Pickleball-Filled Holiday Break
Posted on December 31, 2019 by Ching under Hobbies.
I feel like a girl juggling two boyfriends. My spare time is currently split between pickleball and Zumba. I’ve had a pretty good balance the last few months but, from time to time, one will have more of my attention than the other.
Over the summer when I first developed tennis elbow and had to stop playing pickleball (pickleball and I were basically “on the outs” so to speak), I ended up picking up additional Zumba classes. Zumba became “my shoulder to cry on” of sorts. Zumba is like the boyfriend who loves you unconditionally. The dependable one that you can always count on. You break up with him many times and then when things don’t work out with the other guy, he takes you back with open arms like nothing ever happened.
Pickleball is like the new guy you just met. The mysterious, elusive one that you want to learn more about. The one that you look forward to spending time with and will rearrange your schedule for. Even when he breaks your heart (like when you had to take a break because of tennis elbow), you still can’t wait to see him again.
So after I came back from my tennis elbow hiatus, I started playing once a week and then twice a week — but not on consecutive days. Then I started playing more frequently. Then over Thanksgiving break, I put my tennis elbow through its paces by playing consecutive days. Somehow my tennis elbow hasn’t bothered me too bad. I just always wear my arm brace when playing and I seem to do fine so now I’m back to playing pickleball as much as my schedule allows which is really tricky.
I joined a women’s doubles pickleball league at Chicken N Pickle last fall (when my Wednesday night Aqua Zumba class ended at South YMCA) and had such a blast so I wanted to keep going. After the fall league ended, I did the holiday women’s doubles league with my friend Kimberly. We played as Jingle Ballers. The team name was her idea and she even made us awesome team shirts.
Anyway, I just couldn’t get enough of pickleball so I decide give up my Sunday morning 10:30 AM Aqua Zumba class at South YMCA so I could start playing the Sunday morning open play at Chicken N Pickle. A bunch of my pickleball friends were going and I felt like I was missing out.
I guess you could say in this juggling of Zumba and pickleball that I’ve been doing, ever since my tennis elbow started to get more manageable, Zumba has taken a back seat. I still enjoy it but not as much as I enjoy pickleball. I am obsessed with pickleball right now. In my free time, when I’m not playing pickleball, I’m watching pickleball videos, and when I’m not playing or watching videos, I’m thinking about when I can play next and how I can get better at it.
I was so excited when Becca wanted to celebrate her birthday at Chicken N Pickle. She and Jay and Tina and Justin all signed up for the Flannel Pickleball Tournament. I hadn’t originally signed up for the tournament but, as luck would have it, someone on Wichita Pickleball Connection was looking for a partner because their partner fell through. Not only did I get to celebrate with Becca on her birthday, I also got to play pickleball. Other friends and family came to hang out. Whether you played in the tournament or not, everyone seemed to have a blast.
I met Jeanie’s girls from El Dorado that night.
The next day was Thanksgiving Day. I had originally signed up to play in the Top Turkey Tournament at West YMCA but the gym flooded because of a problem with their swimming pool so the tournament was canceled. I ended up going to the special Thanksgiving pickleball event at the Andover YMCA instead. It was actually the best of both worlds because I got to do Zumba with Charis and Amanda and pickleball on the same day. We had a great turnout. The best part was I got to see my friend Betty (pictured below).
The next big pickleball event was the Ugly Sweater Tournament at Chicken N Pickle. It was supposed to be mixed but Aaron made an exception so Kimberly and I could play together.
Kimberly and I decided to wear our holiday league uniforms one last time for the tournament because, frankly, I didn’t want to play in a sweater. I figured it would be too hot and I wanted to be comfortable.
Kimberly and I had such a blast.
This next pickleball picture was taken at Seneca Park. You would think that our days of playing outside were over but those afflicted with pickleball addiction will do anything to play. Debbie got us together and we posed for a group holiday photo.
Each year I usually take vacation over the holidays just to get a break. In years past, I filled my time off with various Zumba classes. Last year, it was a little bit of Zumba and a little bit of pickleball. This year, with the exception of the classes I was teaching, I pretty much just played pickleball. Thus is the extent of my pickleball addition. I would say it’s sad but not really because I’m enjoying every minute of it.
I’m not sure what 2020 holds. I’m hoping I get to play more pickleball. It’s so hard with my current Zumba schedule. I’m so torn. I’ve thought about giving up some more Zumba classes to make more time for pickleball but I love Zumba too. I guess I’ll just continue to ride this love triangle I have with pickleball and Zumba and see where it goes. Until next time. GNG.
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