WIMBY, DAY 7: LOVE, FACTUALLY

And Now a Few Words About Love

Love is nothing, at least in tennis. I was poking about as to why zero is scored as "love" in the game, and have uncovered two common explanations. The first is that "love" is a mistranslation of the French word "l'oeuf", which means egg, which is what a zero resembles. The second is that anyone who cannot score and continues to play is clearly playing for the love of the game.

College football fans, I give you the 2007 Notre Dame Love.

As you likely know, zero in European soccer is "nil". Although most people over here use the French term "zed" when they want to say zero in everyday parlance. All of which is to say that while far too many Americans are zenophobic, just as many Europeans appear to be zerophobic. 

Monday Match I Fancy

How can you not put Lleyton Hewitt versus Roger Federer in this slot? These are the last two Wimbledon champions, the Aussie winning in 2002 and Federer winning every year since. Much ballyhoo has been made over Federer's chance to become the first man since Briton William Renshaw to win six consecutive Wimbledons. A few items about Renshaw's streak:

1) It took place between 1881-1886

2) After winning his first, Renshaw moved into the Champion side of the draw. Basically, he had an exemption until the final round. So in his final five Wimbledons Renshaw only had to win five matches to win five titles.

3) In 1882 and '83, Renshaw only had to beat his twin brother, Ernest, in order to win the title. And maybe they were identical twins, so is anyone really even sure if it was William who won, or Ernest?

THINGS I QUITE FANCY

--The unabashed fashion tribute to strippers that Bethanie Mattek stages for most matches. Mattek faces Serena Williams on Monday. It'll be the first match in Wimbledon history that'll have Ratt blaring from the speakers.

--Mary Carillo's delight at telling me yesterday that "I've got a yak guy" in Inner Mongolia. Mary is all about "Do you got a guy for that?" As in, you don't have a mechanic, you have a "car guy". You don't have a dentist, you have a "teeth guy". Last spring Mary traveled to China to meet the world's tallest man, who is from Inner Mongolia, and she inquired about the yak racing that goes on there. He told her that he knew someone who could put her in a four-door yak with air-conditioning and Sirius satellite radio. Or something like that. So Mary, as exuberant a personality as you could meet, says, "So I've got a yak guy!"

-- The term "hen party". Our prompter expert, Gita, who has the unfortunate task of sitting besides me each day ("Ye don't have to have beans for breakfast every morning, Yank!"), explains to me that they don't call it a bachelorette party here, but a hen party. Love that.

--Watching Jimmy Roberts navigate the sea of typographical terrors still alive in the women's round of 16:

Tamarine Tanasugarn

Alla Kudryavtseva

Agnieszka Radwanska

Anna Chakvetadze

Agnes Szavay

That's why they call the people in front of the camera "talent". That and they're better-looking than we are. And more articulate. Oh, and more talented. That.

 -- The Wimbledon Ticket Re-Sale Booth: Say you've got a ticket to Wimby but don't want to stay the entire day. When you leave you can turn in your ticket to the officials, who then re-sell it to fans who've queued up for them for the paltry price of five pounds. And those proceeds go to charity. Brilliant.

-- The tiny restaurant in our village called Love Food. How great is that? Love Food, which ironically was serving zero food when I happened by last night.

-- Lieutenant Fancy from "NYPD Blue"

* Twin Cities locals may remember Beret from her starring role on the sides of buses for the successful "Keep The Twins In Minnesota" ads that ran in 1997. Beret's Carrie Bradshaw moment.