Come on in. The Water Is Perfect

We have reached that short but magical season of perfect water. Exactly what perfect water is will always be a matter of interpretation just as beauty will always be in the eye of the beholder. But for me, perfection is what we have had in the Twin Rivers pool for two weeks past and almost certainly will have for the upcoming week also.

This year the weather has been a bit atypical but in a good way. September was warmer than August and October has been so warm that people are starting to complain about it. Not I, not me, not never. Despite the warmth, the water temps have slowly fallen in part due to the lengthening nights and in part due to a few cools evenings and early mornings. But warm afternoons and lots of sunshine has kept the numbers up and the pool open. Ms Debbie is still running the pumps and the pool is clean. It has never been this sanitized this late before. Last year at this same time, the pool was dry and my heart broken. Now when you ride by and glance out at the water, it is flat and perfectly still because I am killing it every day. 

If I had to pick one number, one dot on the temperature scale, that I call perfect, it is 74. The range I most like is 78 to 74. For me, that is the number I can still swim for hours in without over chilling and it still feels refreshing and cool. Two weeks ago we began to dip under 80 F and believe it or not, that ends swimming around here. John and I have been the sole survivors frequenting the pool. As the temps have crept downward, my enjoyment has eased upward. Last Thursday we hit 75. I like. Friday it was 74. I liked that even more.

Monday the 17th, the water was a balmy 78. The old man who works with a physical therapist showed up. But one toe touch and he headed back to the car on his walker. Oddly, John failed to show. A phone conversation later revealed that he feared the water was too cold.

So there you have it. In this society, in Greenwood, MS, I am a cold water swimmer for dipping in a pool only a little cooler than a warm bath. That's OK with me. It's MY pool now, and I love it.