We are so grateful to have a community pool to go to in our neighborhood. The kids love to go of course. At first it was nerve-racking taking 4 kids to the pool, alone, but we really haven’t had a choice this summer. We have developed a system that works for us. Gunnar and Tygar can swim for the most part and we have been working on treading water, etc. Stone won’t put his head under water, so he sticks to the 3 feet or the baby pool. So, I mostly hang with Eden, with a watchful eye on the boys. And she is non-stop, going from the big pool to the baby pool and back and forth. The big pool is warm, almost like a hot tub because of the ridiculously HOT weather we have been having his summer. The baby pool water is cool. I like to think the reason for this is they put fresh water in the baby pool on a regular basis?? At least that’s what I like to think. So, we spend a lot of time at the baby pool. It has a slide and spraying water, it’s not a typical baby pool. Even Gunnar loves it.
Yesterday, we went to the pool and we were a little overheated when we arrived, the car temp said it was 103, so we decided to cool off first in the baby pool. I immediately sat down in the pool and enjoyed the cool feeling for a few moments. It was somewhat crowded with a few parents sitting on the edge watching their toddlers and some playing with their babies. About 8 feet away from me were 2 couples, sitting and sipping their drinks in their koozies chatting away. Suddenly, one of the guys enthusiastically yells, “Caroline, what are you doing?”, like we were old friends that hadn’t seen each other in years. I looked at him, we both have sunglasses on, so I couldn’t tell if he was directly looking at me, but he was faced in my direction. For a half a second I was very confused, wondering could I possibly know someone here that well that would address me in that way and I felt immediately embarrassed that I hadn’t recognized them and felt bad for not saying hello first. Perhaps they went to Lake Forest? A neighbor that I forgot what they looked like because when you’re wearing a plaid beach hat, 80s polarized sunglasses, no shirt on and you see the beer belly they look at little different than when you would see them walking to their mailbox wearing regular clothes? This all passed through my mind in a half-second, really. Without trying to be rude, I answered him, even though I should have said, “Do I know you?” I said, “Hey…I’m just trying to cool off.” Then, he paused. Turned to his friends, pointed at me, said something, then they all laughed. I was wondering what was so funny. He turned back to me and said with another chuckle, “Is your name Caroline? I was talking to my daughter, Caroline.” And then he pointed to me to turn around and his daughter was playing right behind me. Immediately, I felt like I was back in the 6th grade again when I was the subject of ridicule being the new girl in town with a funny accent moving to Maryland from Tennessee. They would say to me, “Go back to where you came from.” Crazy that this came back to me at this time after 27 years in this situation.
Embarrassed, I laughed it off with them but wondered why they thought it was so funny. Maybe it was a few too many koozie covered beverages? I’m sure I could have had some witty response, but those of you that know me, know that I’m not that witty. I should have said, “Well, you all know my name now, how about introducing yourself to me?” Or…??
Anyway, I went back to playing with Eden, who had started playing with the little girl Caroline, thankful for the distraction to help the awkwardness fade away.
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