The pool at Hampton in Moab is tiny, but I did dip in.
Bye SLC
The pool at hotel is never empty at 5:30 but at 7, it’s mostly empty. So can I interpret that swimmers generally have a healthy life style – that we get up early -:)
Utah Mammoth
Utah Mammoth is Salt Lake City‘s pro ice hockey team based in Salt Lake City, which compete in the National Hockey League (NHL). They play at the Delta Center, sharing it with the Utah Jazz of the National Basketball Association (NBA).
Unfortunately, there isn’t a game during the 3 nights we’re there.
Little America, Salt Lake City
500 Main St,
Salt Lake City, UT 84101
Little America has two pools: one outdoor on the ground, and one on the second floor in the main building, which is half inside and half outside, which also have two jacuzzis.
In the morning around 7, I’ve the pool on the second floor all to myself. Oddly, it opens from 4am to 11pm. In the evenings, it can be crowded and noisy with kids, teens and women.
The lockers in women’s change room have digital locks but I don’t think they’re working. The change room has no shower.
Bridge: Boston
Just learnt one more thing: Boston = bottom of something top of nothing.
Out of total 17 hands, I played 6: won 4 lost 2. Got two robbers with two different partners. Nothing too memorable except three hands, happened to be winning:
Hand 1: I’ve a grand of 4 hcp, which I should not have responded at all… but I did, to the calling of my P’s ♠️:
… the bid:
| R1 | R2 | R3 | |
| My RH opens | P | 2H | 4H |
| me | P | 2S | P |
| My LH | P | 3H | P |
| My P | 1S | 3S | 4S |
… Long story short, my parter made the contract of 4 ♠️.
Hand 2: forgot my own 1C contract… thought Spade was the trump.
Hand 3 – the last hand. All we need was 40 points, which meant 2C was just right. For some reason, I thought we needed 3C – 60 point. So I said 3C. Helllllloooo can’t you do the simple math? Guess NOT. Luckily, my partner ended up making 4.
大脑进水的一晚. 17手俺没有啥好牌, 不过打了6 手: 4赢2输. 四赢中的2手难忘
- 4分俺也敢出声 有木有搞错呀
- 叫了♣️, 以为 ♠️是主
- 最后一手牌: 我们只需要40分. 2C正好.不知怎么的,我以为我们需要3C—60分. 信誓旦旦那种. 喂,你算术还给老师了 – 不会摆掰着手指算一下吗?
天堂鸟 水墨画 别要求太高 俺去睡觉 避免祸害人类
Looking at the ball
So, another lesson in serving, and the take home note:
- Left foot 45° to the baseline
- Make a box
- 2 seconds medication
- Toss
- Look up at the ball
- Rotate to face the net and hit
A fall from my drop shot 小球
A winning day: Graham 5-3, Dave G 5-2. It’s my first time playing with Vijay who has serious spins, not much serve tho.
Bob took a fall from one of my forehand drop shots… I felt terrible … but at the same time, each player has to know his or her limit, (?)
I always utilize drop shot, especially backhand. But since I decided that I prefer forehand side of the court, I also practice forehand drop shot: it’s decidedly obvious, that my backhand drop is lower and better.
Feeling good about my serve
Isn’t the court looking beautiful? … eeehhhr … the irrigation has problem.
A 3-0 day: w/ Graham 5-3 & 5-4 (Denny said they want a rematch), w/ Denny 5-4. Didn’t get to play with Alan – we were all pretty tired.
For the past two matches, I felt pretty good about my serve.
… and a few forehands, and backhand
The Tennis Partner, 1999
“The Tennis Partner is the second of Abraham Verghese’s books. Published in 1999, when he was a physician practicing internal medicine in El Paso, Texas, this is an autobiographical memoir, and Abraham Verghese writes of his experience moving to El Paso in the midst of an unraveling marriage. Once there, he meets and eventually becomes a mentor to David Smith, a medical resident at the hospital where Verghese worked and a brilliant tennis player recovering from drug addiction.”
Abraham Verghese (1955-) has an interesting journey: born in Ethiopia to Orthodox Christian parents from India. His elder brother, George Verghese, is an engineering professor at MIT and his younger brother, Phil Verghese worked at Google as a software engineer.
His books:
- 1994 My Own Country
- 1999 The Tennis Partner
- 2009 Cutting for Stone
- 2023 The Covenant of Water
