It's Safe To Return To The Water

Finally! I left the house Tuesday morning at 8:45 a.m. to go swim since we had to be out of the house for the 9:00 a.m. inspection. The inspector and his crew showed up an hour early because they were told the house was vacant, but I asked him if he could come back at 9:00 a.m. peaking my head out the front door in my robe. Even though Roger was told the inspection would take two hours, I had a feeling it would be longer. So I took a book with me to the pool and decided to read for 30 minutes or so to pass the time while the temperature outside warmed up. I left the house and it was 42 degrees outside. When I got out of my car at 9:40 a.m. to swim, it was up to 49 degrees. I walked up to the edge of the pool and reached down to check out the temperature of the water and it felt warm. I was so excited. Plus the pool was practically empty. When I arrived only two people were swimming. I guess it's true, the cold weather scares everyone off. So I got undressed all the way to just my track pants so I could be covered until the last minute. It was so cold outside but felt so good when I got in the water. It was great. As more people arrived to swim they asked me how the water felt and I exclaimed, "Great!"

After swimming a mile and a quarter, I realized I had to get out of the pool. I didn't want to get out. It reminded me of the summer of 2003 in Wisconsin for the Mommaerts' family reunion. We went swimming in the lake of a family member's summer house and it was warmer in the water than outside. I didn't want to get out of the water. I'm a total wimp when it comes to the cold. But I managed to get out and shower at the pool so as to waste more time for the inspection. I drove home and they were still there. So I decided to grab a bite of lunch as I was starving already. Then I went to HEB to get my Thanksgiving groceries. Thank goodness I thought ahead and made a list of everything I needed just in case the inspection took longer. And that way I could get my groceries before the big Thanksgiving rush on Wednesday. The grocery store was crowded but I was glad to be done. As I was loading my groceries in my car I thought, "What if they are still not done when I go by the house?" What would I do with my cold stuff? I decided if they were still there, I would just open the garage door, sneak into the kitchen and put my cold stuff in the fridge and freezer, then drive away. But as I was driving up the hill to the house, I saw the inspector's white truck pull out of the driveway. It was 12:30 p.m., an hour and a half longer than we were told. But I wasn't surprised. I mean, if they turned on and checked every appliance, utility, outlet, etc, I didn't know how they'd finish in two hours. Plus they climb on the roof and in the attic. I knew it would take a while. Glad I was prepared. And I'm glad I was able to swim again. A few bicycle rides did not make up for two weeks of not swimming. I love swimming. And I'm so glad the water's warm again. Maybe I can make it at Stacy Pool for a few more weeks before it gets too cold for me. That or I'll have to toughen up. The appraisal on the house is tomorrow morning and then we should be done until the closing.

New Week

Well, I just got home from swimming at the neighborhood pool. Lap swimming is from 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 a.m. Monday through Friday. I'm going to try to swim at least three days a week. The neighborhood pool is less than a mile from our house. I drove this morning but plan to ride my bike from now on. I have to fix the flat I got at the triathlon last month which is funny since the cycling portion of the triathlon was canceled. Somehow I got a flat while my bike was in the back of the truck. Anyway, the neighborhood pool isn't great, but it's better than nothing or having to go farther. I was the only person there at 7:00 a.m. and no one else showed up until kid's started to gather around 8:00 a.m. for swim lessons. Hopefully the word doesn't get out since they only have one lap lane. And the lifeguards are really nice. My only experience at the neighborhood pool is during the summer full of kids and it's crazy. So it was really weird to have the pool all to myself. But I'll take it. I didn't do my whole workout, but close and it won't take me long to get back into shape. Now I'm off to shower, work a little and then run some errands. I love grocery shopping during the middle of the day during the week. Stores are empty. It's great. Oh wait, public school ended last week. Well, hopefully it won't be too bad. I bet Roger's commute this morning was really fast. He has a physical therapy consultation this afternoon. I'm very happy about that. Hopefully they give him a bunch of exercises to do. We planned to put regular pedals on his bike this weekend and go for a ride, but we got distracted with house stuff. But we'll get them on soon. And Wednesday he has his first appointments with his new neurologist and radiation-oncologist at Brooks Army Medical Center (BAMC) in San Antonio. Since we are so close to IH-35, it's a very easy drive to BAMC. Roger is going to keep those specialists in the Army so all his records are in the system and when he has his re-evaluation August of 2009 all his records of care are in the system for the board. I'll let you know how his physical therapy consult goes today.