Sunday, June 26, 2011

Oh Boston

I'm playing at a tennis center that isn't in the greatest parts of town. I would like to call it the ghetto. One of the days during the tournament there was a teenage boy who ran through the tennis center. He didn't go on the courts but ran around them trying to out run the cops. Yep, the cops were chasing him. All this was happening while professional tennis matches were taking place. He ran into a dead end and just sat down. He knew he was caught so he just sat down in a chair that was nearby. As he was escorted out of the tennis center, police dogs came later to sniff out what he threw out of his pockets right before he was arrested. Great excitement happening on the pro tennis circuit!

Sunday, June 19, 2011

Good News

Update on El Paso: I got to the semi's of doubles and lost in the round of 16 in singles. I unfortunately had to play my doubles partner in singles and that afternoon we played together for doubles. That doesn't happen all the time, but when it does you just got to deal with it. 

After that I headed home the same day (Friday) I lost doubles and made it to LA around 11pm. I wanted to get back as fast as possible because Keaton's graduation was the next day. I was really happy I was able to make it. I'm very proud of him!

The next Monday I had a tournament near my house in Claremont, Ca. It is a tournament called US Open Sectional Playoffs. I was playing the southern California regional and there are a total of 16 regions. Each region has one winner and I was playing well enough to win my region. Once each region finished the winners of the region come together and play in a final tournament. So in August the 16 winners go to Yale and compete to win a spot in the qualifying draw of the US Open! It's a fantastic opportunity and I can't believe I'm 4 matches away from playing in a Grand Slam! The tournament is held in the middle of August so I have some time to prepare and play some other pro tournaments until I compete against the other 15 winners.

I'm currently in Boston, MA playing in a 50K. I'm staying with my coaches parents and thankfully my coach was able to come with. I rarely have him with me and he doesn't get to see me play very much. It's nice to have him with me. 

Tuesday, June 7, 2011

Hot and HOT

I'm currently in El Paso, TX where the temperature is hovering around 100 degrees. I just came from Hilton Head, SC where it was hot and humid and at 9am it was already 90 degrees. I'm a person who does like warm weather, but there comes a point to where you just need it to cool down a little. On the tennis court, it's especially hot since the heat comes off the concrete and makes you even hotter as your running around the court playing a 2 hour match.

I got here Sunday morning and took that day off. It was much needed since I played all of last week. My partner and I won the doubles tournament! It was quite eventful getting to Texas. My partner lives in Atlanta which is only about 5 hours from Hilton Head. Once we were done with our match on Saturday we showered and packed up and drove to her house. We did some laundry and chilled out a bit before heading to bed. I struggled falling asleep since the room I was staying in felt like a sauna. The next thing I know I wake up with sever stomach pains. It felt worse when I was laying down and here and there I would get waves of nausea. My wonderful fiance and mom were available to help me through the pain even though it was 2am there time. The pain finally subsided and I fell asleep for about 30 more minutes until I got up at 5:45am. I think I got about 3 or 4 hours of sleep.

Next, the dad drove me to the train station to take to the airport. I guess I had just missed one so I sat there for about 30 minutes. I thought I wasn't going to make my flight since I checked in with just 45 minutes until my boarding time. But everything went smoothly there on out and my bag came too! I was scared it wasn't going to make the flight.

I only play doubles tomorrow with a partner I have never played with before. She's from Bolivia. Hope things go well!

The great thing is I'm getting wonderful rest at the house I'm staying at and delicious food to eat. Cereal, fruit, and lots of pasta and chicken. The mom and I are going to attempt to make mango sorbet. YUM :)

Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Toluca, Mexico

This post was meant to be posted about a week ago but I never finished it since it was negative and just random thoughts. But I decided to post it anyways.

I don't even know where to start this post at. I will just ramble on. It'll be a stream of consciousness post.

Why did I even come to Mexico? I chose between the BNP WTA pre-qualifier and three tournaments in Mexico. What was I thinking? I could have stayed close to home because the pre-qualifier for a WTA tournament was only 2 hours from my house. My family could have been there. But I chose Mexico and I was confident in it.

I have been re-thinking my decision since the first week of Mexico I got sick and had to retire out of my singles match. Luckily I recovered pretty quickly and was able to play doubles. My partner and I made it to the finals which is great, but I always want to do well in singles too. The second week of Mexico (Toluca, the title of this post) was even worse. I just didn't care about anything. I was struggling with thoughts, with my desire, with my attitude. I didn't want to be here. I didn't want to play tennis that day. So I didn't. I struggled mentally and it showed on the court. I ended up winning the first set somehow and then really went south the next two sets. I honestly didn't care if I won or lost that day. I ended up losing of course. My attitude was poor because of the housing, the city, the culture, the language, the courts, the facility, the food. Everything was getting to me. I got a little sick again during the tournament but instead of things coming up like the first week, things were going out the bottom the second week.

I couldn't hold myself together. I succumbed to the obstacles and let them win. I didn't put them aside for the match and just play tennis. I put them in front of me and that's all I could see.

I was frustrated I was sick again. I was frustrated the housing wasn't what I expected. I stayed with this family last year and they were great. This time around it was like they never knew me. They barely spoke English, they were always late, they always fed us late, it took around 30 minutes to get to the club, and it was just plane awkward staying at their house.

I had a conversation with my coach that really helped put things in perspective. The main thing he said was each match is an opportunity not an obstacle.  Look for ways to be successful, not excuses to fail. With everything he said including the above quote, I really learned something. I realized I shouldn't regret coming to Mexico. I shouldn't regret not playing the BNP. I should believe I made the right chose. I wouldn't have learned more mental toughness without going through these experiences. I could look at the situation and think I wasted 2 weeks. But I don't think I did. I may not have the results I want but going through what I did has made me stronger and more aware of what I can do if I ever feel or go through something like this again. And I'm sure I will feel like this again.


My roommate, travel buddy, and doubles partner is from Austria. In German there's a saying she introduced me to. 

zwick die oaschbocken zamm

This means "Put your butt together"!!!

It's similar to come on, let's go and fight!

So, I will do that.
I will put my butt together and fight on!

Thursday, March 17, 2011

More from Irapuato

I wanted to post some more pictures since I figured out I can use the wifi on my phone to upload them. Hopefully not all of them will be sideways like the last one.
Irapuato is known for it's strawberries. My housing family was telling me it was the city where most of the strawberries get distributed out from. We were able to visit a "strawberry house" . They had everything you could imagine. They had strawberry jam, strawberries covered in chocolate, crystallized strawberries, and strawberries with whipped cream. I bought some jam and had to get chocolate covered strawberries...which only cost about $1.50 for a small. It was delicious!
And of course here are the puppies! Aren't they cute?





la casa de las fresas "strawberry house"

There were strawberries everywhere!

jam jam jam




they bit everything and every one!



adorable but upside down

:)

Tuesday, March 15, 2011

End of Irapuato


After a disastrous start to the tournament, things
turned around and I was able to play doubles. Nicole and I made it to the finals but were unable to stop our partners. It was a close match. One break of serve in each set. Here's a picture of the runner up's.


Sorry, I don't know how to rotate the picture. I uploaded it from my phone using wifi here in Mexico and can't seem to find the rotate button. Just turn your head and you'll see the picture :)

Tuesday, March 8, 2011

Annoying + Wonderful things

Here are a few annoying things that happen while I have visited Mexico.

1. Everything is run so much slower here than in the states. They are in no rush at all.
2. The first day we practiced the tournament had no new balls for us to use.
3. The next day we practiced the tournament tells us they don't know what the official ball is. It could be pressurized or non-pressurized. Those are two different things!
4. They finally decide to use pressurized balls at over 6,000 feet. Weird. And I had one day to practice with these balls at this altitude.
5. The schedule for each day doesn't come out of until late at night. Sometimes it's posted at a hotel, sometimes it's posted at the club. You never know what you're going to get!


Here are a few wonderful things:

1. The housing family has taken great care of me especially while I was sick.
2. I found a website that I can watch all my shows on! Hulu and Netflix don't work outside the US.
3. I get to play with puppies everyday :)
4. Skype is just plain wonderful.
5. I have friends to travel with.


That's all for now ;)

Monday, March 7, 2011

Disappointment

So far Mexico has not gone the way I planned it. I plan a lot of things. I like to plan. I was planning positively. I wanted to win the whole tournament here in Irapuato. But my life had other plans.

The night before my match I felt fine. Everything was just like normal. I ate what the other players ate. I made my phone calls and then went off to bed ready for my match in the morning. Next thing I know I'm woken up around 3am to major stomach pains. I rolled around and tried to get comfortable. I didn't think much of it so I tried to sleep through it.

I couldn't really do that because my stomach was very unhappy. As the night progressed I threw up 6 times. Each time I was finished I thought I was done for the night. It's that feeling of relief. But each time I thought that about 15-20 minutes later I wake up and have to run to the bathroom again. Finally around 6am I finish my last bathroom run and fall asleep until 8:30. I'm supposed to eat breakfast and get ready to warm up at 10. This isn't looking good.

All I could summon down in the morning was a little bit of water and gatorade. I get to the courts and do some minor stretches and then I'm on the court trying to warm up my friend. I actually don't feel to bad but by then end I could barely serve. Afterwards, I went to find a lounge chair by the pool to try and rest before my match. I couldn't get comfortable because the pain so bad and I kept getting the shivers.

I went to see the doctor/trainer they have on staff here at the tournament. She doesn't speak much English but I could communicate that my stomach was hurting and I threw up last night. She gave me some medicine and I took what was similar to EmergenC.

I laid down on the grass near my court so I could hear the score. I wanted to move as little as possible so I didn't have to get up every 30 minutes to check on how my court was progressing. There was no improvement in the pain or the wooziness that I felt while running around. I knew it was going to be difficult to play but I wanted to see if I could muster enough energy to get through it.

Not to be overly cocky, but I could have won handily if I was anywhere near feeling decent. After each point we played I had to bend over and try not to fall over. Everything was hurting. At 3-2 I stopped. I  had nothing in me.

Once I had the doctor fill out my medical form, I went back home and slept. I woke up around 5 and ate some more toast, started feeling crummy and ended up getting a 100 degree fever. I slept again until about 10pm. Woke up and ate some crackers and then went to bed until 10:30am. Tired much! :)

I feel a whole lot better today but still weak. I really wish this didn't happen. I knew I could have done well in this tournament. I know it's a disappointment but sometimes you just get sick and you can't do anything about it. I'm going to try and play doubles. Hopefully my partner and I have a Wednesday start but there is a chance we play tomorrow.

Hopefully I keep feeling better and better!

Friday, March 4, 2011

Mexico bound

And here I am in Mexico...again!

I wasn't looking forward to this trip. I know I do well here and have won 3 tournaments in this country, but I'm never excited to come here. I'm not to fond of the food. They have more cheese and more grease here than anywhere else I've been. The cities aren't amazing to look at. It's usually hot and dry wherever I go so it's another element to deal with. I don't mind a language barrier but just another element to deal with and sometimes makes things stressful.

I took a flight yesterday to get here. I took off from LAX at 7:30am and then had a layover in Dallas for 5 hours. I met some fellow players there and we took off around 6pm to Leon airport getting us in around 8pm. The entire trip my friends and I were discussing what was going to happen once we landed in Mexico. The three of us had been emailing the housing coordinator several questions, but none of us ever got a straight answer. Personally, I didn't know who my family was, how far they were from the site, how I would get a hold of them, where I was even staying the night. The answer in the emails was "Don't worry about it. It's taken care of." For me I wanted a little more information. I figured I would just stay in the hotel for the first night and then go to the club the next day and try and get a hold of the housing coordinator.

Apparently we had a nice surprise waiting for us. The holiday day inn shuttle we were taking made a sign with all of our names on it, which made it easy to spot them. There was 5 girls in all getting into this mini van. We were pretty squished with all of our luggage cramped in the back and on top of us. As we were driving one girl asked if they would be able to drop her off at her housing. (She knew the family perviously from the tournament last year.) Ends up they had all the addresses for each player and took us to each house! What a nice surprise! I guess everything was taken care of and I shouldn't worry about anything ;)

But of course flying into a different country I wanted a little more info than I had! Good thing it worked out!

The family is wonderful. They have two kids, a boy and a girl. The house is open..meaning they don't have any doors to the rooms. The layout of the house is pretty cool but hard to sleep if people are up late or up early because you can hear everything. The most amazing part of the house is the animals! :) They have two labs. One black and one yellow. And two puppies!! A black and yellow as well.

I wish I brought my camera cord so I could upload pictures of them but I forgot it! I'll have to post some when I get back home. They are still drinking from the mom's belly so you can imagine how small they are! Their eyes are open and they can walk around but still small enough to be the cutest little things!

Practiced this morning with my doubles partner Nicole. I had a hard time getting a rhythm with the altitude but I know I'll get used to it. I always do. We have another practice this afternoon.

I'll try and remember to write about the wonderful things that happen in Mexico, by wonderful I mean annoying :p

M

Friday, February 18, 2011

Difficult times

I never updated what happened after doubles. My partner Nicole and I ended up losing in the semi's. We definitely didn't play our best but it was a close match. We lost 3-6, 6-4, 10-6. The team picked their game up a bit in the second set. The 10 point tiebreakers are always hard. Things can go so many different ways. A few mistakes and you can find yourself very down. If we played out a set and made a few mistakes that could mean we were only down a game or two. But in this case we have to play the tiebreaker to decide the match and we came up short. It still was a good tournament for me. I made a run through the qualifying and made it through one round of the main draw. I was proud of the way I was playing. Even after the singles loss I wasn't to upset. Normally no one should come near me for a little while after my matches. I'm not the nicest person after I lose ;)   This time I knew the mistakes I made and I knew in the end I could win. Those propel me further into believing I can make it and do better and better as the year goes on.

Onto Surprise, Arizona....

After such a great week with a wonderful housing family it might have been inevitable to have a bad housing experiences. Sure enough I had one this tournament. My friend and old teammate Nina and I drove out with another player Elizabeth out to Surprise. Only about 4 hours from where we were in Rancho Mirage. Nina and I made arrangements to stay with a couple near the tournament. Long story short the couple ended up being a man in his 70's and his wife about 20 years younger from Brazil who spoke some english with a strong accent. To make it worse, there were two other people staying with us. So in all there were 4 people from the tournament staying in just one house. Normal circumstances there is only one or two players in a house.

Nina and I were almost on top of each other in the tiny room with one bed they had us sharing. There was no space to put our luggage or walk around and to even breath. We decided to stay there for one night and stick it out. They weren't going to cook meals for us so we went out to eat dinner and then onto Wal-Mart and bought some groceries for the week.

We woke up the next morning both hating life because we didn't sleep well at all. Nina had a match that morning and had to play off of about 4 hours of sleep. I fortunately didn't have to play until Wednesday because I got a wild card into the main draw. I knew I wasn't going to sleep well at this house and after our experience that night we both decided to move to my mom's friends house who lives in Phoenix. It would be about a 30 minute drive to and from the courts, but we both didn't care at this point. We need rest and some sanity.

Nina ended up losing so it even made more sense to move to the house in Phoenix because it was closer to the airport to take Nina the next day and I at least new who I was staying with for the week. I've stayed with her (Norma) before and knew what her house was like and what to expect. You may think I would have had more space now that Nina was gone in the original house which could be true but the other two people staying were a couple and kept to themselves. I would have felt very isolated and lonely. I decided to go with what I knew would make me feel ready for the tournament.

I practiced the next few days before my doubles and singles match. I wasn't feeling my best. Overall, I was feeling tired mentally and physically. I thought the couple days off from the qualifying rounds would help but it felt like it was just prolonging the feelings of tiredness.

I was pretty upset after the doubles match. I rarely blame my partner for a loss, but this time there is no other reason. She was on a different planet that day. She made so many mistakes and mentally was down on herself. I tried and tried to get her to move on and keep playing but in the end we came up short. We should have beat the team. We had a good draw. If we would have won, the next round was a team we had beaten the week before. And I'm not saying she played bad because we lost. She kept telling me and apologizing the whole match and even the next day! She's a great player and one I want to play with again. I just hope she can keep herself from going so up and down.

Singles was tough. I thought I played pretty poorly but the scores show a very tight match. I lost the first set in a tiebreaker, won the second, and then lost the third with just one break of serve to lose 6-3. My coach helped put it into perspective for me. This year I haven't lost to anyone I shouldn't lose to. Not all those matches have been easy or pretty, but I've overcome and came out victorious. And all the players who have been ranked ahead of me, I've either been up in both sets or have gone to three sets with them. I'm competing with top players and winning sets off them. I didn't do this last year. I was up and down winning and losing to people I shouldn't lose to.

When he said this, I gained some perspective and recognized I have improved. There are a few things I need to tweak to beat players ahead of me but it's nice to see I'm almost there. I'm not far off. I need to keep playing with my strengths, keep believing, and keep looking at the positives.

The next few weeks I'm at home resting, recovering, rehabbing, and preparing for my next few tournaments. I haven't decided where I am going yet. The options are California for a big opportunity tournament but LOTS of matches to achieve the opportunity, go to Mexico, or go to Mexico and Bahamas.

There is a lot to think about and I have a week to think about it until the deadline comes. I would appreciate prayers.

Catch ya later,
Macall

Sunday, February 13, 2011

housing adventures

I haven't posted much about where I've been staying. To tell you a little about it...I have the best housing ever! I stayed with the family last year and they are so great. They have 3 girls and all of them play tennis. It's nice they know about tennis. Sometimes it's difficult when I stay with a family and they don't know what to do with you or what to cook, etc.
They have a huge house, a pool, and a jacuzzi in the backyard. Two great dogs and a big tv. What more could you ask for! Ha ha.
Here's some pictures of the dogs and the house.
One dog is named Ben. He's seriously like a big bear. And the other is named Cassie. She loves sleeping on my bed :)



Thursday, February 10, 2011

Frustrating and Encouraging

Today was frustrating.
I finally played like I knew how to play. I felt the ball and swung through the shot.
But...I lost. It was one of those matches I should have won. In the end I just made more errors than she did. She was ranked about 250 in the world. She was ranked as high as 128 at the end of '09.

I know with all of myself I could have won. It's encouraging to know I believe I can win. I know I can beat girls that are at least 250 in the world. I've improved so much from last year. My mental game has gotten a lot stronger, my defense has improved, and the way I see the court and what's going on has massively improved. I'm able to analyze what I'm doing and what my opponent is doing on the court instead of looking back after the match and knowing what to do.

On the other hand, my partner and I won our doubles match today. That puts us in the semi's. My partner's name is Nicole Rottman. Her and I played together in Mexico and won the tournament there. This is only our second time playing together. So that means we haven't lost a match together! Hopefully I didn't just jinks us :)

We played really well today. Another encouraging thing...my doubles has improved.
Hooray for improvement!

So far, the start of the year has been tough but a great start nonetheless. I didn't know what to expect since I didn't get to practice much over the break. I had to take time off to get a cordisone shot, take time off from a pec strain, take time off from my shoulder hurting. There was a lot of resting involved during the break. Since I wasn't up to where I wanted to be going into the year, I didn't really know what to expect going into my first few tournaments. But I'm happy where I'm at. I always want to improve and wish I could have won. But it's a good start to the year.

Here's hoping for more improvement the rest of the year!

Doubles tomorrow!!

Tuesday, February 8, 2011

I like California

It's nice to be in California. These first two tournaments are great to play because they are driving distance from my house. Having the ability and freedom to drive and have go home in between tournaments has been amazing. Some of my support/cheering squad has been able to come out to watch me play a match or two. Hooray for being close to home. I don't get this very often.

Now I'm in Rancho Mirage playing another 25K. I just finished the last round of qualifying. I haven't been playing my best tennis but it's been good enough to qualify again and make it into the main draw. My body has been feeling much better than last tournament. I got a new protein powder to drink before and after matches. It has been doing wonders for me. I think it's part magic! Each day I feel rested and refreshed from the previous day. Last week I could barely stand and run around when I got into the main draw. Drinking the protein shake has really helped me recover. Now, this won't make me play any better but I'm glad it's making me feel good!

Instead of focusing on the negatives like I mostly do, let's focus on some of the positives. I've been feeling refreshed each morning. That's a positive. I've been doing very well mentally.  Another positive. I absolutely know if I played these matches last year, I would have lost them. I've learned so much from last year and past experiences I went through. I'm mentally stronger and can push myself to a new place that I couldn't get to before. I'm focusing and forgetting about bad points, bad line calls, pressure situations, etc. I'm very proud of myself :)

I have a few aches and pains but nothing serious. My quads have been really tight. A little to tight to which I almost feel I'm about to cramp up. There are been a few points I play and if I have to push off real fast or bend really low and push out of the stance I can feel my quad scream a little at me. I've gone to the trainer and she has done a great job at rubbing them out. P.S. Love this trainer at this tournament. She actually goes deep when she massages you!

My shoulder has been doing very well this week. Last week it started to hurt quite a bit at the end. This week I haven't had to many problems with it. I'm still icing after every match, getting it worked on every day. There hasn't been any sharp pain when I serve which is fantastic. Only some tightness occurring after the match is finished and I've cooled down.

Stretch Stretch Stretch! Right everyone? ;)

My friend Nina and I have been staying at the same housing together. It's so great to stay with a friend at housing. You not only have a person you get a long with but it's also a friend. It makes being on the road a lot less lonely. The family is also wonderful and have two dogs to keep us company. One is pretty much the size of a bear and then other dog a lab. So great!


I'm off to bed. Time to get ready for my matches tomorrow.

Wednesday, February 2, 2011

First tournament of the year

I'm currently in Rancho Santa Fe playing my first tournament of the year. I'm haven't had internet for the first few days I've been here so I haven't been able to update on my first couple of rounds.

I qualified which means I won three rounds to get into the main draw. I didn't have to much trouble with my first two matches. I played two young girls, the first a young American girl and the second a young Russian. My third match was tougher. She was from Turkey and ranked ahead of me. She had a nice one handed backhand and used a lot of slice and drop shots. I now know what it's like to play against an effective slice and drop shots. It'll motivate me to work on my own! After more than 3 hours, I won in 3 sets 7-5, 5-7, 6-3.

I don't know what it's like for every other player, but after 3 matches I'm mentally and physically tired. I was able to get a massage the night before my main draw match. I felt so much better going to bed that night. As I woke up and began my day, I knew it would still be tough to get through the match. My legs were still drained and moving slower than they had been the previous days. I don't know if I'm missing something that the other players are doing but I was competing around 50%. My tank kept feeling lower and lower.

What do other players do to compete at a high level day in and day out? I keep feeling less and less at my best as the tournament rolls on. So when it really count I fail. I qualify and get into the main draw where the points are, the good competition is, the do or die of it is right there. That's where I'm going to get my break. If I could just win a round or two in the main draw I would be moving right along. But I'm so tired by the time I reach that part that I can't seem to get past it.

I know it's about pushing yourself to a new level. I've really been working hard at mental toughness along with physical fitness. I worked out very hard these past two months. In my head I think I'm at a good level physically. Of course there is always room to improve, but I don't feel like I should be feeling this empty after three matches.

The main draw match was against an opponent I played last year. I knew what to expect. I knew she was beatable. But from the beginning I struggled physically. I knew it would come down to how well I could mentally stick this one out. I had my up's and down's. I would focus and fight hard for a string of points and then I would drop and make some sloppy errors. Being so drained makes it hard to mentally focus for a long period of time especially when you're also physically exerting yourself.

In my mind, there are no excuses unless you're injured. I have no excuses today. I know what I need to work on. The main issue is mental toughness. The next is to work on nutrition. I need to see if I can feel any better by getting on a "diet" of foods and nutrients that will help me recover and perform at my best.

I was pretty defeated after my singles match today. I know it's my first tournament of the year. I know I have a lot more tennis left in me. It's just hard when I know I can win and I don't. I'm not a happy camper when I lose.  On a positive note, my partner and I won our doubles match today. We beat a very talented Japanese team. I looked at their past record and one of the opponents was ranked in the top 75 in doubles a few years back. They really had some talent. It was nice to get a win after a loss in singles earlier in the day.

On to tomorrow....

Saturday, January 15, 2011

Who do I believe?

Do I believe God is big enough?

I've been worrying about two major things lately.

            Will I be financially taken care of this year?
            Will I be physically healthy to compete?

Both things have come crashing down on me while the first tournament comes closer and closer. I don't have much money to travel with. I didn't have a lot of money to travel with last year. I started saving money in college from my scholarships checks and was able to get a nice chunk of change to start my career. After 5 years of school, I used all the money I saved to start my professional tennis career and go out and conquer to tour. There has been times when I have called upon my wonderful parents and my uncle who has been so generous to help out when I most needed it. Along with my family, God has clearly provided for me when I least expected it.

I was gearing up for the last leg of my season. I think it was around September or October. I was at home training for a week or two preparing for the next tournaments. I planned on playing up until the middle of November. I remember having enough money to get to one tournament, maybe two. I've been in this situation before. I remember knowing how many more tournaments I could play, not knowing how I'll afford everything that it takes to get to each tournament, not knowing what will happen.

I was driving back home from a workout when I received a phone call from my mom. She told me she was just at a fundraiser for hospice care. She happened to talk with someone she was acquainted with before. She shared a bit about what I was doing and where I was at in my career. He was so generous that he said he wanted to help out financially. I contacted him the next day and he sent me a check in the mail. It was enough to let me travel to the rest of the tournaments!

I couldn't believe it. It was such a great relief and a nice surprise.

Now I'm here again. I start my year in two weeks with the first tournament in California. I saved some money by teaching younger girls in the area, but not enough to get me by for the first few months. Will I have faith? Will I believe God is big enough to care for me?

I've also been caring for a shoulder injury that has kept me off the courts here and there over this break. I fear I won't be able to even start at the end of this month. I know the important thing is to do what I can. I'm taking care of all the small things and letting the unknowns be left alone. I'm going to a doctor to work on my shoulder three times a week. I'm icing and stretching. I'm working out and doing what I can in the gym and off the court. It's easy to worry and to wonder what will happen in the next few weeks, few days, tomorrow. I've been working hard on not letting those thoughts take over my mind and my outlook on the future. I can't assume what will happen.

Once I do start to get back out on the court I hope I can start serving like this.
(The video may be hard to view. If you can't see where the ball is just imagine an out wide serve that's untouchable!)

Macall's Fact of the Day:
When learning something new take it slow and don't over do it. Your muscles may not be used to moving in that particular motion. Be patient with yourself and know that it takes time to learn something to make it automatic in your game. If you have to continue to think about it, it's not quite there yet. 


I do believe God is big enough. I believe I will be taken care of. I'll keep you updated on how the shoulder is feeling and what's happening. To end on a positive note, I was able to get housing for the first three tournaments of the year! 

Now I'm off to enjoy this wonderful So Cal weather! 


Tuesday, January 11, 2011

Mental War

One of the areas I wanted to work on during my time off from tournaments is my mental game. I talk with many players on the tour and not much is mentioned about this aspect of the game. When we talk about tennis it’s about what we’re working on stroke wise. I changed my serve, I’m learning a slice backhand, I want to improve my volleys. Comments like these are more common than talking about mental stuff. It would be great to get a group going, maybe a website, where players can share their own personal experiences and insights on what has helped them improve, encourage, motivate, overcome, surpass, difficult moments in their career, on the tour, in matches, etc.

It may be a shock to some of you but people close to me know me as a negative Nancy. I lean towards a negative outlook rather than a positive one. I sure wish I could say I look at the glass half full all the time but sadly it doesn’t always happen. Even with this “attribute” of mine, I think I can proudly and confidently state I’m very motivated and determined (sometimes taking it as far as being stubborn). It’s almost like a balancing act with these two. One wants to bring me down and the other lifts me up. My beautiful and wonderful friend Hannah tells me all the time to stop being Negative Nancy and start being Confident Connie! J

Nancy and Connie fight between each other all the time. Nancy wants to look at things negatively. She thinks it’s safer. You won’t get hurt and you’ll be prepared because you’ll know what you’re up against. You’ll know what to improve and overcome. Connie swoops in and wants to prove that thinking wrong. Connie wants to prove others wrong as well and show them that I can do it and make it.

I hope I don’t sound like a schizophrenic maniac here.  I thought I was being creative.

Nancy is a big, monstrous wall I put up in front of me that is unnecessary. I keep building imaginative boulders just to feel like I’m worth anything and I’ve accomplished something. This is not ideal. To really move forward and accomplish something requires mounds of grace and heaps of confidence. Two things I give myself only when I’m dying on the side of the road with a severed arm and a puncture wound on my leg.

With all this being said, I hope the time spent here at home getting ready for the upcoming season will have something to show for. I believe I can improve my ranking and become a top competitor in tennis.

Because it’s 1-11-11 let’s make a wish and proclaim I CAN DO IT!