Happy New Year, dear reader! If you’re in the Southern Hemisphere, I hope you’re having a sunny summer.
This will be a shortish Scroll, tapped out by thumb on my phone, because unfortunately my laptop was burgled a few nights back. More on that in a bit. Firstly…
Anyone for Tennis?
The big event for January here in Melbourne is the Australian Open. I’m researching the 1880s heyday of Melbourne, and I wondered — did Australians play tennis then? Yes, they did. On tennis courts, lawns, paddocks, and even on board ship. What’s more, it was played by women too, and in mixed games. Which may help explain why it became so popular.
Before Britain colonised half the world, Henry VIII used to enjoy a hit of (something like) tennis at Hampton Court. But it wasn’t until 1877 that the All England Croquet Club decided to spare a lawn for a tennis match or two. The croquet club, in the town of Wimbledon, soon became a tennis club instead.
In Australia, Melbourne Cricket Club (MCC) opened a court in 1878. Tournaments between the Australian colonies were played from 1884 onwards. The ‘plucky games’ ‘of a first class character’ were given columns of press coverage in the local newspapers.
After we became a nation, the first Australasian Championship was held in 1905. In this forerunner of the Open, both men and women played, singles and doubles. As far as I’ve read, tennis was then the only competitive sport in which women got a go, although female tennis matches still got less press coverage. Running, rowing, horse racing and football were exclusively male.
In that first Australasian comp, Dr Curtin from South Australia was winning the mens finals in the first set. But then:
The young MCC player… bringing off his right hand ground shot with great accuracy, soon had Curtin in trouble, and gradually wearing him down, he won a very popular victory 6-4, 6-3, 6-4.
Everyone likes a local, then and now. Today’s tennis stars are the centre of even more attention, but at least they’re hampered with a lot less clothing.
Burglary Lessons
Returning to the present, last Wednesday night in the small hours someone entered our backyard and took my laptop from my cabin. My fault for leaving it unlocked. I wasn’t expecting ill-intentioned strangers lurking in the botanical peace of my favourite haven. I’ve learnt a few things from this.
Lesson 1: Bad stuff can happen in beautiful places. If the Garden of Eden wasn’t exempt, so to speak, nowhere is.
It’s a horrible feeling, like a hole in your middle, as you realise that all your files have been, or soon will be, wiped. However, it appears that because of my Microsoft subscription, I still have them all up there in the cloud. I just need to work out how to pull them back down.
Lesson 2: Even monolithic, overcharging monopolies can provide valuable services, bless them! Always backup your work.
I now need a new laptop, obviously. The old one was covered by insurance, and our insurance company approved the claim without quibbling. Also, because the exact old model wasn’t available, they decided to upgrade me to the next line up, at double the price! Even after paying the excess, I am going to be better off.
Lesson 3: Good, amazingly, can come out of bad.
The outcome could have been a lot, lot worse, and I’m grateful.
So whatever the new year has brought you, may your setbacks turn into blessings in disguise. :)
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