A not so happy ending.

It's because I forgot to eat my banana.

There's no other explanation.

I can't remember the last time something has gnawed at my mind so relentlessly. Why did I lose? How? I was so close I could practically feel myself pulling on the 100% cotton, size M. I had three match points - three chances to seal the victory and go down in the history books as champion! ...champion of a lower division intramurals tennis tournament in Provo, Fall semester '09.

wow. blogging really can be therapeutic. I think when the writing gears started churning in my mind, whatever was gnawing at my cerebellum took a cog to the face. Here I was, about to rant about how frustrated I have been all night and will be for the rest of eternity. But when I began to describe the tournament I just lost, I think I finally realized how much it doesn't matter. Suddenly I'm not so upset. I mean, there are like seven division champions every semester of every year, right? I'll get 'em next time, right?

Man, who I am kidding. I'm still way frustrated. I hate losing. And I really wanted that shirt. If the kid beat me outright, I'd take the loss a little easier. But to lose the championship in a tiebreak after beating the same guy 8-0 just an hour earlier? To line up an easy passing shot while up match point only to dump it into the net?

Maybe I will be frustrated for the rest of eternity. And yes, the gnaw monster just came back with a vengeance.

So this is where the banana comes in. I needed an excuse - some sort of scapegoat for my demoralizing loss. I could of course blame my backhand as I so often do, but it was suprisingly above average on the night. My serve may be suspect at times, but I actually came up with some big ones when it mattered most. Something just was not right with me during that second set, and after stewing over this for hours I still couldn't pinpoint the problem. That is, until I found the uneaten banana in my backpack.

Confident I'd win my first match, I had packed a beautiful yellow banana to eat before my second. As everybody knows, bananas are the most nutritious fruit, they're packed with energy, and they won't make you cramp up. It was my secret weapon, my sure-fire energy boost to pull me victorious through round two. I would have been a shoo-in for the championship, except I forgot to eat my banana.

So I ate it tonight with a bowl of Captain Crunch while watching Ratatouille on the Disney Channel. At least those rats got to have a happy ending.