Weather or Not: At the Pool and the Beach

We seem to be working our way through an entire year of weather in a week.

We started with April showers (in late May), followed by a steady warming trend to the point where it felt like mid-August on an afternoon or two.

In fact, a couple of nights last week were warm enough that I was able to take my first midnight swims of the year, something that usually doesn't happen until late June. Thanks to the warm, sunny days, the pool water was in the mid-80s.

The past weekend was typical of midsummer, warm and sunny and including the part where it clouds over and we get sudden downpours.

Last night, the temperature dropped into the low 50s. This morning was seasonable...for late September.

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Speaking of the pool, we've added a new member to the Temperature Team of thermometers. Replacing the departed Tommy Turtle is Penguin Teller. Unlike Tommy, who was consistently 20 degrees lower than the rest, Pen is right there in the middle of the pack.

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Beach volleyball has started again and our teams have been quite consistent in their inconsistency. One night in the first week, we won six games out of seven. The second week, we lost six out of seven.

On the four nights we've played so far, the weather has been different each time. We had one evening that was warm and pleasant, one that was hot and sticky, one that was incredibly windy, and one in which we watched a thunderhead form to the north of us, flashing lightning, but never quite making it near us.

It is amusing to see how different teams approach playing. We play for fun and the exercise (though it is nice to win or, at least, not lose by outrageous scores). We've encountered a few teams, however, who play like it is the Olympics. They act as if each point meant life-or-death, call every possible infraction, and argue if we disagree. We take particular glee in beating these teams because it makes them so crazy.

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I'm hoping we've run the gamut with the weather and it will go back to being June. I'd hate to have to play volleyball in the snow or have to avoid icebergs floating in the pool.