LAST WEEK’S RECAP | July 23 – 29, 2012
THURSDAY
Different strokes for different folks. Some know over a week in advance that they were going to play tennis this Thursday. When asked how, the 2 friends from NYC replied that if they don’t book their calendar in advance, it would fill up very quickly with activities and there wouldn’t be room left for tennis. They had a nice time and said they will return. I hope they book in advance!
FRIDAY
It’s great that in the summer players can just drop in without reservations. They know that they can see friends anytime they come, almost like being at “Cheers” – the TV sit-com. Two players from Boonton dropped in and got roped into playing. They ended up staying until the end of the party. There’s always so much to talk about when you don’t see each other for a whole week! The Boonton player wanted to just hit at first and went on the court where there was a lone player from Jersey City waiting for the next match. These 2 ex-college players looked picture-perfect so I started recording them and thought how great it would be to use it as an instructional video. I got some great footage for that.
At the end of the night we discovered that there were about 8 players tonight whose birthdays are all in August. So we decided to get one big cake to celebrate!
SATURDAY
Although it was a small group, everyone had fun. A player from Westchester said he wasn’t concerned about the size of the party, he just wanted to get some exercise. How nice it is to be unencumbered and not worry if there was anyone his level to play with. He has one of the best all-around game – classic serve and volley – which I admire so much.
Another player from Hackensack is starting to like Saturday nights more and more. Only 2nd time in 3 weeks (he usually plays Fridays or Sundays), he reported the very next day how nice it was and how much fun he had Saturday.
SUNDAY
I had a blast take pictures and videos, which came in handy.
A player emailed me – “It’s pouring here in Secaucus. How’s it there?” I emailed back a picture, showing people playing and the sun shining. Her response – “How come I’m not surprised [a player who played 5 times last week and 4 times this week] is there.” I’m sure the 5-timer had the same question about her when she showed up for the 4th time this week. The good news is that they like each other. She ended up playing to the very end without a drop of rain in sight.
After I assigned the court to her, I looked around for the 4th player and finally went into the club house and yelled out for him in front of the men’s bathroom. She witnessed the whole thing from the deck and said smilingly “Gee, there’s no privacy around here.” Walking away, I mumbled – “No, no privacy whatsoever.” What is one to do when one has to get everyone on the court as quickly as possible.
Another player, from Waldwick, called and said it’s raining here – “Is tennis still on?” I told him the same that it’s not raining here and he rode up on his motorcycle 20-30 minutes later. He played and rode back in dry weather conditions by the lake and before it got dark.
I introduced him to another rider [came in a car today] from Wanaque. They traded stories and found they had 3 things in common: tennis, motorcycles and windsurfing. I should add a 4th – they both live in towns starting with the letter “W.” They got to play each other and talked until they departed. It was a great day.
Another player, from NYC, also has a motorcyle. He was concerned about the rain on his way to the lake but found it sunny at the lake. (That high lake pressure was our friend again.) I hadn’t seen him in 2 years and his first words were – “This is far!” (He’s accustomed to driving across the GWB and is in Binghamton Racquet Club in Edgewater in 5 minutes, though he arrived at Packanack in 30 minutes.) However, he had a great time and was all smiles as he bode farewell to new friends.
What a fun week!