Andy Roddick is like my Harry Potter

When Katharine came to visit me last month, we got matching tattoos. We got the words Mischief Managed tattooed to my wrist and her shoulders. It's a reference to Harry Potter if you didn't know that. On our way home from the Tattoo parlour we talked about how appropriate a HP tattoo was for us because HP is not just one of our favorite books but the role that they have played in our personal and professional lives. All the midnight parties we have worked, all the people we have met and so forth. HP has been a bigger part of our lives then I had originally. (Side Note: another reason our tattoos are special. My tattoo is in her handwriting and hers is in mine. So, not to sound cheesy or creepy but I have a little bit of my sister where ever I go) This got me thinking.

Today, in between helping customers, I was following Andy Roddick's match against Andy Murray on my blackberry. When Roddick finally won, I was beyond ecstatic! At one point I looked down on my new tattoo and thought to myself, Andy Roddick is kind of like Harry Potter. I have always enjoyed watching tennis on TV. I really loved watching Wimbledon when it was on HBO. Those were the days, no commercials and so of the games all time best commentating. I remember when a young Venus Williams played Steffi Graf. The match was being called by Billie Jean King, Martina Navratilova and Chris Evert. It was a pretty intense match and at one point Billie Jean couldn't even watch, she was so nervous for both players. Anyway, I digress. It really wasn't until I started following Roddick in late 2000-early 2001 that I become a real fanatic. I started to follow the sport week and and week out, which isn't easy. I also started visiting fan sites and message boards. One day I found a site named Roddick Rocks. There a I met friends that I still have today. We from all over the world and from different backgrounds but one thing we had in common was that we loved tennis and loved Andy. Unfortunately the site did not last but the friendships I made there have. Also, from following Andy, I have talked my family into going to tournaments in Paris (Davis Cup semis 2002) and London (Wimbledon, twice) and other tournaments throughout the US. I'm pretty sure, if it wasn't for my enthusiasm, I could never have convinced my mom to go to Paris in the middle of the school year. *lol* So, for me, Andy isn't just my favorite player because I like his game, or I admire his fight and his willingness to improve but he's my favorite because of all that he has given me. The memories from the vacations I went on to see him play, the hours on the Internet following a stupid score tick, the friends that I met and still talk to and occasionally see. He has truly been a bigger part of my life then I realized and for that I thank him and I also want to Congratulate him on making his third Wimbledon final!