Tennis, Pickleball, Pizza, Red Wine and friends these are a few of my favourite things. Welcome to my small space on the internet. Come stay a while.
After living in a lockdowned world for the better part of the last two years, I finally was able to a road trip. And this was no normal road trip - you know the kind - you jump in the car and drive up north to cottage country or drive to a favourite restaurant that you have not been to in quite awhile. The reason for this road trip was that we had sold our condo and we needed to clean out our storage locker and bring back some personal items. I also wanted to take some time for myself.
After over ten years of ownership we recently decided to sell our condo at Saddlebrook in Florida. It’s been a long time coming and coming to this final decision was hard but also easy. So, how about let’s start at the very beginning.
Yes…now what? I have been wanting to write this post for a long time, but up to now I have resisted. Not sure exactly why? I guess I don’t want it to sound too maudlin, and full of self pity and I’m pretty sure that it does and will…..so, at the risk of that here goes.
War has broken out in Ukraine and there is a real danger that this could escalate to something even more serious than what it is at the moment. The game of geo-politics is at play with most democratic societies unwilling to enter into a much bigger and more dangerous war with Russia.
If your a follower of tennis you couldn’t help notice that there was more excitement prior to the tournament then possibly during the ongoing Australian Open. The top player in the world was front and centre in a stupid, silly legal battle to play in Australia. Basically the rules to enter the country were very straightforward….you need to have proof of a double vaccination.
Another year has come and gone….thank god! What a crazy two years. It was 2 years ago that I ended my 30+ years at Wilson. It was 2 years ago that we first started to hear rumours about a new virus that was coming out of China and it was 1 year ago that Ms. Sheila was out walking a neighbours dog near the condo and in a flash she went down on a patch of ice. No big deal right? I later found out she crawled home and I could hear her crying out from downstairs. Off to the hospital we went and a broken something or other was the result. The first few months she had to work from home and because of her lack of mobility she was stuck upstairs. Nurse Doug had to step up and take on more responsibility. Our bedroom became her office and she managed to keep working for many months from upstairs. It has been a long rehab and unfortunately, she could not play any tennis this year. She still walks with a bit of a limb but here’s hoping that maybe in the spring she can try to hit the yellow ball.
Well….it’s official, I’m old. The picture above was taken recently and I didn’t post it on social media -well……because, I think I look old. I imagine we all have some sort of image in our mind that we are still 25 years old and no doubt, there are times when I still feel I can run as fast as I used to, but I took a look at this picture and realized - I’m getting old.
At the time of this writing we’ve now been locked down for 27 years or at least it feels like that. Our provincial government keeps extending the ban on everything. There are a significant number of people who are upset that recreation activities are shut down - which includes tennis courts, golf courses, basketball courts etc. The science seems to indicate that the government is not correct on this one and that being outdoors and playing sports has a very low risk of spreading COVID 19, against the issue of being indoors not withstanding the concern on the mental health of people.
I’m not sure I can add anything profound or new to the discussion about 2020. I think history will do it for us. I’m confident that none us had this figured out when we first learned about Covid 19. Someone who I play tennis with and who I think is very, very smart - told me “ this thing will go away as soon as the warm weather comes in.” Well, that certainly didn’t happen.
Wow…it’s been quite awhile since I’ve either had the time or realistically the inclincation to sit down and write something. Frankly, I guess I have not felt very motivated to do so. I guess you could call it Covid 19 fatigue. Anyways, so how are things?
We are in the 2nd week (I think) of the mandated City lockdown which second serious lockdown we’ve seen here since the beginning of this pandemic. We had a pretty good summer and it certainly looked like things were getting better. But if you followed what was going in other parts of the world what we are seeing here is not surprising. I guess they called it the 2nd wave.
If I had written this post a few months ago I probably would have said a lot of different things. First of all - like most of us I thought this THING would have been over by now. Who would have thought that something like this virus could do so much damage - take so many lives - upset the global economy as it has. And with no real sense of relief being just around the corner.
Wow…what a difference a year can make. The picture I took above is of Roger Federer playing on Arthur Ashe Stadium in last year’s event. I was fortunate to be able to go to the tournament and I had great tickets courtesy of @wilsontennis . This year - not so lucky. Of course, no one is lucky because the tournament is taking place without any spectators. The arrival of Covid 19 has meant most sports were either stopped completely or just recently introduced again (with severe restrictions). We have been able to watch hockey, baseball, basketball and now tennis with the players living in a protected bubble.
What is it…….it’s really is a personal ball machine. You can carry in the car and wheel it up to the courts. It looks like a large travel tennis bag. It’s also rechargeable and it holds about 144 tennis balls. Of course there are a number of ways to alter the performance of the product including the speed, height and it can also be purchased with an oscillator that that will ensure you are running from side to side.
We decided at the very last minute to jump on a plane and take a trip. And where did we go? Well the easiest and least expensive way to see Europe (without actually going) is to visit Quebec City. It is the oldest French speaking community in North America and it was founded over 400 years ago. It is the only walled city north of Mexico with almost 4.6 kilometres of walls. Only 1.5% of the population is English but about 1/3 can speak French and English.
As we continue to try to “flatten” the curve there seems to be a contracts in different parts of the on the need to wear a mask. Governments seem to vacillate between taking charge and making policy vs. downloading it the local government.
I told some friend the other day that I don’t think about work anymore. It has taken a long time or what would seem a long time to get to this point. Important details are fading as you would suspect hey would and I think I am sleeping better.
I think I’m starting to find my routine (sigh). Get woken up by the wife as she goes off to work…lie in bed for 15 minutes….turn on iPad…..look at social media (sigh) and at some point decide whether to shower first or have breakfast. Yep - that’s how the morning seems to go. The weather has been quite and as I am right now - I’ve been able to sit out on our small terrace and have a coffee, enjoy the sunshine and do some odd work or read.
Sorry, sorry, sorry….it’s been awhile since the last post and that was never my intention. I can’t honestly tell you that I’ve been too busy :). Frankly, I have not felt that inspired to write anything. I guess you could call it writers block although, I not really a writer.
Since there is likely a very significant number of people working from somewhere else (home?) many have had to re-configure their working/home environment. Not so easy for some! The local coffee shop is not available!
And for some people who are either renting or new to home ownership they be living in a smaller space so they may not have an extra room to use as an office. Or if there are two parents, both working from home where do they go? And if there are kids who have to study/go to school you have another potential challenge. Issues with space, computers and who is going to clean up after lunch?
