Country Club

This school year has flown by so quickly that it is hard to fathom that Memorial Day weekend is upon us! I am looking forward to warm summer days at the pool, cool evenings by the fire pit ,and lots of ice cream. After the harsh winter, the sun will feel especially invigorating.

With Memorial Day comes the beginning of summer traditions, and in this house that means getting ready for the pool. While I still would love to have a pool of our own, I am saddened to think that this dream is just not realistic. We still have a large, and relatively useless, pool platform in the middle of our backyard from our last construction attempt. Sometimes I toy with the idea of reinforcing it and trying to put up another pool, but then I remember the heartbreak of  watching the water gush down the hill, and I put the notion out of my mind.  Since we will never own a pool of our own, we are avid users of our pool memberships.

Last year we belonged to the county pool and I venture to guess that we were there at least 5 times a week. We thoroughly enjoyed the facilities, but there were definite drawbacks.  The pool was about 30 minutes from our house, so we never just popped in for a short dip. Because it was a community pool, the afternoons were congested with area camps and assorted day care programs. I don't know about the men's room, but the ladies facilities were disgusting. I habitually held my breath, kept my head down to dodge the assorted used feminine products strewn on the floor, and walked as quickly through the changing area as possible. Although the pool was nice, the walk through the ladies changing area was downright nasty.

A few months ago I noticed a sign at the intersection a mile from our home advertising public pool membership at the Country Club. On a lark I sent an email inquiring about prices. I never imagined that it would be affordable, but I thought that it would be humorous to find out what the upper crust pay to swim in this area. I was shocked when I received the price sheet and discovered that it was on par with the community pool fee. Immediately I was intrigued and accepted the invitation for the Open House.

We tried to prep Robby before venturing into the Country Club, warning him that he had to use his "fancy" manners. Although he tried, his true personality came shining through. He complimented the manager on her choice of stemware, remarking that they were fancy glass but offering that "me and my dad like to drink out of plastic." He observed that all of the light bulbs on the chandelier worked before announcing that we can't use our dining room light because the switch throws sparks. He praised the refreshments but suggested that they look into including Pizza Rolls next time because they are "super yummy and you can eat them with a toothpick." 

Thanks to Robby's "fancy manners," we ended up looking like the Clampetts from the Beverly Hillbillies.  Despite feeling out of our element, Scott and I both recognized the benefits of joining. This pool is only 5 minutes from our house making it easier to fit swimming into Timmy's newborn schedule. Because it is a private club, there are no day campers, and the disgusting changing area would be a distant memory. Not overly optimistic, but hopeful that our application would be accepted, we filled out the appropriate membership paperwork.

A few days ago a packet arrived in the mail welcoming us to the Country Club. I am so excited that we are going to belong to a pool so close to our house. While I'm still not sure that we're going to fit in with the typical clientele, I know that we are going to have a blast.  Watch out Country Club, we're coming!