One week on and I can feel less energy and rigor in my body. It's probably an accumulation of stress of the previous week, a knotted back, and the fact that I haven't gotten a good night's sleep for the past two days. Memories of Eli surface, and precisely because dreams can seem so real, waking up to reality can be distressing.

I started out with the WTA group today--and here is our daily schedule for Mondays to Fridays:

9-10.30am: Fitness
10.30-10.45am: Break Point (you get a fruit and a little bottle of water)
10.45am-1.30pm: Tennis
1.30pm-2.45pm: Lunch/Rest (not much time for rest, you can just about imagine!)
3pm-4.30pm: Tennis
4.45pm-5.30pm: Stretching

I was really looking forward to the group, and seeing their level of play. True to form, all of them play well, move well, hit well. Still, I was genuinely surprised to realise the different work ethic some of them held. Over fitness, they ignored instructions and argued with the coaches. One instance was when the fitness coaches were encouraging us to start writing down things we were weak in and things we needed to improve on--in preparation for the coming fitness test we're going to have in two weeks. "Write down your strengths, weaknesses, and even the things you eat for every meal." To my surprise, one of the girls started arguing and being openly sarcastic about how much effort it would take jotting everything down. "I'm not going to write an essay man." Sheesh.

Over tennis, two out of the four girls I hit with pulled a long face over drills. Their body language and general demeanor reeked of attitude and disinterest--maybe it was because I was the one on the other side hitting with them (ha ha!), but it was challenging being patient, and genuinely disappointing because it was obvious they had a lot of talent. That said, not all of them are like that--but it's still hard to improve and train when half your hitting partners seem too self-involved to give training their best shot.

I'm off to do a little bit of back massage with a good ol' wall and tennis ball before I sleep now.

I hope tonight spells a better sleep, and tomorrow, a better day.

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Dinner:
Aglio Pasta (that tasted like fried noodles, thank God!)
Veal with pepper sauce
Steamed cod
Orange walnut salad with feta cheese
Baguette with olive oil
Watermelon + something-that-tasted-bitter drink
Peach Juice