Day Into Night at the U.S. Open

The weeks before and after Labor Day were always my favorites in New York. Usually beatiful weather, gorgeous nights, the feeling of summer melting slowly into autumn, and the U.S. Open. We lived in Queens, along the same subway line you take to get to the Open, and friends and I would go every year, especially during the first week, when, with a single ticket you could watch 10 different matches in a day.

This year I have finally found something to love about having basic cable TV, which we've had for about three months now. I think we may be one of the last families in America to get cable, which I resisted for years. Yet here is the beauty of it: It's 9:20 at night and I've had tennis on since 11 in the morning. I watched live as Justine Henin blew Serena Williams off the court. And Nadal and Ferrer are still slugging it out in the third set as I type. The way the match is going they could easily be playing until 2 in the morning, New York time.

While it can't compare to being there in person, it feels like the next best thing. Needless to say, light blogging until next week...

Late update: The match continued until 1:50 a.m., EST. After three and a half hours of play, Ferrer prevailed in what was one of the most phenomenal, high-quality matches I've seen in ages, stunning the crowd and no. 2 seed Nadal. Final score: 6-7, 6-4, 7-6, 6-2.