AS TIME GOES BY

As you may know, our calendar really keeps us hopping from state to state & junior tournament to junior tournament. OF COURSE we meet tons of tennis people <coaches, parents & KIDS> as the weeks, months & years fly by in a flash. While we are so consumed with keeping the lights on & the general busy-ness of our business <you wouldn't believe the struggle/resistance we've faced & STILL DO>, we tend to overlook what else is happening: THE KIDS ARE GROWING UP.

We select the events on our calendar based on whether the TD

• is nice to us &
• values what we do.

Unfortunately, you'd be shocked to realize how few meet such stringent criteria :( but TD Carlos Lozano @ the Topspin Swim & Racquet Club in Columbia, SC was one who did & when he invited us to his Topspin Classic tournament in March of 2007, we were happy to accept. We loved that tournament, it was our only stop in SC & were happy to go for the next 6 years... until the non-stop changes in junior competition finally forced us to drop it from our schedule in 2013 <& Carlos later moved on anyway, as tennis pros do>. BUT before that happened, a mother from NC said "You guys should come to our tournament!", "Where's your tournament?", bada bing, bada boom & we've been going to the NC Clay Courts @ the Olde Providence Racquet Club in Charlotte, NC every July since 2011... AND THAT IS WHERE WE RAN INTO THESE TWO SISTERS FROM NORTH CAROLINA. 

We were super-busy @ the tournament <AS USUAL> & basically forgot about these cuties after the tournament was over. 

FAST FORWARD 4+ YEARS 

The little one on the left <now 12> approached me @ the Icy Hot Championships in Chattanooga, TN last Halloween with this question: "Aren't you the one who brings animal crackers to tournaments?"

I'd forgotten but clearly she hadn't... HOW FUN!! She was especially friendly, super-chatty & I was happy that she spent so much time at our tent during the tournament. It was fun getting to know such a nice young lady who was there w/ a group of kids & a coach but when I asked about her grades at school, that's when things got serious: UGH----This girl had some seriously bad grades & I scolded her repeatedly that she should be ashamed of herself & that she absolutely HAD to do something about them. She wasn't convinced that her grades really mattered <typical> but I stayed on her case pretty much non-stop. She follows HIGH-TECH TENNIS on social media & she texts me often, asking about our next tournament & where we might meet each other again. Unfortunately for both of us, our paths probably won't cross again until the Icy Hot @ Halloween in Chattanooga, TN. :(

So as our friendship has developed over the past 6 months, I don't think a single solitary chat has gone by without me asking about grades & encouraging her to SHAPE UP, lol. Well, guess what?!?!?!?

The entire purpose of this blog post is to let you know that this nice young lady from North Carolina improved her overall grade from 39% <Halloween 2015> to 95% <today>!!!!! I am sooooooo incredibly proud of her & of course I had nothing to do with it but it occurs to me that staying on her case didn't hurt :)

WAY TO GO & KEEP UP THE GREAT WORK, Cheekie Girl!!

3 WEEKS IN THE LIFE OF AN ANGEL

After 10+ years in the trenches with competitive junior tennis players & their families, there is no doubt that we've formed some pretty strong connections with certain players but NONE are as strong as my personal connection to this angel of a child: ANGEL CARNEY of Dallas, GA.

I've written about Angel in the past & I'll probably write about her in the future but the purpose of this short blog post is to give a great big SHOUT OUT to this 15yo who's just a few short weeks away from the BIG SIXTEEN. Why??? Well, three reasons:

1. We've talked about working together on a special project like HIGH-TECH TENNIS TEES but we've never actually done more than talk... until I surprised Angel by picking her up in my convertible (her 1st time in one!!) three weeks ago & brought her to my house, where we put our heads together to make a batch of candles (a definite first for each of us)!! We had sooo much fun plus Angel was an incredibly helpful helper! Soooo glad we did it together &, in spite of some hilarious trial & error, it looks like we're on to something so catch up with us @ a tournament or just stay tuned for much more info about TENNIS CANDLES IN A CAN!!

2.We saw Angel a week later @ the Icy Hot Level 2 Junior Championships in Montgomery, AL. She played her singles matches elsewhere but she & her partner, Ann Maria Adams from Macon, GA, came to the Lagoon Park Tennis Center to play the semis on the way to winning the G16 Doubles! YAHOOOOOO for not letting her doubles partner down & for not letting anyone know she was dealing with what looked like a pretty serious ankle injury!!

3. While we were in Montgomery, can't tell you how many players just assumed we'd be (& were shocked to learn that we would NOT be) @ the Southern Level 1A @ Clemson / Furman the very next weekend... Here's why: When we contacted the TD several years ago for permission to enhance their tournament with video, we had a lengthy discussion & then we were told that they'd "get back to us." So a few days went by, we'd heard nothing, so we called & left a friendly voicemail, requesting a return call. After a few more days, nada so we left a slightly-less friendly voicemail... noooo response :( so we left our 3rd & final voicemail: "Guess you're not interested but thanks --- really appreciate the return call." Whateverrrr. Anyway, that's enough of that unpleasant memory!! (Note: You would never ever believe how many stories we have like that.) We appreciated the weekend @ home & besides, the weather was lousy in SC, lol. 

BUT IT DIDN'T STOP ANGEL from winning a tough 3-set match in the round of 16, advancing & winning another tough 3-set match in the quarterfinal, advancing & winning yet another tough 3-set match in the semifinal to advance to the final, which SHE WON! 

G16 DOUBLES & G16 SINGLES CHAMPION

Not bad for back-to-back tournaments!! 

We are so very proud of our friend ANGEL, an incredibly sweet & very mature young lady, an excellent candlemaking assistant & oh yeah---a pretty good tennis player too!