Here's a photo of participants at the May 14 USPTA's Tennis Across America National Tennis Day held at Columbia Lakes Country Club. Man, look at my stomach...! I'm not good enough with photo-shop yet to thin myself down. ( I have lost three pounds this past week, though...) Notice too how tall Connor is getting.... He's going to be a big boy! 
After the Tennis Event we went to the club swimming pool for a good old fashioned crawfish boil...! Monica and Connor declined to partake of the mud bug feast, but Joe, Dolfina, and myself made up for their lack of participation. Notice my crawfish bib...? I actually managed to eat the whole meal without getting my white shirt dirty. That's a record fo me!
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I've got about one minute to make a quick post. My day has gone well. -All according to schedule. And I have 3 more hours of lessons today then I get to go home...! Yea!
Tomorrow is my tennis social at Columbia Lakes. The turn out isn't what I'd expected but that's ok... I can do another one soon and take more time to get the word out...!
It will still be a good and fun event and I might be surprised and have a greater turnout than has pre-registered...
At this point I'm not going to worry about it. I'm just looking forward to going home and getting to bed before 10 PM...!
I may not post again until Sunday... I think I'll take tomorrow off from blogging...
Bye for now...
Coach Sam
Here's today's Pet Photo. Hannah is playing with one of her doggy toys. She's a very happy, spoiled puppy. But actually her favorite toys are the Kitty toys. And what's funny is the kittys never really played with them very much but when Hannah uses them they get extremely jealous and bent out of shape. She especially likes a battery powered mouse. I'll try to get some photos of her working the mouse over in the next few days.
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Today was another full day. But I did get much accomplished. And it was a good lessons day, too. Tomorrow is an insane schedule, but Saturday won't be too bad, and Sunday is going to be great...!
I'm planning on relaxing Sunday. We'll go to church in the morning and then some friends gave us Houston Symphony tickets for the afternoon. I'm looking forward to that very much...!
It's late now and I have to get up early so I'd better close here. Thanks for reading my journal. I'll try to catch up on it a little more this weekend.
Bye for now... Coach Sam
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Yesterday I got an enormous amount of work done, but I still have much to get done today, too. Before I went to bed last night I was thinking of canceling my lessons this afternoon but I've decided that I'll try to squeeze everything in. I only have this week and next week for my home school classes any way and I hate to cancel the next to last class. I should be able to get everything done today and be close to caught up. We'll see. But I need to get on top of things right away.
I'll have to catch up with this blog tonight or tomorrow morning.
I'm fighting upset stomach today... I hope I'm not coming down with a bug or something. It's probably just stress... Oh well, I always say that in the name of recreation, we all make our sacrifices...!
By the way, Today would have been my father's birthday...!
Talk to you later...
Coach Sam
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Today I'm taking a day off from work at Columbia Lakes. I've got way too many other projects that I'm behind on right now and I have to get them completed today...!
I'm completing the Kingwood tournament today. I have a ton of HPTA work to do. I have some major business filing and reporting to do. I need to send correspondence for my Tennis Free For All coming up this Saturday. I'm about to dive right in to these projects now and I'm sure I'll still be cranking it out tonight until 10 PM.
But that's my cut off time. No matter what happens I want to continue to get my rest. I can not afford not to rest any more. I've burned the midnight oil too much the last few years. And I think the way I feel right now, and my current physical condition is definitely a product of years of not getting enough rest.
I know that I can't expect immediate results. It took me years to get in this condition and to reverse those effects will not be an over night process. But I am happy to report that I've slept at least 6 hours the past few days and I've stayed on a good diet and eating regimen all day yesterday. I weighed in this morning at 226.5 lbs. That's a 2 pound drop from yesterday...!
My lesson with Connor yesterday went ok but it could have been better. He took the rest of the day off from tennis. Today will probably be an off day for him, too. Monica is doing well. We had some quality family time last night just sitting on the couch visiting. I'm not sure what all's on her schedule today....
I'm getting a hair cut today, for sure...! Connor probably will, too...!
Well, I need to dive in to my morning... I'll try to report back again later. I know I wrote that yesterday and I never logged back in, but I'll try to take a break in between projects an will welcome some blog time.
Bye for now.
Coach Sam
More Sleeping Kitties....! Why are these guys so tired all the time...? Perhaps it's just that the bed is soooo comfortable...!
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Wow... I'm going into the summer about as heavy as I've ever been...! I had hoped to be under 200 pounds by the time June rolled around but it just didn't happen. But I wouldn't say it's out of control. I've actually been holding steady at this mark for nearly two and a half months now.
But there are other areas of my life that need improvement as well. Time management issues, for one. So being more disciplined in my eating is a top priority right now. Just more discipline in life in general is in order. I've been praying fervently about it. Monica and I have been discussing my health and my life style and the positive changes I need to make.
I know that this time I'm really going to see results. With God's help, and Monica's, too I can't go wrong....!
First of all, I slept well last night, getting over 6 hours of sleep. I listened to Dr Stanley this morning and I'm about to head out and play tennis with Connor. We're trying to get in a couple of private lessons each week early in the mornings. We're actually ahead of schedule this morning. That's something I'm not used to writing...!
Well, I'll be back a little later this morning after Connor and I are through hitting...
More later...
Bye for now... SC
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Sigh... I slept in a little too late this morning.... I was hoping it would be rainy and perhaps I could go into work later, but no such luck.
Next, I checked my email and there's several problems with the Gran Prix tournament this weekend and I'll need to work on the draws some more. Sigh...
And I've got plenty of other stuff I wanted to work on today besides that... Oh well. I'll adjust and move on. But sorry, this situation will cut my blogging short this morning...
Maybe I'll log back on this afternoon... We'll see.
Bye for now...
Coach Sam
Here's a Mom who does it all...! She cooks, cleans, coaches... And she's even good with a jig saw...! This photo of Monica was taken in the spring while she was working on a home project. It's very cool to have a wife who likes to use power tools...! Happy Mother's Day, Monica...!
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My Mom's been gone for nearly five years now. I loved her very much. I miss her now. She drove me crazy at times, too. But I guess that happens in every family occasionally. I remember back to my school age years and growing up what a good mom she was to my brothers and sister and I.
I know that Mom loved us all deeply, as a mom should. Much of her life was spent in an unhappy marriage and dealing with the health issues associated with lupus, but she did the best she could. She did remakably well, actually.
I have fond memories of playing tennis with Mom. That was something we could enjoy together for awhile before her health problems and vision trouble started to mount. Mom was particularly proud of my tennis and musical accomplishments. A mother's love and pride in her children is definitely something to be cherished.
My mom always worried about me. She hated that I traveled so much, especially to far away countries. She wanted me to stay right here in Texas. In fact, if I would have never moved out of Bay City where I grew up that would have been fine with her...
But I had to get out of the small town where I grew up. And although I did travel a lot in my younger days, I did finally settle in Houston, about 90 minutes from Mom and home, and I seldom stayed out of touch with her for very long at a time.
I loved my Mom very much. I still think about her often. There's a great photo of she and I on my desk. If she were here today I would be over at the house doing something for her, making bar b cue or taking her out to the Red Lobster in Lake Jackson... ( her favorite restaurant for special occasions)
I'd definitely give her a big hug and kiss and tell her how much I loved her...!
She did the best she could in difficult circumstances and I'll always carry her memory in my heart...!
My advice to everyone reading this blog today is to love Your mom. Honor her. Don't let conflict dwell for too long. And don't get out of touch with her. My Mom left this world suddenly and unexpectedly and I didn't have a chance to say good bye properly and in fact, we weren't even speaking at the time of her passing because I was upset with her about something. We hadn't really spoken for two months prior to her passing. I wish I could take back that time and do things differently but I can't.
The one thing I can do is share stories of my mom with you occasionally and I will.
I hope this honors my mom's memory today. Thanks for reading my blog. Until next time...
Bye for now.
Coach Sam
Here's a cute photo of Hobbes and Gabriel Sleeping. They are such sweet Kitties...! Perhaps they are consoling each other after a long day of avoiding Hannah's barking and her trying to play with them...!
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I'm up early... The Kingwood Country Club is having computer problems so they can't download the tournament that I just prepared for them. Now I've got to print all the draws and fax them over this morning before I leave for work.... It's 6 AM now, but I'm pretty much on schedule for my day. I've got lessons at Columbia Lakes today from 9 AM to 2 PM, then I'm playing a practice match at 2 PM...
That's right... Coach Sam is coming out of retirement...! I'm going to start with playing at least two sets of singles a week and work my way up from there. Hopefully I'll have my game and stamina up enough by the end of the summer to play competitively this Fall... And a nice by-product of practice will be some weight loss...!
We'll see. My body hasn't been very sore in a while. My feet are feeling good and my shoulder is fine... Yes, I'm ready to move on to the next injury...!
Monica and Connor are coming to the club today. I suppose we'll bring Hannah, too...! It will be an all day deal, today.
That's about it. I've got plenty of stuff to keep me busy tomorrow too... But that's the topic of another journal entry.
Bye for now... Hope you have an awesome day!
Coach Sam
Connor was playing with Gabriel under the bed when Hannah started her attack...! She goes for the hair and can be particularly difficult to shake off at times...! That's ok I say. Because Connor needs a hair cut, anyway...!
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Connor is playing under the bed with Gabriel. (I remember when I was so thin that I could hide under a bed. Those days are long gone...)
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I had done a good job getting my beauty sleep most of the week but I fell off the wagon last night staying up until after midnight working on the Kingwood tournament. Then, I had puppy duty again last night... But I'm not too tired, and today won't be such a hard and difficult day for me, any way.
I'm on the court this morning from 8 to Noon, Then I have three more lessons this afternoon starting at 3:30 PM. I have a gap in between where I'll hang out at Diedrich's and catch up on blogging and email correspondence.
With that in mind, I'll catch you later...
Thanks for reading my journal. I hope you have an awesome day!
Bye for now. Coach Sam
If You look closely you'll notice that Peepers is inside the case of water undermeath the shrink wrap and just her head is peeking up from the small opening in the wrap. She surprised Hannah with this little tactic yesterday...!
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Today is Cinco de Mayo. The fifth of May. I think Mexico is celebrating it's independence from Spain, or something like that. All I know is that today is a big party day at Mexican restaurants...!
I would normally have a margarita or two on a day like this, but since Monica is pregnant and can't have any alcohol I've tried to abstain myself as much as possible. So, no Margarita's this May 5th...!
I slept pretty much all night, but I had puppy duty so I set my alarm for every two hours to let Hannah out. She did fine all night...!
I had to rescue Peepers from off the roof at about 2 AM. And this is about the third time in three days that Peepers has stranded herself on the roof. I'll try to take a photo of her next time she's up there... She's such a funny Cat. Yesterday Monica took a photo of her inside a case of water bottles. She had crawled into a little opening we made and was completely inside the container underneath the shrink wrap packaging. That is today's featured photo...!
Today, I have to finish up the seeding and draws for the Kingwood Gran Prix. I'm just waiting on the Kingwood pro to call me with a few more entries he collected.
I have lessons in League City today from 2 to 8 PM. This is my tough day. 6 hours in a row is hard on a 39 and 1/2 year old body...! But, over all my feet have been feeling a whole lot better lately. So that's good. I'm even going to try to play a match of singles this Saturday afternoon...!
I want to get in shape to play some tournaments with Connor this fall...! That's about it for now. I need to get to work on my tennis projects...!
Have an awesome day...! Bye for now...!
Coach Sam
Hobbes is tolerating a puppy in his presence. If Hannah gets too close he just wacks her on the nose and she backs off. Hannah shows Hobbes the most respect of all the kitties....!
Hannah (the puppy) tries to play with Peepers(the cat) in our back yard but Peepers is not very interested. Hannah has not been very popular with the other kitties so far, either.
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Sigh... I'm having trouble with a new version of TDM-= That's Tournament Data Manager and will have to download a previous version of the software before I can work on the Gran Prix any more...
The problem is that here at Columbia Lakes I have to use a slow dial up connection and this process will set me back behind schedule an hour at least. And then I still don't know for sure if that will fix my problem...
This software is notorious for it's 'bugs'... Oh well. While I'm downloading I'm also painting in the pro shop. And then I come back about every five minutes or so to make sure my browser doesn't freeze up. I'll be the King of multi tasking today...!
That's it for now... I'll come back and update in a little while... 12:48 PM
OK... I'm back and the program is working fine now... That didn't take as long as I thought it would. But now I'm in the middle of a painting project...!
More later.... SC 1:21 PM
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OK... I'm doing better. I got to bed by 11 PM last night and slept until 6 AM... It's crucial that I start to get a little more sleep. I've been going at way to hard a pace for some time now and I can't ever remember being more tired all the time than at any other time in my life, including my 6 months in Mexico back in my early 20's...!
But I feel good today after all that sleep. I wasn't even sleepy driving in to Columbia Lakes this morning. That's a step in the right direction. I just need to prioritize my day and put laying down in bed and going to sleep by 10:30 PM my top priority.
Today I have a lesson at 9 AM, then a staff meeting at 10:30 AM, then I have a little office time this afternoon before I go back on the court today from 4 to 8:30 PM. I'll need every bit of this afternoon's office time to get caught up on emails and phone calls.
That's about it for now. I may post again this afternoon, but for sure I'll be back tomorrow morning...!
Thanks and bye for now...
Coach Sam
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I had Puppy Duty last night. Connor and I are taking turns each night sleeping in the living room with Hannah while we're trying to house break her. I am pleased to report that Hannah had a very good night last night. I didn't get to bed until mid night and I did have to wake up several times for Hannah so I slept in this morning until 7 AM. I'm trying to listen to my body a little more. Yesterday morning I was so sleepy driving to to west Columbia that I had to pull over to the side of the road and get out and walk around about 5 times in order to fight my drowsiness.
I'm trying really hard to listen to my body more these days. Especially in the area of rest and nutrition... I'm getting older physically and just can't do the things I used to do when I was in my 20's... I'll be 40 years old this October. 40...! I can't believe it...! But it's really been a good 40 years. Very full of many adventures and interesting experiences. And I've pretty much been able to play tennis for 3/4 of my time on the earth...! That's pretty cool...
Oops... I just discovered one of Hannah's accidents... Sigh... I'm glad Monica didn't find it with her foot... Whew... That's a blessing! But Hannah's perfect record is broken.
So, today I go on the court at 2 PM and teach straight through until 8 PM. Connor is coming with me today. This morning I'm going to mow the yard, straighten the garage a little and straighten the house a little before I head out for work this afternoon. In between I'll be taking little breaks answering email messages and keeping up with phone correspondence.
It will be a full day, but I'm staying on top of everything...!
That's it for now... Perhaps I'll blog again this evening, but most likely it will be tomorrow morning. Thanks for reading my blog.
Bye for now... Coach Sam
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We really enjoyed our visit to Houston's Metropolitan Baptist church yesterday. This could be our church home for the next year. We're praying about it and plan to visit again next week. It looks like it will meet all our church needs and is only about 15-20 minutes from the house...! I'll write more about the Met later.
I've got a full day ahead of me and I want to get on the road early this morning. It's 5:30 AM now and I want to get on the road by 6 AM so I can listen to Dr Charles Stanley's morning broad cast. I also want to lay on the couch for about 10 to 15 minutes before I head out, too.
I'll post a little more from Columbia Lakes this morning. Uh Oh.. I just remembered I was going to go to the store to get Monica some decaf coffee before I left today so I'd better close here... More later...
Bye for now...
Coach Sam
Monica's Belly is getting bigger....! I wish mine were getting smaller but sadly, I'm holding steady at 228 lbs...! At the request of several readers I am no longer publishing my belly photo until I get under 200 lbs.... -Coach Sam
Here's Hannah in her bed playing with a toy. She's got some pretty cool toys. But one of her favorite things to do is attack my hair...! She'll take Coach Sam's pony-tail over a chew toy any day...!
Here's Hannah and Connor playing in the back yard. Hannah is only 8 weeks old right now. Connor is almost 13 years old. I'm not sure how many weeks that translates to...
Here's Hannah lounging in her big pet bed with Connor. I'm not kidding, it's a big bed. I slept on it last night so she wouldn't cry so much...! It's actually pretty comfortable, too!
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Hannah is a great addition to the family... She's a very sweet puppy and loves Connor very much. Hobbes doesn't care for her too much but he'll get over it. Right now we've got her separated from the cats but after she's house broken we'll introduce everybody to each other.
I'm looking forward to playing with her when we get home this evening...!
Connor and I are hanging out at Diedrich's right now and then I go back on the court at 3:30 pm.
This is a nice relaxing afternoon. I'm going to work on some tournament entries this afternoon and a little bit tonight before I go to bed then Monica is going to help me with data entry while I teach lessons tomorrow morning. I'm going to try to start getting more rest...!
Well, that's it for now... I hope you enjoy Hannah's pictures...!
Coach Sam
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It's Friday and I'm doing great. Considering most Fridays I oversleep and rush to get across town in morning traffic in time for my lessons... I've already been awake since 5 AM and have answered some email, written my devotional, and I still have time to blog here...
I haven't had a Friday get off to this good a start in I don't know how long...!
I'll have nearly three hours of data entry time this afternoon so I'll be ahead of schedule for getting the Kingwood tournament ready. That's pretty cool... I might even just go to bed early tonight... It would be great to get a few good night's sleeps under my belt going in to next week.
I've got a lot to blog about but I'll save it for this afternoon. I need to finish getting ready for lessons in Nassau Bay this morning. I have 3 and a half hours of lessons this morning and then 2 and a half hours this afternoon. I'll be done at 6:30 PM... That's not a bad schedule.
Connor's coming with me today so that will be some nice company. Hopefully Monica will email me some puppy photos this morning. Hannah loves playing with a tennis ball. I think she's going to fit into this family just fine...!
Bye for now... I hope you have a great Day. Thanks for reading my journal.
Coach Sam
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Today we are bringing home Connor's puppy from the SPCA. I haven't seen her yet but they tell me she's an Australian Cattle Dog. All we need now is to get some Australian Cattle...!
I'll post some photos of 'Hannah' tonight... Connor's taking the day off from tennis to hang out and bond with Hannah. I'm about to head out the door to go to Clear Lake early today. The deadline for the next junior Gran prix tournament is Friday and I need to post as many entries as I can today so I don't get too far behind. So far, I'm more ahead of schedule than I've been in a while.
My lessons today run from 2 to 8 PM so it's a full day on the court. I've been busy this morning updating websites and returning email messages. I've still got 219 messages in my outlook express inbox, but the AOL inbox is down to 21 messages. So I'm making progress.
Not much else to report today. Oh... Well, it is my 22 month wedding anniversary today...! That's pretty neat, I think...!
Well, I gotta get back to work...
Bye for now...
Coach Sam
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I just finished my prayer journal at 7:30 AM.
I need to leave the house by 8:30 AM to go to the Giammalva Club and pick up T shirts left over from this weekend's tournament.
Then I need to drop those shirts off at home. Next I need to have some keys made for the tennis shop. Then I need to go to Columbia Lakes and set up my display table for Vanessa, who's going to be on hand to pass out flyers during a junior high tennis match this afternoon.
I need to be done with that by Noon so I can get to Clear Lake in time for my 2 PM afternoon lessons there. Then I'm on the court until 8 PM. Pretty much 6 straight hours...!
Then I get to come home and collapse.
Tomorrow won't be so stressful and busy. I just go to Columbia Lakes for the entire day.
In Other news: I think that Monica and Connor are going to the SPCA to pick out a dog today...
Well I'd better close here... I still have almost an hour to work on some other projects.
Bye for now... Coach Sam
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It rained pretty much all day today. Monica, Connor and I drove to Bay City today to take care of some legal business. We consulted our family lawyer on some business matters, and we took steps to have our wills drawn up. Neither my mom or dad had their wills established when they passed away and Monica and I don't want to put our children in a similar situation.
Once all that is done I'll rest a whole lot easier.
After our meeting with the lawyer we went to visit my brother John. We visited with him a few minutes and went to lunch then on to Columbia Lakes. Since it rained all day I got caught up on a lot of phone calls and emails.
But get this, as of this moment I still have 426 unread emails. I'm going to try to cut that number in half tonight. Right this moment Monica and I are watching Jurassic Park: Lost World as I blog.
Well, I've got lots of work to do this evening so I'd better close here... Thanks for reading my journal... Bye for now.
Coach Sam
Hello... My tournament is almost over. I have my last two matches on court now. This is the first time I've ever blogged courtside during a tournament. Isn't technology wonderful...?
Mu tournament at Columbia Lakes went extremely well. The weather has been gorgeous. Everything has really gone as well as can be expected. I should be wrapped up here by 5 PM and I should be back home between 6:30 and 7 PM... (hopefully)
I'll probably blog a little this evening before bed, but I'm mostly just going to enjoy some quality time with my family. And I'm even going to sleep in tomorrow...!
Really, everything has gone so well, it's almost like a dream... Everyone had a fantastic time. And I took many pictures. In fact, I took so many pictures that I plan to start a new blog just for Columbia Lakes Special events and will publish about 40-50 pics with commentary.
I know that sounds a little ambitious, but I think that little personal touch will be something very nice I can do to set my tournaments apart from other tournaments. I tried to get at least one photo of every participant and I'll email them all a link to the tournament site. Everyone likes pictures of themselves. And I'm sure that the link will get forwarded around so it will give my programs a lot of good exposure.
OK... I'm down to my last match now. I guess I'll close here and go watch the remaining games. Bye for now...
Coach Sam
Well, today is Crunch Time. A lot of things have to come together today. I have much to dao to get ready for the Giammalva Tournament and my tournament also. Plus I have a full schedule of lessons this afternoon.
I was going to get up at 4 AM to get started on everything but my body refused so I slept in until nearly 7 AM this morning. That's ok... I still think it will all work out...! But I need to get on my tasks immediately.
Don't be surprised if I don't blog for the next few days... I might not be back until Sunday after all the smoke clears...
Take Care and thanks for reading my journal.
Bye for Now,
Coach Sam
I'm off to Columbia Lakes this morning. I have an 8 AM Lessons and then I'm working in the tennis shop the rest of the day. I start back on the court at 4 PM and go straight through until 8:30 PM. Dependeing on how tired I am I may just spend the night. Judging from how fatigued I feel right now at 5:07 AM I'd say that I'm spending the night, but we'll see how i'm feeling this evening.
I've only got a few more crazy days and then I'll take it easy Sunday evening and sleep in until 9 AM Sunday Morning...! Yea...!
That's it for now... I think I'm going to crawl back in bed for another 20 minutes and then pack up to head to work...
Bye for now... Coach Sam!
Today wasn't a lot of fun... I ended up locking my keys in the car this afternoon and Monica had to come rescue me. Then lessons tonight were kinda difficult. The kids were misbehaving and I had to be grouchy.
Then I came home and somehow got cross ways with Monica. She hasn't spoken to me the rest of the night.
Sigh... The last thing I want to do is offend my wife. She's already gone to sleep and I'm up not really even wanting to go to bed...
Oh well...
I'm sure that things will go better tomorrow. I guess I'll just read a little and then try to fall asleep. I'd like to get up at 4 AM and get a good start on my day.
Bye for now.... -Coach Sam
I have way too much on my plate again as usual... If I can just get to Monday next week I'll finally be caought up and ready to move on to the next crises.
No time to write a lengthy blog this morning. I'll try to catch up here tonight...
Bye for now...
By the way, I published a new tip on my tennis tips blog over the weekend. You can check nit out at http://coachsamstennistips.blogspot.com
Yesterday was a very nice day. Monica started writing in her journal again. And she wrote a very heartfelt, pointed commentary that you don't want to miss.
Go to http://awalkinfaith.blogspot.com to check it out.
We went to see the movie Sahara yesterday afternoon. It was quite good. I'd recommend it...! It was good action, a little humor, no bad language or sex. Have I lost you yet...?
No really, It was quite good. It was a movie from the Indiana Jones' mold. My mother and father in law recommended it to us and now I'm recommending it to You.
Do You realize that by going to the Museum of Fine Arts Friday afternoon and then out to the movies Sunday afternoon that I relaxed and took some leisure time twice in a 72 hour span...? That's History right there. I suppose that I really am turning into a family man...!
Today I have a jam packed day. My Mondays usually always are full. We're all about to head out the door to go to Columbia Lakes in a few minutes. I've got a lesson this morning at 9 AM then the rest of the morning and early afternoon I'm painting the tennis shop. We're going to have Connor's school work faxed to the club this morning so he can work while Monica and I are remodeling the shop.
I've got to work on ordering trophies and T shirts this morning, too. That's about it. That ought to keep me busy. I'd write a little more but I need to start packing up to head out the door. Perhaps I'll write again tonight. More likely it will be tomorrow morning.
Thanks for reading my journal. Until next time... Bye for now!
Coach Sam
We spent the entire day working on the Columbia Lakes Tennis Shop. We completely stripped the walls and patched and repaired the results of years of neglect. Everything is now primed a brilliant white. And we're going to add a new color on Monday...! We plan to rip out the carpet and stain the concrete underneath to match the new decor. We're going to mosaic the display case and re-trim the windows and baseboards. You will not believe the transformation...! I took a bunch of 'before' photos and a few 'at work in progress' photos and will be publishing those later this week.
My tournament is coming around I have 62 participants. I'm going to try to add a few more in the next few days so I still might hit my goal of 80. I bet I'll get 70 for sure. And that will be a good start for our first event.
Monica and I are very sore from painting all day yesterday. We're taking it easy today. I may publish here again this evening. Blogging is one of my favorite Sunday activities...! I'm going to make sure I update all my blogs today. If you haven't gone to my tennis tip blog in a while I've recently published some new tips. And I've also started a blog for the Houston Pro Tennis Association. You should check that out, too...! Click on my profile to find links to my web page and other blogs.
Thanks for reading my Journal. I hope everyone has an awesome weekend...!
Bye for now,
Coach Sam
Today is a big day for me. I've got a big project at Columbia Lakes. I'm calling for my tournament today, trying to persuade more peole to sign up. And Monica and Connor are coming down with me today to start remodeling the tennis shop. It will be an all day affair. Today we hope to totally transform the tennis shop...!
I've got a few lessons too here and there through out the day but I'll have either a phone or a paint roller in my hand more than I will a tennis racquet!
We'll be taking lots of photos to document the blessed event. That's it. I'll close here. More later. Bye for now.
Coach Sam
Today I only worked half a day. I had my normal lessons at Nassau Bay this morning then I met Monica and Connor and a group of home school families at the Museum of Natural Science for the Gold exhibit. It was very good. Afterwards we went to Star Pizza in the Montrose area for an early dinner. I've been home since 7 PM and have just been hanging out at the house working on the computer.
It was a really nice day. I especially enjoyed relaxing with my family this afternoon. I feel so blessed. I finally have the sweet, loving family that I've always wanted....!
I'm going to bed early tonight. Then heading to Columbia Lakes in the morning for lessons and to work in the tennis shop, and make calls for my tournament!
Sunday we're going to try out a new church and then I think we're having friends over for lunch.
Any way, Thanks for reading my journal. I'll check in again tomorrow.
Coach Sam
Well, I finally finished the Giammalva Gran Prix tournament this morning...! Yea...! That is a huge monkey off my back.
I'm going to work on my Columbia Lakes tournament the rest of the morning and then head off for lessons in Rustic Oaks this afternoon. I'm leaving here at 12:30 PM. Connor's coming with me today. That's nice that I'll have some company.
Well, I'm pretty much exhausted from these last few days and weeks but I think I've definitely turned the corner and am starting to get caught up.
Monica's on her way to a doctor's appointment right now and Connor's playing with Gabriel.
That reminds me I need to publish some photos of the Kittys and some other photos from this past weekend. Maybe I'll do that tonight...
That's about it... Not much else to report right now... Until next time.... See You later!
Coach Sam
I've got a full day cut out for myself today, but I've got a good handle on everything and am plugging forward with a clear purpose, a sound mind, a perfect vision.
I'm working on HPTA Gran Prix stuff first thing, then I'm sending our emails for my own tournament at Columbia Lakes next weekend. I've got to do one final marketing push between now and Saturday. Then Monica, Connor, and I are heading to Columbia Lakes at 9 AM to work on the tennis shop. I've got lessons all afternoon from 4 PM to 8:30 PM... And I've still got racquets to string and more gran prix work to do. I don't know how I will fit it all in, but I know I will be able to do it. Thank God my family is here to help me. I'd be lost without Monica and Connor...!
I've got some great photos from this weekend to publish so You can look forward to that for next time. But that's it for now... Thanks for stopping by and reading my journl. I've got to dive in to my day!
Bye for now, Coach Sam
I was so tired when I got home last night at 10:30 PM... I tried to stay up and visit with the family for awhile but ended up going straight to bed. I was out when my head hit the pillow. And while I normally get up at 4 AM to blog and do my devotional I slept in until 7 AM today. I've got way too much going on to get done in one day today so I need to take a few minutes of quiet time later this morning and prioritize everything.
Connor's coming with me to work today. He'll get a heavy dose of tennis the rest of the week after taking yesterday off. We're also starting his studies today. He's going to finish his school year here at home via correspondence with his school in Tennessee.
Monica's doing better. She's suffering from busy-ness like I am but I think she's handling it better than me. At least her attitude has better than mine these past few days. (But I'm working on it.) I'm just still trying to recover from missing over a week of work. I'm so far behind on my email correspondence it's crazy. I have nearly 200 emails in my Microsoft outlook inbox and about 200 in my online mail server, too. That's over a day of replys right there.
Plus I've got two tournaments coming up on the same weekend. One I'm organizing for the HPTA and the other I'm hosting at Columbia Lakes. That was an insane proposition. It would have been difficult enough under normal conditions. But losing a week for my emergency trip to Tennessee is really placing a squeeze on my time table. But when circumstance are beyond one's control, how are you supposed to respond?
I've just got to be patient and do the best I can and not be all stressed. God made me good under pressure and now I'm getting a chance to sharpen my working under pressure cooking skills.
I know this busy season will pass. The last week of April I'll be able to breathe a little easier, and with May will come a little lull, then BAM...! I'll dive into my busiest summer schedule ever and the baby will arrive at the end of July so I can transition to a new life all over again....! But right now I can't look that far ahead. I just need to take it one day at a time, one hour at a time...
Well... That's it for now. All that's on my mind is getting caught up at work and being there for Connor and Monica...!
Thanks for reading my journal. I'll probably post again this evening or again first thing in the morning!
Bye for now... Coach Sam
I didn't post journal entries any this weekend because I had my hands full with lessons on Saturday, data entry for the Giammalva Gran Prix, and promoting my upcoming tournament here at Columbia Lakes.
We had a Star Wars Film Festival at my house yeaterday. We watched all three episodes of the original Star Wars Trilogy. During this time I entered 206 entries for the tournament online and Bar-B Qued ribs and briskett. I went to bed last night around midnight and I'm dragging a little today.
Today still have work to do for the Giammalva Gran Prix, I need to work on my tournament, and I have three racquets to string before my afternoon lessons start at 5 PM.
I'll be off the court at 8:30 PM and will be heading home after that...!
That's my day today. It's going to shape up to be a busy week. More later... SC
The weather is just gorgeous out today...!
I'm about to leave for Columbia Lakes this morning. Connor is coming with me. Monica is too worn out. She's staying at home today. But she'll come to the club on Monday and we're going to paint and work on the renovation of the tennis shop. I've got lessons today from 10 AM to 3 PM then I'll probably head home and work on the Giammalva tournament all weekend.
I've definitely got my work cut out for me.
Well, I've got to head out. Talk to you later... Coach Sam
I'm hanging at Diedrich's after a morning of tennis and a nice lunch. Connor is with me. He played all morning and did very well. I can't believe how well he's hitting his one handed backhand. He's way better than I was at his age. It's scary. Connor is going to be a very good player! We've got an hour or so here then we're going to run some errands. Then hopefully we can get to the courts in time for me to hit with Connor a little before my other groups start.
I had a new family start lessons this morning. They were a very nice bunch! So far the day has been awesome. I'm enjoying Connor's company. The weather's great... I am getting a little tired, though. I could definitely use a nap...! I'll sleep well tonight...!
Then tomorrow I'm going to teach at Columbia Lakes from 10 to 2 PM. Monica and Connor are going to come down with me and the plan is for them to work in the tennis shop painting. I want to get that area looking good before the tournament on the 28th...!
Not much else going on... I think I'll log off now. I need to work on the Giammalva tournament the rest of the weekend. I've got my work cut out for me.
See You next time... Coach Sam
For some reason I just can't sleep. I've been working on some summer program flyers for awhile now. I just finished that project and my laptop is acting up... I'm using Monica's computer right now.
Today was a full tennis day. Connor came to work with me and he played tennis for 5 straight hours...! The he rested while I gave a private lesson and when we were about to go home for the evening he asked me if I wouldn't mind to practice with him a little more...?
Although I was pretty worn out I was glad to oblige him. My dad never hit with me when I was a kid. He was always too tired or just not even around. I'm always going to be there for Connor...!
Well, I'd better try to get a few hour's rest before I have to get up to teach my morning classes in Nassau Bay. Connor's going to spend the day with me again... I'm just delighted that he loves tennis so much. At the rate he's going he really might have a shot at being a pro when he grows up. I think the sky's the limit for Connor. I'm definitely going to help him become the best he can be...!
OK... That's it for now. I'll be back tomorrow and will post a morning report from Diedrich's.
Bye for now.... Coach Sam
Ahhh Home Sweet Home...! It's good to be home. I'm about to go to bed but I wanted to post a quick entry That today went well. It was a full, productive day! I've got to get up early in the morning and start catching up on my tournament data entry, but I'm looking forward to another good day!
See you tomorrow!
Coach Sam
I'm spending my second night in a row at Columbia Lakes. My busy, crazy schedule and the fact that we are down to just one vehicle for the time being has really presented us some challenges.
Plus, I'm so behind on my work, and much of it is time sensitive, so I've just been working through the night trying to get caught up. I did make a huge dent in my backlog today. But I'm going to catch a few hours sleep on the very comfortable couch in my office and get up early in the morning to dive into another day.
I have an 8 o'clock lesson tomorrow morning, then a 10:30 AM meeting. Then I have a few hours in the afternoon to work on my tournaments. I'm going to be taking several prayer breaks throughout the day and then I'm back on the court from 5 to 8:30 PM...!
That's about it for now. I'll try to post a few more lines in the morning. Bye for now. Oh and don't worry about me. I've got a good feeling that everything will turn out just fine.
Bye for now, Coach Sam
I awakened with my alarm clock at 4 AM but was still too sleepy since it was midnite when I went to bed. I reset the alarm for 5:15 AM but ended up sleeping through that, too. Luckily Hobbes' meowing awakened me at 6:00... I've got to get on the road. I can take a nap after my first lesson this morning if I need one. Otherwise, it's going to be a full and busy day for me.
I'll catch you later... Thanks for reading my journal.
Coach Sam
This was one full day. Of Course we started out by losing an hour this morning to daylight savings time. We visited a new church this morning. It was only 15 minutes from our house. The teaching was outstanding. But the sermon lasted a little more than an hour. I haven't been to a sermon that long in quite a while. The music was traditional hymns. I'm a little more in to contemporary music. But the music wasn't a deal breaker. We're going to try to sample some churches closer to our house for a while. We need something that Connor can get involved in right away, and we just live too far away from Clear Lake for Connor to take advantage of the Clear Creek Community Church Youth program. Plus, we're looking for a church that's a little smaller. CCCC is working it's way towards Mega-Church status.
After church I hurriedly prepared for the HPTA meeting and social. That went well. We had a decent turnout for our first get together.
When I got home from the HPTA event Monica and I worked in Connor's room. It's starting to look good. We have his bed from Tennessee set up. We connected his big TV and play station up. Monica started unpacking his closet and she also built 3 book shelves we got from Ikea, and we still have some new curtains to put up, but other than that, his room is basically functional.
I'm settling down to an evening of writing. I want to update every blog tonight. That's going to take a little time. But that's my favorite thing to do. If I can't write then I get a little cranky.
So before I close here. I do want to mention that It sure feels different to be a full time dad now. But I like the feeling. -and Connor is an awesome Kid. That's all I have to say about that.
Monday I have such a long day at Columbia Lakes that Monica has given me permission to spend the night there. I have my first lesson at 9 AM then I'm not done tomorrow until 8:30 PM. Then I have to be back on Tuesday at 8 AM again so I'm just going to stay over.
I'll write more tomorrow. Check you later.
Coach Sam
We made it in last night at 7:30 PM...! Yea..! Our Kitties were both glad to see us and angry that we were gone for so long...! They're doing better this morning.
It was so nice to sleep in our own bed last night...! Today we need to unload the U-Haul and start unpacking. That's going to take awhile...!
I've also got about a million other things to take care of. So I'd better close here. I'll take some extra time to write more detail tomorrow!
Bye for now, Coach Sam
We made it to Little Rock before we stopped for the night last night. We were all so exhausted from the journey. We slept in this morning and feel a little refreshed. We'll probably get back on the road a little after 10 AM, maybe 10:30... And that will put us back home sometime between 5 and 7 PM.
This will have to be a short post because I still have a lot of emails to catch up with before I log off. Thanks for keeping up with my journal.
Coach Sam
We've been traveling a week now but we are trying to wrap things up and head back to Houston, Texas Today. Connor is holding up very well. I do agree with a family friend that Connor is internalizing his pain a lot right now and it may come gushing out later, but for now we're just going to keep a close watch over him and just love him and shower him with prayers and kindness.
Monica and I have both been fighting the flu for the entire week. We're close to exhaustion and are just going to take our time and spread our return journey home over two days with lots of rest breaks. We should get back to Houston sometime Friday afternoon or early evening. We need to have our rental vehicle back by 7 PM so we're shooting for that to be our latest arrival time.
Monica's already over at the house with Connor packing up a few things. I stayed in the room to take care of some business correspondence that has been backing up on me.
We're going to pack up and I'm going to mow Brian's yard before I go. We're hoping to be packed up by 4 PM so Connor can play in a school tennis match on our way out of town. He really loves his tennis and that would mean a lot to him so we're going to make every effort to grant his wish.
I've mentioned this in some of my other blog postings, but I know that each blog I write pretty much has it's own unique audience so I'd like to mention here how grateful I am to friends, family, and colleagues who have called or written in to express their concern, prayers, and well wishes. We are especially grateful to Monica's parents who helped us out financially with the trip. Thanks Arno and Judy...!
We have felt a tremendous outpouring of love throughout this entire week and that's what's kept us going. So on behalf of Connor and Monica I just want to say Thanks...!
We Feel the Love...!
I hope you have an awesome day. I'll try to post a little more this evening when we finally stop for the night. (assuming the hotel we stay at has highspeed internet in the rooms...)
Coach Sam
I've never been to Missouri before but we made the 6 and 1/2 hour drive from Memphis and here we are. I met Brian's family tonight. His Mom and Dad, Brothers, Uncles... They are such a nice family. And they were extremely gracious to me. I wish the circumstances that brought us together weren't what they are....
But Connor is still holding up well. He's such a great kid...!
It's late... 12 AM I'm still up for two reasons. I'm desperately behind on my work, and my throat is very sore from coughing so much. I started taking a z-pak tonight and I had two Nyquil liquid Gels so I should konk out here before long. I'm absolutely miserable with this sore throat...! If I keep coughing I'm going to ban myself down into the lobby in a few minutes otherwise I'm going to keep everyone up all night...!
So... I'd better close here... I'm just going to be more negative if I continue...
Pray for Connor and the Copeland Family as they pay their last respects to Connor's Dad tomorrow morning at 11 AM.
Thanks to all who have called and emailed well wishes and condolences... They are greatly appreciated.
Bye for now,
Coach Sam
We've been in Tennessee since Friday at 1 PM. Connor is holding up very well. I'm extremely impressed with this young man. Losing one's Father at the tender age of 12 has got to be extremely difficult. I lost my parents as a full grown man in my mid 30's and that was pretty difficult. While I do know what Connor is going through, I don't think that I would be holding up as well as he is.
In fact, I distinctly remember my grandmother's funeral. I was 11 at the time. I remember just crying and crying uncontrollably. But I wasn't crying for the loss of my grandmother. I was crying for my mom because I was thinking how she must felt to lose her mom and then I was thinking how it would feel to lose my mom. There was no way I was ready to lose my mom at that tender age. I wasn't as close to my dad, but I know that Connor was super close to his dad.
Anyway, I think Connor is a lot tougher than I was at the same age. He's a remarkable young man.
Monica was feeling really sick on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, but today she felt a little better. We went to Easter service at Connor's Church then spent the rest of the day working at Connor's house packing up things to bring back to Texas.
We're getting up early tomorrow morning and going over to pack some more, and then head over to Missouri for the funeral. That's supposed to be a 5 hour drive. The funeral is going to be on Tuesday at 11 AM. We'll drive back to Tennessee on Tuesday afternoon and then Wednesday we're going to visit the administrators at Connor's school in the morning and finish packing and loading a U haul truck and I hope to be on the road early Thursday morning. At least that's the plan as it stands right now. I'm ready to be back in Texas.
I've got ton's of work piling up on me right now, too. I've got a million emails to send, and two different tournaments to work on. Really, I've got enough work to keep me up all night long. Obviously I'm not going to do that, but I do need to do a little bit of work before I go to bed.
So, that's the word from Tennessee. I'll try to check in tomorrow, but I'm not sure if the hotel we're staying at has high-speed internet in the rooms or not. But, if not tomorrow, then Tuesday night, for sure...
Bye for now. Please keep your prayers headed this way...
Coach Sam
Monica and I have been traveling since 2 AM... We finally made it to Tennessee this afternoon. We picked up Connor and now are resting at the hotel room. Connor's Dad's funeral will be on Tuesday Morning in Missouri. It's a 5 hour drive from where we are in Tennessee. Then we have a 9 hour drive home after that.
I'm not sure how it will all pan out at this point but I doubt we'll be home until Thursday or Friday. Connor seems to be holding up quite well inspite of the circumstances.
Monica and I are, well, exhausted. Monica is sleeping now and Connor is watching TV while I write in my journal. Thank God for free highspeed internet in our hotel room...! I'm actually too tired to sleep right now. My eyes are burning like crazy and the burn whether they are open or closed. I'm going to close them in a minute.
When I checked my email a minute ago I had 26 messages of condolences and well wishes and prayers. Thank You all...!
Please keep those prayers coming...!
More later....
Coach Sam
I'm looking forward to a little more relaxed pace this weekend. I have six hours of lessons in Rustic Oaks today, Only my morning classes tomorrow, and then I'm off until Monday... Although I might teach a few classes in west Columbia Saturday afternoon. We'll see how the weather and my bookings go.
Monica's feeling poorly today. Hopefully she'll perk up by this afternoon. The weather's awesome out there and I'm looking forward to getting out side. I've spent the entire morning working on my websites and blogs and returning email.
That's the quick update... More later... Coach Sam
Today I have a very full day. I am in West Columbia from 8 AM to 8:30 PM. And I had trouble sleeping last night so I'm a little tired already. I think I'm going to go back to bed and lay down for another thirty minutes or so. I'll see if I can log in and write a little from Columbia Lakes after lunch. My only problem over there is that I have to use a dial up connection and it's painfully slow compared to my service here at home....!
Oh well, I'm grateful for what I do have, though... Thanks for reading my journal. Bye for now,
Coach Sam
It's absolutely Gorgeous out today...! It's officially Spring, You know...! I've got a busy afternoon on the courts. But I'm actually a little sore from teaching yesterday. I had six hours of lessons and my arm and shoulder are a little tight this morning and my wrist just downright huts. Ah... But those are the occupational hazards of a tennis pro...!
I have to put together a flyer for my summer programs today. I should have already had that done...! I need to work on some HPTA stuff this morning, too. Actually, all in all it's going to be a busy week up until Friday. On Friday I'm just teaching half a day then taking Saturday and Sunday off...! Yea...!
That's about it. I'll write a little more on Thursday. Perhaps we'll have the name picked out for our son by then... We're still working on it!
Oh and I'll publish some new baby belly photos on Thursday, too...! See you then!
Coach Sam
Hello Friends,
It looks like I've finally settled in to a 'normal' routine...! I worked hard all week. And now I'm going to take it easy today (Sunday). It's 7:13 AM... Monica's still asleep. I slept in until 6:30 AM...! We'll probably go to the 10 or 11:30 AM church service today. Then lunch somewhere. Then, I don't know... Maybe we'll go for a walk somewhere. I don't have anything really pressing today. I might clean out my car... Perhaps I'll work on my websites a little...
The sun is out right now and it's looking like a gorgeous day after a very stormy night last night. I'll probably try to do something outside and enjoy this beautiful weather. Perhaps we'll go to Raveneaux Country Club this afternoon for a few minutes and catch some of the gran prix action. I have a few students playing in the tournament this weekend.
Let's see... Let me do a quick recap of the week...
1. Gasoline prices are getting us down because I do a lot of commuting in my business.
2. The weather has been very unpredictable... Hot, cold, rainy, sunny...! I had a rainout Tuesday and Wednesday this past week.
3. Monica's been really tired with the pregnancy. And she's had quite a bit of heart burn...! We understand that is normal for this stage of her pregnancy.
4. We just took our 22 week photo of Monica's belly. We haven't taken my photo yet because I'm ashamed to say I've actually gained a few pounds these last 4 weeks.. That reminds me... I definitely want to get some exercise today.
5. Peepers has been sick again this week. She's had upset stomach two days in a row. Previously she has been fine for about a month since we quit feeding her table scraps. We're worried now that the Doctor's diagnosis of feline leukemia might be accurate. We're monitoring her closely.
6. Gabriel continues to be quite mischievous. Sparky is starting to hang out on our back porch more. I need to publish some photos of Sparky. Hobbes is now the 'Alpha Cat'.
7. Things are going great in my tennis business. I'm getting new students every week and I have a big tournament planned at Columbia Lakes on April 22. That's exciting.
8. Monica has registered our baby at Babies 'R' Us. Note that when you click this link it takes you to the Amazon.com site because Babies 'R' Us has their registry through Amazon. I wanted her to put on the registry that the baby needed a new plasma big screen television, but she wouldn't do it...!
9. We had a good HPTA board meeting on Friday. You should check out the HPTA website sometime. I'm making changes to it every week. I'm going to add a bunch of new photos this afternoon.
That's pretty much the major stuff for the week. I'm really getting in to photo journaling now. So keep an eye out for more photos. You know what has often been said: A picture is worth a thousand words...!
Take Care, Bye for now... Thanks for reading my journal!
Coach Sam
We've got a beautiful day on our hands for Saint Patrick's Day...! And I've got about 5 hours here at the house to get a lot of things done...! Yesterday I stayed home because of the rain. (and I wasn't feeling too well yesterday afternoon, either... I've had a lot of achey flu-like symptoms the past few days....
I spent much of the day working on my websites. Be sure to check out my new tournament website for the adult and junior tournament I'm hosting at Columbia Lakes April 22-24. And check out the HPTA Link and my personal web page, too...!
It seems I'm a little link happy today. So while you're at it why not take a quiz about Saint Patrick Link, too. I learned a bunch about the patron saint of Ireland from this survey.
Monica was feeling really bad last night. She had heart burn and barely slept a wink. I almost took her to the emergency room. She's trying to sleep in this morning.
I've got lessons this afternoon from 2 to 6 PM in League City. It's a short day for me.
I'm going to spend this morning working on HPTA Stuff. That's what's happening in my world. Talk to you later...
Coach Sam
The forecasters got it wrong today, BIGTIME! They said rain most of the day, 90 percent... and it hasn't rained at all. I cancelled lessons earlier today based on the forecast, but I'm planning on teaching this evening in Seabrook from 6 to 8 PM. Oh well, I guess they can't get it right every time...!
Anyway, I put my afternoon to good use and worked on my next tournament at Columbia Lakes. My entry form looks great and I've even got online registration set up for this one.
Our HP fax/printer went on the blink today. That's particularly annoying. And Hobbes has been marking areas around the house to claim his territory. More Annoying...!
Other than that things are going well. I'm going to be spending a lot of time the next few days promoting this upcoming tournament at Columbia Lakes. And I've got tons of HPTA stuff I need to do also...!
Coach Sam is a busy man.
Well thanks for reading my journal. I'll see if I can take some time this evening to write about a little more interesting stuff.
Bye for now.
Coach Sam
This month is picking up speed. The temperatures reached up into the mid eighties yesterday. I suppose summer is just right around the corner...! Saturday I taught at Columbia Lakes all day. Saturday evening Arno and I had dinner at Pappadeux while Monica and Judy were taking Connor back to Tennessee. We went to bed early that night. Sunday I got up and watched church on TV then worked in the garage a bit, then spent the rest of the day working on the HPTA Gran Prix tournament and website.
Monica and Judy made it back safely around 7 PM last night. Poor Girls, they were exhausted...!
Arno and Judy are getting ready to leave in a few minutes. They want to be on the road before traffic gets bad. Boy do I know about that. I like to be on the road by 6 AM myself for just that same reason...!
Today will be a long day for me. My first lesson today is at 9 AM and my last lesson this evening is at 7:30 PM so I won't even be off the court until 8:30 PM and probably not back on the road again until 9 PM and probably not home tonight until 10:30 PM...! Mondays and Wednesdays are like that. Hopefully I'll be able to work out a better schedule by the fall. I'd like to hire an assistant soon...!
Until then... I work all day. But hey, I'm not complaining. I feel blessed to have so much business...! I'll try to log on later today and write a bit more. But I need to close here for now. I've still got one more project to complete before I head out the door at 6 AM.
Bye for now... Thanks for reading my journal.
Wow... This was an incredibly busy week. I got quite a bit done... I had two pretty big tennis camps and finished up the third gran prix tournament data entry and made the draws. I was exhausted by the time I went to bed last night. It was about 11 PM when I went to bed and I was asleep before my head hit the pillow.
Today I slept in until 7:30 AM...! I did some yard work in the morning and then we all went to have lunch at the Taste of Texas. Mmmm.... It was delicious...! We spent the afternoon watching the movie 'Dodgeball'. I've been a Television junkie today. I watched the last part of 'Survivor' and now we're watching the classic sci-fi movie: Alien versus Predator. I've never seen it before. I'm 20 minutes into the movie and so far Predator is kicking butt...!
I'm going to work on my web sites this evening and returning some email messages.
This has been a very relaxing day. I deserved it after the past two days...!
Tomorrow I have a full day of tennis lessons. Saturday is going to be pretty full, too...!
Well... That's the update. More later... I'll try to update again Sunday
First, the week behind... (last week)
Monica and I literally wore ourselves out effecting numerous house repairs that we had procrastinated on, but I must say the place looked pretty good by the time Judy and Arno arrived on Tuesday afternoon. I had a full week of lessons last week and Monica and Judy drove to Tennessee to pick up Connor. Arno and I shared a great dinner at Pappa's Bar B Que Friday night. Saturday I taught in Columbia Lakes all morning and Sunday I went to church and spent the rest of the day working on the next Gran Prix tournament.
This week:
Today I'm hosting a spring break camp at Columbia Lakes from 10 AM to 3 PM and I'm just hoping the weather cooperates. If all goes well I'm taking tomorrow off from lessons and I'll have a little more time to catch up with my journal writing. I have another camp Wednesday and then I'm taking Thursday off, too.
More later... Bye for now. Coach Sam
Remember that bee hive we had in our wall last year...? Well, we're finally getting around to patching the hole. I wanted to just hang a big picture over the hole but Monica put her foot down to that idea.
Monica pressed a charcoal template on butcher paper to cut an exact replica of the hole in the wall.
Here's Monica using her favorite tool... The Jigsaw.... (she also likes to use the power sander, too...!)
I've had another really busy week. The tennis business is Good. Life is Good. Monica and I got caught up on a bunch of home improvement projects over the past weekend and early this week. Judy and Arno, Monica's parents are visiting right now and Connor, Monica's son will be here for spring break.
I'll probably only be posting about once or twice a week for now because I simply can't keep up the frantic pace I've been running at.
Today I am teaching in Nassau Bay from 8 to Noon, then I'm taking the rest of the day off to work on the Gran Prix tournament and make calls for lessons this morning and next week...!
Monica and Judy are driving to Tennessee to pick up Connor and Arno and I will be hanging out here at the house.
That's the brief update. I will try to post some more this weekend, though. And I'm going to try to use pictures whenever I post from now on. I think pictures make it a lot more interesting...
Thanks for reading my journal. Bye for now. Coach Sam
