❧❧❧ Whatever you can do or dream, you can BEGIN IT. Boldness has genius, power and magic in it. Goethe ❧❧❧
❧❧❧ You were born whole, not broken. Sandra Hammel ❧❧❧
NBC is airing Roland Garros at 3:00 p.m. USA EST/DST (not live and who knows which match they will air)
Rafael Nadal defeated Lleyton Hewitt Round 3, May 29, 2009 6-1, 6-3, 6-1
Roland Garros Round 4 - Rafa Nadal vs. Robin Soderling Sunday, May 31, 2009
Rafa keeps setting records at Roland Garros' French Open During his round 3 match Rafa set a new record for the most consecutive matches (31) won at Roland Garros
Above photo credit: Yahoo
The French Open At Roland Garros
NBC will be airing Roland Garros Saturday at 1:30 pm USA EST/DST and The Tennis Channel is also airing Roland Garros I can't wait until my cable company finally begins their contract with The Tennis Channel ...apparently after 2009Wimbledon is over
Interview videos at Roland Garros Website Click Interview tab at the top Then on the right choose the player you want Rafa talks about the drug testing - May 29 interview
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~ Rafael Nadal won his Round 2 match May 27, 2009 with Teimuraz Gabashvili 6-1, 6-4, 6-2 and will play Australian Lleyton Hewitt May 29, Friday in Round 3.
One Love to last forever in a heart that suffers quietly
While the fire of love goes on burning for a lifetime
Written by Sandra Hammel ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ..............................................
.............................................. This is my favorite scene in this movie A Trip to Bountiful Click the HQ in the lower right corner to see it with optimum clarity. I am nervous about it being at Youtube, so I may not leave it up long. Uploaded by ilovemylifesblog
'course I didn't lie to my husband. I told him I didn't love him...that I'd admired him...which I did. But I didn't love him.
I'd never love anybody, but Ray John Murray, as long as I lived. And I didn't. And I couldn't help it..." A Trip to Bountiful was written by Horton Foote who passed away March 4, 2009 Mr. Foote's Bio
Geraldine Page was born November 22, 1924 In 1985, she became the first woman to receive seven Oscar nominations for acting without winning the award. She was awarded the Oscar for the eighth nomination for this role March 14, 1986. She died June 13, 1987. At the time of Ms. Page's death she had been ill with kidney disease and high blood pressure.
................................................................ Rafa's answers the press' questions after the round 2 match Uploaded by pennyleevelika
"I am writing [these words] after the Champions League final. All of us staying here have watched it here at the hotel lobby and the first thing I want to do is congratulate all the Barcelona team. What a fantastic team. The closest thing to perfection!!!. And I say this first since it looks like this is the only thing people were really caring today was about the football match. Sure I wanted to watch it, you know I love football and I watch a lot but it was kind of funny to have questions in the press conference about me wanting to change the match today to play earlier," said Rafa on his blog today for Times Online.
Rafael Nadal has suffered just five clay-court losses in five years. As the four-time defending champion returns to Roland Garros, are there lessons to be learned from those defeats? Or is the Spaniard a lock to again go all the way in Paris?
Rafael Nadal is a man accustomed to getting what he wants or, more to the point, taking what he earns. There is nothing he wants more than a record-breaking fifth consecutive title at Roland Garros, where he is one of the hottest favourites in Grand Slam history. As was the case with Pete Sampras and Roger Federer during their dominant runs at Wimbledon, it’s difficult to build a cogent argument detailing how Nadal can be beaten in Paris. But, as history shows, the Sampras and Federer runs did eventually end.
Does anyone have the mental and physical strength required to beat Nadal at Roland Garros this year? Tattooed in players’ consciousness is Nadal’s jaw-dropping clay-court run since 2005: 150 wins and five losses, coming into Paris. Collectively, the victories tell an amazing tale with no shortage of stunning records and statistics. But when debating whether Nadal will be beaten in Paris this year, here is all you need to know: Nadal boasts a perfect 45-0 record in best-of-five-set matches on clay, has only twice been pushed to a fifth set and never at Roland Garros, where he comes into the 2009 event with an unbeaten 28-0 record.
There’s not much comfort in those numbers for players hoping to upset the Spaniard this year. But what about the five losses in five years: Can any lessons be gleaned from Nadal’s defeats? In trying to identify a game plan to beat the Spaniard, it could be argued that other factors had as much, or more, to do with the five losses than did the play or tactics of the winner.
It may sound harsh to deny Roger Federer full credit for his highly-satisfying win over Nadal in the ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Madrid final earlier this month, but as well as the Swiss played, Nadal clearly was not at his best physically after toiling for more than four hours the day before to beat Novak Djokovic in a brutal semi-final. It certainly wasn’t the same Nadal as the one who handed Federer a 6-1, 6-3, 6-0 loss in the 2008 Roland Garros final. Having said that, Federer played very smart, using the elevation in Madrid to his advantage, attacking relentlessly, keeping points short and serving big. “Playing on clay at a different altitude… gives you opportunities to play aggressive,” said Federer, adding that “it’s not so easy to hit passing shots because at times on other surfaces when it´s so slow it´s almost impossible to come to the net [against Nadal].
“We both had trouble controlling the ball, because the points were kept shorter it was better for my game and that’s why I won today. I saw some of those things against Djokovic, that he was struggling in the beginning to control his serve and probably Djokovic should have finished him off in two.”
Perhaps it was Djokovic, who also took a set from Nadal just weeks earlier in Monte-Carlo, who revealed a game plan that could work against the Spaniard, even in Paris, without the benefit of altitude. It worked well enough to earn Djokovic three match points in Madrid before Nadal won 3-6, 7-6(5), 7-6(9).
Taking an opposing view to Andy Murray, who caused Nadal some discomfort in Monte-Carlo with high, bouncy topspin, Djokovic instead worked his way into a winning position by hitting flat and deep, making it harder for the left-hander to run around his backhand. Hitting low and deep also denied Nadal the time and bounce to rip his most vicious topspin forehands. Djokovic also flouted conventional wisdom by hitting wide to the Nadal forehand – a wing most players avoid like the plague. But what’s the point of consistently hitting to Nadal’s backhand? If the rally goes long enough eventually he’ll find a ball to run around and open up the court like a can of peaches.
Willing to hit to the forehand court, Djokovic reduced Nadal’s ability to run around his backhand and unleash his favourite forehand. And well-executed blows wide to the forehand that took Nadal out of court left the backhand court exposed, allowing the Serb to hit clean winners. Taking a different approach to Federer, Djokovic was also willing to hang with Nadal in extended baseline rallies. From the club player to the ATP World Tour pro, when an underdog goes up against a more fancied opponent there is a tendency to play too aggressively in the belief that the only way to win is to take chances on every point. Despite never having beaten Nadal on clay, Djokovic was often willing to dig in from the baseline and not give away free points. Indeed, Nadal threw in 50 unforced errors in the match, including 11 unforced forehand errors in the first set. But don’t expect to see those numbers again anytime soon.
“I’m very disappointed that I can play this well and still not win a match,” Djokovic said. “I think that I’ve played my best tennis on this surface.” Despite pushing Nadal that close, Djokovic was unable to identify what he could have done differently on the match points he held. “If I knew I would probably win,” he quipped in exasperation.
Former Roland Garros champion Gaston Gaudio and Russian Igor Andreev, two of the four players to have recorded clay-court wins over Nadal in the past five years, tell DEUCE that they are doubtful that anyone can beat Nadal at Roland Garros this year.
“On clay Rafa is almost unbeatable,” says Gaudio, who is the only player to have beaten Nadal three times on clay, but not since 2005. “He is in great shape physically. It is hard to predict who could beat him, but I don’t think there is anyone that could do that at the moment. He is pretty much invincible on clay. I don’t really know [how you go about beating him]. He has no weaknesses. You have to attack and hope not to make many mistakes. I beat him when he was not at the top.”
Some leadership by President Obama regarding Sudan and killing off the Darfuris by dehydration, starvation and disease is needed. But, he isn't showing leadership here. Other places, other issues, yes. But not here.
To say that I am disappointed in him, is to put it mildly.
It has to be overwhelming to be President of the United States of America. Especially after Cheney, Rumsfeld. And George W Bush.
However, he was brave and articulate about the Darfuris situation while a U.S. Senator. And now that he could do something and make a difference, he is being...well, certainly not articulate about the situation. Leadership has turned out to be a political choice of using will or not using will for our new President to be relevant on this defining issue.
A sad situation for us who believed President Obama would act on principles and not on what is politically safe, directed. A matter of life and death for the Darfuri families.
.............................................. .............................................. April 30, 2006 Senator Barack Obama speaks boldly and resolutely about the Darfur situation in rally on the mall in Washington, D.C. Links to more speeches at this rally Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Uploaded by liberatormag
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Darfur: the Biggest Test for Obama's Africa Policy?
In an opinion piece in U.S. News and World Report today, William J. Dobson of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace urges the Obama administration to stop dragging its feet on Darfur:
Like it or not, the Obama administration now faces an important test. Foreign policy challenges are typically of the thorniest variety, and in many cases, decisive action is precisely the wrong choice. That isn't the case here. It is vital that the administration recognize the danger of muddling along. More than two months since Bashir decided to victimize his people once again, the administration has yet to respond and the clock is ticking for Darfur.
One of Dobson's major recommendations involves reaching out to key international stakeholders. "In some respects," he writes, "there is less a need to apply pressure on Bashir's regime than to apply pressure everywhere else."
Based on reports today, it seems that the Obama administration may finally be thinking (or at least finally be acting) along the same lines. This week, U.S. Special Envoy to Sudan Scott Gration plans to visit China, Qatar, Britain, and France in an effort to "align positions on the Darfur peace process under the leadership of United Nations-African Union joint chief mediator Djibril Bassole."
Here's to hoping that this signals the beginning of a real, long-term commitment to U.S. leadership on the issue.
....................................................... War - No More Trouble Uploaded byPlayingForChange
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ENDTHEGENOCIDE
"The United States has a moral obligation anytime you see humanitarian catastrophes.. we have the most stake in creating an order in the world that is stable...and when you see a genocide whether it's in Rwanda, or Bosnia or in Darfur - that's a stain on all of us, that's a stain on our souls.... We can't say 'never again' and then allow it to happen again and as President of the United States I don't intend to abandon people or turn a blind eye to slaughter… I was the first along with Senator Brownback to focus on ratcheting up sanctions and getting an envoy in there who was serious. We worked diligently to get the Darfur Peace and Accountability act passed…I think the level of commitment and the way that I’ve spoken out on this issue indicates not only knowledge but also passion in bringing an end to this crisis. It’s very encouraging to see activism based not on self-interest but on moral imperative…We can't say 'never again' and then allow it to happen again and as President of the United States I don't intend to abandon people or turn a blind eye to slaughter.” November 2007 The video is below - Hear Barack Obama say these words.
Leadership based on Barack Obama's own words is yet to happen regarding Darfur. We need a President to show the political will to find ways that result in ending the crimes that define genocide.
Genocide never has happened without the complicity of the rest of the world. And it never happens at a convenient time.
Rafael NADAL defeated Marcos Daniel in Round 1 Monday, May 25, 2009
7-5, 6-4, 6-3
Rafael Nadal plays his Round 2 match Wednesday, May 27, 2009 on Court Suzanne Lenglen. It is scheduled to be the 5th match of the day, however the 2nd match is to finish a match that's score is 6-3, 6-1, 3-6, 5-3.
The first match begins at 11:00 a.m. Paris time. On my sidebar is the time for Spain, which is the same in Paris, France. The USA EST/DST is 6 hours behind Paris time.
................................................................... Photos of Round 1 - Rafa Nadal v Marcos Daniel May 25, 2009, practicing prior to Round 1, Press Conference, Promotional, Babolat Contest, Photo credits to Getty, Matthew Stockman, AFI, Associated Press, DPPI Antone Couvercelle and Art Seitz, Belga, Corbis, Babolat and unknown
Q. This question is not about the game. It's about your dress. You are in pink today. Why you are in pink today?
RAFAEL NADAL: I don't know. Yeah, same like always, why I was white and yellow two weeks ago. Because it's better than dress the same color every week, no?
Q. The start of the game was a bit difficult today. Any reason?
RAFAEL NADAL: No, always tough, you know, beginning here. Roland Garros always is difficult. Yeah. I say, no, I expect a tough match, and it's normal, now. And when I start, normally I didn't start to play my best here the last four years. But the important thing is be with positive mentality and try to win, no? And I win. I won in three sets. That's important.
I played in some moments in the third a little bit better, so just try to keep improving to play better in this match.
Q. Is there a chance that in the third round you could come up againstLleyton Hewitt. You've played each other eight times before, and you've won four each. What do you make of him as a player?
RAFAEL NADAL: What?
Q. Lleyton Hewitt. You could facehim in the third round.
RAFAEL NADAL: I understood. Only the last.
Q. (Through translation.)
RAFAEL NADAL: Well, I'm sure Lleyton is a great champion in this sport. He has very good career. So always is a pleasure to play against him, but right now we are in second round,yeah? Not yet. I have to wait.
Q. Do you feel that the heat change, the condition if compared to last year maybe or two years ago where it was pretty cool here, the condition of play?
RAFAEL NADAL: Yeah, much better, no? I prefer to play with these conditions than raining or cold, no?
So it's much better for us, I think.
Q. Do you feel more confident or less confident than last year when you started Roland Garros?
RAFAEL NADAL: I don't know. I don't know. Important feelingis
Q. There is no difference?
RAFAEL NADAL: Every year is different, no? But I never compare, two years, so I don't know.
THE MODERATOR: Spanish questions.
Q. Yesterday you were telling us you're a bit nervous, anxious. Was it the way you felt today when you walked on the court?
RAFAEL NADAL: No, not really. Maybe at the beginning to start with. The court is big, and at the beginning, I didn't quite get the best feelings, but I won in three sets. That's very positive. I should have won more easily, but at 54,when I had to serve, then I had to serve again sometimes I missed some opportunities to win the set earlier, but it was a difficult match.
I had practiced well before, but I know that I can improve, and I hope I'm going to continue improving for my next match.
Q. My question is not about your game but about Fabrice Santoro. He's playing his 20th tournament here. What do you think about him, about his careeron the tour?
RAFAEL NADAL: Well, he is a legend on the tour. He plays with his very own personal style. Two hands. He was a very charismatic player on the tour,and he's a model for all of us. 20years, long career. That's fantastic. We all wish we can play for20 years.
So he had a beautiful career, and he really deserves a tribute.
Q. What can you tell us about the way Marcos Daniel plays after your game?
RAFAEL NADAL: Well, I don't know. His backhand is better than his forehand, but I think I made it a bit easy for him. That's my opinion.
RAFAEL NADAL: Oh, comparing again. Well, physically, I feel well, I don't want to compare with last year, because I can't remember. That was a year ago, you know.
But I feel good, and last year, I played a match well, I didn't play well, really, and little by little I felt better. This year well, it's not a very good start. I'm not going to say it's positive. I would have preferred to start with a very positive start, but I hope this tournament is going to be long enough for me to give me time to adapt and to improve and get good feelings all along the tournament.
Q. About the fact you didn't play that well, are there any compartments in the game where you felt you were not at your best?
RAFAEL NADAL: Well, my leg game was not that good. I didn't play well with my legs. But, you know, in sports it's in a tenth of a second you have to catch the ball and everything can change in a game. You need to be present there, on time. If you play well, you have the feeling you'll be on top of the next ball, but today I was a bit short in my shots. I was not very precise. It wasn't neat and clear during this match,so this is what I need to improve.
I need to play more I need my shots to be longer, and I do need to improve on that.
Q. You played at the hottest hour of the day. Now, for the upcoming matches, what would you prefer? Would you prefer to play at a different hour because of the heat? Isit affecting you?
RAFAELNADAL: No, I have no problem with that. I can play at any hour, and this is perfectly bearable temperature.
Photo credit: Associated Press
Photo credit: CBS Sportsline
Photo credit: CBS Sportsline
Photo credit: CBS Sportsline
Photo credit: CBS Sportsline
Photo credit: CBS Sportsline
Photo credit: CBS Sportsline
PHOTO CONTEST by Babolat"My Tennis Wins with Babolat" From May 24 to July 15, 2009 Take a picture of yourself biting your tennis racket and email it to mordstaraquette@babolat.com
UNICEF is working around the clock to meet the needs of children following the suspension of 16 non-governmental organizations (NGOs) by the Government of Sudan. The biggest impact will be in Darfur, where an estimated 2.7 million people--half of them children--have been displaced from their homes and where the suspended NGOs were key partners in the provision of lifesaving services.
You can help by using this form to make a secure, tax-deductible donation to the U.S. Fund for UNICEF, supporting UNICEF's efforts in Sudan. $50, $100, $250, $500 or any amount you can give will make a difference.
If you prefer, print a form to send your donation by mail or call 1.800.FOR.KIDS (1.800.367.5437) to donate by phone.
In this 30-minute podcast I ask former UN Special Representative to the Secretary General for Sudan, Jan Pronk, questions that you submitted through the website, plus a few follow-up questions of my own. (My apologies for the poor sound quality at the beginning of the interview - it gets better once Pronk starts speaking at about 1.15 minutes in.)
Until you get time to listen, here are the questions we covered and some select highlights:
What do you think accounts for the drop in violent deaths that the CRED report suggested took place after April 2004?
Pronk explains different phases of the crisis and the improvements that came once the Security Council started addressing it, humanitarians got in there etc. But he also notes that one reason for the drop is that by the time he arrived in Sudan in “people had been killed already . . . there weren’t too many more people left to be killed.”
When I re-stated something he had referred to as an “improvement” in the statistics in camps once there was humanitarian access, he was very quick to pull me up on the use of the word “improvement” and to make clear that it was more accurate to call it a “new situation” that was partly due to humanitarian access, but also partly because “so many had been killed already” and that “to a certain extent the Government, together with the Janjaweed, had gotten what they wanted . . . they had wanted to empty that part of the country in order to make it available for themselves . . .”
Pronk made reference to R2P and also talked about how people within the UN system asked members of the Security Council about Darfur, but that throughout 2003 “they continuously refused to put it [Darfur] on the agenda of the Security Council . . .”
I asked who was blocking it and why. He said the requests were directed at the U.S. and U.K. - and that “later on we understood that they were afraid to make life too difficult for the government in Khartoum which was involved in a peace negotiation with SPLM/SPLA in southern Sudan . . . I understand it as a [sic] reasoning; I think it’s wrong reasoning . . .”
What can the Obama Administration can do to assist UNAMID?
His reply started with: “UNAMID is in disarray.”
He said UNAMID needs to get up to the authorized troop level and be given the equipment - in particular military helicopters - that it needs, and has been promised. “It is as if the international community thinks ‘they are only Africans’ . . ” he said.
In terms of what the Obama Administration can do to change this:
1. Get the force up to standard in terms of size and resources
2. Implement sanctions “to make life difficult for those who are responsible for the policies in Darfur”. Until this happens they can continue to make it difficult for whatever UNAMID contingent is there to operate effectively.
3. Demand that the Government of South Sudan starts to step up and take responsibility for Darfur now that they are part of the Government of National Unity.
Regarding the first point, I asked what Western countries can do to increase troop numbers to the authorized level when the GOS won’t let Western troops into Darfur. He said that there needs to be political pressure on, in particular, Asian countries - Bangledesh, Nepal - to increase numbers. But he also had a novel idea (which you should listen to properly rather than just rely on this brief summary) about getting GOS consent to re-deploy the (primarily non-Western) troops from UNMIS in South Sudan to UNAMID in Darfur. Then Western troops could be deployed to UNMIS to replace them, since the GOS “does not have the right to question the composition of UNMIS in the South.”
On the third point, I questioned whether the GOSS has the leverage to push on Darfur given their fear about the future of the CPA. You can listen to his answer, but in short, he acknowledges they are in a difficult position but thinks they have more leverage than they realize.
How many military helicopters are needed?
They only have four and they need “some dozens . . . it is outrageous that they have not been made available - as if there are no [military] helicopters in the world.”
Why, after almost 3 months, have the agencies that were expelled not been re-admitted. What can and should governments do to change this?
He talked about needing a strong and, most important, unified response. “The fact that the United Nations has divided the U.N. presence into two missions is of course not helpful. The Government of Sudan always tries to divide and rule. . . The U.N. has weakened itself. It was [a] stupid decision, asking the people of Sudan to stay together and then to make yourself into two missions in that specific country. I never understood the political wisdom of that decision . . .”
What do you see as the prospect for a united Sudan?
You need to guarantee:
1. Peace in the South
2. Peace in Darfur
3. Development
4. Guarantees of fundamental rights (He commented: “In the period I was there, I really had the impression that they (the Government of South Sudan) were doing good things . . . they really did a good job in the first two years. . “)
“If these four conditions . . . would be met, there’s a chance for unity. If these conditions would not be met, I bet the people in the South would vote for independence. . . .”
On Friday, a small group of Sudanese immigrants gathered in front of the White House to express their disappointment in Obama for not being active enough on Darfur from the outset of his presidency.
“I voted for him,” said protestor William Deng, of the Southern Sudan Project. “And I did it because I knew he was going to do something about Darfur. But now he’s silent, he’s never done anything. And I feel, I regret that he doesn’t do anything about our issues.”
Dozens of US activists and members of the Sudanese diaspora marched in front of the White House on Friday just days before two members of the US Senate arrived in Khartoum to meet with top aides of President Omer Al-Bashir.
Protestors held signs saying “Save Lives Now”, “El Bashir & NCP to ICC”, “Restore Aid Now,” and “End the Genocide.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Write to President Obama http://www.whitehouse.gov/contact/ Tell him we need his leadership for the short and long run on the issue of genocide and the 6 year old genocide on the unarmed Darfuri civilians, families.
President Obama can be called: 202-456-1111 or 1-800-GENOCIDE
I love my life. I love where I live. And I am passionate about my passions. I love to dance. Necessary to live: music, piano, singing, writing, acting, painting.
I have been fighting for and supporting the arts all my adult life. Since 2004, I have been working with other activists to end the Darfur genocide.
I have traveled to Europe many times since my early twenties. Places I have been: many USA states including Hawaii, Montreal, Canada, Barbados, France, Spain, Luxembourg, England, Austria, Switzerland, Italy, Greece and Germany - and have wonderful memories.
My last trip was in May - June 2013 to Spain.
I would like to travel to Europe and Kyoto, Japan.
I love the southwest where I have visited Hopi, Navajo, Zia and San Idlefonso potters.
Life is exciting and I intend to live it full-out to the end.
B.S. and M.M., both in music
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Khartoum, Sudan Stop Genocide Time
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Spain Time
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Melbourne Time
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Hawaii Time
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RAFA NADAL -BRING BACK LONG PANTS - SLEEVELESS TOPS
Double Click on Videos to Enlarge
Darfur - The Abandoned Genocide - a video by Sandra Hammel
Want to help? Call 1~800~GENOCIDE
"May I Suggest" by Susan Werner
Satchita - Playing for Change
Stand By Me ~ Playing for Change
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Genocide is not only a word,
it is crying of the whole human race.
There is nothing redeeming about being silent
when speaking up is the humane thing to do.
The honor and integrity of the human race is at stake.
Rafa Nadal in Round 3 ~ Roland Garros - May 29
Rafa Nadal in Round 3 ~ Roland Garros - May 29
Rafa Nadal ~ Roland Garros
Rafa Nadal in Round 3 ~ Roland Garros - May 29
Rafa Nadal in Round 3 ~ Roland Garros - May 29
Rafa Nadal in Round 3 ~ Roland Garros - May 29
Rafa in Round 3 ~ Roland Garros - May 29
