kings of leon genealogy

i found this letter walking the streets of nashville. it was folded up in a little square, with hearts and arrows all over it in a purple ballpoint. pretty crazy!


dear stevey,

thank you for everything you have done for me and my career.
i love your voice and i spend much of my time emulating its edgy and screechy nature.
and so far, it's working quite well.
i can only hope to age as gracefully as you have.

love,
caleb

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roddick and verdasco at the rogers cup

The Rogers Masters is happening now in Montreal, and today's match between Verdasco and Roddick was pretty heated. A two hour and 36 minute match, it finished 7-6 R 4-6 Verdasco and in a tiebreaker with Roddick taking it 7-5.
Verdasco was leading at 5-5 in the third set, but he gave up three points with two really unforced errors. You could see the defeat and exasperation in his body language, and I can't tell if that's something I hate or love to see as an audience member. On one hand, it makes me almost embarrased for the player. But that actually kind of draws me in to feeling for that player.

At 40-40 in the third set, Roddick's 6 games to Verdasco's 5, Roddick unwrapped a new racquet. He then proceeded to volley safely with Verdasco for several minutes until Verdasco hit a killer cross court shot as Roddick lunged toward the net. Roddick missed the AD serve and Verdasco returned his second with a furious deep court shot.
During the tiebreak game, Verdasco hit forehand after glorious forehand, at one point forcing Roddick to throw his newly unwrapped racquet in the air. Moon shot by Roddick. A bounce off the tape by Verdasco. 3-3. A solid serve and aggresive back court hit by Roddick. Net by Roddick. 4-4. Beautiful line shot by Verdasco. Ugly long shot by Verdasco. 5-5. Poor return by Verdasco. 6-5 matchpoint Roddick. Fault followed by a long volley until Verdasco hits it OUT. Roddick wins. Lifts his shirt to show off a relatively undefined paunch. Maybe Andy needs to lay off the prosciutto a little bit.

Watching players like Roddick and Verdasco, who are ranked 5 and 10 respectively, really makes you respect the top players in the world: Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and the Williams sisters. Their game is substantially more graceful and error-free than even their fellow top tenners. It's the difference between any merely great talent and a true genius, born with physical and mental advantages that coincide so rarely with a nurturing environment.

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