August 8, 2020

 


I sent my letter of remorse and apology to ESPN first thing in the morning.  How I hate to send an email like that.  I searched my “sent” mail to see if I had informed them of my unavailability and I could not find one.  This mistake is on me.  I hope they are understanding and won’t black ball me from that great event.  I am not a big tennis fan but working in Billie Jean King Tennis Center is quite an experience.  It has such an international flavor as it is as much fun to watch the spectators as it is the players.  People from all over the world come to New York to see their favorite players although I think this year there may not be fans present.  But, this is the new normal.  Just kidding.  This is abnormal.

 

I don’t have to go to work today so it’s a good opportunity to catch up with pub business, do a few extra Duolingo Spanish lessons, watch a little PGA Championship Golf, and sit by the pool and catch up with some reading.  Around 3:00 pm I made myself a nice tall rum and coke and grabbed a recliner by the pool then proceeded to dive into Bolton’s book.  I’m about one third through it and it is not an easy read.  Sometimes I have to re-read a paragraph or two insuring I’m not missing something.  There are lots of names and places and departments to keep track of.  It is very easy to have topics slip through the cracks.

 

While sweating in the sun, let me rephrase that, dripping in the sun, the familiar sound of wine bottles popping open was present.  That could only mean the referees were nearby.  They love their white wine and I am sure it was refreshing to sip on a glass or two while loitering in the pool. If you have a plastic glass in your hand, providing you are six feet from one another no mask is required.  All of us have discovered the beauty of carrying a beverage when necessary.  Not only does it help you stay hydrated it allows that damn cloth filter to be off our faces for a while. 

 

I could only endure about an hour by the pool.  Even in the shade I was perspiring heavily.  Diving in the pool offered little relief as I didn’t want to stand in the water with the sun beating down on me.  I didn’t have any sunscreen on and I get enough sun living in Arizona anyway.  I strolled back to my room and did a few more Spanish lessons while glancing at the PGA before heading over for dinner.

 

Observing my fellow greenies I noticed our clothing options have gone full circle and we are wearing what we brought for this restart over and over.  I know that I brought enough options to last me two weeks before I had to start all over.  I think that is what everyone else thought because I have been starting to see outfits that have been worn at least three times.  This isn’t a bad thing by any means.  It just means that I have clearly lost my mind and starting to notice things that I would never had noticed prior to coming here.  I am actually aware of the times someone has worn a tee shirt or a pair of shorts?  Has the monotony gotten this bad?  Okay, I am sounding a bit ungrateful here and that is not what it intended.  I guess I am trying to say that my mind is searching for different stimulation other than regular day to day occurrences.  I just didn’t think it would be clothing options that would grab its attention.

 

Later that night after round three of the PGA was complete a group of us met by the pool to play dominoes.  I had never played the game before and was anxious to learn.  It was a warm stagnant evening as a terrific thunderstorm continued to linger filling the air with rumbles and continuous lightning flashes but absolutely no wind nor any rain.  I watched the game first not prepared to jump right in and it seemed simple enough.

 

When the opportunity came to play, I realized the game wasn’t as simple as I originally thought.  It can be a pretty cognitive game once immersed, keeping track of what tiles remain in the hands of others, all the while trying to form a strategy of your own.  The game was very addicting as we stayed and played until about 1:30 am.  I never won but hey, I was a domino virgin until tonight.

 

While we played the bones another group of green people were at the other end of the pool playing a game of drunk Uno.  That’s another game I have never participated in.  I do like playing Uno and their version appeared to be much different than the game I am used to playing.  Players were taking laps around the pool, not in the pool, around the pool.  I saw one guy doing jumping jacks then drinking a shot of something.  Much more laughter was coming from their end of the pool than ours but I have a feeling that in the morning they will be moaning a lot more than us domino players.

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