TIME TO VOTE!

From Fibaeurope.com:

FIBA Europe announces the opening of the public voting for the EuroLeague Women All-Star Game 2010, to take place on 9th March in Gdynia, Poland.

Taking place on the day after International Women's Day, the All-Star Game 2010 will feature a match-up between Europe and The Rest of the World with fans selecting the starting five for each team.

Public voting starts TODAY and ends on January 31st, 2010.
You can vote once per day.

To support me and my dream to become a European AllStar one day, please vote.

Here's the link:
VOTE FOR LINDA

WE DID IT!!

WE DID IT... Good Angels 72 - 61 Rivas Ecopolis

CHRISTMAS COUNTDOWN/PRESENT

On Wednesday, December 16, 2009 at 6pm the Dobri Angel will take on Rivas Ecopolis in a Euroleague matchup.

For me personally the game against Rivas was my first one this year for the Good Angels of Kosice and is ironically also the last one of the year. On Thursday after the game I will take off to start my Christmas vacation -- quite early this season, but my husband and I definitely don't mind a "sooner than usual" get-together. I had left the States in the middle of September, and because I switched teams in the November, he wasn't able to visit me. (He usually doesn't visit me over here before after Christmas anyways- so it's actually nothing out of the ordinary!)

My contract with the Good Angels officially runs out on Thursday and I am now eager to see what the future holds. My heart is definitely still in this lovely city of Kosice- and I hope for some GOOD(x2) ANGELS NEWS... get it?

Alright, so I want to wish my team and myself to be the "Davids" tomorrow.... what do I mean by that???? Well, Rivas is the Goliath of our group right now, not having lost a game yet...

Until next time,
LINDA

3000

Who will be visitor #3000??????
Let me know who you are :)
Thaaaaanks,
Linda

THE COUNTDOWN

Today I want to introduce you to a unique word from the PBV, the Pro-Basketball Vocabulary and its special meaning to us.

It is usually used by players who play "overseas" (from the perspective of a US citizen), but is not limited to a certain country or nationality.

The word for today is: "COUNTDOWN".

In our circles this word is direct and to the point. There's no further description needed. The question "Countdown FOR WHAT?" does not exist.

Depending on the time of the year, EVERYONE knows what "THE COUNTDOWN" is referring to... no questions asked. There are two main options:

1. Countdown till Christmas break
2. Countdown till the end of the season

The first one is a given, usually clearly defined by the league's game schedule.
The second one can get a little tricky due to the 'do-or-die' competition system of the Playoffs. With time players develop a good feel for ranking their team's final standing early on in the second part of the season though, and are able to calculate a pretty accurate "final day", which will then be accepted as an official countdown's reference point.

Theoretically there's also a third option, the so-called "Countdown till the beginning of season/training camp". This one however is a taboo amongst most players.

It requires extreme courage to openly admit to this last option, because it's an immediate sign to others that you "don't have a life" in your own hometown... (*kinda like blogging about this today shows that I don't have one either)

Apart from the ridicule, most often players who publicly choose option #3 are frowned upon by others and run a high risk of being ostracized for a minimum of the countdown's duration, which may result in i.e. temporary blocking on facebook). The extend of the ramifications merely depends on the athlete's level of audacity though, which is being measured by the actual length of their countdown.

By blocking "option 3"-players from an online friends' list for good, the athlete ultimately protects him/herself from getting depressed too early during the summer time, and helps them to stay focused on enjoying their time at home.

One sore spot the word "Countdown" has, is its unclear definition of the "final day". Here are the three different options:

• departure day
• day/hour you arrive in your hometown
• last day of competition.

This can easily become a point of conflict in everyday conversations, and can lead to false hope.
The more mature and experienced a player gets though, the earlier he/she will "nip this in the bud" and clear things up. Preferably right after a player's arrival to the new team and after mingling with his/her new teammates.

Depending on certain factors the measurement units for the Countdown can vary. The units range from "weeks" to "days", from "games" to "practices", or even "hours" to "minutes". Whereas the latter is considered to be one of the most severe cases, and could be equated with "depression".

Factors that can influence the "The Countdown" are:

• personal stress level
• homesickness
• teammates
• internet connectivity in your apartment
• coaching
• the residing countries' cuisine
• weather
• city life
• win-loss ratio
• body aches
• getting sick of wearing the same clothes

Athlete's nowadays tend to have different outlets for their countdowns:

• announcement of public website, i.e. Facebook, myspace, twitter, bloggers
• actual hardboard calendar in the athlete's apartment, where each day gets crossed off
• Blackberry weekly reminders (*what now? nobody else is doing that, or what?)

Personally, I dislike countdowns as they are equivalent to "wishing your life away"... I prefer to seize every moment of the day and enjoy the life God has given me to the fullest.

However, "THE COUNTDOWN" comes with the territory.
The question every player has to ask themselves is, "Will you let the Countdown dominate your life?"

I must say that I've been blessed this last month with great teammates and an awesome situation, which makes my stay here in Kosice (away from my husband, family and friends) a lot easier, but like Dorothy said a long time ago "THERE'S NO PLACE LIKE HOME".

10 MOVIES I LIKE

I just back from a little hang out with my teammates, and we watched a movie, which gave me the blog idea to share some of my favorite movies with you today.

This list is off the top of my head, so the order and genres will be somewhat random. I am going to make sure to designate another blog to this topic in the future, after having done a little bit more research, because I already know that there are going to be a lot of deserving movies missing on this list.

1.) The Proposal:
I am going to start off with this movie, because it's the one I saw this evening... Today was actually the second time I've seen it and I must say that it's just an overall cute movie. I believe enjoyable for women AND men. It's romantic, funny and surprisingly creative. Two thumbs up!

2.) Love & Basketball:
Monica: "I Play You".
Quincy: "Whaat?"
Monica: "One Game, One-On-One"
Quincy: "For what?"
Monica: "YOUR HEART"

What else is there to say!

A must-see. A classic. Every baller's dream.




3.) The Best Man:
A lot of good looking actors and an explosive plot... I also love the soundtrack.
Here are two songs:
Ginuwine,Case,Tyrese & R.L "Best Man I can be"

Eric Benet "Poetry Girl"


4.) Man On Fire:
This is the movie I fell in love with Denzel Washington. I wasn't a big fan before then at all and couldn't understand the buzz. But "Creasy" earned him the way to my heart. I know Denzel must care a lot about that ;)

5.) Dumb & Dumber:
Classic!! That's all I can say. So many funny parts, I can't even list them all.

6.) Kings of Comedy:
Might be a shocker to some of you, not to others.... lol... but this movie, which is more a standup comedy, had me ROFLing. I was laughing hysterically. Of course, I wish they would have gone a little easier on the cursing, but overall, just great jokes!! R.I.P. Bernie Mac.

7.) Seven Pounds:
Since I've been a teenager I've been a fan of Will Smith... starting with him starring as the Fresh Prince of Bel Air... today he's still going strong and still one of my favorites.... in this movie I just loved the story line, the acting and the twist at the end of it.

8.) Bad Boys:
Must have watched this one a gazillons times on VHS back in the days. I just loved the action , the jokes, and Will Smith with his shirt off... lol... (*sorry Hubby... I was young and naive... (and single!!!) back then! Nowadays I don't look at these things anymore.... hehe*)

9.) Fire Proof:
It's a movie about a struggling marriage, that gets stirred up by a so-called "Love Dare" Principle. It's a movie that makes you think and hopefully act, too. I love it!
You can watch the whole movie on this youtube link. Enjoy!




10.) Titanic:
I mean, this is my first public Top 10 Movie List, and I would be a traitor if I didn't add this movie on here. It has made me cry 10 times and deserves some credit. I remember the first time I watched it: because I had been so busy with basketball and school, and all of my friends had seen it already, I ended up going by myself - (which BTW, I don't mind at all)... that was the first time I cried... and then the other 9 times were at UNLV where they re-ran the movie on the campus channel for a while... and I cried EVERY SINGLE time when that boat sank... I don't know what I was thinking... I guess that each time I hoped again that they would somehow make it and that my dearest Jack wouldn't have to "let go"... but we all know the ending of this one.

11.) The Notebook:
Alright,I just had to add a number 11, because it is a must... this is actually one of my all-time favorites!
I won't say much more, but if you haven't seen it yet, YOU MUST SEE IT!!!!!!!!

INTERVIEW WITH USK PRAGUE MEDIA BEFORE EUROLEAGUE GAME IN KOSICE

Check it out at, starting at 15:16mins

http://www.ceskatelevize.cz/ivysilani/209471290340033-basketmanie/

BRNO vs. SPARTAK MOSCOW

Well sometimes it pays off to have a mother who speaks Russian and who loves to browse through the internet.

Click on on the photo for the website, and scroll down to click on the link for our game on October 28th.
It should say "Евролига. Женщины. "Спартак" (МО) - "Брно" (Чехия)"

It was my first Euroleague with Brno this season, when we played in Moscow against last year's champion.
It was also going to be my second to last with Brno as well. I've changed teams after the second game.
I am a "Good Angel" now here in Kosice.

Well, Enjoy!

HOW FUNNY

I am here in Kosice now, and I just found out that one of my teammates, her name is Luisa, and me go waaaaaaaay back.

It is so funny, because in 1994 when I was playing for the German Junior Nationalteam, we participated in the European Championships in Zilina and Luisa, who is five years younger than me, was there, too....

Can you see her? (Sorry, the quality of the photo is really bad!)

Well, she is the mascot on the right... a little squirrel!! And now we are teammates!! HOW TIMES CHANGE!!!

The moral of the story: BE NICE TO SQUIRRELS, you never know if one day you will rely on their passes ;)

On that note, GOOD LUCK to us tomorrow, in our homegame in the Euroleague against USK Prague (a familiar team to me... haha)

THE WORD OF TODAY: TIME- MAKE THE MOST OF IT!

Hi, I just read this devotional by Bob Gass and wanted to share it with you.

“Teach us to number our days.” Psalms 90:12

TIME. MAKE THE MOST OF IT!

Our days are like identical suitcases, but some people pack more into them than others. That’s because they know what to pack. Everybody gets twenty-four hours, but not everybody gets the same return on their twenty-four hours. The truth is, you don’t manage your time, you manage your life. Time cannot be controlled; it marches on no matter what you do. Nobody--no matter how shrewd-- can save minutes from one day to spend in another. No scientist is capable of creating new minutes. With all his wealth, Warren Buffett can’t buy additional hours for his day. People talk about trying to “find time,” but they need to quit looking; there isn’t any extra lying around. Twenty-four hours is the best any of us is going to get. Wise people understand that time is their most precious commodity. As a result, they know where their time goes. They continually analyze how they are using their time and ask themselves, “Am I getting the best use out of my time?” In his book What To Do Between Birth and Death: The Art of Growing Up, Charles Spezzano writes: “You don’t really pay for things with money, you pay for them with time. We say, ‘In five years, I’ll have enough money put away for that vacation house we want. Then I’ll slow down.’ That means the house will cost you five years-- one-twelfth-- of your adult life. Translate the dollar value of the house, car, or anything else into time, and then see if it’s still worth it.”

5 COUNTRIES IN 6 DAYS

Greets from Kosice, Slovakia.

Since last week my life has changed a little bit, well, better, MY CIRCUMSTANCES have changed.


Over a month ago I had asked for my release from Brno (for several reasons) and last Friday the president finally agreed to let me go.

Today it's exactly been one week ago since I had my last practice with my "Brno Holki"... I really miss all the girls a lot, and I hated to leave them... but I had to do what was best for my basketball career. Sometimes it's not easy to deal with basketball as a job. You go to be with a team, prepare with them and expect the best, try to adjust and fit in, and in the time being everybody becomes more or less your family, but sometimes things don't work out, and when that happens things might get tough and confusing.

I feel though that I made the right decision and I am very happy now to be here in Kosice. For now I have a contract here till Christmas. I played on this team last year, so the transition has not been too hard. The location and ownership is the same, but the team has changed some: all the "foreigners" are new, and most of the Slovak girls that I played with last year are injured.

Even though we just my first game with the team in the Euroleague yesterday, I have a very good feeling about this team. We have a lot of potential, just need to come together and make it work!

On the active roster, my Slovak teammates are: Katka Hricková, Jana Čarnoká, Lucia Kupčíková, Alena Kováčová, Luisa Michulková

My European teammates are: Anastasia Kostaki, Lisina Ekaterina,

And last, but not least my American teammates are: Erin Lawless, Candace Dupree (Chicago Sky) and Angel McCoughtry (Atlanta Dream)

For more information about my team, check out our website: http://www.deltabasket.sk/

The name of our team is "DOBRÍ ANJELI", which translated means "GOOD ANGELS".

I would like to close with a quote of one of my favorite authors Paul Coehlo. He says:

“When we least expect it, life sets us a challenge to test our courage and willingness to change; at such a moment, there is no point in pretending that nothing has happened or in saying that we are not ready. The challenge will not wait. Life does not look back. A week is more than enough time for us to decide whether or not to accept our destiny.”

Ruben Studdard- I NEED AN ANGEL

I've run out of answers
I've run out of time
I'm so confused that I'm losing my mind
It's gonna take a miracle to help me this time
I'm traveling a road that has not one sign

Help me, have mercy for me
Set my soul free
And let the bell in my heart ring, oh
This my cry, hey, this is my plead you see

I need an angel, I'm callin' an angel
Send me an angel down, ohh

I need an angel, callin' an angel
Send me an angel down

I'm carrying a load that's too heavy for me
I've nowhere to go so I'm down on my knees
I'm tryin to see the forest, but there's this one tree
I can't understand why I'm sinking so deep

Help me, have mercy
Won't you have mercy
Set my soul free
And let the bell in my heart ring
Oooohh, this my cry mmm, this is my plead

I need an angel, I'm callin' an angel
Send me an angel down
(Send it all down)

I need an angel, callin' an angel
Send me an angel down
(Send it all down)

Oh something inside of me, tellin me the morning will come (morning will come), yes it will
sometimes it's hard to face the truth so we run (we run)
God if you care at all please don't let me fall by the wayside, oh no
Please be my guide , would you light my path ( light my path)

Take me, shape me, mold me , change me, teach me, fill me, save me

I need an angel, I'm callin' an angel
Send me an angel down

THIS IS IT

Well, I did it.
I finally went and watched the movie with some of my teammates today.

"THIS IS IT".... who would have known the prophesy that came with choosing such a name for his tour.

Watching the movie, I was reminded of all the publicity his death had this summer, and I asked myself "WHY WHY?"



So, "tell 'em that it's HUMAN NATURE." That's WHY!!!

I wonder how it's possible that one man can touch so many people and have hundreds and hundreds of people cry over his death... people who didn't even know him personally.

I must admit that I also got choked up while watching numerous re-runs of little Michael performing with the Jackon 5 or the many MJ video marathons that were on tv during that time... and when little Paris told the world that "ever since she was born, her daddy had been the greatest father" I just couldn't help it but shed a couple of big tears.

I am aware of the fact that Michael Jackson was doing some weird things throughout his life in the spotlight, and he had shocked many with his changing appearances, but in the moment of death, we were reminded that he was more than an entertainer to some people... and for me it was heartbreaking to see someone lose a precious person in their lives and at the same time hear other people talk trash about that same person. He's dead. Let him rest in peace!

Michael was a son to somebody, a brother, a friend and a father. We as "fans" tend to forget about that side of "our heroes": THEY ARE HUMANS! They have feelings, they have fears, flaws, and shortcomings. But because we lift them up and adore them (for a special skill they have) we feel like we have the right to judge them and expect them to be perfect at all times.

Ironically, we won't even give them any attention unless they aren't somewhat crazy and wild... who cares about Little Goody Two-Shoes? Nobody really :) Which shouldn't become an excuse for "celebs" to act out.. but bla bla bla... in this case we can bring in the famous question of what came first, the chicken or the egg?!

Anyways, back to the movie:
I heard a woman say that the reason why Michael Jackson was so special to our generation was, because he had written the soundtrack to our lives.

Well and I agree.... and with this concert Michael Jackson was going to give us a little ride down on "Memory Lane.

So here are some of my favorite parts of the movie:

SMOOTH CRIMINAL:


JAM:


THEY DON'T CARE ABOUT US:


THIS IS IT:




















Honestly when I tried to find some of the videos online, I liked too many of them, but I can't post them all.

So, why don't you go and watch it yourselves?!
And then I would love to hear your input.

So this is it for today ;)
Until next time... remain blessed,

HAPPY NOVEMBER

I couldn't believe it... not only was today already the 1st day of November, but today there was also the first snowfall of the season in Brno.

When I woke up this "morning" (the professional athlete's definition of morning slightly differs from that of the common population *lol*) I looked outside my window and from the 4th floor I could see thick fog.
I didn't think anything of it- all I was thinking about that I would have to stay in bed all day, cuddled up and warm- till I looked again, and I saw the little snowflakes rushing down from heaven.... well, and then I went back to that other thought, which was to stay in bed all day.

Really untypical for me though, I didn't take a picture.... WHY? Well, because I don't have a memory stick. I left mine at home in the States, and haven't gotten around to purchasing a new one. UNBELIEVABLE or better UNACCEPTABLE!!

I am going to have to make it my mission for the coming week to get a Memory Card. Especially now with all the roadtrips starting in the Euroleague... yeah, I need to do it!

Alright, well even if I don't have a picture of the snow today, I still have a picture that is representing my life here in Brno....




















This photo is courtesy of Milan Wimmer and it shows Vera (a supporter and a media staff member of the team) and me after she handed me a framed picture from last season that was taken with some of our hardcore fans after a game in Prague

A VIDEO FROM THE TEAM HALLOWEEN PARTY IN BRNO

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In this video are performing:
ROMANA STEHLIKOVA, ZUZI ZIRKOVA, EVA VITECKOVA, PETRA KULICHOVA and last but not least our new young girl (a.k.a. "rookie"... which is a word that I don't like to use, because it seems to have too many negative connotations with it) ALENA HUSOVA

IT'S ALL RELATIVE, RIGHT???

So while we were on the road for our game in Moscow, I had an interested chat with one of our young players.

The conversation started when she pulled out her Ipod and I asked her what type of music she was listening to... and she said "Oh, I actually like everything" and "especially Old Songs".

I thought I had found a soulmate and was like "WOW, cool.... me too. I love the 50s and 60s!!" (*SIDENOTE: I just see myself twirling around in that pettycoat ).

The young player ( I am going to keep her name anonymous for her own protection).... so "the young player" looked at me a bit confused, as if she didn't understand what I had said and said "Yeah, I love the 90s music!!!!!"

What else is there to say.... it's all relative, right?
I say potato, you say patato. I say 50s, you say 90s!!!

SERENITY PRAYER

Dear readers,

as a perfectionist by nature and a highly competitive person I get caught up sometimes (ok, ok, very often) in dealing with too many things at the same time.

When I am in the zone, unknowingly my stress level can get very high (which doctors believe might have been one of the major reasons for my vertigo attacks last year).

I have been trying to lower this type of emotional overload, by simply praying this one prayer... quick and easy.... it helps me to look at everything from a perspective and allows me to share my workload with the Almighty God.






















May you have a peaceful day,

GAME AGAINST USK PRAGUE

On Wednesday we had a game against the Czech Champion from last year and we were able to leave the Folimanka Arena as a winner.
Here are some pictures from our last homegame:


Here with Pomcha... I mean Romana. We have two Romanas on the team and both are called Romcha... that can get tough in the heat of the battle, so I call one of them Pomcha... and the other one Cha Cha.


Here's Cha Cha... the funny thing is that after giving out new nicknames, there aren't any Romchas anymore... so we'd still have room for one more... any volunteers?


Yeah, that's me... focusing on the rim before the game.


Game Talk.


With Taj... yep, just like "Taj Mahal". She arrived a week ago, so now we are just waiting for one more... DeWanna Bonner... she should be here soon... she's still recovering from her newest accomplishment: the WNBA Title 2009 with the Phoenix Mercury.








ALL PICTURES ARE COURTESY OF MILAN WIMMER Thank you! And keep them coming!

Talk soon,

EM COMMERCIAL

During the summer and off time I usually work out a very cool place in Rancho Cucamonga called EM SPEED & POWER TRAINING

They had made a commercial a while back and I thought it might be cool to share that with all of you:



Special greetings to my coaches that I hate...oops, I mean that I MISS SO MUCH ;)

KRISTIN






ED








ROB






and RUDY.

I miss you guys,

HAVING A BAD DAY?

Just watch this sweetness, and all your bad mood will disappear:

I AM SORRY, I COULDN'T RESIST...

BROTHERS & SISTERS

Oh gosh, it is only been two weeks into my stay here in Brno and I am already done with one of my tv shows.
One of my favorites! I couldn't wait to get started and I had been hooked ever since... trying to ration my daily portions, so it could last as long as possible....well, and today I finished it *sad face* with the last five episodes of season 3.

The show is called "Brothers & Sisters"... it's about a big family- the WALKERS- with five siblings and their everyday lives; their joys and their troubles.

It reminds me of my own family minus the financial resources. Ha ha ha.
It reminds me of all of the great times me and my family have spent together, all the tears that we have cried together, all the dreams that we've shared, and all the things we still are and give for each other.

I love this show.

It shows how members of the same family grow up to be completely different individuals, grow up to have completely different interests, political views, etc., but that there is that one thing that will glue them together forever: their love for each other.... unconditional love.

The love that Jesus had asked us to have for our neighbor (John 15: 12-13). The love that is so hard for us to give. The love that requires us to put others first, and to disregard our pride and hurt.

On this note, I want to thank my husband for his constant support, for dealing with the not-so-pretty-sides of me (believe it or not, there are a few *lol*), for helping me grow and for ultimately loving me despite of who I am.

I want to thank MY own BROTHERS & SISTERS (also the "new ones"... yeah it's you, Mike and Tiff, Jina and Johnathan) for who they are. For loving me, respecting me and always being there for me.
I want to thank my parents and grandmas for teaching me everything they could and can, and for catching me every time I fall.

I love you all. Ich hab Euch alle ganz doll lieb.

Well, well, well... I guess if you don't have access to the outer world (I wrote this while I didn't have tv, phone and internet), there's a lot more time for soulsearching. It says in the Bible: there's a time for everything (Ecclesiastes 3:1-8) ... and I guess, it's has been my time to dig a little deeper.

I hope you didn't mind.

Until next time,

FIRST VIDEO BLOG FROM THE CZECH REPUBLIC: CHECKING-IN BEFORE CHECKING-OUT

NUMBER SEVEN

I have been in Brno for 7 days now.

God created the world in seven days.
There are seven wonders of the ancient world.
I loved the movie "Seven Pounds".
The week has seven days.
The opposite faces of a dice add up to seven.
In chemistry, it's the neutral pH value between acidity and alkalinity.
Seven is the number of completion.

And now, something you FOR SURE didn't know yet:
I will be wearing number 7 this season.

LITTLE DID I KNOW

Hello everyone and welcome back to my life on the road!

I've returned to Brno two days ago, and am starting to settle in again. I am still living in a hotel as the paperwork for my apartment is getting finalized.

I've participated in two practices so far, and I must say that I am pretty happy to be back on the court again. The 5-months summerbreak has gotten me eager again to compete!

I did miss my girls, so it was nice to see everyone again: it seemed like we nevere were apart.

This year Tamika and Maiga-Ba won't be with us anymore, unfortunately, but there will be two new Americans that will join our team... I am really excited about being their teammate, and I am looking forward to their arrival.

We also have some new Czech ladies on the team, who I enjoyed meeting already: Alena, Teresa and Barbora ... they are all very nice... but I honestly didn't expect anything less.

Little did I know though that Brno is THAT BEAUTIFUL during the sunny season.... WOW... take a look:
























Alright everyone, until next time,

LIFE IN "THE THIRTIES"

So yesterday I went to the physiotherapist to get some treatment for the knots that have been occupying my whole neck for almost a year now as a trauma of last summer's vertigo attacks.

At the beginning of the session, I got asked the usual questions by the therapist "what happened?" "since when has it been bothering you?" "Have you done any treatment before?" da da da da da... that whole Spiel.

THEN he looked at the chart, browsed over it and HAD THE AUDACITY to say "Ohhh ok, I mean.... you ARE in your thirties. aches and pains like these ARE normal IN YOUR AGE.... calcification and postural changes, stuff like that is nothing out of the norm...."

*BLANK STARE*

"ThirtIES?????" Excuse me, sir... 30 years and 1 1/2 months. 30 years and 45 days to be precise!!

Isn't it against the law to say something like that to someone who just dealt with turning 30?

*TAKING A DEEP BREATH...HOLDING MY HEAD UP HIGH, CHEST OUT, BACK STRAIGHT...COUGHING*

Well people I guess I have arrived.... looks like my motto for the upcoming decade will be: THE THIRTIES ARE THE NEW TWENTIES!!!

I am here and I am going to love it!!

LEBE DEINE VISION

Greetings from Las Vegas... my home-away-from-home.

I just got done with my 3-day camp here and am about to head out to drive back to California.

The camp limit was 15 girls, so that I could pay attention to each one of the girls personally.
13 girls ended up signing up.... 13... a nice number indeed :)

Every day was organized like a WNBA practice session... and I incorporated a lot of drills and exercises that we are using at the professional level.

On the first day it was time to get to know each other. I tried to see how far I could push them, and the girls tried to figure out my limits... hahaha... they saw real quick that I didn't have a lot of tolerance for fooling around.... and luckily I had the whistle!!!

On the second day things went really smooth. The girls were able to pick up a lot of drills and complete them in the desired timeframe.

On the last day the girls picked it up a notch. I couldn't believe the intensity and the focus that the girls had. They put everything that we had learned in the past days together and applied it beautifully. The highlight was probably when Chris Matthuis and the Channel 8 crew arrived. Thanks to Anna, Julianna and Destinee for the kind words.... you know I would have stopped at your house afterwards otherwise.... ;) All of the ladies put their best foot forward and showed the Las Vegas community what they are made of.

I couldn't have left camp any more proud than I was that day.
Thanks ladies!

Good job to my campers Natalie, Camille, Kaila, Haley, Katrina, Shelby, Julianna, Anna, Destinee, Roberta, Lauren, Ellee and last but not least Megan. Keep up the good work!

Special thanks to:
Pastor Randy Greer and his Trinity Life Church for providing the facility and letting me share my testimony with you on Sunday! Thanks also to Pastor Jimmy for setting everything up.
Anthony Marar- former UNLV team manager and my helping hand/rebounder when I wanted to shoot extra after practice. He took the time out of his busy schedule to help me out at the camp.
The Hoffman Family- for looking after me like a daughter and always supporting me.

P.S.: Don't forget to click on the photo above to watch the cool video

30 YEARS CELEBRATION

Wow... wow... wow.... I still can't believe it! 30!
Birthdays always make me stop and reflect on the things that have happened in my life so far. I cannot believe I am already 30. Not that I suffer... no no... aging is part of life and everyone BETTER learns how to deal with it.

But to me it seems like yesterday that I was Daddy's little girl, sitting on his lap and putting on my cutest face possible to ask him for some "Pfennige" (~cents) so I could run to the store and get me some icecream.
Or seeing my mom prepare my lunchbox for school and take me out to the street where I would meet up with my "bicycle gang" (which consisted of me and my two bestest friends at that point) so we could ride to school together.

I graduated COLLEGE... not HIGHSCHOOL... COLLEGE... 7 years ago!!!!!
It seems like yesterday though that I packed my two 32kg bags to leave Germany to come to America... I remember how I stood in the airport of Hamburg thinking that my heart would rip into pieces the moment I said goodbye to my family.

WOW... I still remember the first butterflies that I had when I met my husband for the first time... 10 years ago!!!! Or the first butterflies I had when I played in Madison Square Garden for the first time.

Well, this is it for my yearly "Walk on Memory Lane". I am so thankful for everything that has happened to me so far, and I am happy to be able to turn 30 today.

To conclude with the words of a wise 30-year-old woman today,
"CARPE DIEM- SEIZE THE DAY!!"
Enjoy each moment that comes your way...live it right now! Don't live in the past- leave bad stuff behind and don't cry after the "good ol' days".
Live in the present and create new joy TODAY, so that in a couple of years when you take that "walk" again right before your birthday, you can look back with a smile and be proud of yourself for living life to the fullest.

MAKING A WISH!!!
What did I wish for? Sorry can't tell you.... hihihi





BLOWING OUT ALL 30 CANDLES...
I remember for my 18th birthday my mom didn't put candles on the cake, because she thought I was too old now to not care about things like that.... but oh no WAS SHE WRONG!!! No candles, no celebration.... lol..... so I am happy to announce that I did have candles on my cake this year.... unfortunately, each year gets harder to blow them out with just one breath... we'll see how much longer I keep candles on my "MUST-HAVES-ON-BIRTHDAY" list.





HORSEBACK RIDING IN LAKE ELSINORE, CALIFORNIA
With grueling efforts and many "emergency lies" my family was able to surprise me at the top of the mountain with a group horseback riding trip... WHAT A JOY! The weather was beautiful, the company was second to none, the view was perfect, and.... thank God, the horses were trained!!! Nevertheless, as a PRECAUTIOUS GERMAN GAL I switched from birthday hat to helmet during the ride!








































































FLOWERS FROM GERMANY

















Thank you my dearest family for these beautiful flowers.... they were especially flown into the States from Germany...JUST FOR ME... Thanks for making me feel special!!!!!

CONTINUE READING ONLY IF YOU ARE WORKING FOR THE U.S. CUSTOMS: Do not panic!! The flowers of course didn't come FROM Germany directly... I was just saying that to make it sound even cooler! No need to panic.... these flowers are California-growns!!!

My NBA Identity

First of all, I must say that I am not really a big NBA fan throughout the regular season, but comes Playoff Time, I have to admit that I like to watch a game or two EVERY NIGHT.

If there is any team that I am really cheering for in the NBA, it would be the Dallas Mavericks... and that just because of Dirk... or should I say "if there was a team".
Unfortunately the Mavs are out of the playoffs after their game in Denver yesterday. For a team whose obvious emphasis lies on the offensive end, there just weren't enough weapons out there to put the basketball in the hoop. Oh well, so it didn't work out! Dirk, as our German representative, did his thing though... so no complaints!!!
What now? As usual, life goes on!!! But who am I going to cheer on now? Any suggestions?

BACK AGAIN, BACK AGAIN

Wow, it looks like I am having a great time here at home, huh?
No blogging, no facebooking, no emails, no nothing.

Well well well, it's not like that! I mean, I AM having a great time at home, but since I've gotten here my daily routine has changed
I've been actually doing things

This is what has happened since I've gotten home:
I've freed our front yard from the ground cover that initially came with the house.
I built a little path with stepping stones from the drive way to the porch.
I created a slope with a little rock garden on it.
I've cleaned up our house office, destroyed bills from 1999 and dusted off our VHS collection, etc. and reorganized our file cabinet.
I've helped my husband to move our company TriFytt Sports into a new office.
I've decluttered the garage.
And after all of this, I am ready for a yard sale now :)

My youngest sister just finished taking all of her 6-hour exams to graduate, in Germany we call it "she wrote her ABITUR".
Now while we are anxiously waiting for her grades, she got one more oral exam to prepare for.

Two of my sisters finished moving to a new apartment and my brother, who has been studying and playing basketball in San Antonio, got to meet up with our countryman Dirk Nowitzki when Dallas came to town to play the Spurs.

Well, that's my last month in a nutshell.. I am going to close with a nice little quote from 1 Corinthians 10:31:
"Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do everything for the glory of God."

Until then,

HAPPY EASTER

"He has given us...a living hope through the resurrection...into an inheritance that can never perish" (1Peter 1:3-4)


It has been a week now since my last entry and I have to apologize, because in my last entry I lied to you.

I lied so that I could set up a surprise for my husband... BAD GIRL... (isn't it crazy how much influence the internet has gained in our everyday lives?)
Anyways, I told you that I was going to be in Germany for a couple of days, but instead I traveled 24hours to surprise my husband on Sunday night.
And I gladly can say that it WORKED :) His mom picked me up at the airport and when I called him from our porch, he told me to hold on for a second, because somebody was at the door... TAAADAAAA... IT WAS ME!!
I am so happy that all the lies were worth it in the end. It was the toughest week... to keep it a secret from him, and to make sure that nobody else would slip up ;)
To tell you the truth, I don't know how many more surprises I can take if they require that much lying.

Little did I know that day that I would end up being surprised as well... surprised about how clean my husband has become over the last couple of years.... I was prepared to walk into piles of dirty clothes, shoes all over the place, mail mountains and dishes stacked up to the ceiling. But no, he only had to lock me into the bathroom for 3 minutes to hide any evidence of sloppiness.

Looks like I've trained him well... sooooo if you are interested in training your husband, contact me at: linda@spousetrainer.com ..... lol.

So for a whole week I have gotten to relax a lot and got spoiled. One more day and I am going to start looking for something to do... I know that it'd won't be too hard finding something: having our own company, THERE IS ALWAYS SOMETHING TO DO!!!!

Alright, I want to wish everybody HAPPY EASTER!!!
Enjoy your loved ones... and don't forget the "reason for the season"!!!!

GAME OVER

Hello everyone.
We lost today in the deciding finals game. Very sad, don't have many words YET...

I also don't have much time, because in 30 minutes I am getting picked up by Dusan (our teammanager)...he's gonna take us (The "Foreigners") to the airport.

Brno OUTBOND at 7a.m.

There's definitely much more to say, and I will do that... for sure.

But for now I am going to store my laptop for a couple of days while I am going to spend some time in Germany with my family before I am heading back to the States.

I will make sure to return to this blog soon though.

Until then.... God bless and keep smiling,


P.S.: I recorded a final Brno video, but don't have enough time to upload it... so coming soon :)

SUNNY AFTERNOON IN BRNO

APRIL FOOLS DAY or 'WHAT A DIFFERENCE 3 SECONDS MAKE'

With 3 seconds to go we were able to tie up the game with a lay-up by Zuper Zuzi, and 2.9567 seconds later this lady comes around and says: APRIL FOOLS GAMBRINUS!!!
We lose with 3 points with a 3/4-court-buzzerbeater by Evina Maltsi!!



I can't stand you ;) LOL.

OUR 6TH MAN

Now that all the shock from the loss on Saturday is gone, and the clouds of disappointment have dissolved, I am able to think clearly again and I want to say something to our Gambrinus fans:



On Saturday you created an unbelievable atmosphere in the "BRNO ARENA", as I like to call the "hale Rosnička"... I honestly didn't know that so few people could be sooooo loud :) WOW!!!



You guys were the propeller when we recovered from our 12-points deficit and the wings to carry us in difficult moments of the game.

Unfortunately we didn't end up with a win, but it was still an amazing game.

THANK YOU--- Mockrát Děkuji