Archive for November, 2010
Ibuprofen
Ibuprofen (400mg) must be a powerful pain killer: it almost knocked me out after the surgery. Dr. Moss also prescribed Lodine but I didn’t get it. I probably could go without it.
My team won tonight. Well done kids, Way to Go!
1st: 7-6, 4-2
2nd: 5-7, 1-6
3rd: 6-1, 6-3
Early this week our captain – primary school 中关村二小 cap singed me up to their forum on QQ. Can you image? They just had a reunion on Oct 30 after 35 years. That’s sweet. I’ve been hanging out there often – my Chinese typing is improving. So much catch up to do .. maybe a trip to Beijing is called for? Hmmmmmm…
A MathWizard is needed
We were able to join the Manhattan 2011 mixed doubles league at last second only because a team was problematic and had to drop out. The three clubs we’ll be playing are all out side of the city limit (not the wall tho .. like those medieval cities with thick walls .. )
Randall’s Island Tennis
Westside Tennis Club
Roosevelt Island Racquet Club
Parking won’t be an issue. Last year in Queens, we played at Westside Tennis Club few times and the match fee was $27 for two hours. However, this year, the Manhattan league’s match fee at the same club is $30 but only for 1.5 hours. I don’t know how the math works here (I don’t know how the league negotiates with all the clubs either..). The city slickers are different from you and me – “the very rich are different from you and me,” said F. Scott Fitzgerald. It reminds of my travel in Egypt, the locals instantly jack up the price whenever they saw an foreigner. China was indeed like that too. Very third world mentality.... Ok, probably other clubs (RIT and RIRC) cost more.
Kai and I lost the first doubles, 6:4, 6:4. #2 doubles team came from behind in the super tie break to win that court 6-3, 3-6, 1-0. #3 doubles was a timed match 7-6 and 2-3: our pair was up a break (not on serve). So we split the point. The opponent was the home team so they get the win.
The warm up allows 15 minutes and there is this 5-minute rule (the last 5 min of the match), so the actual playing time is only 1:10. There will be a lot of timed matches in the Manhattan league, so winning the first set becomes paramount.
My first taste of it wasn’t a good one: after we lost the first set at 4, suddenly our opponents (the same player would do it again ..) began to procrastinating. They conferred on every single point with their backs to the net, either on their own serve or on ours – beyond the reasonable time. This is NOT a good faith sportsmanship. After the match I asked the coordinator who recommends that the players remind the other team that there is only 20 seconds allowed between points. (page 4 of the rules document). Other than that, there really isn’t much we can do.
Maybe wear a watch with the second arm .. and use it as a watch, not as a bracelet?
Day 2 at NIIC
The two Yalies are lost to two Alabamas, and the two Clemson Josipa Bek and Keri Wong advance (9-8[2]) to quarter final. Patrick McEnroe was around both days – cuter than his bro.
Girls’ outfits at the NTC ..
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Day 1: two Yalies won their first round match at NIIC
Volunteer at the 2010 USTA/ITA .. National Indoor Intercollegiate Championships – NCAA I guess? – is fun. Columbia University hosts the tourney. Reportedly it’s the first time in NY. It’s about time for a change. Why not give Noo Yawk a chance?
As soon I arrived at the NTC, I got a big bear hug from my weekday AM gangs: they were able to sneak in a game before the kids arrived, and were talking about playing again tomorrow at the same time.
“Join us ..” they told me.
Margaret promised me that with our combined beauty and brains we would work at the hospitality table. Guess one look at Irene they had second thought. We ended up doing scores.
“You play tennis?” the head asked us.
“Oh ya we do.” M replied.
So they equipped us with the walkie talkie. Don’t I look very professional and important, ha ha ha?
Each of us would cover two courts. At end of each game, we’d call it in so the score keeper would enter into her laptop.
NTC’s lobby where the players linger long after the game ..
Honestly, it wasn’t easy: if you’re engulfed in one match which you have to, to keep track of the scores you’d miss the other court. Well that’s my senior moment dilemma. Then my little machine didn’t cooperate, decided to go on strike. After the first match we got demoted to take care of the score board: stick the names of winner. If you thinking calling in score is low tech, this is has to be the bottom of an well. With all the available means – the land of Microsoft and Google, I mean, we have to find the name in the envelope, and peel it and stick it to the board. Some complicated process, ha ha ha, just happy to be there .,., to be of any help.
The Thiemann boys: Chris and Marcel of Mississippi. The second coming of the Bryan brothers? There’s this independent coach from Port Washington who complains that US sport systems are being taken advantage of by foreign players: pro tennis players would come to play the college circuit and 19 years old Dominican boy/man posting as 15 years old playing in little league.
“I told my son don’t mention to anyone that you speak Spanish .. ” so he could often ear dropping on those foreign imports.
“He told me they often laughed at how stupid the Americans are .. ”
There are ways to check those players, and there are many politics and there are cost of doing investigations.
Clemson’s Josipa Bek and Keri Wong oust Virginia’s Maria Fuccillo and Rashmi Teltumbde, and Ohio State’s Matt Allare n Peter Kobelt beat Nathaniel Gery and Kevin Kung.
Vicky Brook and Lindsay Clark from Yale came from behind to win 8:4 (first round doubles are 8 games for men and women) over Barbora Krtickova and Alida Muller-Wehlau of Armstrong Atlantic St. – wherever/whatever that is.
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The N.B.A.’s Oligarch and His Power Games
Mikhail Prokhorov, majority owner of NJ Nets. I’m wondering, basketball isn’t really Northern Bears’ cup of tea. Why not buying a ice hockey team? There are far more excellent Russians gliding on ice than running half naked on a wooden floor.
Remington Steele
At my first captain’s meeting, among few antidotes, the coordinator told us few stories about players under rate themselves. Couple of famous cases: to evade the league, one female player changed her names: using different spelling, married name etc. Another player from the west coast who played for Division I or II, rated himself a meager 4.0. As a rule, college players should be rated at least 4.5. The league went as far as hiring a PI. Yes, a private investigator. All those trouble. All in the name of a fair game.
This season I have a player who hadn’t played in the league for a decade. So he’s to self-rate to join. By completing the questionnaire, he got a 4.5. He appealed immediately and was granted a 4.0. The coordinator has said enough times: answer the questions truthfully and IF you feel you’re under rated or over rated by the system, write up your explanation and appeal.
