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You're probably saying, "Wait? Golf? What about triathlons?" Well, it's the off season, and I while I'm sure you're identifying weaknesses in your swim stroke, working the single-leg drills on your bike, or even maintaining your base fitness for your runs (you are doing all of these, right?) the fact remains that if you ever get out to the golf course on your rest days, you should consider getting some tips on your golf mechanics to prepare for 2011.

I recently helped a buddy of mine, Brant, relaunch his golf instruction business. It's a genius idea, really. It's called FixYourGame.com. You simply video yourself from a couple of angles (no fancy camera needed), upload the files, and wait no longer than 48 hours -- usually it's less than 24 -- for your analysis. What you get is a video that includes analysis from a 10-year member of the PGA (that means he's good, real good.) The analysis is focused on you and your swing. Brant & his staff provide tips that are based on swing fundamentals, building from the grip all the way up to your stance, balance and body position. There are no gimmicks, no special pieces of equipment, no tomfoolery at all. Best yet, you can download & save the video and keep it for as long as you want or better yet, watch it whenever you want from your personal account on the site.

Starting at $20 for a single lesson, this is the perfect way for the weekend duffer (like me) to get some professional advice. Think about how cheap that is. If you've ever looked into a one-on-one lesson with a club pro, it's at least $80 - probably more.

In preparation for the site, Brant taped my swing. You can see my submission videos and his resulting analysis explaining how the Fix Your Game works (scroll down.) He provided basic tips that don't require any quirky gimmicks, which I've incorporated to yield noticeable, positive results in my swing.

One final note to top it all off. Fix Your Game offers a full, 100% guarantee. Try to find that anywhere else in today's economy. If I didn't think the tips were worthwhile, I could request to have my money back and they would have to give it to me.

So if you're stuck finding that last thing for yourself or that special someone on your holiday shopping list, consider a lesson from my boy Brant and Fix Your Game.

Our conversation at the Great Dane was cruising along. I was making a point about something that I don't recall, because it was really unimportant because of what happened next. (That, and our food was about to arrive.) I was slightly interrupted by Jim's cough, only to notice a slight tickle in the back of my own throat. It wasn't yet unbearable to cough myself. But, it was then I noticed that everyone in the restaurant was coughing. Really. Everyone started coughing. We spent ten seconds looking around, watching everyone reach for their water & beers, taking sips and struggling to contain the mini-pandemic of coughing. Just then, our food arrived along with the news that cooks in the downstairs kitchen were grounding dried habanero chiles for their hot wing sauce) and forgot to close the door. The fine grounds filled the restaurant and the backs of our throats. The staff scurried to the windows and doors, opening them as wide as possible. Within minutes the air was clear and we were left enjoying our food. Some left, but most stayed and simply enjoyed another beer.

I'm curious as to what protective gear must be worn by those hadling the peppers if simple airbourne powder could affect an entire dining room?

There's nothing like seeing nature flaunt itself. I just wish it wouldn't happen right after I ate breakfast. I had Frosted Flakes. The Crow, however, was having the eye of a rabbit. Or maybe, rabbit brains served through rabbit eye socket. Either way, it was gross.

Inspired by this amazing account of educated guessing, I decided to have a contest of my own.

For the past three years, I have been storing my loose change (pennies, nickels and dimes - quarters are for laundry) in two identical plastic containers. (Copper in one, silver in the other.) It was my orignal intent to fill them to the brim, but after three years and little progress, it's time to cash them in.

But before I do, let's take a gander at how much I've managed to collect. Below you will see two images, the first is of the pennies, the second is of the nickels and dimes.

Each jug contains standard United States Minted pennies, nickels and dimes. To aid in your guesses, the mint gives specs on each coin.

Your goal is to guess - educated or otherwise - how much money is in both jugs. To help you along, on our bathroom scale, the pennies (and jug) weighed approximately 17 pounds. The silver weighed approximately 10 pounds.

The person who guesses the closest, above or below, gets something, I haven't figured out what yet. Most likely it will be something small. Leave your guesses in the comments before midnight CDT July 31, 2003. Click See More... to see the detailed rules.

Update: I cashed in the jugs last weekend. There was a total of $139.41 of coins. Sweet for me. Kristin will get some sort of prize the next time I see her.