watchingtennis

Cruel Summer*

Posted on by waternymph88

Wake up at 7ish. Read Thank You, Jeeves until it’s time for our Exciting Day Out.

We go to Ben’s house and meet his half-.Ragdoll kitten:Juno.

She’s a lovely little person. We watch her climb her first tree. She throws herself onto the ground, which is certainly one way to leave the true.

Zooming around the garden, she is almost impossible to photograph, due to her reluctance to keep still.

She is showing some Ragdoll features: a small ruff around her neck; a huge fluffy tail; extreme reluctance to be left alone. I’ll give you updates on her every month or so.

In the car, on the way home, the panther says his bit:’

“You look disgusting and fat” he says. I don’t reply but continue talking to Mum about the kitten.

At home have lunch, meditate 🧘‍♀️ and sleep. Waking up, watch Emma Raducanu:: our new US Open champion.,,She is just eighteen and really deserves her first Grand Slam win: becoming the first player to battle through 10 matches of qualification and then win the tournament. And she did all this without losing a set. First of many triumphs for Emma, we hope.

Now I’m back in bed and Fluffball is looking after me from under the dressing table.

Happy Sunday everyone!

*2013. By Juno Dawson. Murder mystery novel

Joy In The Morning*

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Wake up at 8am, have breakfast and then return to sleep until 10am.

It’s Personal Training and I really push myself and trainer is pleased with me. The panther is lying on my bed: sleeping, so he doesn’t bother me or say spiteful things, which is a welcome change.

Have a protein drink and wait for Mum to return for lunch, which she does about 12.15pm.

Have lunch, meditate and sleep. A new Jeeves book has arrived. Look forward to reading it soon: not sure where it comes in the series. Will find this out as am aiming to read the Jeeves books in order and there are three more of them coming tomorrow.

We watch Emma Raducana vs Belinda Bencic: the US Open Quarter-Final. The 18 year old Brit is relaxed and smiling as she beats the older player in straight sets. Emma had to come up through qualification: apparently the first qualifier ever to achieve this. Looking forward to Emma’s semi-final now.

Am in bed now. Fluffball is under my dressing table. I’m going to sleep now.

Happy Thursday everyone!

*1947. By PG Wodehouse. Comic novel in the Jeeves series.

Simple*

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Pilates is tough this morning but I enjoy it and it energises me for the day.

We go to some parental friends for an amazing Ottolenghi-based lunch. We sit outside in their gazebo. Sunny 🌞 when we arrive: when we sit down to lunch it rains and rains and rains. Eventually even Mum agrees that we must go inside for pudding.

Meditate 🧘‍♀️ and sleep. Then watch Belinda Bencic vs Marketa Vondrousova: the Ladies’ Doubles Final – the Gold Medal match. Bencic wins the first set but then Vondrousova comes roaring back. I’ve just checked and Belinda won the match. Great effort by her: it seems very close, the bit I watch.

We even acquire a going home present from lunch:

A home-grown red cabbage.

We will eat him tomorrow.

Am sitting up in bed with my special cushion. Fluffball is under my dressing table. Feel so much more comfortable and relaxed now that he’s here with me.

The panther doesn’t like Fluffball and keeps some distance from him: sitting on the windowsill, gazing out.

“You looked ridiculous in that outfit at lunchtime,” the panther says, turning around to gaze at me with dust on his face. “I don’t know how you can go out dressed like that: especially when you’re so fat.”

“I’m not”, I say. But there’s no point in trying to reason with him: he won’t listen. He’s already turned his head away and is staring out of the window. I can feel the tears tumbling down my face.

Now just Tarot Card For The Day and then I can go to sleep.

Happy Saturday everyone!

*2018. By Yotam Ottolenghi. Cookbook.

Granny Hooks A Crook*

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Look at this beautiful fuchsia, sitting on the table just outside my window.

There aren’t enough of us to do Pilates today, so my teacher sends a recording of Monday’s class.

“You can’t do it,” says the panther. “You’re too weak and pathetic to do it on your own, when you should be thinking about your imminent death and crying.”

“I can do it,” I say.

He turns away from me and starts cleaning his shoulder, rasping it with his rough tongue.

He’s right though: I don’t do it. But, in the first four days of the week I’ve achieved: Monday – Strength, Tuesday – Pilates, Wednesday- Strength and Thursday – Personal Training.

It’s OK to miss a day, I deserve a rest. The problem is that I really need exercise to lift my mood. The panther knows that, and that’s why he doesn’t want me to exercise.

We drive up to the farm to attend the greengrocers. I sit in the car as it’s raining. It rains on and off all day. Outside it’s as cold 🥶 and miserable as I feel.

Have lunch and meditate but can’t sleep. Get up and watch some Olympic tennis with Mum: the semifinal of the Mixed Doubles. Ash Barty and John Peers are defeated by the Russian pair and it’s so close: coming down to two points in the ten point tiebreak. We are upset as we want Ash and John to win. Tennis is such a cruel sport.

On the plus side: my agent sends the possible covers for my Memoir and I choose one and I love it.

Probably because he’s sick of us, having been stuck in the house all day – my fluffy nurse has shut himself in my parental wardrobe. I miss him but I’m going to have to sleep on my own.

Right: Tarot Card of the Day and then sleep.

Happy Friday everyone!??

*2013. By Julie Seedorf. A Fuchsia, Minnesota mystery, Book 1.

Pigs Have Wings*

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Stay up late last night to watch the football ⚽️. England score within two minutes and then play well for much of the remainder of the first half. Then I have to sleep at nine o’clock.

When I wake up this morning it turns out that I watched the best bit as Italy then went on to score in the second half, followed by the horrors of penalties.

Don’t manage to make it out of bed this morning until past ten o’clock: missing my pre-sleep-sleep obviously has a bad effect on me. There is no Barre, so I lie in bed and finish reading Something Fresh. Start Pigs Have Wings. Love PG Wodehouse: the books are making me laugh a lot.

Have lunch, meditate 🧘‍♀️ and sleep. Wake up and shell some peas with Mum.

Watch some of yesterday’s Mixed Doubles Final, which is good fun.

Fluffball comes in, has his supper and is now stationed under my dressing table. Am just going to do my Tarot Card of the Day and then sleep.

Happy Monday everyone!

*1952. By PG Wodehouse. Book 2 in the Blandings Castle series of comic novels.

Backhand*

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It’s six o’clock and my Fluffball has just come in to look after me: I’ll just post this and my Tarot card of the day and then we’ll settle into my pre-sleep sleep.

Work hard at Personal Training this morning and my teacher is pleased with me.

I’ve just had some Good News so I will keep that quiet until there’s more to tell you.

We go out to lunch for my Parental Golden Wedding anniversary here:

We sit outside under one of the umbrellas and it doesn’t rain very much. There are lots of people there and it takes our food ages to turn up, but it’s good to be out at a restaurant.

When we arrive home: Fluffball is waitron for us in the front garden. He doesn’t like it when we go out for too long – even in daytime when he’s meant to be outside.

Come home, meditate 🧘‍♀️ and sleep. When I wake up: watch Pliskova beat Sabalenka.

Now am in bed with my fluffy nurse.

Happy Thursday everyone!

*1992. Liza Cody. Tennis-based mystery novel.

Circuit*

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Wake up and have breakfast. Then go back to bed for a bit.

Katie visits at 9.30am: it’s good to see her. We sit in the garden.

Go to Pizza Express with my Pilates teacher and a Pilates chum. It’s good to see my chums and takes my mind off my current problems a bit. It’s not sunny but it’s not raining and we’re glad to be able to sit outside.

Meditate and sleep. Wake up and watch Roger get beaten in three sets, which is terrible.

Fluffball comes in and nestles under my dressing table chair. I’m just going to post this and then my Tarot Card of the Day. Am So Exhausted as usual and don’t find that I have much to put in the blog these days.

Happy Wednesday everyone!

*1976. By Ralph M Demers. Tennis novel based at Queens and Wimbledon.

Centre Court Murder*

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After I go to bed last night I am horribly sick. This is the first time for a while, but I vomit up my supper and lunch. Fall asleep curled around my precious Fluffball.

Mum brings me my pills at nine o’clock when Fluffball goes off duty. Unfortunately, vomit 🤮 up all my pills so have a bad night of sleeping.

This morning: work hard at Barre and talk to my teacher and chums. Then speak to psychiatrist who thinks that the sickness is a one-off. Let’s hope he’s right.

Good news from my Agent who wants to go ahead with the Memoir. She wants the Editor we used to copy-edit it too, which seems a good idea. After all the struggles am having with my health, it’s great to have some Good News.

Watch Angelique Kerber beat Coco Gauff which is a good match. Now I’m back in bed with my furry nurse. He’s sitting under my dressing table and I’m sitting up in bed, using my special cushion so I can post this, then Tarot Card of the Day and then read Something Fresh for a bit. Hopefully, if I can sit up after meals for a bit, I won’t feel sick.

Mum helps me have my bath 🛁 for the first time in a few days.

Parents are watching Roger but I can’t stay up any longer. Fingers crossed that am not sick tonight.

Happy Monday everyone!

*1951. By Bernard Newman. Tennis Murder mystery novel.

Advantage Miss Jackson*

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It’s 5.21pm and Fluffball has put me to bed. So must just scribble this and do Tarot Card of the Day and then can do pre-sleep-sleep.

Sorry about lack of blog yesterday. At the moment am spending about twenty hours per day asleep, so it’s a struggle to fit in everything whilst am awake.

Wake up at seven o’clock this morning and then return to sleep till about ten o’clock.

Parentals go to a lunch party today and I settle down for my afternoon sleep. There is a scratching at my door. Fluffball must’ve worked out that I was on my own and come in to look after me. He’s such a precious angel.

We sleep and then I wake up and manage some reading for the first time in a while: Something Fresh by PG Wodehouse. It’s very funny.

Fluffball sleeps under my dressing table until the parentals return and then he goes out for a bit but then it starts raining.

We watch yesterday’s Today At Wimbledon, which is good.

Now we’re back in bed. Have paid for all my Zoom Barre and Pilates classes for next week and am looking forward to Barre tomorrow.

Happy Sunday everyone!

*1991. By Michael Hardcastle. Tennis novel.

Blackballed*

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Fluffball in the garden
Petunias
Orange rose

Wake up at six o’clock but then return to sleep till half past nine.

Work hard at Pilates. I love it so much.

Some of my favourite people come round for lunch: it is really good to see them. Meditate and sleep.

Watch some Wimbledon: I seem to be spending most of the summer of sport asleep: which is a shame.

Fluffball is in for the day now and it sitting on my windowsill, looking outside. Soon it is time for my pre-sleep-sleep.

Arrange lunch with the Barre crew for next Wednesday, so it’s good to have something to which to look forward.

Fluffball has settled himself under my dressing table and I can hear the sounds of him cleaning himself. He has so much orange fluff and it must be kept at peak condition. He can look after me perfectly well from down there.

Tomorrow I’m looking forward to Pilates and resting. Must go and write my Tarot Card Of The Day now.

Happy Friday everyone!

*1986. By Michael Mewshaw. Tennis novel.