Archive for April, 2008

How grunting like a rutting bull moose can save golf

April 30, 2008 at 4:34 pm · Filed under Badminton, Tennis

I’m mindful about my grunt, it’s ugly but can’t help it.  ..  It’s the women in tennis who scare David Feherty the most. He felt we start our scream on the backswing, change the tone and volume at impact, and let it subside on the follow-through: “Aaaaaa-WEEEEEH-gaaaaah!” Some of the men are in on it too, but not at the same level as the women, who are just plain better at screaming in general, even if a male lion’s territorial call can be heard for miles.All the yelling has made tennis almost unwatchable with the volume up, which is a damn shame .. .. :)) .. SO what can we do about it?  I’d love to give half of my serve or backhand away in exchange for silence.  Duct tape?  Zipper?  ??

Last week as I was hitting with Pumpkin, the picturesque valley was very serene, the blue sky, singing birds and dancing butterflies.  Then there was me, grunting.  Not as bad as ear splitting, but revolting.  Last night at badminton, I grunt too.  Does that little white feather need that much of energy?  I guess so, unfortunately.  I prayed for quietness on court at the wish pond.  Looks like Genie didn’t grant me that, :(.

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The Spring break tennis

April 29, 2008 at 5:40 pm · Filed under Kronicle, Saga, Sports ·Tagged

 

 

Surprisingly I met a group of girls from Maryland at the Massanutten in Virginia.  This resort at Shenandoah Valley is neither known for golfers nor tennis players.  It used to have a 9-hole short course now expanded into 18 holes and an 18-hole.  The short course was much nicer before the expansion, now inter-linked with roads.  Golfers have to keep eyes on the coming and going cars!  The short course was perfect for the area.  Not sure what behind the thinking to expand.  King played with Golfer, and he would have been much happier if the cours was 9-hole.

The Massanutten have 8 tennis courts, 4 for the owners and 4 for the visiting/exchanging guests.  The courts are scattered around, in need of some TLC.  The four for the visitors, 3 are being renovated, which leaves one for the entire vast valley.  How charming.  I didn’t know that they reserve 4 for the owners only till I played on it.

Pumpkin and I were playing on the court next to the MD girls.  During our water break, one of the Maryland girls, Robyn came over asking if we’d like to play doubles.  Sure.  It was the very first time that Pumpkin and I played as partners.  Oh the joy!  My arm wasn’t painful any more, or I forgot.  I haven’t been serving since January, now I have no problem [or no choice but] serving, :).  Was it dream come true to play with Pumpkin?  You bet.  Despite we lost 6:2 easily, I loved every minutes of it!!  This group of MD girls play on the same or adverary teams one time or another.  Some are 3.5 and few are 4.0.  They took turns to beat me, :))).  Ree said she’ll probably do the MS ride with me this October!  Lets go girls!!

 

 

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The Patrick girls

April 28, 2008 at 10:52 pm · Filed under Sports ·Tagged ,

Danica has finally won, after 50 starts.  She paid her dues, so its well deserved win.  No longer just another Anna Kournikova but a champ.  Hmmmm .. .. Anna competed with the girls and Danica with the boys.  (Where is the other Patrick girl, Tera?  I read about her in the Village Voice years ago, found her to be very attractive, a couple of classes above her peers.  Then another year or two passed, one day I came across her again, by chance saw her on a NY channel TV with her boyfriend, sporting a army outfit, in support of the troops in Iraq.  The only thing set me off was she’s done the implant, enlarged her pretty breasts – very ugly.  Why would she do that is beyond me!)

Golfer Lorena Ochoa had win four titles in four weeks.  Many in golf community, both men and women feel she could compete in PGA but she chose not to.  She isn’t pretty or striking as Wei, so there isn’t much buzz about her.  Perhaps also the fact she’s not an American.

Before I lost myself here, I’d better make the point ..

1. Everyone needs to pay her/his dues.  Michelle Wei hasn’t won a single title, just jumped into PGA.  For pete’s sake, Tiger Woods won 3 amateur titles before he turned pro.  Now attending Stanford, Wei can’t even play on the school team, because she’d turned pro.  What a screw up!  Many players in golf as well as spectators are kind of glad, cause Wei bully her way around and that wasn’t pretty.  Daddy Wei, pls call Richard Williams and learn a thing or two, will you?  Not that I like Richard (the dancing ..) but he has my respect for bringing up two very happy and successful daughters.

2. Don’t know if any one noticed the media would play up a good looking female athlete regardless she’s won a title or not.  But when it comes to a male athlete, the media treat the pretty boys very differently.  Lance Armstrong is very good looking, Scott Adam is handsome, but I don’t see the media play up their looks. .. .. If this is the way surpose to be, then why are male bosses mindful when they complimenting on female employees ..  Light me up Scott .. Am I missing something here?

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Kobe Bryant jumps over an Aston Martin

April 27, 2008 at 9:12 am · Filed under Sports ·Tagged

If you didn’t catch this last week, then watch it here .. Kenny Smith ..

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The last supper

April 19, 2008 at 12:06 am · Filed under Sports ·Tagged ,

好景不长在 好花不长开? .. Our pool (the Town of North Hempstead at Michael J. Tully Park) will be closed for renovation starting next Friday.  Estimate 15 months. Sight.  I’ve been having great runs there.  Who knows how long does it take.  I didn’t get to swim before tennis today, but felt tired.  Swimming does pup me up, not tire me out.  When we did valley with Wah, I hardly moved my feet.  He joked, “it’s your arm hurt, now you claim your feet hurts too?”  Ya, something like that, :).  Lazy.  I meant to go to the pool just one more time!  We tend to take thing for granted when it is there.  I didn’t go there for over a year.  Now it’s going to be gone for a while, and I felt sad.

The following three photos ⇓ are on 2021.11.03: I began to swim here again

During change overs on the court, the other players were talking about the new pool just opened in Flushing.  I was checking out the LA Fitness and Equinox.  LA Fitness told me that they don’t give price out over the phone, “you have to come in.”  Wow, the fitness centers joint the salesmanship also?  So be it.  She relent.

“The initiation fee is from $100-$299 and monthly varies too.”

“Like what?”

“You’ll have to come in.”

I never went becasue I hate when people waste my time.

____________________
The new pool, Oct 30, 2010
The new Parkwood pool, Aug 10, 2009

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Reaching for the gold

April 18, 2008 at 11:46 pm · Filed under Sports ·Tagged

Wah corrected my backhand one more time today: reach out, hit deep.  Simon’s been saying this too. 

“Don’t you feel tired?  Hitting so hard but the balls don’t go far, landing short.. .. ”  Simon’s been saying this too.  My balls land around the service line.  They need to be near the baseline to qualify as a modestly decent shot, don’t even dream lethal.

He said there are four points to connect as one hits a backhand.  The first is the starting point, second is the mid way prior to the contact, third the actual contact and the last is follow through. 

“Most people would omit the second point, they don’t reach out far enough.  Think curve of physics .. ” 

We practiced a while, he commented, “see you haven’t net a single one.”  Reach out on the third point makes the ball travels high and ends up near the baseline, without too much hard hitting.  This is the right way.  Obviuosly I’ve been doing it wrong. 

For some reason, Wah seems can get the point across clearly.  When he plays, there is a bit of delibrate pause in every shot right before the contact and he looks very relaxed.  He’s been saying, ‘you have plenty time to set up a shot ..’  I never thought of that.  Just rush to hit and rush to the net (to claim that candy)!

Simon and I won both sets agianst him and Irene.  Yes, Irene’s ok and been playing!!!  – Welcome back GIRL!!!  Her forehand is lethal, so you know she’s back.

 

 

 

 

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屡教不改

April 18, 2008 at 11:16 pm · Filed under Sports ·Tagged

吕 is for 屡教不改:).  I have been trying a slight different strategy on court lately: Simon has been preaching stay behind base line.  Simple enough?  Stand behind the base line.  Not me.  I have memory lapse, can’t help but rush to the net.  And caught dead in no man zone.  I have a permanent sofa in no man zone, that’s why I always linger there.

“Why did you have to come in all the time?”  Simon asked.  Deflected.  Thousand times.  “You’ll have more time to return the shot, and in a more relaxed manner.. ..”

Honestly I don’t know.  Seriously, I have no idea.  Perhaps I thought there is a candy hanging on the net.  Seriously I don’t know why can’t I remember the simple rule, not to come in, stand behind the base line!!

“It’s a piece of cake when you play behind the base line ..”  Simon would demonstrate.  Ever heard 劳碌命?  That’s me.  I’m so sick of myself too, 🙂 and the grunt is just getting louder – I only have backhand at the moment.  Haven’t been serving for a while.  Simon’s lips are thinning (or fattening from over use?) from repeating himself so often. “Stay behind the baseline.” Then next game I positioned myself grandly by the net – can’t correct my bad habit.  Oh lord, that’s embarrassing!

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The torch relay will go on

April 10, 2008 at 10:45 am · Filed under Celestial Empire, Sports ·Tagged

So China goes on.  WTG … Don’t forget that two opium wars didn’t crack open its door.  Mounting pressure to flex its currency didn’t work either.  I doubt China would give in to Tibet.  Take my word, UK would have a hell to pay for not attending its opening ceremony, especially their London game comes in just 4 years,  and most importantly UK has far less cloud than the US.  What the 10 Downing Street is thinking?

Go China Go …

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The mile long swimming pool

April 10, 2008 at 9:21 am · Filed under Sports ·Tagged

Can you believe this place in Chile? Imagine doing 10 laps of this swimming pool lengthwise! On a jet-ski maybe. It 1.3 km long, 800 mtrs wide at its shortest point and varies from ankle depth to 8 mtrs deep. It employs 41 life guards and has lifesaving devices which pop out of the bottom in various locations in case of rescue requirements. Built jointly by Korean/Japanese interests, it’s expected to have a business life scale of 15 years. Wonder how they clean the thing?  My goodness, this looks like the perfect paradise to me: the endless long pool.  Wait, one glitch: bottomlines , :).  But where is it in Chile?

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What gets me high

April 4, 2008 at 5:15 pm · Filed under Kronicle, Saga, Sports ·Tagged ,

I don’t like to run, so have no idea as what they’re talking about, but swimming gets me high, no any other sport could or would, tennis doesn’t even come close, so I know what they’re talking about.  The feeling after a swimming is that you can take on the www, whole wide world, 🙂 !!

Yesterday I visited Dr. Kim.  He’s in a relax mood and chatty.  Talked about his recent trip to China.  “For additional $200 [from Seoul], we could tour Beijing for 5 days, hotels and three meals and sightseeing included.  How did they do that is beyond me.”
“How’s Mrs. Kim?”
“She’s fine. Thank you.” She used to dab in when the nurse/receptionist wasn’t around who’s a very pleasant tall lady.
“Still playing tennis?” We used to have chat on tennis all the time.
A chuckle, “no, she’s in golf now.” We all laughed.
“Do you still swim?” When he first learned that I was swimming during my first pregnancy, he was horrified, if not annoyed. “What? You’re swimming? Don’t anyone see a pregnant lady? They allowed you to swim?”
Relax, Dr. It’s good for you. Toward my third trimester, he predicted that my delivery would be easy,
“Although I have no scientific proof ..”
I swam almost every day till my labor started. That morning, I stayed home, instead at the pool, watched Pete Sampras beat Andre Agassi in Wimbledon, while enduring the mild contraction. Pete went on to win his first championship there, followed by six more – Wondering what does Pete do with all those trophies for? Ladies can use theirs to line the dinner plates, :). One suggestion Pete: planting flowers. .. .. When it’s time to give birth later, Dr. Kim rushed in to the hospital, “hold on .. .. hold on .. let me put on my gloves.. ”  It went so fast, I almost regret – could I at least see what the color of the wall paper in the waiting room was?  The nurse first sent Golfer to register on another floor then had to page him in PA to come back, if he wanted to see the birth of his child.  Dr. Kim wasn’t pleased, “where’s father?”  One of the nurses explained, “we didn’t know she’ll be this fast .. is her first ..”  Did I savor the experience?  What experience?!?!
My second pregancy/delivery was the same, and he turned around to be a fan of swimming, at least for expectant mothers.  During the subquent years, he would often ask if I still swim and how’s my swim, but never about the babies he delivered.  Mrs. Kim would ask about kids.

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