What a Catch!

As hot as it always was in the summer, we were always dying to have a pool to cool off in.

I think Mommy and Daddy even considered a built-in (or in-ground) pool, but brushed aside the idea, probably because of the cost.

They did, however, decide to get an above-ground pool, when they found a great deal at a sporting goods store called Bacon & Edwards. The pool was "used" to say the very least - filled with crayfish and other fish - and on display in the fishing section of the store. Daddy made a deal for the pool, fish and all!

The pool liner, sides and fittings were loaded into the back of Daddy's old truck, along with chests of live fish and crayfish in water.

The boys strung up the fish to take this epic photo and document their "catch". Of course, then they had to clean them... Mommy boiled the crawdads (some still trying to escape at the last second), and work began to set up the pool.

We had to level the ground (the area that would now be in back of the barn), fill in with sand and set up the pump and filter assembly, and the ladder, fill with water, and viola' - we had a swimming pool!

The boys and Linda taught Marty and I to swim underwater in the safety of our own pool (after a failed attempt to learn in the Municipal Pool at the fairgrounds with an instructor that taught with the old sink-or-swim method).

We also had the best whirlpools in there. We all formed a line around the edges and began to move around and around, until the water was going so good that it just swept you off of your feet and you were powerless to fight the pull of the whirlpool. Great fun, but Daddy discouraged this, as he felt it put too much pressure on the sides.

I don't remember how long the pool lasted, but it was cool and fun while it did!