Gone, but not forgotten

Hi Rafa. I'm back.

Kalil + I had such a great time in Florida celebrating my parent's 40th anniversary. It was an emotional trip for obvious reasons which always seems to put me in a pensive, introspective mood. I was able to spend time with family and friends I hadn't seen in a long time; it was fun to catch up on their lives and see how they've changed since the last time we spoke. If ever you feel like time is moving at the speed of light, it would be in those moments. Forever young we are not.

The weather couldn't have been better - sunny, 80's, moderate humidity - so we managed to sneak in some hitting with HEAD and Dunlop followed by quick dips in the pool. Now, it wouldn't be a true family gathering (or life) without some drama but all in all it was a beautiful time. A big thanks to those of you who left kind messages for my parents and me in the comments section and on Twitter and Facebook - they read them as well and were moved by your words.

If I'm being completely honest, though, it's always hard to plop my brown arse onto a chair, open up the computer and write something after being away for a bit. You could compare it somewhat to tennis in that you form a 'writing rhythm' when you are posting regularly, but once you stop, it takes a moment to get it back. So I took yesterday to catch up on the happenings and find my motivation. And I think I did.

What was the biggest piece of news to happen while I was away? Aside from all the Brett Favre cock talk (don't be fooled - some penises are not pretty, NSFW) here are the choices:

A) Rafael Nadal wins his seventh title of the year and 43rd of his career in Tokyo over Milli Vanilli (thanks natch)

B) Caroline Wozniacki boots Serena Williams from the WTA Penthouse and takes residence becoming the 20th top lady baller in WTA history at 20-years old

C) Novak Djokovic defends his title in Beijing besting David Ferrer grabbing his second title of the season

D) Wozzi downs Vera Zvonareva in Beijing for her sixth title of the year

E) The Wounded Tennis Association continues its work with Venus Williams, Dinara Safina, Maria Sharapova and Svetlana Kuznetsova ending their seasons and ReRe all but pulling the plug on hers

I guess I'd have to go with choice...uh...'B.' The way Wozzi earned the achievement - by leaping past an inactive and still-injured ReRe - may have been like tripping someone on crutches (no offense V)  on your way to the head of the class but the Dane's season-long consistency earned her the keys and that's all that matters. I keep going back to something TENNIS' Steve Tignor wrote when it seemed likely Woz would usurp the top spot:

Yes, she would be the real No. 1, and she would deserve it. She would not be the best player in the world; that’s still Serena, who won two majors this year. Being No. 1 is a different achievement. It might not sound glamorous, but it’s an honor nonetheless: Wozniacki would be recognized as the best in the world at her job.

Bulls-eye. But, fair or not, the sharks will be swarming and looking for her to legitimize the ranking by winning a major, or as Tigger so eloquently put it, by "mak[ing] something artificial into something real."

Now that's some tough love. Damn, it's good to be back.


[Photo(s): Getty Images]