The US Open is two weeks of excitement, intense competition, enthusiasm, celebrity, sunshine and late nights. The players love it here, describing the crowd as unlike any other—electrifying, full of heart.
I have been going to the Open in Flushing Meadows since 2000 (missing only the summer of 2006 when I was in orientation week at Barnard). It’s gone a bit too commercial—this year expecting to attract about 700,000 visitors in 14 days. I still love it.
This past week has not just marked the kickoff to a FANTASTIC tournament, it has also been a week full of New York antics.
Last Monday night, my friend Emily and I went to go see Jimmy Kimmel in one of those 92Y moderated talks. We got the tickets on the cheap through Time Out Offers. Now a moderated talk might sound boring, but it is still Jimmy Kimmel, after all. I laughed just as much as I do at 12:05 when I tune in to his show. Bonus: his life story is actually pretty cool. As the story goes, he never aimed to be a host in late-night TV.
It wasn’t his dream, he just sort of fell into it. Nothing against achieving your dreams, but I found it both interesting and comforting that Jimmy did not always have a BIG plan.
Apparently, Jimmy let life happen—watching the late night shows when he was in high school and moving into radio for the local college station, falling into writing, working on Win Ben Stein’s Money, falling into hosting a game show that never got picked up, until one day he had a conversation with a producer about late-night hosting and was given his own show.
I don’t mean to make it sound easy. He was very clear that he was a workhouse and broadcast radio was no joke. But his talk also demonstrated that life connected the dots for him. Leave it to Kimmel to tell jokes and teach lessons.
Wednesday my mom and I took the the 7 to Mets-Willets Point in Queens to the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. We hopped off the subway onto the wooden bridge, highlighted Schedule of Play in hands. I love that bridge. I get pumped up just walking towards the tennis center. We watched tennis from 11am until 8:30pm. AMAZING day.
It started out right: a great match between Kevin Anderson (South Africa) and one of my favorites, David Ferrer of Spain. After a tough three sets—and a lot of screaming in Spanish on my part—David won! I ran down to get his autograph on my oversized Wilson tennis ball...and he didn’t sign. What? But they always sign. And I was in the best signing position.
Well, I am an experienced professional when it comes to autograph-hunting. I know where they escort the players: through the tunnels beneath the stadium and out. So I ran to a stairwell where I heard some “wooooooos” which meant that David had just passed by. I bolted. I nearly killed an old man running towards him and then pushed past his HUGE body guard screaming “David David! Por favor la firma!” (No one every said I was normal.) He grabbed my pen and signed as he walked and I exploded “Muchisimas gracias! Buena suerte!” He took a peak through his bangs and smiled. VICTORY!! I knew it would be a good day.
Then my mom and I watched Isner play in Ashe, Ernests Gublis and Tommy Haas play on Court 17, Jurgen Melzer and Bradley Klahn, and Kohlschreibber and Llodra play on a side court. For those of you who just thought “who the hell are these people,” don’t worry. These are names for the tennis fans. Though, Isner (as in John) you should know. Now that Andy Roddick is retiring, he’s going to be carrying the flag for American tennis.
Saturday, I took a little break from tennis. I woke up early to rush One Man Two Guvnors on Broadway. The show closed on Sunday and I had heard amazing things. So I got my butt to the theater at 8am, preparing for the box office to open at 10am. Well...a few people were a bit more enthusiastic (or desperate) and got there at 5am. Insanity. So I ended up buying a ticket at the TKTS booth for the matinee performance.
Tony-winning James Corden was hysterical. The show was really great. It’s in the style of Comedia Dell’Arte, which is seemingly spontaneous where the actors break character on purpose and speak to the audience (breaking the fourth wall). It’s pretty funny to watch actors playing a character who plays a character. It was really silly and totally fun.
Sunday, I decided, needed to be another day of live tennis. Andy Roddick was slated to play the day session. Damned if I wasn’t going to see him live at his last tournament ever.
Once again, for my first match of the day I cheered on mi amor nuevo David Ferrer (Rafa is out hurt) before taking seats to watch Roddick in Ashe. The weather was perfect. The tennis was CRAZY. I do not know how the networks chose a Shot of the Day because the shot-making on Sunday (fast forward to 37:30) was unbelievable.
Perfectly timed with the US Open, my week was full of New York energy. Fueled by the Open, I set out to enjoy multiple avenues of New York culture. Having been so tired since Israel, I had been limiting my activities around the city and just trying to sleep. But now, I feel like I’m back on track.
Even though it is past Labor Day and summer is “over,” don’t let that prevent you from exploring NYC. If anything, push yourself to try new things, revisit old favorites. Whatever you choose, there is a reason that international tennis stars are drawn to love New York year after year—they can't resist our unique passion and contagious energy and neither should you.
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