The Life of a Wannabe Tennis Star

223 LBS. Better number than yesterday morning, but I’ve gotta crack this number!!

I’ve thought about it, and setting a goal of 200 lbs by the end of the month is a bit ridiculous. I’ve changed my goal to 215 lbs. This is still 8 lbs, which will take work, but it’s achievable, and I think I’ll still scoot into some old pants if I lose that!!

Yesterday dinner plans changed… again. I’ve been going out too much! My mom brought my sister and I out to eat at Arnies (yes, we were the only people under 65 there!). I got half a turkey Panini and French onion soup. I ate all of the sandwich, and half the soup (minus the glob of cheese on top). It was fabulous!!

Today is election day. I see a lot of sitting in front of the television in my immediate future. Last election I was GLUED to the stupid thing! I have to work until 1:00, then a physical for our Chinese work visas, then doin’ the civic duty thing, then probably just going home and doing some cleaning and laundry.

I want to play tennis again. I never played sports in middle school. I tried out for basketball once, but couldn’t do a lay up, and got axed. Freshman year, I heard about the tennis team. The most INTERESTING thing I heard was that there were NO CUTS!! I immediately joined. I ran a mile every day, did suicides, and got in great shape! Sprinting, swinging, and stopping really fast will do that to you. I was down to about 143 lbs, and it was a very muscular 143. On my 5’7 body, that meant I was actually normal! I wore a size medium uniform; my skirt was oh-so-cute too. I felt so much pride when I would have an away game and we’d all wear our uniforms to school. I’d strut around, all the while thinking “I’m an athlete”.

I was no good that year. I had two left feet and terrible hand-eye coordination. I played alternate, meaning my matches didn’t count towards the team score. But I still loved it! Our team was the worst in the whole conference. We hadn’t won a single match against another school in 3 years. My sophomore year, we won one. My junior year, I actually started playing on the team. I was a member of our 3rd flight doubles team; I started getting good, and smashed the ball like a pro! We even won about half of our matches. It was amazing!

My fondest memories of school involve tennis. On tournament days, we’d all meet at school and pile on the bus in our uniforms, warm-up suits, and sweatshirts. We’d have coolers with our breakfast and lunch in them, and canteens of water. We’d drive to the host school, pile out, and warm up. Then we’d split into our flights and start the matches! One tournament I was at, we had 3 matches. Each time we won one, we progressed. The first match was only 1.5 hours long. It was a cool, comfortable morning. After 30 minutes of rest, we started match #2 – and it was about 75 degrees. We played for 3 hours, and were exhausted at the end, but at least we had won! We rested for another 30 minutes, and then competed for the gold. The match was almost 4 hours long. We were absolutely beat. The match dragged on, and we were in a tie breaker for almost an hour. We ended up losing, and getting the silver metal. But when I got home that day, I felt like She-Ra. I felt so strong, so CAPABLE.

My senior year I was placed in our 4th singles flight. Playing on my own was completely different; I ran a lot more, and learned so much about the game. That year our team took home the gold. We won every single match we played, something that had never happened in the history of our school. Being a part of that made me feel so special. Now, though, I haven’t touched my racket in 2 years. I’m afraid of jiggling in embarrassing places, and looking foolish. I’m going to do it anyway, though. I dug out the rackets last night, and I’m buying balls this week. Husband and I WILL get a match in before the snow comes. I just NEED it. I NEED IT.