Cory's Blog

Ah yes, getting back to school. I have spoken of the hospitality of the fine folks such as myself who were at the service of the incoming freshman, breaking our backs and our Saturday plans mind you, to help them get settled, moved in, and feel welcome. There was the convocation, the first year reading experience, and several other back to school events that made students from freshman to even fourth year pharmacy students feel welcome and happy to be back here at Carolina. However, I think there were a few people who didn’t get the “welcome back” memo.

Don’t get me wrong. These are some pretty good people (don’t you just love those descriptive adjectives!) that I speak of, but for some reason they didn’t make me feel very welcome at all. I suppose I should just go ahead and put this little blog into some context that you have a chance of actually understanding.

Let us travel back to last spring. The year was 2008. The month was March/April”ish”. It was my third year of college, and I was taking advantage of the fantastic intramural program we have here. I was doing my best to make the trip up the racquetball “ladder”. My athletic journey was going well. So well in fact that I was in the semifinals of the racquetball ladder where I was pitted against Stoyan, a graduate student from Bulgaria. He stood between myself and the finals, and I was not going to yield. After a couple of quick sets, I was the winner and in the finals!

Waiting for me there was my friend Charlie, who had taken the sport a mere year before in the spring of 2007. Seeing him in the finals just a year after beginning playing showed he obviously came a long way from when we first started playing. So far in fact that he beat me in the finals…but that’s just boring details. That’s the past and who wants to dredge that up.

Back to this week when I met Charlie and Stoyan for my “rude welcome back.” I had not had the chance to play any racquetball since I left Arizona back in the beginning of June, and despite continuing to work out over the summer, I was definitely NOT in racquetball shape. Any doubts I may have had were quickly erased by a 15-3 thrashing at the hands of good ol’ Charlie. He had me running all over the court, and by the time I was done, I was actually a little embarrassed and very happy to be over with our first match.

Perhaps Stoyan, the one who I had actually BEAT in the playoffs would be an easier match. He asked how my first match with Charlie had gone, to which I replied, “He embarrassed me.” Stoyan simply said, “I’d like to do the same.” I think a little revenge was on his mind. Anyways, he got his “revenge” to the tune of a 15-4 shellacking at my expense. By the end of the matches, I was tired, sore, and downright frustrated at the prospect of a semester of racquetball like this!

Not to worry though sports fans! After my short walk back across the Assembly Street bridge to my apartment, I realized that they had been playing all summer while I had had no practice until a couple of days prior to our matches. I also looked back and realized the kind of player I know I am when I am in “shape.” So, I think I will take it a match at a time, remain calm, and maybe work in a lot of extra practice when I can! Until next time, I will try and get a little bit nicer welcome from the other people I haven’t seen all summer. Take care!