OK, this is a non-gaming post. There may be more of these to follow.
As some of you probably know by now, we moved a little over a month ago. Our new house has a hot tub. I've wanted a hot tub for a while now. It feels SOOOOOOOOOO good on my poor aching back. But aside from that, it took me back to the time of leg warmers, cassette tapes and Michael Jackson being black. Yup, my teen-age years: the 80's.
When we were younger, my dad asked us if we would rather have a pool or a cabin. The unanimous answer was a pool. And with it, we had summer fun. Impromptu pool parties when a bunch of us would just stop whatever we were doing and overtake our back yard. I can still see one of my friends jumping off the diving board, turning around and mooning us (much to my mother's dismay) before his bare a$$ hit the water. I can remember making out with a couple of different girls in the pool (not at the same time, mind you). It was definitely good for the love life. Ah, youth. It truly is wasted on the young.
But it also takes me back to the troubles my Dad had. The maintenance on such an item was constant. Trying to keep it clean, making sure the chemical levels were good, making sure it was properly winterized,... When we moved out of that house I'm pretty sure he was relieved that he didn't have to maintain it anymore. This takes me to where I am now. The kid in me came out when I first got it, but the adult in me still has to maintain it. It had been 20 years since we had a pool and I had forgotten about the additional time, money, and effort to keep it running. The hot tub is a little less effort because it is better shielded from the elements than a pool is, but it's still there.
So far, it has been worth it. My back feels pretty good and It's very relaxing. It gives Rhonda and I the chance to spend some quiet time alone with each other and that's not always easy to do. And while it takes me back to my youth in some ways, I don't go directly back in time like they did in the movie. Thank goodness for that, because I don't think I could pull off the mullet today.
Tell me about it. I'm guessing my swim season is longer than yours and I don't really have to winterize my pool. As much as a pain it's been sometimes I don't think I could live in AZ without one. My parents have a pool and a hot tube and I think the hot tube has given my dad more fits about keeping it balanced that the pool has. Wait until the winter time when you can sit out in the hot tube while it's cold outside. Just make sure you get back into the house before you freeze to death.
ReplyDeleteYour dad might think about pools like my dad thinks about boats. He says the second happiest day of a man's life is the day he gets a boat. The happiest day is the day he gets rid of it.
Oh, and it's your blog so you can talk about anything you like. Just don't let your reader's snoring discourage you. :)
ReplyDeleteWhat is a hot tube? Sounds like a long, thin version of a hot tub. I had about half a dozen other jokes for "hot tube", but they're mature rated. ;-)
ReplyDeleteWe had a tech come down when we bought the house to explain the in's and out's of a hot tub. (Hee Hee.. in and out. There's a hot tube joke) We asked him about running it in the winter. He said that this particular tub was made for it - some don't have the proper insulation for it - but it's VERY expensive to keep about 400 gallons of water at 103F in 20 below temperatures. He also said that you have to watch it every single day. If the heater goes or the pump goes, we're in deep doo doo. And you DO NOT want to dump the tub when it's below zero. There's no where for the water to go because the ground is frozen. I haven't decided if I want to try it yet. I agree that it is probably the best time of year to go, but the headache that goes along with is might be too much for me.
You made out with girls in your parents pool???
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