Aquatic Life

One of my biggest life regrets is that it took me 40 years to learn to swim. I was deathly afraid of water, although I was paradoxically drawn to it as well. Rivers, lakes, oceans, pools, fountains all beckoned me with their siren call.

Moving to the Palace with a nice, warm, year round pool right across the hall, was just too much temptation. I had started getting used to water, actually getting in and walking around a pool, but no where near a deep end. Diving?? you have to be kidding.... NFW. Suffice to say, practice, a little courage and a not real deep pool conquered my fear a few years ago. Now this Pisces fish can barely stay out of the water.

Thus my dismay in November when the pool, usually kept at a nice warm 84 deg, got colder and colder. I turned the old heater up to boiling and should have been able to make tea in the pool water. It remained cool and was getting cooler. The smell of gas and carbon told me to shut the damn thing down before it blew. The pool grew colder, soon the North Atlantic was warmer.

The pool company that services the place took one look at it and said get rid of it. It was 20 years old and parts are scarce for the brand, no longer being made. A new one, smaller they said, would set us back a cool $2500. NOT! I knew the cheap asses here at the Palace would never swing that. So a second service was contracted and they proposed a restoration. "These old 'Tropic Isle' units are built like tanks, the technician told me, it probably just needs cleaned out." Did she ever...they finally came Monday and got her going again.

With the pool water at a nice frigid 52 and the old heater not exactly the most efficient, it has taken a couple of days to bring it up to a less testicle shrinking temperature. With some hose couplings I found, I managed to rig the hose to run hot water from the bathroom off the pool. Topping it off in the AM with some hot water has certainly helped.

Esther Williams supposedly liked a cool pool, temps around 70 deg. She didn't have body parts that shrank like men do. Finally, this AM, the temp was around 80, I ventured in. Damn it was great being back in my element. Floating, buoyant, gliding underwater, quiet and free. Great exercise too, I could feel the pounds coming back on.

Hopefully, the old heater will keep on chugging for a while. Most of the denizens of the Palace would rather fill it in and turn the place into an unused exercise room. They don't use the pool, so why would they use anything else? Spend money on a pool heater...nonsense!

Be that as it may, if you can't find me... look in the water. Esther and I have a date.