Why I love summer

[chargirlgenius]

The boys are taking swimming lessons on base. Well, they've made it to one class. Tomorrow they have violin lessons, and last night and tonight the pool was closed because it's too hot.

Did you hear that? They closed the POOL because it's too hot. Ok, it's not quite as bad as it sounds - the heat messes with the chemical composition of the water. Apparently.

I think it's only actually 97 around here. It's hotter up in town, where they have 100+ temps at the airport. I guess that makes it refreshing around here.

But while I'm thinking wistfully of winter, and of Wisconsin, and Belgium, and maybe even the North Pole, I want to keep in mind that no, there really are things to be happy about in the summer.

Why I like Summer. By Charlotte.

-Getting the kids dressed in the morning involves NO coats.
-I'm not a bad parent if I forget to send mittens and a hat with the boys to school.
-Going swimming, when the pool is open, that is.
-Sipping frozen drinks out on the deck after dark.
-Eating out on the water at the tiki bar.
-Fireworks.
-Not walking like a penguin over icy patches from the car to the garage.
-Not getting yelled at by security for that one little chunk of snow still left on the top of my car.
-My car starts with no complaint.
-No shoveling.
-No worries about being able to get out of the driveway.
-My cubicle isn't full of coats and hats and gloves and boots.
-Bike rides on the rail trail.
-Those occasional cool mornings that remind me of Minnesota.

That first one helps. A LOT.

Comments

[tedeisenstein.livejournal.com]

-Getting the kids dressed in the morning involves NO coats.

Ah, but do you remember the sunscreen?

[chargirlgenius.livejournal.com]

Spray sunscreen is the best thing since sliced bread! And preschool puts it on them!

[dame-margarete.livejournal.com]

Sprinklers - don't forget running through sprinklers!

I'm totally with you on the no coats and not having a cubicle full of outerwear!

[chargirlgenius.livejournal.com]

We used to do that naked until we got neighbors. ;-)

The heat messes with pool chemicals??

[noxcat.livejournal.com]

Uh...NO. We have pools all over the place down here. The only reason we close them is if there are water restrictions in place.

Re: The heat messes with pool chemicals??

[chargirlgenius.livejournal.com]

Well, they said they were closed yesterday because their ph was off. I mentioned it to a friend with a pool (from the south) and he said that the heat makes the chlorine evaporate more quickly.

Maybe it's not connected. Either way, the pool was closed. Maybe because it was a code red day.

Re: The heat messes with pool chemicals??

[noxcat.livejournal.com]

Doesn't seem to be a problem down here...

Re: The heat messes with pool chemicals??

[snolan.livejournal.com]

Sunlight makes your pool eject chlorine more rapidly.

Warm water is a better habitat for algae... sigh...

Re: The heat messes with pool chemicals??

[brickhousewench.livejournal.com]

Having been a certified pool and spa operator back when I worked as a pool manager for Parks and Recs in KY, yes, sun does burn off pool chemicals. Rain (esp. acid rain) affects your pool chemistry. Pollen, leaves, and other organic matter affects your chemistry. Dirty patrons affect your pool chemistry (that's why you're supposed to shower before you get in the pool). But if you're on top of your treatment, and testing and tweaking your chemicals every hour like you're supposed to, there shouldn't be any reason to close the pool.

In a nutshell, someone goofed up, and didn't have time to fix it in time to open the pool in the morning. I have sympathy for newbies trying to learn the proper overnight settings. In my case it was coming in to open one morning and discovering that the closing manager had set the inflow/outflow incorrect to the filters and the pool water was down 12 inches!!!

And they don't close public pools for water restrictions, only private ones (homeowners, hotels, etc.). My last summer with Parks and Rec was a bad drought, and it was a daily topic of discussion.

[msmcknittington.livejournal.com]

Before you get too wistful of Wisconsin and Minnesota, let me remind you of the mosquitoes. Dear lord, the flies and mosquitoes have been awful this year because it's been so wet around here.

[chargirlgenius.livejournal.com]

Thank you for that reminder! We really only get a few around here in our yard. Wanna move here?

[msmcknittington.livejournal.com]

Well, if you'll let me in the house sometimes, I might be OK with living in your yard. :P

[chargirlgenius.livejournal.com]

In the summer, you can use the hose to bathe. But in the winter, we'll let you in to use the kitchen sink. :-p

[msmcknittington.livejournal.com]

If I got a pointy red hat, I could be a real life lawn gnome.

ETA: And if you got me some festive and seasonal outfits, I would happy to sit on your front porch like one of those concrete geese.