I'm not a naturally gifted 10 pin bowler. I'd never played the game before January this year and have played only half a dozen times since then. But I was bound and determined to get the hang of it to at least be able to start scoring in triple figures. Tonight, I made another assault on that objective.

Game 1 was eminently forgettable, with me getting only half way there but admittedly I was doing a lot of experimenting.

Game 2 began inauspiciously with a gutter ball, followed by a more promising 9. Things fluctuated until the second ball of the 7th frame; an 8.

Frame 8. A feeling came over me. Suddenly I was in tune with the universe. Relaxed, focussed. My footwork felt right. My follow through was thorough and comprehensive. STRIKE!

It's at this point that I often choke and start going down the gutter, wasting the strike. But tonight, the feeling didn't leave. Frame 9. I bowled, my feet moving as they had the last time, the follow through the same. DOUBLE STRIKE!

I didn't know how many possible points I could get, and I didn't want to know. Frame 10. The feet are still moving, the follow through is still there. BANG! Wobble, wobble... One pin, the far right pin, manages to keep its feet. A 9.

Alas, the fairy tale ending didn't occur. I missed converting that pin to a spare, but not by much. No matter, I finally had my triple digit score. Now... can I keep doing it? Time, and perhaps these balls or some like them, will tell. (Though I don't want to think about how stiff some of my muscles will be tomorrow, despite the pre-game stretching.)