Pool

It is so embarrassing I don’t want to talk about it.  Let me tell you about it.  Hang on a minute.  You can’t fool me.  I’m a wake up to that one.  Oh, it is me doing it.  Is there not something else you should be doing?  It is now several days later, and I am still in awe of my stupidity.  I really think I need to set my expectations much much lower.
We were at a do.  The host and hostess were John and Marion.  They live not far from us.  It was a great time, and everyone appeared to enjoy themselves.  The GPS told Merril and I where to go.  Politely mind.
It was one of those occasions where the food before the main meal is so good it is devoured, leaving very little room for the main meal.  It did not stop me trying and succeeding though.  I do not think I was alone sitting at the table in a stupor.  We finished by playing games that required intelligence.  I have found that to appear intelligent it is best if I keep my mouth shut.  The boys played the girls.  The girls won every round.  Just an anomaly really.  Though judging by what I did, I lowered the boys average considerably.
Earlier we were playing a form of pool.  We each had a number known only to ourselves.  The object was to preserve our own ball while pocketing all the other balls.  When my number was pocketed, I was no longer in the game.
There were people playing that really looked the part.  I could tell by the way they held the – I am inclined to think it is a cue but that is probably too obvious.  I could tell by the way they held the club.  They lined the white up confidently, and their fingers were shaped right for playing the shot. 
Some people even said things like “I’m aiming to put this ball in the far pocket.  I confess I never saw that happen once, but on one occasion I did see another ball disappear unexpectedly into the middle pocket. 
For me, shaping my fingers right was challenge enough.  When I lined a ball up anything to the extreme left or right was in danger.  I did pocket a ball once though.  Once in several games is really not a good percentage.  Actually twice.  I’m getting to that.
I did try and look the part.  I think I had the leaning on the club right.  I studied the lay out of the balls.  Checked out different angles.  Delaying the inevitable really.  One time I even put chalk on the end of my club.  Apparently that helps with grip.  I really needed to get a grip.
What I did was, and I shake my head in disbelief, pocket my own ball and put myself out of the game.  I did have a strategy, but that was not it.
My ball was vulnerable.  It was my turn.  The plan was, put my ball somewhere in the centre so it would be less exposed.  I think I know what I did wrong.  I should have aimed to pocket it and I would have been guaranteed to miss.  I lined it up to put it somewhere in the centre and watched in dismay as it disappeared into the pocket.
“There, that’ll fix em.  Bet no one thought of doing that!”
Rightly so I reckon.