It was exactly 2 years ago yesterday that I had my 'Widowmaker' heart attack, playing tennis at my home club (above). I played there yesterday and am very appreciative of the full recovery I have been able to make.

It was the 42nd match of the year for me. I play with a couple friends and two of my brothers. my total matches for the year are down a little bit - as is my win percentage (below).

I have my last two 2021 matches coming up this week and if I win them both, I can get my win % up to 57%. We'll see.

I never would have guessed I'd be playing 40-50x matches in a year a few years ago. I wasn't really playing any tennis before I early retired. It wasn't even in my pre-retirement 'Not Bored List'. It's really been a wonderful (and largely unexpected) activity.

For me, it's the perfect mix of competitive, social, and healthy activity. I also go on regular hikes, play league softball, and daily walks - but tennis is my favorite activity.

That's the wonderful thing about early retirement, you'll find yourself devoting significant amounts of time to enjoyable activities you didn't even plan on.

Having so much 'free time' allows you to do things you haven't really done since you were a kid. I used to play recreational tennis growing up and in college - but stopped playing for almost 30 years. Now I play more than anyone I know.

What activities from your past have you rediscovered/hope to get back into in retirement?

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