A Silver Lining

 

“BRRRRRrrrrrrrr!” Chilly Wet Woman scurries into the locker room here at Kennedy just as I plonk down my stuff.

“It’s cold!” I commiserate.

“Yes!” Are her teeth chattering? This doesn’t bode well, I think, as I open Locker No 75 and begin cramming my clothes inside. “It’s the wind, right?” I pursue the topic, hoping it’s not the water.

“Yes!” she nods, “that’s it!” Shivering in her wet suit, she heads to the showers.

As I walk out to the pool, the cold wind whips around the hallway to the Natatorium. Damn. It is cold! And all the doors are open in the pool area because of COVID. When can that action stop? Yet, COVID seems here to stay. I had just read in the paper that the latest variant, some sub sub sub variant of OMICRON was swelling in the Bay Area.

            So, the doors will remain open for the foreseeable future. I guess the wind is better than the virus, right?

            As I dip my toe in the pool, the normally warm water feels chilly. Damn damn damn. I’m already here too early, at 10:00 am. Usually, I’m just finishing up my coffee. But the pool hours are so limited. I had thought, hell, I can make it to the pool by 10 to get in a swim before 11. But it’s hard. Esp. if I’ve been up watching Mary Tyler Moore at 2 in the morning.

            At least I don’t live in Minneapolis like Mary!

   

         I ease into the chilly water, sucking in my breath. Is it me? Or is the water colder today? I mean, it could just be the wind, but no....I think the water is colder.

            I swim as hard as I can to try to get warm, but I’m tired. My arms feel like heavy little logs. Lifting them is a challenge. Then pulling through the water is just hard!

            I swim though. And, while I don’t get warm, I’m not so cold that I have to get out.

And the swim is good otherwise. I have my own lane. Mighty Splash Man has gotten out so I’m not drowning in his tidal wave action anymore. I’m in the water. I made it to the pool before 10 and now I’m swimming. That’s really all that matters.

            Except I am cold.

            Climbing out of the pool is an ordeal. It’s even colder now with the wind whipping around the deck from the wide-open doors.

            I have to complain to the Nice Lifeguard. “It’s cold today!” I shout through my mask, pausing for a moment before heading into the locker room,

            “Yeah, it’s the wind.”

            “Yes, but I think the pool was cooler today, too.” Do I ever get tired of complaining about the pool temperature? I do. I like to give praise, too, though when it’s warm. Last week, at The Plunge, I told Jose how warm the water was. “RIGHT ON!” he grinned. That guy is always happy.

            Wonder what that’s like?

            Nice Lifeguard is sympathetic. He likes warm water, too. We’ve had conversations where we both agree that warm water is better water. So today, he agrees with me. “Yeah, I think the water is a little cooler today....maybe 83?”

            “Or 82!” I laugh. And, think how can I be cold in 82-degree water? Easy! If my body is 97 degrees, then I’m submerging it in a liquid that is almost 20 degrees colder. No wonder I get cold!

            He grins at me behind his black mask, shutting the doors now that the pool is closed. Again, I long for non-COVID times.

            In the shower, I get a little warmer, but not much. As I am drying off, I’m trying not to shiver. One other woman is in the room. Harpist Woman. I don’t think she remembers me but we had a chat about music one day. She and her friend told me they liked Rachmaninoff when I told them I played classical piano.

            “It’s cold today!” I proclaim to her now.

            She’s trying to get dry too, but turns around and smiles, “Yes, but I heard it’s good for the organs.”

            “Really?” I had heard somewhere that cold water was bad for the heart. I think I did some research on it when I was swimming in the really cold water at Keller the past two summers during the height of COVID when all the pools were closed. There were warnings in the literature about how staying in too cold water can cause heart attacks.

            Or did I just believe this? Or did someone tell me this?

            Hell, I don’t know. All I know is that her assertion that cold is good for the organs surprises me.

            “Yes,” she continues, wrapping her waist-length hair up into a turquoise turban, “when we are in hot and then cold and then hot and then cold. This back and forth is good for our organs.”

            I’m dubious, but want to keep the conversation going. “Well, I guess we’ve got that covered today!”

            “Yes.” She pauses, thinking, then grins over at me as she grabs her bag, “So you see, there is always a Silver Lining.”

            Oh, no! Not one of those people! Always a Silver Lining? Really? Platitudes are so annoying, esp. when they make simplistic positive proclamations. Oh, but yeah, that’s the definition of a platitude, right?

            I head to the toilet and when I come out, she’s gone.

            How did she get out of here so fast, I wonder. I guess she knew she’d closed the conversation with that Silver Lining quip.

            Still chilly, I start the getting dressed process, thinking about my organs and how healthy they must be from all my swimming in the cold.

            “Any Ladies still in there?” A lifeguard hollers at me.

            “Yes, I’ll be out in a minute!” Why are they always yelling at us to get out of the locker room when the 15-minute rule is clearly posted? It’s only 11:05. I still have 10 minutes until the 15 minute you have to get outta the locker room rule kicks in.

            I cram my stuff in my bag, wishing I had a turquoise turban for my wet hair as I head out of the locker room into the wind. A seagull circles overhead. A puffy cloud floats in the sky. I'm wet and cold, but my organs feel fine as I unlock the Fiat and climb into its warm embrace.