Aug. 27, 1999

I'm here in New York and there's a lot of nerves and a lot of anxiety. As an American I've always dreamed of having a Cinderella ending to this NYC story.

Vince Spadea is preparing for this year's U.S. Open.(AP)

I've finally figured out where I'm going to stay. I'm here at a high-rise 35 minutes from the USTA National Tennis Center. It's like living a double life. Part of the time you're in the city and then you go to work and change like Superman. That's the most fun part about being an athlete at the U.S. Open.

Right now I'm trying to stay healthy, mentally and physically. I'm trying to fine-tune my tennis game. make sure my rackets are good. Organization is my priority. Making sure my head is in the right direction, all that boring stuff that leads to success.

The U.S. Open is great because everyone speaks American English and everyone calls me "Vinny" instead of "Mr. Spadea". It's just great to be in the New York atmosphere. My friends my family, even my enemies can come. I don't have any enemies, but they could come if they wanted to.

This weekend I'll be getting up, drinking my protein shakes, having good practices, resting up in the lounges -- they provide nice La-Z-Boys. Then I'll go to the gym, maybe get a massage. I'll eat some good Italian food, maybe go to Little Italy. I'll have some clean New York fun.

Then it will be time to do things that are serious, and get the game face. I might go check out a few qualifying matches and see how my fellow Americans are doing. It's like the Oscars. This is it. From now until Monday I've gotta release all the excess energy I have because on Monday I need to focus all my energy onto the court.

So for now, I'm just trying to get my practices done and not take too many taxi cabs. All those fares!

But I'm ready. This is 1999. The Open could be mine. I expect everything to be great and I can't wait for the U.S. Open to start. I want to stay here and play as long as I can.

Vince Spadea