14
matches and my mom would say this same phrase, “Just play your own game.” It took a while to learn this mindset but as I’ve grown this phrase along with another she used regularly have helped shape me into the person I am today. My mom’s most used phrase is “go with the flow”. This isn’t a midwestern or Wisconsin phrase, but she says it so often my sisters and I make faces at each other every time we hear her say it. As golf course managers and turf professionals there are no 2 days alike; and even when there is a plan you can always count on a shift in it. Machines break down, crew doesn’t show up, the golf shop or Mother Nature have other plans; it’s a game of planning and re-planning. We adapt and go with
