LAST WEEK’S RECAP | October 21 – 27, 2013
FRIDAY
It was good seeing a few old friends this week, from Lyndhurst, Montclair and Parsippany. The Lyndhurst player said he had fun and was happy that he played better this week than the last time he came.
The previous week a father came with his son who’s in his 20’s from Mahwah. He fit well in this group people of various ages. He has an all-star gym for kids ranging from 5 or 6 years old to 18 years old. It’s impressive that a young person is inspired to train other youngsters to achieve wonderful things that come with sports: health, confidence, friends, etc. At his age, I was still trying to figure out what to do with my future and if I’d have enough money in my pocket to go out with my friends, let alone own a company!
SATURDAY
I was happy to see 2 players from Hoboken, who originally signed up for Friday night. I inadvertently failed to reply to their RSVP and so I requested that they attend tonight instead. I apologized profusely and mentioned to them that I have a SNAFU every now and then, making that sort of mistake. They were kind enough to cut me slack.
There were a few pockets of people gathering to have conversations. As I ran through the lounge during breaks to give out court assignments for the next hour, I briefly saw new friendships being formed. What a breath of fresh air….
Saturday regulars and some old-timers noticed many new faces. Not only were there new faces from Westchester, there were others from NY and NJ.
A player from Hartsdale brought friends, from Pleasantville and White Plains. They got to play the last hour with Dwight and I’m sure they found him fun and funny to be with on the court. That was my plan!
A player from Yonkers brought friends from the Bronx and Mamaroneck. I kidded that the ring leader travels in style, always with an entourage. More properly, I should say that there must be something noteworthy (nice and happy) for their friends to be with her.
The newcomer from the Bronx got play mixed doubles throughout the evening with players from Clifton, Fort Lee, Hoboken and Red Bank. She said that her funnest hour was the last one, undoubtedly. They players were all nice and fun. They even had energy make the last hour competitive. Surely she will be back for more last-hour fun!
A player originally from North Bergen, drives from his current residence in CT, to NJ about every 2nd or 3rd week to meet up with old friends here at the Saturday night parties. This is his 3rd visit in less than 2 months. He asked his friend from North Bergen to join him tonight. As his friend and another player from Hoboken arrived at the same time, I introduced them to others in the lounge – Meet So-and-So…. and they’re models, for they’re tall and well dressed in white and very handsome! So all I could say was the first thought that came to mind. It sure added a nice touch that they had great smiles!
To my surprise I was fortunate to get to play so many hours and with so many different players, newcomers and old timers and they were all fun! One old-timer recently moved from Hawthorne to Wayne. She and I go back a long way. I was glad to finally have a chance to play with her.