Surgery

Surgery for my sinuses went well. Pretty congested today and will be for a few days.

Personal Assistants

Who knew there was a group called the Association of Celebrity Personal Assistants, also known as, ACPA? My first reaction was, "what for?" but after going to a meeting yesterday (no I've not taken on a new job) it was cool to see what exactly goes on in the lives of these professionals. I attended the meeting, poolside at the Luxe Hotel on Sunset no less, to help my boss promote our tennis company. Everyone was quite hush-hush about who they worked for but a few names were dropped and insight was provided as to what it takes to be a personal assistant. The main purpose of their monthly meetings is to bounce ideas around about ways to make life easier when dealing with celebrity-related issues. For example, which restaurants do the best job of keeping paparazzi away? Is there a company that can help us with lavish party planning? It's also an opportunity to tell and compare stories. Now why was Ojakian Tennis asked to attend? We offer (and currently give) lessons to celebrities and high rollers, so this group of personal assistants to celebrities and high rollers was exactly our market. The planning and errand-running were just part of it and hopefully we added 'tennis lesson scheduler' to their list of tasks!

Another day at the Office...I mean Panera

I'm sitting at a Panera in Marina del Rey with my computer, paperwork and a few books. It's time to start the off-court work to increase the on-court. Since we just opened the Ritz-Carlton to tennis lessons, we now have to get the word out. Easier said than done I'm finding. I can't wait until our classes are jam-packed and there's a waiting list to get in them, but to be honest, I'm enjoying the process of looking for clients. I find business to be really intriguing and I'm having fun thinking from a business point of view. It's a challenge to find new ways to market and continually reassess the product and make it better, but I'm having fun with it. In fact, I like the challenge. My main focus right now is the kids program. Hopefully my experience in teaching in Georgia will help me out! I'm currently putting together proposals to give to principals at private schools in the area. We've met with local parents and are looking for ways to partner with schools and bring tennis to kids in the area. I'm confident we'll have a full junior program up and running by Christmas. Hopefully we'll be hiring by next summer and I have a few people in mind!

Oh those Allergies

If you knew me in Atlanta (or saw me at all the last three years) you probably couldn't find me without Kleenex in hand. I was severely allergic to something down there in Georgia and being in a constant state of allergic reaction triggered polyps to develop throughout my sinuses. To break it down, I became severely stuffed up. Anyway, this stuff doesn't just go away and I've decided to have surgery before the end of the month. Not looking forward to the surgery but for sure looking forward to feeling better!

On a more fun note, I met Tracy Austin yesterday! She co-chairs the celebrity Pro-Am tennis tournament that Ojakian Tennis hosts in November.

Shout out to Trip Elementary- first week is almost done!

Back from the East Coast

Hey everyone! It's been a while since I last wrote. I travelled east to go to a couple weddings and to make a trip back home to Toronto but I'm now back in Hermosa!

Two friends from Ohio State got married the last few weeks. The first wedding was in New Jersey for a college tennis teammate of mine, Sadhaf Pervez. Her family is from Pakistan so it was really cool to see how her wedding weekend was celebrated! See my facebook page for pictures! I went to Toronto for just a few days in between weddings but it was plenty of time to see family and some friends. The next wedding was in Cleveland for my sophomore year college roommate and Ohio State soccer player, Jen Heaney. Both weddings were a ton of fun and let's just say I am looking forward to catching up on some sleep this coming weekend.

Before I left, we (Ojakian Tennis) shot a fitness segment for ABC and it finally aired! Here's the link:

http://abclocal.go.com/kabc/video?id=7603782&syndicate=syndicate§ion

It was a great few weeks seeing everyone! Please come visit!!!!