Rafateers Ahoy!!!

First topic message reminder :

Miami Sound Machine ...

After a run to the final of Indian Wells, where Rafa mysteriously left his form in the toilet, we now move on to one of his favourite locations, full of latino flava and great Rafa support ... Miami.

For the man who holds the record of winning the most Masters Serious titles, this is one of few that eludes him. He's been to the final only once before, and last year saw one of the saddest sights I can ever recall of Rafa ... that of him cursing and beating his leg above the knee as it seemed that his knees where once again failing him.

The doubles are dropped for this tournament, and Uncle Toni is back in town. Rafa dropped out of playing in the charity football match for Japan stating that with this tournament and for what is to come, he's entering the most important phase of the season for him, and he has to be careful.

He faces one of his more difficult draws for a while, and with Novak rising to Number 2, this is the first tournament where we have Rafa and Feds drawn to meet in the semi-final. Can Rafa steer his way through an un-chartered draw? Will he meet Novak once again in the final and is he the man to end his fantastic winning streak? Can he finally get a title that eludes him in the so-called "5th Slam" and will he celebrate by swimming with the dolphins or will Dorky go and re-acquaint himself with his old mate Goofy in Disneyland?

C'mon Rafa ... you can DO it!!!

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Welcome to the Rafael Nadal chat thread. This is a place to celebrate, be positive and to have fun whilst discussing Rafa, the Armada and tennis in general. So whether you are a long-time poster, a newbie, or maybe a nervous lurker, if you can meet Rafa's triumphs and disasters and treat those two imposters just the same, then this is the place for you. All are welcome, so please feel free to join in with the fun ...

Hi lovely ladies - I made it! Just a quick visit to sign up and will be back later.

Well ... I've been looking round the sites, and the "prank" that that radio station played on Rafa has not gone down to well. So it shouldn't ... waking someone up (especially a Spaniard) early in the morning is a crime!! Hehe.

Has anyone seen pictures of FeliFer around the DC camp? I would assume that they should have arrived around the same time as Rafa ... seeing as they both lost ceremoniously early.

I assume we'll be able to find a suitable stream somewhere to watch? I am dyyyyyyyyyying to see Rafa play again. Vamos!!

Its lovely Cats!!

Hello!! Glad you've made it over ... speaks soon. <hug> and <wave>

Hi Cats great to see you here!

I've been reading some of the stuff about Rafa getting woken up, and people are right on their high horse. To be honest - although it's a bit mean - it was Monday morning, Rafa's not playing until Friday, he's just had about a month "off" and I'm sure getting woken "early" on Monday won't affect him 4 days later. It's not the greatest crime against humanity is it? It's just a taster of what we all have to put up with on a usual work day. I'm much less polite to my alarm clock every morning at 6 am <rofl>

Plus - where else could we get to hear what Rafa would sound like on opening his eyes first thing in the morning. I think they've done the Rafateers a great service

I think I just hate silly pranks. And crimes such as being woken early in the morning ... <run>

Good to see though that Rafa is a bear though ... just like me.

Good evening all lovely Rafateers!!

Quiet tonight ... you can't all have been watching the football like me ...

Rafa looks really relaxed and happy in the pictures of him in practice and probably this "long" lay off (in tennis terms) may have actually done him some good. Lets hope he's raring to go and I'm looking forward to the weekend.

Good news re. the other Rafateers ... I think we may have a visit soon.

I come bearing a gift...

:hugs:

A :hugs: smiley! Thanks King Beer!

I was watching the footie last night Wooffs - screaming at Nando to score <sorry>. It's the Spain (and Liverpool) connection

That's great news that the other Rafateers are due to join us - I'm already feeling very settled in here

Just a ponderment about Wimbledon...I wonder if this will be the first time evah that Rafa will play first in a tournament? He is usually one of the last to play his first match. Hopefully he'll be in London and feeling his way around the grass nice and early in preparation for his defence!

Hi everyone :hugs: Yay, we've got a hug icon. Although I do like the

I love the , that should come in handy!

Well, Mr C is out tonight, so you know what this means. Pasta, wine, big telly and a chick flick. Just a shame there is no Rafa tennis

Good evening all my luvverly Rafateers :hugs: and ...what on earth does this one mean? <innocent>

I was Gok watching last night and then watched Silks on BBC1 which I really like but I'd rather watch Rafa

Went into town today as I needed new <ahem> undies. Why do Bra sizes differ so much Anyway I'm now decent again so it was mission accomplished

Hello to lovely Cats :hugs: and it'll be lovely to see Mrs L and Pearl over here soon.

rafandready wrote:A :hugs: smiley! Thanks King Beer!

Hey.. I'm not letting KB take all the credit for it!

I was the one that campaigned, on your behalf, to get you a <hug> smiley...........tho' I'm not sure about some of the others they've given you lol.

Anyway, I hope all you lovely Rafateers are enjoying it here on v2........I certainly am

Solerina

Good evening all lovely Rafateers!! :hugs:

Lovely Denz and her new bras lovely Cats who's having my favourite kind of night out/in lovely Rafan cos she is just an ... and a special big hello and thank you to Solerina for the smilies you got for us. I think we'll use some more than others ... ... but if I could pretty please ask for a couple ... I'd love <run> and <somersault> ... only if that were possible, of course. Anyhow, it was a lovely surprise that you'd got them for us and its very much appreciated.

Its been a bit of a difficult day for me. Mum rang me at 3 am this morning as Dad had become very ill and then had blacked out on her. It was obviously very frightening and it was a dash to the hospital. I've never seen my Dad in a hospital bed before, and Mum was actually being so incredibly calm about it. To cut to the quick, whilst he's still very poorly, he saw the doctor this morning and she thinks he's just caught some terribly bad bug. Going from standing to sitting caused his blood pressure to plumit, hence the black out. I saw him this afternoon and he was still being ill, and looks grey and he's not to get out of bed, but whilst its bad for him, Mum and I are not unduly worried as it will pass. I just wish I could take control of the situation and get someone to communicate all the information, but he'll be seen again tomorrow by the doctor and we'll take it from there. <sighs> These things are sent to try us, eh??

Anyhow, doing my daily Rafa trawl is a great distraction and I've loved reading your comments here today.

Rafan ... you made a great point above about already feeling at home here, and d'ya know what? I do too. So yes, Solerina, I'm really enjoying it so far and its been a nice switch. You and the other guys have made us feel at home with the smilies and stuff, and we appreciate being given this corner to cheer on Rafa in a fan thread way and for us to be able to develop the different threads that we have so far, because it makes us all feel like we're a part of it - which is great. So thank you. Our other busy lady Rafateers think this all sounds great and are going to sign up and join in in keeping the Rafafires burning ...

Which leads me on to this final (I promise) comment. I can see by the stats that The Pre Rafa Lites are getting an awful lot of views. And facetious comments aside about <lurkers> (sorry), I would just like to say that whilst we are now a long established group of friends, this is a new site, and a welcome new start. And inevitably we must appear sometimes like our own little elite gang, but I would encourage anyone out there who wishes to join in to have a go. Yep, we follow Rafa in our own particular way and I remember how nervous I was when I first started to post ... but we would love to welcome anyone who wants to join in with general chat, about Rafa or otherwise. So go on ... please give it a go. :hugs:

And with that ... VAMOS RAFA!!!!!

Hi Wooffie......

Thanks very much.....that's a lovely post.

Sorry to hear about your dad hope he's back to full health very soon.

You Rafateers are doing a wonderful job of livening up the tennis forum........thanks

Solerina

Hey Woofie,

The run and somersault smilies i've found don't really do you guys justice, can you think of anything similar??

Oh Woofs :hugs: So sorry to hear about Dad....they really can be a worry, especially when it's so sudden and frightenes the life out of you

Just to say I totally agree with yours and Rafan's comments about being on here...it's been a really lovely introduction and thankyou Solerina for that and the extra ies

It would be lovely to have some new Rafa fans to join us on here.....Woofs isn't as bad as she seems...honest!!! .....so come on in and have a natter :hugs:

King Beer wrote:Hey Woofie,

The run and somersault smilies i've found don't really do you guys justice, can you think of anything similar??

Erm ... not too up on the smilies KB, but we like <run> cos when we are cheeky to someone we <run> away ... but I do like the :yahoo: smiley for when you want to go nuts about something.

Does that help?? Thanks anyway!!

Erm ... can you add a :slap: smiley to the list KB for Denzy.

Good evening Lady Denz ... :hugs: Thanks for the good wishes. You've had more than your fair share too, so I appreciate your thoughts.

denzilsmom wrote:

Just to say I totally agree with yours and Rafan's comments about being on here...it's been a really lovely introduction and thankyou Solerina for that and the extra ies

Aaaw........ thanks for that denzilmom.

I'm so pleased you're enjoying your new home here.........we could just do with getting a few more Andy fans over from 606 to keep yummy company.......maybe if they see what a nice time the Rafateers are having here they'll come on over too.

Thanks to all you new folks for your kind comments about v2......we really appreciate them


Solerina

:yahoo:

We have ...

All I can say is ..............

Erm ... this is my last word on the subject ... promise ...

but ...



:sleep:

:whistling:





and

<SMILEY TYPE="run"/>

<run> ....................

But a big "Thank You" for what you've sorted out anyway ... :hugs:

Good morning Rafateers :hugs:

We likes our smileys

Well, I have to say the Mods on here are a lovely lot and very helpful . Solerina, I think a lot of the Andy fans (aka Moaners - and I mean that in the nicest way) have gone to the other forum which was set up a while ago.

I absolutely agree with Wooffie's comments above...when I first joined 606, because I was DESPERATE for somewhere to vent my Rafafeelings, it took me a while to pluck up courage, and there was already a little band of Rafateers talking of going to a tournament together - but that was what persuaded me that I must wriggle my way in somehow, because I couldn't think of anything better than going on a holiday AND seeing Rafa into the bargain. So yes, any friendly <lurkers> please don't feel shy of joining in! We don't bite (very hard )

Sorry to hear about your Dad Wooffs :hugs:, I hope he gets better soon.

Now...has there been any Rafanews while I've been asleep, must away and find out.

By the way, I'm <rofl>ing about the smiley. Now I wonder why Rafateers would need that one?

Right....

:huh:











:sleep:

King Beer … you are 8) !!

Thank you so much for our new smilies.

Yes, as Rafan said, to the Mods and Admins here … thank you very much for all your work to get us up and running, it is very much appreciated. We are loving our new home and enjoying it thus far!!

I foresee plenty of fun with the new smilies !!

Good afternoon all lovely Rafateers!! :hugs:

Are we about Rafa being back on court tomorrow??

He's also been talking about the up-coming tournies in the US as per this <link> http://www.tennistalk.com/entertainment/quote-of-the-day-rafael-nadal.html#respond

And in further Armada news ... lets take ourselves back to little Daveed's victory in Acapulco last weekend ...

Daveed is holding up a lovely pear, just as Denzy's new bra is ... <run>

http://www.daylife.com/photo/09RGa7s1abg2u?q=Ferrer

(We really do need a <run> smiley --- <yikes> for asking. I didn't realise just how much I <run> ... not in real life, I hasten to add )

And do you think I could borrow this from Daveed for Kate and Wills' impending nuptuals ...

http://gototennis.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/Ferrer_sombrero.jpg

Hi everyone

Can I just echo everyone's sentiments - I love it here Going to have hours of fun with the smilies. Can you imagine this one on the BBC!!

Wooffs, you caught me on the Fed thread yesterday Big oops!

On a serious note, I'm really sorry to hear your dad is not well. I wish him a speedy recovery.

Its lovely Cats !!

Thank you for your sentiments about my Dad ... indeed from all of you. I'm still waiting to hear what happens next, but he is much better today, so I'm sure it will be ok.

Yes young lady ... I caught you on the Feds thread yesterday ... tsk.

I don't know if I will be able to use the smiley being a woman of a delicate disposition and all that ...

Hi Cats! That's so funny that Wooffs caught you on the Feds forum. I've left you a message there <rofl>

I've just met a friend (fellow Rafafan) for coffee and mentioned this little fred we've got going - I'll email her a link later. She is camping out for the first day at Wimbledon...I'd decided not to but having spoken to her I'm feeling the excitement again.

Now, if I could just find a little pop up tent somewhere

Well there’s no point in asking Denzy, Rafan.

She only does “glamping”.

Wooffs, that's good to hear about your dad

Oi Cats!!

I have been <lurking>

Wooffie wrote:Oi Cats!!

I have been <lurking>

I knew you would! Rafan was there too! :snitch:

Right you two!!!

Early days or noh! ... you are <BANNED>

Hehe didn't take us long.

We set a world record there Rafan.

Anyone know where they are showing the tennis this weekend? Our sports channels don't show Davis Cup and I don't think Eurosport do neither. So any links would be appreciated

oops, meant not

Denz is of the <Links>, Cats, so I'm sure she'll help out.

As I am lucky enough to have Sky (although not Sky+ as I have often moaned about in the past, as the <evil> owner wants to charge me over £100 quid for it ) ... I only rarely use streams.

But good old Bert (or Bet365) is a reasonable alternative. Its only a small screen, but it doesn't seem to fade in and out and the quality is quite good.

rafandready wrote:

Well, I have to say the Mods on here are a lovely lot and very helpful . Solerina, I think a lot of the Andy fans (aka Moaners - and I mean that in the nicest way) have gone to the other forum which was set up a while ago.

Thanks so much for your kind words about the mods rafandready......we aim to please

Yes, I know what you're saying about the Andy fans but maybe, when 606 finally closes, some of them will join us on here too, then they can enjoy both forums.

Anyway they'll always be a friendly welcome for them here on v2 should they decide to join us at a later date.

The same goes for anyone else who may be looking in and has not yet signed up......come on in and join the party!

Solerina

Lovely Rafateers and lovely Solerina

Just popped in to say that my Dad has been released from hospital and that he had a case of gastroenteritis, which they do hospitalise you for when you're older to check on you and his blackout was a drop in blood pressure ... but his tests are fine and with rest he will soon be back on his feet. Phew.

Speaking of feet ... he is now getting firmly back under my Mum’s and driving her <potty> so everything is back to normal.

Once again, thank you my friends for your kind wishes. Its very much appreciated.

Wooffs, excellent news about Papa Wooffs. You know everything is going to be okay when they start driving the missus nuts

Good evening all my luvverly Rafateers Woofs.....so pleased to hear Dad is home and driving your Mum crazy

The only link I can think of for Davis cup would be Fromsport....or good old Channelsurf. I'm going to try and have a look tomorrow afternoon as it will be lovely to see Rafa on a court again....it feels like a lifetime since we've seen him

That's great news Wooffie

Solerina

Good evening all lovely Rafateers!!

Thank you Solerina for your kind sentiment.

Rafatime tomorrow ... I cannot wait. I hope work enables me to get away for the match, but I shall have to see. Failing that, I'll have to while away the hours till Sunday.

At something just gone past 6 pm tonight in an almost empty office, I was fighting with the photocopier because I wanted to .pdf a 2 sided document but my limited technophobe skills knew no other way than photocopying each side to then scan the photocopy in ... but to my utter disgust, the copy came out at a size I didn't want and text was missed off and I was - close your ears Rafan - away cos I just wanted to do a simple task before I could go home and it was all so .... Then a nervous youngster peeped his head into the copy room and said "Wooffs" ... well, he didn't call me Wooffs, but you know what I mean ... "would you like some, erm ... help". So I had to apologise as I didn't think anyone could hear my outburst but another youngster came in cos he was desperate to see why I was so

Said youngster .pdf'd said 2 sided document for me in seconds ...

Anyhow ... a Rafabillboard has been spotted in LA on the Sunset Strip ...

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-t-Y0EooX6-8/TW_5KD8OSXI/AAAAAAAAC4k/wIu1ZZaCaPQ/s1600/March%2B3%2B2011%2B-%2B3.jpg

I have to ask Rafateers, with regard to the Armani ad campaign ... was that it??? Were those snuck out pictures the whole thing? Is that what the fuss was all about?? Cos I'm a bit disappointed if it was ... although I understand YouTube have <banned> Megan Fox's vid clip so we live in hope that Rafa's (so far unseen) clip is worth banning too ...

It's all gone a bit flat on the Rafa campaign hasn't it Woofs ....There were some photos of Megan Fox in today's Daily Mail, but that was to comment on how thin she seems to be...nothing about Rafa's participation in it.

Maybe it's bigger in the rest of Europe than over here....after all Tennis is a forgotten sport in this country...except for June, and if Andy Murray gets to the back end of a big tourny

I still don't want see Andy in his undercrackers though, Denz ...

You might have other ideas about Miles though ... <run>