Swimsover

While the opening of the pool is celebrated as First Dunk on whichever April day the temperatures push high enough for a swim, the closing is that sad day known as Swimsover.

A couple of years ago, it was warm enough on Columbus Day that Laurie joined me for a last swim, but she has usually given up getting into the water long before I do. This year, with September temps topping out only in the mid-70s, it has been a couple of weeks since she has been in. Thanks to the solar heating panels on the roof, the pool has stayed fairly warm and last Saturday, with both water and air temperatures around 75, I was able to enjoy an autumn afternoon poolside.

It's been down in the 40s the past couple of nights, so, despite the solar assistance, the pool has cooled to the upper 60s. (Snorkel Duck, the supreme optimist among our pool thermometers, said 69 yesterday; Swanee and Ducky were at about 67; Tommy Turtle, remaining the pessimist he has been all year, said the water was 50!) Refusing to give up until the cover is on, I did take a very brief dip yesterday when I got home from the gym. The water might best be described as "bracing."

Unless the long range forecast is for a substantial heat wave, the pool is scheduled to be closed next Tuesday. (Temperatures this weekend are expected to be in the 70s, warm enough for me to venture into the water again, but the autumn sunshine is not strong enough to pump the temp back up that quickly.) We are usually among the last ones on the list of closings that our pool guys handle. A couple of years ago, they showed up and said, "We are shutting down for the winter and yours is the only pool still open. We have to close it today or you'll have to wait till next spring."

So, while I have to sadly acknowledge Swimsover this week, I can look forward to First Dunk sometime next April.

And with the way time has been flying by, that's just around the corner.