For my 44th birthday my wife gave me tennis equipment, and since "suggestions" from the best wife should be implemented as fast as the hints come, I succumbed to tennis fever. Training sessions in the morning before work, and even in China I found a ventilated indoor tennis court, in which you can really learn tennis despite 40 degree temperature outdoors and a typhoon warning.

A side effect of all of this is that I now suddenly like to watch tennis on TV: Wimbledon – since I want to participate next year at the latest. I used to find it aloof and boring, but now I am even more captivated by an exciting match than I am from a three-hour presentation about new mobile printers.

During Wimbledon I am in Shenzen, and thanks to my many visits there and the many bookings for employees, my favorite hotel (the Grand Hyatt) always has a large suite reserved for me, with a large bathtub. I fill it up right away when I arrive. Foolish though, to forget about the bathtub during the match between Serena Williams and Marija Scharapowa.

After the match is over I think, hey, a bath would be great! Crap, it’s already running. On my way to the bathroom the water rushes out to greet me. Lots of water! Of course such a bathtub has an overflow, but it does not need to forcibly work. The bathroom itself is a centimeter lower than the rest of the rooms and also has a drain in the floor. But even it goes on break now and again. Since the recessed bathroom is now completely flooded, it is not just water, but a LOT of water we are talking about.

Ok, not my mistake, I think to myself. So, in the late evening the hotel cleaning crew had to come up with the heavy-duty equipment. The chic, super-slim scale in the bathroom also was a victim of the flood: electronic damage. The carpet in the bedroom (thankfully one you can pull up and exchange) also needs to be taken out to dry. So far, so good. The entire process cost me an hour though. I could have been more careful, since I already have enough experience with Chinese installation companies (they worked on our Chinese office). I should have known better.

The next evening I called my wife: "It happened again!". I got belly laughs instead of sympathy. Who was to blame? Not me, but Roger Federer, of course, who simply could not finish his match. He should beware, in case I can ever really play tennis.

Back to Sea World… Luckily, only the bathroom was affected this time. What to do? Call reception? Better not, that’s too embarrassing. Ok then: towels, bath robe, anything that can possibly soak up water comes into play. I thought the hotel had fixed the problem, but it was apparently only an excuse. Well then, Spranger has to spring into action and clean for two hours. A punishment is in order. Oh, and remember to leave housekeeping a nice tip, since they will certainly wonder why there are so many wet towels hanging up to dry the following morning.

How crazy do you think you will be taken for when you casually ask for a new scale again the next day? They must be thinking: is he really so fat so that the scales won’t work? Or will I receive a manual stating that scales should not be used in the shower? Thankfully, everything was taken care of with a friendly smile.

Tonight is the women’s final match in Wimbledon. My solution: set the alarm after turning on the faucet. And connect the video camera of the iPhone to the iWatch, in order to keep a visual on the liquid level. And to be on the safe side, this time I will put the scale on the bed. :)