Name of the Game: Golf Ball Hunt

The game started out innocently enough, I was reading my kindle on the back patio when I heard a golf ball whoosh through the aspen trees and bank off of a pine tree on the side of our house.  "There's no way they're going to find that!" I thought and went back to reading.  Five or ten minutes went by and the golfers drove their carts parallel to our town home.  I heard them discussing the possible location of the missing ball.  After a few minutes of searching in vain, the golfer dropped a new ball and continued on with his game.  My curiosity got the better of me and once they were out of sight, I hurried out to the side yard to see if I could find the missing ball.  It only took moments to recognize the hot pink Torry Pines sphere sitting so beautifully against the bright green grass.  It was like finding a shiny plastic egg on Easter, pure joy!  I ran back inside as if I were committing some sort of misdemeanor and went back to my reading, whistling a tune as if to say, "nothing to see here folks!" No more than fifteen minutes later another ball came slashing through the trees.  This time I listened to the bounces for a possible location.  And just like the first time, the golfer came and went without his ball.  I ran out, collected it like a squirrel gathering nuts before winter and scurried back into my burrow and out of sight.  This quickly became a competition (with myself.)  I've been on bed rest for a couple weeks, give me a break!  There is only so much day time television a person can watch before golf ball hunting becomes true excitement.  My afternoon continued on in much the same way, reading, munching on crackers and enjoying my lemonade, when at the drop of a hat the game was on and I was called into action!  So far I've collected six balls.  There are only a couple of hiccups to the game.  1) Based on wind speed and direction, I may or may not be at risk for getting hit with a golf ball.  My mom suggested I don my bicycle helmet, but that would only draw attention to the fact that golf balls are flying in my direction.  This would then result in more golfers finding their balls and therefore my collection numbers dropping dramatically.  2) Timing is everything.  On my 4th ball collection I decided to walk out my basement door since the ball was sitting no more than four feet from my house.  I slid the door open ever so gracefully and looked both ways.  You never know if neighbors are lurking...then right when I thought I was in the clear, and I could feel the dimpled ball in my hand, a new group of golfers in two separate golf carts approached.  Unsure of what I should do (fake a weed pulling, drop the ball and run?)  I shoved the ball in my pocket and beelined it for the house.  Once inside I stood barely breathing on the other side of the door.  Did they see me?  Their voices grew louder and I thought for sure one of them was going to come knocking on my door to tell me I'd committed the gravest of crimes.  Fortunately, that didn't happen.  They went about their game and drove off down the fairway.  Crisis averted.  See this game has it all!  So if you're in the neighborhood and you're looking for some fun, I'll be on my back porch awaiting my next hunt.  Game on!