In Lisa's Spin, her new regular blog on wtatour.com, Lisa Raymond brings us her thoughts on tennis, life and more. Here's the second installment...
Sunday, February 13, 2011
What is it about an airport lounge that brings out my inner Sherlock Holmes?
There I was the other night, double fisted with a Diet Coke in one hand, cashew nuts in the other, watching and wondering - where are all these people going and why? Is it for business or pleasure? A story behind each flyer, one that brought them to that particular lounge on that specific day. Why this airline? The cost, points, or just preference? I often play a game with myself, making up stories for each of the passengers I come across in these lounges. Call it a strange curiosity or just trying to make all the traveling a bit more exciting, it has become a fun hobby. Take the guy in the suit on his iPhone - CEO of some Fortune 500 company, on his way to close a merger? (I watch way too many movies). What about the middle-aged couple next to him? Possibly heading off on their second honeymoon? The family of four sitting in the corner, are they using their airline miles to take that vacation dad keeps putting off because of work? The woman at the bar, is she doing an "Eat, Pray, Love" sorta thing or maybe meeting someone at some exotic location? Then I think to myself, are they playing the same game with me, trying to figure out what my story is? As we know from my previous blog I have mastered the art of people watching. Keeping that in mind, this place is like my Utopia! As the voice over the loudspeaker starts calling flights I am always curious to see who is going where. The suit is taking the flight to Singapore (called that one), the family of four is heading to London (can you say The Griswolds?), the woman is flying to Bali (slamdunk!) and the older couple are coming with me. Which brings me to why I was in this lounge in the first place. My destination - Dubai.
Before I speak about my arrival in the Vegas of the Middle East, I must comment on how I got there - my maiden voyage on a Airbus A380. Anyone else have an issue with the fact that this airplane can hold a small town? I didn't realize all of Lancaster was going to be flying with me to Dubai that night! Jumbo jetliner are two words I don't like to see put together in a sentence. For those of you who don't know me very well, I am not the best flyer in the world. Could be a control issue, could be a mortality issue, or maybe im just a big scaredy cat. Whatever the reason is, I don't like it one bit. Good luck trying to have a conversation with me upon take off. Remember at the end of "Say Anything", Lloyd and Diane are on the plane and she is really scared, Lloyd tells her to keep watching the seatbelt light and when it goes off, when you hear the beep, that means everything is going to be okay. Well, thats me. I'm Diane Court! Those first five to 10 minutes feel like an eternity, waiting for the seatbelt light to go off when I am "free to walk about the cabin". Thankfully, my first journey on the A380 went off without a hitch and three movies, two meals and a six hour nap later, the mothership had landed safely.
Before I knew it, it was sunrise and I was pulling back my curtains to a sea of yachts outside my room. The hotel I stay at here in Dubai (sorry, I am not supposed to tell you the name but let's just say it rhymes with Clarke Riot) is absolutely beautiful. The best on tour I would say. I feel guilty calling people back home telling them I am sitting on my patio in flip flops enjoying a coffee while they decide how many layers will be needed to wear outside today. A nice perk of the job :-) Today entailed a morning hit, fitness and later one of my favorite things to do, lunch by the pool. It just always seems to taste better. Don't you think?
Anyway, I am flying solo this week, sans-coach you could say. I will meet up with my coach Raj for the tournament in Monterrey in a couple of weeks and I can manage one week here on my own. Raj totally understood and agreed it was a good call. Did I mention I was playing here with Sam Stosur? Jules was going to play some smaller events on clay (just the mention of the "C" word makes me break out in a cold sweat), so I decided to just meet her at the next hardcourt tournament in Monterrey. Dubai is one of our biggest Premier tournaments, a great week, so I thought if I could find someone who I wanted to play with, I would make the trip. I asked Sam and fortunately she said yes. Sam and I have shared some great times on and off the tennis court so I'm looking forward to the week. Should be fun!
Remember guys, Monday is Valentine's Day!!! Cupid and I will see you then :-)
Question time:
@scubastveie asks, "Lisa, are you a fan of chickpeas? I started eating them and think they are great. I'd like to hear your opinion on them." Okay, not really sure if Scuba is being serious, but let's just say he or she is. I LOVE chickpeas! In a salad or plain. And I LOVE LOVE LOVE hummus. They are very good for you and super yummy, so Scuba, stick to your chickpea diet :-)
@choo2009 asks, "How far in advance do you plan doubles partners and your schedule?" I am a planner so I usually know months in advance who I am playing with and where. The schedule may get tweaked a bit here and there but as of today I can pretty much tell you where I will be every week of this year!
@MrKash75 wants to know, "What are your favorite movies? Your 'must watch' recommendations." This is a good one. Always fun having this discussion with friends. I have had the same favorites for years, ones that I have seen over and over and over. As John Cusack put it in "High Fidelity", here are my Top 5 movies of all time: 1 - About Last Night, 2 - Saw, 3 - Silence of the Lambs, 4 - Usual Suspects, 5 - The Sixth Sense/Shawshank Redemption.
Songs, songs and more songs...
1: "Cosmic Love" - Florence + The Machine... I know I am a bit late to this party, but honestly, I heard this on Gossip Girl this week and couldn't help but want to download it.
2: "DJ Got Us Fallin' In Love" - Usher/Pitbull... When I was home, this song was playing on the iPod and my four-year-old niece knew every word! The visual of her dancing and singing to it just puts me in a good mood!
3: "I Do" - Colbie Caillat... I just love her.
Check out Lisa's Twitter page at http://twitter.com/@cutttie2!
