TITMT - Summers at the Pool

"Summertime, and the living is easy", remember those words? I had no idea it was also a lullaby from Porgie and Bess. I'm not that old. During our best summers we spent Wednesday nights at the Country Club pool for family night. All four of us. Grills were set up on one side of the pool, out of the reach of the water we splashed as we swam, dove, smacked our hands, and played Marco Polo.

"Marco"
"Polo"
"Hey, he cheated he got out of the pool"
"No cheating!"

Those words sounded out once they closed the diving boards so we wouldn't get drowned by an errant cannon ball* or can opener*. The little kids played in the shallow end on the wide steps, separated from us, the bigger kids, by the rope with floats that bobbed along the surface.

Occasionally a louder male voice (no female lifeguards back then) would boom out, "No running", or "Stay off the Ropes"! He was in charge, the parents were busy grilling: hot dogs, hamburgers, and some, a steak. Even in central Florida, the air would cool as it started to get dark. The pool lights would be turned on, soaking wet kids would stuff more food than they needed in their mouths (me included!) and then glare at our parents as they all invoked the thirty minute after you eat rule. Thank goodness, most nights some entertainment was scheduled.

I only remember two, I was obviously quite impressed: Hawaiian dancers and a water rescue demonstration where I learned that you really could tie your pants legs into a knot to make a floatation device. How cool. Did I ever try it? Yes, clowning around, but never seriously. I really should try it now.

But the coolest of all? It was almost a tie, but second place goes to:

Looking up at the huge water tower right over the pool. In all it's silver glory, it was the only water tower I had seen or would seen for more years than I care to mention.

First place was having the underwater lights turned on in the pool. How cool!

This is a TITMT Post that started with The Art Of Getting By.

To participate in this TITMT meme, here are the steps:

1. Write on your own blog a post about your summer childhood memories.
2. Make a list of links at the bottom of your post which is: this list plus yours (it should grow with each person)

Contributors:

Riley Central
Tumbled Words

*Notes:

A cannonball is simply jumping off the board or side of the pool, pulling your knees up to your chest and wrapping your arms around your legs to hold the position and make the biggest splash you can! Make sure you jump way out from the wall if you do it from the side of the pool -- heads smashing the side of a pool are not a good thing. It is best done from a diving board.

A can opener is simply pulling only one knee up, leaving the other leg extended, the arms wrap around the knee pulled up. Controlling the angle of entry in the water to makes the biggest splash takes practice, but the noise it makes is really cool, different than a cannonball. Again,
make sure you jump way out from the wall if you do it from the side of the pool -- heads smashing the side of a pool are not a good thing. It is best done from a diving board.

Have fun! Don't get your parents wet - or the food - or hit your head!