Did someone say hot???

HOT does not even begin to describe what it felt like this weekend on the courts. I mean, it was like cooking yourself , on purpose, in a frying a pan. I know what you are thinking....please, it was only like 104 degrees and that really isn't THAT hot for Arizona, right? Well, think again all you shade hogging bystanders. It was incredibly hot on the courts. I arrived yesterday at my scheduled draw time, 12:00 p.m. or should I sat "stupid-o-clock"? The director proceeded to tell me that the lady that I was playing was not going to be there for an hour. AN HOUR? So, we didn't even start playing until 1:00. I prepared myself by drinking a ton of water before hand so I felt hydrated. So, after I kindly waited for the lady to get there, she kindly beat me. It was close 6-4 6-4 so not butt whippin but still, a loss. I really hate to lose, a lot. Lossing is so not in my blood. I know, no one LIKES to lose, but I CAN'T STAND to lose. I played awful. I just got new strings on my racquet, like an idiot, before my tournament. I don't know what I was thinking. Oh, wait. It is coming back to me now that my brain isn't swelling in my skull. My pro, offered to get me these special strings that aren't available to just anybody. So, he gets them to me and I was so excited that maybe, just maybe, all I really needed was a good set of PRO strings. I would put these strings on and when I held the racquet, visible magic rays would radiate from my hand through the racquet and into the air. I would instantly become a "Williams" sister of a different race. SOOOO, not the case. I could not get any "touch" with them. I knew that they were "power" strings but I forgot that I am not good enough to control the power yet. I was hitting balls long that I don't usually hit long and just all around couldn't get a good feel for the strings. I just started blocking balls back just to get them in, it was the most boring tennis I have played in a long time. I just wanted to keep the balls in, so I would hit so softly and they would go in for awhile. I began to think I was breaking through to the other more "controlled" side and then would hit a ball way out that I barely touched. It was awful. I should have beat that lady and yet the way that I played, no one would have guessed. The lady did excuse herself at an awkward moment to go the bathroom. Usually, you go between sets, she went in the middle. I later found out that she threw up. The heat on the court was 10 degrees hotter than the 104 that was predicted. The good news is, I did make some incredible shots and my footwork was much better than it has been. This has been a real struggle for me. I have great strokes but if you can't get yourself to the ball in the right position you may as well be holding a golf club on the court because your racquet isn't going to do you any good.
The match today started on time at 12 but was just as hot. I felt amazingly mobile and energized. I was winning when the lady I was playing, retired due to the heat. So, I did win but by default. I am confident that I would have pulled out a win here but was still playing waaayyy conservative which is so not the strategy that my pro and I have been working on. We had long rally's and many deuces. She also lost to the lady that beat my yesterday but much worse than I lost. We played 2 hours and were a little over halfway through the match, it was going to be awhile before we were finished. She just said she couldn't go on. So, it was hot but I really did learn more about myself. I was hot but felt light on my feet and learned how to adjust. I don't know to many people that would really put themselves out there, on the court, in this heat, when points count for USTA. I am proud of myself and I am a little tougher than even I thought. My husband and mother in law came to watch and I felt badly that I didn't play a more exciting match but feel supported, at least.
Now, on a different note. There hasn't been much to report for the kids. My literary genius isn't so gifted after all. It seems that he really only has one story that he just changes locations,times or situations to make it a "new" story. I mean, I could post them, he writes one almost daily, but trust me when I say, you would feel a little dumber each time you read one. I love him but by reading his stories you would think that all I let him do is play Wii and eat.
I signed him up for Little League though and can't wait to see what adventures come out of it. Seeing as he comes from a lineage of professional baseball players, there does seem to be some anticipation of what lurks inside him ,as an athlete.
Jaya is still the ballerina princess, running the show around here. I am sending out her invitations for her "Barbie" party, this week. She went to a friends party that got a lot of Barbie stuff and has decided that she is ready for some Barbies. She had babies and little strollers but feels she has progressed past these things. I, on the other hand, would really not like to have something ,in the house, constantly reminding me of where "plastic" surgery began its "perfect" body. I guess I will just avert my eyes, if need be ,so that she can have her wish. When will they make "Real Barbie". She would have a much thicker waist line, boobs that hung a little, legs that didn't look like toothpicks with a few dimples in her butt. I mean c'mon, what am I setting my daugher up to be when she looks at Barbie. My daughter is not a Barbie body in the making. How will I keep her balanced as she grows and doesn't end up in this shape? What is wrong with this picture? I am surprised that with all the changes that women have demanded, Barbie's body is not one of them. Calling all philanthropists! New cause!
So, I am going to bed. I am really tired and sore and I play in a ATA doubles match at 9. Hopefully, I will master these "elite" strings and become a confident player again.
Cortney K.