A croquet game is being played--at Grandpa's house, it seems, although the court is much, much bigger than his.  It is so wide and thick with grass that with all my power I cannot strike a ball across it.  There are also numerous obstacles such as shooting around a corner when you come out of the first two wickets.  Once, when my turn comes, I see my ball lying within about one foot of another ball, but as I draw closer, I see that it is quite a bit farther.  I hit it, however, and upon taking mallet's length to take two shots, I must lie through a doorway or a wicket or the like.  This means I will have to swing almost parallel with this object in order to strike my ball cleanly and at the same time miss the corner of the object.  I shoot at another ball, about 25 yards away.  With the first shot, I miss the ball at which I am aiming by several inches.