Wednesday December 12 2007 8:24 am
"French Fries"
Yikes now it is a big fog out there. It is misty and not much visibility beyond my yard. We have now had loud hail, snow on the mountains, pounding rain, and thunder. The fog makes it complete. Is there any weather we have not had in the past 24 hours. We had more dramatic weather in past two days than in the whole previous year. On the desert weather is changeless. Except for yesterday and today, where it is dramatically different every hour. It rained while I was in swim pool yesterday, then cleared up and sun came out on way home. Then I looked out and the terrace was soaking wet, the rain had started up again.
And I guess it’s been raining ever since. The landscape out my window is sodden.
Yesterday we swam at Fort Lowell pool, that is our favorite pool, high up by the mountains with deep water. But it was closed for a month to save on heating bills. We had been at Jerry’s pool instead. Yesterday was the grand reopening. Jerry, who is in charge of all the pools, had turned the furnace on during the week-end, so on Tuesday (yesterday) when it reopened for swimming, the water would be warm.
Jerry keeps his pool at 82 degrees all winter and ordered all the lifeguards to do the same. But Samantha, who is head lifeguard at our pool, loves warm water, and usually keeps it at 84 or 85 in winter, which makes all the difference in the world. I told Jerry “Sam keeps it at 84 and it is a million times nicer, why don’t you do that.” But instead of taking my hint, he said “Sam is not allowed to do that, I will lay down the law to her.”
When I arrived yesterday in the freezing rain I said “how warm is it?” She said 82. “Oooo” I said “usually you keep it at 84 when it is this kind of weather.” She said “I will Anne, but don’t tell anyone.” I said “great!” I was so happy she decided to disobey Jimmy and make her pool more enjoyable to swim in.
My mother emailed me her pool is kept at 92 and my brother enjoys his long warm swim in it, before they have dinner together in restaurant at her complex, and he goes upstairs with her to help her with computer. I was flabbergasted my mom’s pool is 92 when I am fighting tooth and nail to get our pool raised to 84, and have had zero success so far. I cannot even imagine the luxury of swimming in 92 degree water. Our pool is only barely warm enough to stay in it, and you do have to swim vigorously. I am not a vigorous swimmer. I like to do a floaty yoga-like swim, dream my way thru the water. But even I, who rarely moves a muscle when I swim, am starting to kick hard, just so I can stand the cold water.
The showers are outside at Fort Lowell and it was raining, so I put my clothes under the little shelf in the shower room and hoped it would not get wet from the showers. Of course our towels are all soaking wet from the rain, so drying off after a shower is impossible. I put on my long denim skirt and a long sleeved cotton shirt over soaking wet me, and joined Bill in the truck. He had the windows shut and heat on, it was heaven to be so warm. And then I wanted breakfast out.
I have larder full of delicious food because we had gotten out of the habit of restaurants, so I market for everything we could possibly want to eat or drink. But who wants to go into that cold damp kitchen and cook bacon and eggs. So Bill went to the second-hand store to look for books he wanted to read, and I went to Alice’s. And changed my mind and ordered chicken salad sandwich with french fries. And he bought a sack of books for 10 cents each. And then I went to the bakery next door and got chocolate brownies and sticky buns and cherry danish. And we got in the truck to go home and suddenly the sun appeared, and I thought “great! finally the bad weather is on its way out and the good weather has returned.”
And suddenly I noticed all my happiness and well being was back. I stretched out my arms in happiness. My tummy was happy from chicken salad sandwich and yummy french fries with salt and ketchup. I had a bag full of delicious bakery items on my lap. I had had a great swim. Bill was delighted with his bag of books. And the sun was out and warm.
I experienced pure contentment, which had been extremely lacking in 4 days of shivering away from the cold. I had had a range of happy experiences, feeling so alive after my swim or getting an email which made me so happy or a lovely movie on tv. I had had nice experiences which dotted the cold shivering time. I had even had moments of bliss and moments of great happiness. But the one thing I did not have was contentment, the warm contentment of feeling all is right with the world and I am so happy in it. For that you need to be warm and dry and have a plate served to you with very tasty sandwich and luscious hot french fries with salt and ketchup.
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