by sheila morris
so it ain’t Vegas, Baby but…
while the cat’s away, etc.
fun is fun, right?
Just kidding, Pretty!
(photo shop courtesy of Donna Magrath)
P.S. Through the magic of Las Vegas wedding venues, Spike, Charly, Donna and I watched the Wedding via live streaming. Perfect. The brides were gorgeous, happy and all about their love which made us all happy at casita de Cardinal, too. Before the wedding, Pretty was overcome with emotion and tearful with beautiful bride Robin. Bless her heart.
So the Aces game wasn’t quite what we hoped it would be for Pretty and friends, but A’ja Wilson was gracious (as always) after the game to share a photo op with Pretty and Number One Son Drew.
Thanks, A’ja for continuing to be not only a great athlete for the Aces but also an awesome person in “real life” off the court as well.
Guess who else loves A’ja?
Robin Gottlieb (l) and Meghan Cole (r)
Oh yes, they do and these girlfriends are the real reason for Pretty’s trip to Las Vegas. Today is their WEDDING DAY, and we wish we could have been there, too. But for now we are sending them hugs and kisses from Casita de Cardinal and wishing them the very best happiness and joy and loads of fun for the Main Event this evening. You girls rock!
Robin and Meghan at Clark County Marriage License Bureau
making it official!
Stay tuned.
P.S. Pretty, don’t forget to come home. Spike, Charly and I are lost without you. Donna thinks I am too bossy now; she is also way past ready for you to come home.
P.S.P.S. I lifted these pictures from Facebook and am using them without anyone’s permission. Mea culpa to all.
Pretty and Number One Son landed safely in Las Vegas and from all social media accounts are having a grand time. Thanks to all of you who are concerned about Pretty’s whereabouts and our welfare at casita de Cardinal. We have a friend who has been staying with us for several weeks while she is in transition so Pretty left us in good hands while she goes gallivanting with Drew.
Tonight they are going to see Gamecock women’s basketball G.O.A.T. A’ja Wilson playing professionally in the Women’s National Basketball Association as she plays in her new home court at MGM Resorts Mandalay Bay Events Center with the Las Vegas Aces. A’ja was the Number One draft choice by the Aces, a new franchise that relocated from San Antonio this year, and has been having a terrific rookie year with the Aces. Question: who’s surprised? Answer: not even one Gamecock fan.
Pretty and me in Dallas as A’ja led Gamecocks to
only NCAA Championship in basketball
in program history in 2017
And while Pretty, Number One Son Drew and a small group of Gamecock fans will be cheering our A’ja at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas tonight, Charly, Spike and I will be watching on the WNBA League Pass which is a lifesaver for A’ja groupies.
Wave to us from the game, Pretty…go A’ja and the Aces!
Stay tuned.
Alas, Pretty and Number One Son Drew are winging their way toward Las Vegas on this Friday the 13th. and all of us at Casita de Cardinal will be happy to know they have landed safely tonight. Charly, Spike and I were quite the forlorn threesome when Pretty and her suitcase rolled out of the house this morning. Luckily, I have had an epic Wimbledon Gentlemen’s Semifinal match that lasted over 6 hours to keep my mind occupied today, but tennis has not been a source of comfort for Charly and Spike, I’m afraid. Sigh. Oh, well, it is Friday the 13th.
In times like these, I often resort to pictures of previous places I have been that make me happy to revisit. One such place was on a trip Pretty and I took 9 years ago with two of our favorite friends, Linda and Beth, to a dude ranch called the Hideout in Shell, Wyoming. Yeehaw. We cowboy.
Beth (l.) gets credit for planning the adventures
Pretty embraced the concept…
Linda (l.) and a wannabe cowgirl Kristi the Kid from Scotland
another wannabe cowgirl (me) on the left with
real cowgirl Linda and guide Stewart on the trail
my horse the oversized Wapiti who was wonderful,
but oh, so very WIDE…ouch, my aching butt
this cowgirl needed lots of breaks
this cowgirl didn’t ever need a break
the views on the trail were almost as gorgeous as the smiles
BUT as fate would have it, I was happiest when I was playing Scrabble…
…and Wapiti was in the pasture having fun with the other horses
I hope all of my friends in cyberspace have a safe Friday the 13th., a great weekend and wonderful memories of your own Hideouts when you need them.
Stay tuned.
P.S. We miss you, Pretty.
For tennis fans, when July rolls around, the sounds of tennis balls flying off rackets held by seasoned warriors or hopeful newcomers, tennis balls traveling through the air at record speeds or strategic spins, landing on immaculately prepared grass courts with awkward bounces that require extraordinary hand-eye coordination to even be struck by another racket held by an adversary across a 3-ft net – for that first fortnight in July and for those fans, the air is filled with the electric sights and sounds of Wimbledon, The Championships at the All England Club, the 3rd of 4 annual Major tennis tournaments but arguably the most revered for its traditions and longevity.
The first week of the two-week tournament at Wimbledon for 2018 is a wrap, as we say in the entertainment industry. I have had my usual bleacher seats in front of a tv this week – the same seats I’ve had for the past 51 years since the color telecasts started. My television sets have changed through the years, but my love of the game has remained steadfast. And cheerio, the addition of the Tennis Channel with its 24-7 coverage of the sport year round has been an awesome addition for Pretty and me.
Pretty once told me many years ago when we were in the middle of a dispute about how much time she devoted to playing tennis (which took her away from me) that “I had tennis before you. I’ll have tennis after you.” That put everything in perspective, let me tell you. As it turns out, she now has tennis with me in the bleacher seats but still longs to be able to return to the courts one day.
Today is Sunday in the middle of The Championships at Wimbledon so the players who survived the first week are resting to prepare for Manic Monday tomorrow when both the women’s and men’s singles round of 16 will be played. The winners of these matches will move on to the quarterfinals, and two of them will win the finals at the end of this week.
The women’s draw has been full of shocking upsets in week one with only one of the top seeds, Karolina Pliskova, remaining. And then, of course, all eyes including mine will be on Serena Williams who won the most important title of all last year when she and her husband served up their daughter Olympia who is the cutest baby ever. Serena has moved on to the second week, and I will be following her progress as I have followed her for the past 20 years. That’s right…t-w-e-n-t-y years. Serena at the age of 35 won her 23rd. major title which set the record for most women’s singles titles in the Open era when she won the Australian Open in 2017.
As for the men in the second week, what can I say? Names that now define a Golden Age of tennis are chasing the Wimbledon title again. Roger Federer who at 37 apparently embodies the ageless body of Dorian Gray had he been a tennis player. The passionate Spaniard Rafael Nadal whose Vamos! inspires the enthusiasm of crowds like touchdowns in a Super Bowl. Winners of the past 6 tennis majors, Federer holds 8 Wimbledon singles titles and Nadal two. Novak Djokovic, another tennis titan, is trying to reclaim his place among the greats but battling the most difficult opponent of all in recent years: himself. Two Americans, veteran big server John Isner, and unseeded unknown Mackenzie McDonald also will play on the big stage on Manic Monday.
And so sports fans, as The Red Man used to call his friends in cyberspace, Pretty and I will be on pins and needles starting at 7 am tomorrow as we cheer for our favorites from the bleacher seats at Casita de Cardinal. Time and tennis march on.
Stay tuned.
VAMOS!
(Nadal at the Olympics in 2016)
I'll Call It Like I See It 
You must be logged in to post a comment.