Sunday, May 5, 2019 (Court Day #263)
Day 24 playing left-handed. Tennis elbow.
It was 52° and overcast when I left my house for Derby Park. The weather prediction was dreary. (My wife is the mistress of weather—if you want to know what’s going to happen, ask her!)
I got to the courts a full 15 minutes before opening time but Mark (Maree’s husband) was already there. Janet was the third one to appear. Cal was the fourth and soon we were in a game.
Cal and I later played a game against David and Beth Black. We took a lopsided loss, but we did make the Blacks work for their win.
Beth and I played a game together as partners later. She matter-of-factly stated, “I didn’t realize earlier that you were playing left-handed.” This isn’t the first time I’ve gotten this comment from people. If I hadn’t made so many errors, I would take it as a compliment. As it is, it’s a bit of a bummer that people don’t notice the difference. I know that I can tell!
The sky cleared and it became almost perfect pickleball weather. If it was just a little bit less breezy, it would have been truly perfect. Still beautiful.
Allan and I played a game against Chris and George. Allan and I won. While I still had my share of errors, I made some points that I would have been proud had I done them right handed, let alone left-handed. Digs, poaches, slams. Nice. Allan commented afterward, “It’s going to be interesting when you can start playing right-handed again.” Will I switch hands more readily to make shots? I don’t know. There’s still an awkward feeling playing lefty.
We got a treat today, young Tom and his girlfriend Ileana (“Ill-lee-ahna”) appeared again after many months. They are always upbeat and Tom can be a crackup. (He may have a more nutty sense of humor than me and that’s saying a lot!) They said they are still living in Los Gatos and haven’t really been playing pickleball at all. We got into a game with a fourth player, Jeff. We were deciding on how to split us all up. I told Tom, “Even playing left-handed, I’m better than you are…no offense.” Smiling, Beth Black called over from her chair, “You didn’t have tell him why!” Oops. Sorry, Tom.
The four of us played five games. Me and Tom, Ileana and me (3x), then finally Jeff and me.
Ileana and l lost 11-3, then 11-4. I smiled and said to Ileana, “We gotta keep going, we are making progress each game.” Jeff laughed and said, “Another nine games and you’ll have it!” It didn’t take another nine, it took one! We pulled of an unexpected win on the third try.
For the last game, my partner Jeff played left-handed too. I was very impressed with his serves. I think they are better than mine right out of the gate! Jeff said he used to play ping pong left-handed. He wasn’t quite as strong with the rest of his game, but still decent, considering. The youngsters beat us by a few points. I was expecting to win even with both of us handicapped. Kudos to Tom and Ileana.
Tom told me, “You’ve gotten a lot better.” I exclaimed, “I’m playing left-handed!” “But you are a lot better than when I last saw you.” Then I went on to explain that I’d been playing a whole lot more than he has and he’d be better too in similar circumstances. It’s true though, even me playing lefty now would have easily beat a newbie version of myself.
It was 12:45 when the last game finished and it was time to go.
Cabrillo Tournament
As we were about to leave, Binh bought up the local tournament in August. He said that Manny had also asked him as a partner. I asked Binh what his age was. “47.” That means that I’d have to play in the “Open” bracket instead of 50+ and 60+. I’m 51, and playing Open doesn’t bother me one bit. I relish the competition. I wish there were no age brackets. Right or left handed. Binh said it would be his first tournament and he was fine with me playing lefty if that’s what I’m still doing come August. He also said that Kim was hoping that they’d get 250 players for the tournament. That’d be big! I have to give this some thought. If Binh and I are eliminated quickly—a likelihood if I play lefty—then my UTPR will go down. The USAPA has no idea that I’ll be playing lefty, and from what I hear, won’t care. Injuries are irrelevant. If you play hurt, you take your chances on your rating. I do want to play. Hmmmm…
Tuesday, May 7, 2019 (No Play)
I had a 9 a.m. physical therapy appointment this morning.
Ruby worked on my right shoulder, right wrist, and right elbow. The good news is that she said the shoulder was improving and to continue doing the exercises that she’d given me previously. I will say that my shoulder is sore afterward, as expected as that is!
Even from Sunday night, I’ve been dying to get back on the court. I. Want. To. Play. Unfortunately, it’s looking like there won’t be enough staff tomorrow morning for me to play. Putting food on the table and not stressing out the remaining staff (if I were to play) is important. So, maybe Thursday night. And possibly Friday morning.
Number of days on a court: 263
Number of total hours: 720.5
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