Things I Like #14: Pool Talk

Here’s the ritual: Every weekday around noon, my girlfriends and I start sending emails, always with the same subject line: “Pool Talk Today?” One by one, we weigh in—who can come, who can’t; what time; whose pool we’ll use and how long we can stay. That evening after work, we converge on the designated pool, beach towels in-hand. Ignoring the sunglassed gazes of teenaged lifeguards sitting stone-faced in their tower chairs, we nonchalantly walk to pool’s edge and sink our legs in the placid, chlorinated blue tub. Brrrr. One brave soul slides in first, proclaiming a little too brightly that the water is “so refreshing!” while she moves her limbs madly beneath the surface to warm up. Another session of Pool Talk has begun.

The ritual of Pool Talk, now in its third summer, combines two stress-relieving, rejuvenating, enjoyable past-times: swimming and talking to friends. For 30 minutes or more we tread water in the deep end of one of the pools in our neighborhood and update each other on our lives. Sometimes several girls come, sometimes it’s just two of us. We are all single, trying to manage our careers (professional and academic), our relationships (personal, professional, and romantic), our finances, our hobbies, our family commitments, and everything else that goes into a life. Pool Talk is an opportunity to vent, commiserate, seek and give advice, share news, and, of course, talk about boys. Last summer, we helped a friend plan her wedding during Pool Talk. A week or two ago, we gave advice to another friend dealing with unruly roommates. My goodness, this is beneficial!

Indeed, it’s the perfect end to any summer day.