Some weeks nothing seems to go right. Others are just sort of blah. Then there are those weeks that just amaze you. This was one of those. Amazing!

#s 1 and 2: HAUNT JAUNTS RANKS AS AN EXPERT AND GETS AN AWARD

Rather than rewrite it all, I’ll just link to the post I wrote about this on Haunt Jaunts.

But in case you don’t want to click over, here’s the short version: HJ ranks #50 out of 118 experts on Sulia’s paranormal channel and one of HJ’s Twitter friends nominated the blog for a Shorty Award in Travel.

I’m not gonna lie. The recognition feels great!

#3: MASTER OF THE COURT

Then at Thursday’s tennis clinic the most amazing thing happened. We had just started doing a drill when Coach Beth stopped us and pulled us in.

My heart sunk because I was one of the ones in the middle of the drill. Worse, I had last touched the ball. My first thought was, “Aw man! What did I do wrong this time?” Because I’m always sure I’ve made a good example of something not to do. That’s happened more than I care to admit.

Not this time! I about fell over when Beth said, “Whoopsie (that’s my tennis nickname) is the only who’s mastered something. Can anyone tell me what?”

I sort of phased out for a moment as I did a mental rewind. Had she just said “mastered” and “Whoospie” in the same sentence?

Apparently she had. I then listened with keen interest as people started naming things I might’ve mastered. I had no clue. I had just done another of my trademark lobs before she stopped us and called us all in. I figured it had to do with that.

In part it did, but the point she was trying to drive home was I had mastered reading the court and knowing when to pull out certain shots, like lobs.

Huh? I was waiting for the punchline or the hidden camera reveal. I have never been singled out for doing something good before. Again, the recognition felt awesome!

Until I started thinking about the target on my back. The girls will be gunning for me now, itching to take me down and figure out how to take my lob opportunities away from me. I’ll have to come up with some new tricks and quick!

But it made for an exciting week. I’ll let myself bask in the glory for a moment before I buckle down and get back to just being me –a big ol’ Whoopsie at heart!

My nerves were all frazzled this morning. I had to drive over to the Hillwood Country Club and play a rescheduled match against one of the Real Housewives of Hillwood teams. (I think that’s just such a clever name, especially for this team. Totally works for them.)

Regular team matches are usually on Thursday, but the team we were playing needed to reschedule. So…we played today instead.

I was kind of mad because the first week ended up being me and my partner’s Bye week, then last week was “spring break” so there were no matches. Then this week we had to do the reschedule thing, and I knew next week I’d be gone down to Destin for a volleyball tournament.

After matches it’s customary for the team to go to lunch. It’s social hour. That’s a big part of why I joined. To have a little bit more of a social outlet here. (And to find new lunch places. I’m all about food!)

However, I’m glad that my first real match worked out the way it did. My nerves would’ve been even more jangled with everyone there, players on the other courts and having to worry about sending balls their way (or being interrupted by any of their strays), etc.

This worked out really nice. It was like having a private match.

And it was on clay. My first time ever playing on that. Kind of a weird surface, but nice. I sort of liked it. (I’d heard bad stuff about clay, but…I didn’t think it was too bad.)

We didn’t win. It was 1-6 the first set, but we rallied second set and walked out with 4-6. For my first time ever doing something like this, I’ll take it. It turned out to be a gorgeous, fun morning to be out getting some great exercise.

Next week…Destin!

Who knew I’d be so sporty at nearly 40? Crazy.

I’ve been playing league volleyball ever since we moved to Nashville. (Well, we got here in 2005, but it was 2006 before we got hooked up with the league scene. But ever since then I’ve been playing a minimum of two nights a week. Four in the summer.)

And that was on top of the four summers we spent playing every weekend at Jax Beach when we lived in Jacksonville. As my friend Brenda likes to tease, once I drank the Kool Aid I was never the same. (Addicted, obsessed…we’ve called my Volleyball Problem many things.)

However, I’ve always kind of been interested in tennis, too. Didn’t know anything about it. Except from the obvious that it was played on a court with rackets and balls.

But rules? Scoring? Or even the basics like controlling the ball? Clueless.

My experiences with tennis can be summed up thusly:

• Wayne and I played some when we first met. Or tried to just hit it back and forth, I should say. He did fine, but my balls were all wild. We spent the majority of the time running around collecting them –from creeks, streets, the wooded areas nearby.
• And in college one of my freshmen year roommates invited me to play once. Her patience –because she’d played in high school– with my novice skills lasted all of 15 minutes.

However, my fave park near our home plus Wii reignited my interest.

I kept seeing all the people playing on the courts in Crockett Park and asked Wayne if he’d play with me. Well, that husband of mine has a mind like an elephant –he didn’t forget all the ball chasing I had him doing the last time we played. (Almost 20 years ago!)

I couldn’t get Wayne to play with me in real life, but once we got our Wii I couldn’t get him to play against me because something incredible happened –I was better at him than something. Not just better. Far superior. His ego couldn’t take me whomping his butt everytime!

Wii satisfied my tennis urges for a while, but I’d still see those people in the park looking like they were having so much fun…

I had toyed with taking tennis lessons, but it was more just one of those “I’d like to do that someday (but probably never will)” sort of thoughts.

Until my hitchhiker.

Taking tennis lessons went on my Life Goals list last year when I was so sick I couldn’t even play Wii.

But once I started feeling better, I didn’t waste any time. In August I started lessons over at the rec center. I still only had a fuzz head then, but I didn’t care. I was in my bandana phase. I just wrapped one on and away I went.

I had a hoot!

Gordon was my first instructor. For me, at that point in my life, he was perfect. He’s kind of a wild teacher…full of energy.

I wasn’t very good at first, but once in a while I’d get off a good shot. Then something funny happened…I started getting better.

Not great, but my balls weren’t as wild.

This last session was my first with Beth. She completely intimidated me at first. Her style is much different and more aggressive than Gordon’s. I’m not sure had I started with her that I’d have continued lessons.

But Gordon’s Friday class filled up so on Tuesdays I found myself in hers this go around.

And after the first couple of sessions I started getting her –and loving her style. I saw a HUGE improvement in my skills. (What there are of them. I’ve discovered I’m pretty good at lobs, but the rest is still a work in progress.)

Anyway, yesterday was my last session on Tuesdays with her. I tried to sign back up but all spots were full. But Gordon’s Friday class had an opening so…I signed back up with him.

I almost didn’t make it to Beth’s class yesterday. The weather was weird, the rec center hadn’t opened until 10 due to inclement weather, and I lost track of time Twittering before class.

However, I decided better late than never. Plus, something told me I really needed to go.

Boy am I glad I did! Some of the other girls in class invited me to play on a women’s tennis team/league with them! I was so excited.

Sometimes volleyball comes with a lot of ‘tudes and team-picking snobbery. Luckily the teams I play with now don’t have that, but we still deal with other teams that do. Every week. It gets old.

Especially when a new season starts and everyone’s scrambling to get on a better team. Again, luckily my team doesn’t really deal with that anymore. But we’re not immune to all the jostling going on around us.

Tennis hasn’t been like that at all.

And the girls who asked me to play with them? They’re all a riot. I’ve really enjoyed classes with them. I was tickled absolutely pink they thought of including me.

It all starts in Spring. Something else to look forward then!