Whine & Cheese

Love All

Wimbledon starts on Monday... yes, yes I know what you are thinking... didn't  I just survived Ed's "can't talk about anything else" chatter?... well, yes you did... but this is one of the "what were they thinking?" times on the tennis schedule where two of the biggest crowns on the tennis calendar are contested just a few weeks apart.

It's a pretty interesting time in men's tennis... particularly (some would say, exclusively) among the top two players and two of my favorites (as you know!), Rafa Nadal and Roger Federer.  Just when it looked like Roger was on the decline with Rafa powering past him with last year's Wimbledon, the Olympic gold, and this year's Australian that dissolved Roger to post-match tears... the seemingly impossible happened, Rafa losing at Roland Garros for the first time in 5 years and Roger going on to win the only Slam title missing on his resume.

Now it seems that Rafa is the one reeling... both emotionally and physically, so much so that as I write this the tennis world is waiting for the Spaniard to withdraw from Wimbledon.  The draw was announced earlier this morning and Rafa would have a tough road regardless... so I'm guessing it is the proverbial "rock and hard place" ... better to compete and lose not playing anywhere near 100% or not defend arguably the most prestigious title in tennis at all. 

There is an excellent article about Nadal in this weekend's New York Times Magazine.  While it is pretty much a love-letter to Nadal (one can hardly blame Cynthia Gorney, IMHO), she really was able to communicate the reasons why I seem to love both of the players/men fairly equally (though I'll admit to favoring Rog more since Rafa is his Achilles)... it is strange to feel that way in a rivalry like this... it tends to be "love" one/"hate" (or maybe, "respect but not love") the other.

I'd recommend reading the entire piece, Ripped (Or Torn Up?): Can Rafael Nadal Survive His Own Grueling Style of Tennis?... but it is fairly lengthy and likely for tennis die-hards... but here are some quotes from Gorney that I think perfectly sum up why it is easy to love both these guys:

"He (Nadal) thrills people. Federer thrills people, too, but the Nadal thrill is so different from the Federer thrill that studying the two of them is like a gorgeous immersion course in the varieties of athletic possibility. Federer is elegant and fluid and cerebral, so that his best tennis looks effortless even when he is making shots that ought to be physically impossible. Nadal is muscled-up and explosive and relentless, so that his best tennis looks not like a gift from heaven but instead like the product of ferocious will."

"That Nadal now has the capacity to outplay Federer on multiple surfaces ­ that the signature game of the world’s highest-ranked tennis player is not a beautiful ballet unto victory but an imperfect, bruising, savage refusal to yield ­ this is why Nadal thrills people. This and the biceps. “Every tennis lover would like, someday, to play like Federer,” Philippe Bouin (French writer, covering tennis for 30 years for the sports paper L’Équipe) told me. “But every man wants to be Rafael Nadal. Which is different.”"

UPDATE:  Rafa has withdrawn from Wimbledon.  After reading those quote, you can see why not having these two guys in the draw is a bit sad.. but go Roger!  Time to break Sampras' all-time Slam record with a win at the AELTC!

Butt First

I am off getting the MINI Cooper its annual maintenance (when you only average 5,000 miles/year - that's apparently all it needs)... but was browsing through the Yahoo Tennis Gallery yesterday and this caught my eye:

As someone who has experience in being mesmerized by staring at admiring ... errr... ummm... familiarity with Rafael Nadal's gluteus maximus... well, send me an application to be a "trainer" a.s.a.p. please! 

I Love The Smell Of Rafa In the Morning

If I keep on posting pictures like this one and the one from yesterday, you may never want me to come back with a "real" blog entry.  Though that will very likely happen tomorrow as I can't imagine my obsession with IDOL would wane enough to not want me to rip into some musical performances.  So that means basically a picture!

Now this one I did "borrow" from the website that rhymes with RowleToad... it's not like I have any real issue with that blog, but pretty much once it's on there EVERYONE knows about... so it becomes a big 'ole case of "why bother!?"  But by "everyone," I mean gay men... so while the Bamber PETA pic was uber-predictable in becoming a raging wildfire in the gay blogosphere, I still felt the need to share this one here, since it involves the unofficial W&C mascot, Rafa Nadal!

So it looks like the fairly new-ish #1 tennis player in the world is finally getting some good endorsement action outside of tennis equipment and clothing... and now the  face of a fragrance. 

Me?  I just would have called the fragrance "Rafa" (make sure to roll your R) ... and could have still gone with this ad which is pretty much ready-to-go as a cover a Harlequin romance novel! 

Express Lane: Issue 60

Springsteen Calls Wal-Mart Deal A Mistake - Glad to hear The Boss, and champion of the working man (and woman!), express regret and take responsibility for the exclusive deal made with the retail beheamoth for an upcoming greatest hits album release. (1/30/09)

Comeback Kid Kelly Clarkson Makes History - The inaugural Idol is the first person to ever hit #1 with a song with "suck" in the title - also, the largest jump in Hot 100 history (96 spots) and, perhaps most surprisingly, the first Idol to score a second #1. (1/29/09)

Donny Osmond Won't be on DWTS, At Least Not Until Fall - Seems like Mr. Little Bit Rock 'n Roll got caught in a lie! (1/28/09)

More of London From Above, At Night - The Big Picture - It figures the day I go back and post a re-working of one of my London pix, TBP comes out with an amazing set of night pix of London! (1/28/09)

Donny Osmond to Follow in Marie's Dancing Shoes? - Alas the first substantive (if somewhat predictable) casting rumor for the upcoming DWTS season. (1/27/09)

Chinese New Year: Welcoming the Ox - The Big Picture - I've become semi-obsessed with China since our trip to Beijing, so was wow'd by this collection (I even have a very similar - well w/out the Qing Dynasty characters - to photo #21). (1/26/09)

Is This Nadal's "Wardrobe Malfunction?" - Nike hoping to increase clothing sales appears to be the reason behind Nadal's on-court wardrobe change this year... the belief being the "average" person is not going to wear sleeveless shirts and pirate pants. (1/26/09)

The Thrill Of Victory

WARNING:  SPOILER ALERT of Nadal/Verdasco Aussie Open Semifinal Match

(Ok, that takes care of possibly the 2 or 3 people that may care/be potentially affected)

I was (and well, wasn't surprised) to see that the Aussie Open semifinal match between Spaniards Rafael Nadal and Fernando Verdasco was still going on when I checked into the home office this morning.  It was on serve in the 4th set, so while I sometimes go back to bed (particularly this time of the year when it's still not light out) if this is no urgent work (like today), I decided to stay awake and watch the rest of the match... and I am certainly glad I did!

It was a high-quality match to the end... and the longest ever Australian Open match, 5 hours and 14 minutes with #1 ranked Rafa advancing to the final by a score of 6-7, 6-4, 7-6, 6-7, 6-4!

Thanks to this "bringing sexy back" match-up between the two Spaniards, I am getting a ton of search hits thanks to my long-term obsession admiration of Rafa and my more recent stalking appreciation of Fernando.  I had over 400+ hits before 7am, which is what I usually what I pull in on a typical day!

Of course, most folks are looking for them naked (which surprisingly enough I kinda sorta have for both Rafa and Fernando) and shirtless, which I have plenty for Rafa (I point folks to peruse my Rafa category)... but I still be nice and post each player here during a changeover during this match:

I can't really explain the expression on Verdasco's face other than I'm guessing a lot of us have funny expressions when we are pulling a shirt over our head.

When Rafa reached triple-match point (and it would take 3 of them), I awaited his "I gutted it out" post-match celebration.  Rafa is definitely Obsessive Compulsive a creature of habit, so I suspected he would exuberantly tumble onto the court, and he didn't disappoint me... and kudos to the photographers from catching the moment from every conceivable angle!

After sorting through these pictures, I think the only thing that was missing was one from Rafa's perspective!

But as often the case in sports, "the thrill of victory" that I mention in the title is coupled with "the agony of defeat"... and likewise, a commentator will more often than not utter the obvious "it's a shame there has to be a loser."   And while the crowd roared over Rafa's win and celebration, I think this picture of Verdasco captures the solitude, despair, exhaustion on the other side of the net:

Rafa, Donde estan los guns?

I was planning on a book post today (I am currently on my 3rd book of 2009!), but work has intervened... and as I quite smartly entitled part of this blog "whine"... it allows for the occasional rant before getting to the "cheese" portion of this post... begin... my job continues to be a drag on my overall satisfaction / happiness / mental well-being... either due to sudden disappearance shortly after all this economic turmoil began (pre-Thanksgiving??) or else the new reality that what work we are now getting is of the ugly / intense / miserable / head-exploding / no one else wants to do it variety. 

So there I said it!  Out there in the universe!  Perhaps, I can start letting it go... internalizing it... etc!

That said, I am grateful to have a job (even at a 20%+ pay cut for the last 3 months) and health-care insurance, even if it is highway robbery and I never use it (again, thankfully!).   End.

Anyyyyyyhowwwww....

One thing that did make me smile this morning was this sign in the crowd at last night's Aussie Open quarterfinal match between Rafa Nadal and Gilles Simon.

As I mentioned earlier this year (and with some shock and dismay), Rafa has moved away from his on-court sleeveless look (this "express lane" item suggests that Nike is hoping more "normal" folks would buy Rafa clothing if it wasn't the flashy sleeveless and pirate pants look)... so I got a real kick over these signs... the Spanglish... and mostly that it was guys holding up the signs!  Ha!

So yea, while I was enamored with the sleeveless look, I think Rafa is still rockin' the sleeves... what do you think?!

Sleeves? Really?!?

I was trying to remain optimistic that 2009 was going to be a better year than 2008, but here on Day 2 there is already this discouraging sign...

Rafael Nadal is wearing a tennis shirt that has sleeves!!!  WTF?!!

Now before I contact my doctor to see if Zoloft is right for me, I will wait and see if this may just be temporary ensemble.  These pix are from an exhibition in Abu Dhabi, so there is a still a chance that he is waiting to debut his official tennis attire at the Australian Open in a few weeks.  Though I had heard rumblings that the powers-that-be wase pushing for a more mature/"serious" fashion make-over for Rafa now that he is ranked #1 in the world.

But even if this outfit does stick, in the good news department it appears that his shorts are a bit shorter... Rafa showin' us some knee!

Rafa: Best of 2008

I love this time of the year... oh sure, it's the holidays and all, but I really love the year-end "best of" lists.

I was perusing the ATP site looking at their gallery of the best pix from men's tennis in 2008... and I have to agree (and no, there was no public online voting that I was aware of and/or could manipulate) with one of their choices... here's a screen-cap:

This shot of Rafael Nadal is from his first round match at the Beijing Olympics,so I missed out seeing this "celebration" by two matches as we saw his 3rd round match vs. Igor Andreev (I still can't believe we were there!)... of course, Rafa went on to win the Gold Medal.  Vamos!

For plenty more of my posted pix of Rafa, browse my Rafa category!  

Also, here's a link to my Rafa Beijing Olympics pix.

In My Next Life...

... remind me to come back as an ATP trainer

I've been sitting on this picture of Rafael Nadal at the Paris Indoors Master Series event a couple of weeks ago... where Rafa had to pull out of the tournament with a knee injury (tendinitis)... and that looks exactly how I would treat a knee problem!   The bad news for Rafa is that he is also missing the year-end championship (the Master Series Cup) currently underway in Shanghai... the good news, he still finishes the year at the #1 ranking.

Actually, I probably would not want to be an ATP trainer ... since more often than not have the unenviable task of taping feet and treating blisters... which ain't that pretty!   However, if one can major in thigh massage... then I'd certainly reconsider!

Well, that was my first post-election attempt to get back to "normal" stuff here at W&C ... and no better way to do that than a bit of Rafa. 

Otherwise, not too much new here.  Have a bit more work to do this week that the past couple of weeks, but things are still a bit dangerously slow.  Wrapping up my current real/tangible book and now trying to figure out which book is going to the be my first on the Kindle.  

Moon Over Mallorca

I have had quite the moral dilemma since Saturday... my morning check of W&C search hits revealed a search hit for "rafael nadal paparazzi naked butt pictures"...  needless to say that one for one of my favorite tennis players (and regular object of desire here on the blog) piqued my interest, but I didn't give it all that much thought, as a typical day here at W&C brings dozens of search hits for the likes of "rafa naked" "nadal nude" etc, etc.   

But then as the day progressed more and more hits poured in with some combination of "rafa" "paparazzi" in some stage of undress and the Spaniard's famed ass-et (you knew that was coming!)... and I think it was Sunday that I finally stumbled onto the pictures... and sure enough, Rafa was caught by a photographer (with quite the zoom lens) changing out of some swimwear on the deck of a boat.

So yes, I will readily admit I was very happy to see Rafa's butt au natural... it surely did not disappoint... but having watched it for years clad in those pirate pants, I knew it wouldn't... and if I had an ass like that, I would certainly pick at it like Rafa comically and/or compulsively does too!

But (oh, the puns!) when the initial delight wore off, I was conflicted... despite being a public figure, I still view it as a big 'ole invasion of privacy... and the guy should be allowed to change out of some shorts without cameras clicking... particularly when he's not doing it in a public place (granted semi-public, but very likely reasonably private).

Though why he didn't do it below deck or do the whole towel cover-up trick, I am not sure... particularly when he had to know the paps were following him around most of the day (evidence below)... but then again, we have seen time and time again that Spaniard tennis players quite refreshingly don't seem to have much of an issue with nudity... and I'm still looking at you Tommy and Fernando!

So... to post or not to post, that is the question?!   Am I justifying the means for the end -- even if it is an "end" that you can bounce a quarter off of!

Ugh... so I've over-rationalized and have decided to make the pictures "available" here at W&C... and will implicate my dear reader's tolerance/acceptance of the paparazzi/privacy invasion by requiring them to click on the links below to see the pictures (which again, rationalizing big time, are spreading across the Web like the proverbial wildfire anyhow).

But (there I go again) first, some nice beach pictures of Rafa -- allegedly taken during the time period of the 'drop trou' pix... (on a sidenote, only ass-uming -- make me stop! -- that these pix were taken on Rafa's island home of Mallorca, Span... thus the title of the post)....

Ah lovely!   Now that you've had the appetizer, the links to the boat pics are below... and while it's just a butt (and I'm sure I have set expectations way too high by now), I will warn -- depending on your place of business -- these are NSFW (not safe for work).

picture 1

picture 2

picture 3

picture 4

As always, if you want more Rafa... though not quite that particular much of him... I direct you to my past Rafa-related posts for your perusal pleasure.