Deep tennis thoughts
Aug. 28th, 2008 08:30 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
louiseluxFor your listening pleasure: my deep tennis thoughts (download from Box, 3.3mb mp3)
I wanted to write a post about why I am so obsessed with tennis these days, but it seemed too dauting and would be lengthy and complicated and I have a bad head, so I put it in a voice post instead. MP3. Whatever. But oh look, I'm going to write about it anyway.
I think one of the reasons I'm drawn to this fandom is that, to me, Roger and Rafa inhabit a world that is as fantastical and strange as anything: professional sports. They are very different people: Roger Federer is super nice, enjoys shopping for designer outfits, owning jets and has one of the most successful tennis careers ever. Rafa Nadal is a simple boy who still lives with his parents, likes fishing, movies and crushing his opponents without mercy.
They have both made each other cry, in various ways. They are excruciatingly kind and thoughtful to each other in interviews. They have dinner together. They giggle. Rafa Nadal has an apparent mancrush the size of China: Roger is one of his heroes and he's happy to say as much. Rafa is having his best ever year, Roger his worst since he became number one four years ago, and now Rafa is number one instead. Whatever they say about that, there must be some awkwardness and weirdness there.
Oh, it's all so compelling! I don't know how many stories there are to tell though. When![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
emungere and I talk about (constantly) it's hard to come up with story ideas beyond 'oh look! their big gay love'. But I could probably write about that over and over again.
I wanted to write a post about why I am so obsessed with tennis these days, but it seemed too dauting and would be lengthy and complicated and I have a bad head, so I put it in a voice post instead. MP3. Whatever. But oh look, I'm going to write about it anyway.
I think one of the reasons I'm drawn to this fandom is that, to me, Roger and Rafa inhabit a world that is as fantastical and strange as anything: professional sports. They are very different people: Roger Federer is super nice, enjoys shopping for designer outfits, owning jets and has one of the most successful tennis careers ever. Rafa Nadal is a simple boy who still lives with his parents, likes fishing, movies and crushing his opponents without mercy.
They have both made each other cry, in various ways. They are excruciatingly kind and thoughtful to each other in interviews. They have dinner together. They giggle. Rafa Nadal has an apparent mancrush the size of China: Roger is one of his heroes and he's happy to say as much. Rafa is having his best ever year, Roger his worst since he became number one four years ago, and now Rafa is number one instead. Whatever they say about that, there must be some awkwardness and weirdness there.
Oh, it's all so compelling! I don't know how many stories there are to tell though. When
emungere and I talk about (constantly) it's hard to come up with story ideas beyond 'oh look! their big gay love'. But I could probably write about that over and over again.![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2008-09-02 11:09 am (UTC)i think he's gripped with the beauty of roger's tennis because nobody else really plays like him.
His 'exquisite technique', yes. Those pictures of Rafa just staring... That's one of the things I love about how he feels about Roger. He just wants to stare, even while playing. I'm thinking of him saying he gets distracted by Roger's moves even during matches, which is so slashy it kills me.
Roger does have a lot of charisma, and I'm sure Rafa notices. He definitely notices when Roger looks good, like with Roger's cardigan moment.
Oh god the striped shirts and three sizes too big jackets, which Rafa really needs to stop wearing.
And yes, they are both just genuinely nice people, and to me they seem to have a bit of wicked humour going on, which I love so much about them. Roger is just so funny and dry. It's interesting you say Rafa's intensely competitive off court - in things like his football supporting and insane playstation sessions?
no subject
Date: 2008-09-03 08:22 pm (UTC)Any photo, any vid, of Rafa cheering on his teams (Real Madrid, Davis Cup, etc.) or doing PS "Winning Eleven"?
Not to be missed.
Poster Boy for "Brims with Testosterone".
(If it didn't make me blush and dot the face with the handkerchief, I might actually be a little scared.)
If you haven't already heard it, his teammate Tommy Robredo (no slouch himself in the Testosterone Division) says about Rafa when he plays: "If his eyes turn black, watch out."
*heart thumps*
P.S. Sorry to tell you that on "day off from tennis". Perhaps to read this tomorrow. :D