VIDALIA — On a cold and rainy day when most Miss-Lou residents would welcome a cozy blanket and a good book, Melvin Berry wants only to hit some golf balls.

“Man, to me, it’s beautiful out,” he said.

Whenever possible, Berry can be found at the Vidalia levee practicing his swing by trying to hit balls as close as he can to a target he has setup.

Berry was born and raised in Michigan.

A retired Detroit police officer, he and his wife come down to the area for long stints of the year to visit his mother-in-law, Marjorie Bowman.

“Back home, there is already feet of snow on the ground,” he said.

Berry was exaggerating a little, but Detroit does have an average high temperature in the 30s during December.

“When I got here from Michigan, the first thing I wanted to do was hit some golf balls,” he said. “Back home it is way to cold to do anything.”

Berry is new to the sport. He only started to play nearly three years ago after being invited to play on a whim.

“I fell in love with it,” he said. “It’s so relaxing.”

Golf has helped Berry appreciate weather that in the past he may have deemed bad.

“It gets me outside on days like this,” he said. “The weather might not be that nice, but it is perfect for golf.”