Protocols

“Ma’am, we ask that you no longer deck change.” The lifeguard barely glances at me as she and her coworker busy themselves with the enormous pool covers.

“But it’s so cold,” I protest, shivering dramatically.

“I know, but we’ve had some problems with nudity.” Huh? What the hell is she talking about? Are the Berkeley swimmers baring their breasts and exposing their dicks after swimming their laps? I refrain from asking for the specifics though, “I think I was pretty discreet,” I offer defensively. I mean, hell, we can’t use the locker rooms because of the pandemic. What are we supposed to do?

            “You were,” she says, “But if we let one person do it then we have to let everyone.”

            Oh, I HATE this logic! Like we are all the same people? That everyone is bad so no one can do something even if they are careful? I used to use this logic when I was a kid and it never worked. “But Janine can do it, why can’t I?” Mom would dismiss me with the standard “Because I said so.” Of course, this was never a satisfying answer, but it shut me up.

            Why can’t this apply today? Just because I ‘deck change’ doesn’t mean that everyone else gets to. Why?

            Because I said so!

            The lifeguard continues with her lecture, “We ask that you just put on your parka over your suit and leave.”

            I shake my head as I zip up my parka, thinking how this lifeguard is just after me cuz I hassled her about not being able to switch pools anymore. When I asked her why, she had said two things: 1) Because of COVID (Huh? This makes no sense). 2) Because people complain that their lane isn’t held for them indefinitely. Okay, shouldn’t they have to just forfeit their lane if they're late? When I’d mentioned this to the lifeguard, she’d ignored me.

            I realize I’m not going to change ‘protocol’ here, but I pursue the COVID question anyway. It perplexes me: “You had said earlier that I couldn’t switch pools because of COVID. Why is that?”

            She doesn’t look at me now. Seems nervous. “I don’t know....my boss just said that it was the protocol. People switch chairs....” she offered. Okay, I’ll give her a tiny break here. I mean her boss runs the show, not her, but he/she/they should tell her why. I mean, c’mon. It makes no sense. Does COVID lurk on the deck between pools and when you walk from one pool to the other, it attacks the bottom of your bare feet?

            Switching chairs? Maybe. There are chairs at the end of each lane on the deck for swimmers to put their stuff. The lifeguards do spray these chairs with some sort of COVID killing chemical between lap hours. So, I suppose, if someone switched pools and then switched chairs there could be some contamination?

            Doesn’t seem likely though. The lifeguard agrees, “But most people don’t switch chairs, so....” Her voice trails off. I feel a little sorry for her, but then not really. I mean, the no-deck change is ludicrous. We’re at a water situation. I grew up at the beach. Surfers always changed out of their wetsuits in the street behind car doors. Standard practice. No one thought anything of it. I had always hoped to catch a glimpse of surfer ass, but this rarely happened.

            Just like tonight when I changed. Under my huge parka. Whipping my suit off. Putting my sweats on. C’mon. What is the problem?

            I’m sick of it all! The protocols for COVID are gonna drive me over the edge. I get that we don’t want to spread the virus unnecessarily, but hell, what does changing pools have to do with this?

            And now the no deck change?

            I’ve had it.

            As the lifeguard goes back to her lane cover task, I get snippy: “You all don’t make it easy for us to swim!” I harrumph. “First, no switching pools. Now no deck changing. It’s ridiculous.”

            She ignores me.

            I sigh. Very loudly. Gather up my stuff and head out of the area.

            We can’t switch pools. We can’t deck change. We can’t go to the bathroom.

            Hell, next time I come here I’m gonna pee in the pool!

WTF????

 “Your name?”

The lifeguard is a young woman I haven’t seen here before at King Pool. She seems about 12, but she’s probably 19 or 20. Her lank dark hair hangs behind her blue mask. She seems nervous. Or just new. Or maybe only tired of lifeguarding in the cold, dark drizzle.

“Carol Jameson.”

“Have you been in contact with anyone who has had COVID?”

“No.”

“Do you have any symptoms? Any coughing? Aches? Fever?”

“No.”

“He’ll take your temperature.”

I lean my forehead toward him, another young person. He seems familiar with his curly dark hair popping out atop his head. He points a plastic blue thermometer at me.

“Okay, you’re good to go,” he says.

Before I move on, I ask Nervous Girl, “I’m in the Dive Tank. Is it okay if I move to the Big Pool if someone doesn’t show up?”

“We’ve had a change in policy. No more switching pools.”

“Really? Why is that?”

“Their name is on the list.”

Their name is on the list? WTF does that mean? I feel the shuffling behind me. A line of swimmers has formed as the light drizzle begins to turn to rain. Obviously, this change in policy is an issue. In the past, if someone hadn’t shown up for their reserved lane after 15 minutes, the lifeguards would let me move to the big pool. This seems reasonable. After all, if you’re that late, you should have to give up your lane. What’s that got to do with your name being on The List?

            I can’t argue with her now as the group glaring behind me intensifies.

            I shake my head, sigh VERY loudly, “Okay, well, your change in policy doesn’t make any sense, but it’s your pool. I’m not going to stand here and argue with you.”

            She doesn’t respond but moves to take the person’s name behind me.

 As I head out to the back of the deck, to the Dive Tank, I’m seething. It is SO stupid!  I eye the little blue square, a very short pool that is maybe a third the length of the big pool, and I think about how idiocy and policy go together.  Who came up with this Change in Policy? Some Pool Manager who got harassed by a Berkeleyiete who was incensed that some Dive Tanker stole their lane. They have the right to be as late as they want and still keep the lane. And, because I don’t live in Berkeley, nonresidents can’t sign up for lanes till 48 hours after residents, so I NEVER have gotten a real lap lane. But the moving from the Dive tank to the Big Pool, while it doesn’t happen all the time, did happen frequently.

Now no more?

            It’s insane!

            Frankly, if someone shows up more than 15 minutes late, they lose their spot, right? I mean, other businesses do this. When I work at the Writing Lab at GGU and a student is more than 10 minutes late, they lose their spot. I help the person waiting in the wings.

This makes perfect sense, right?

            As I begin my back and forth and back and forth and back and forth, I can’t help it, I keep an eye on the big pool to see if all the lanes are taken. After all, it’s late on a rainy Sunday night, I bet it won’t be full.

            And sure enough, there is an empty lane. I keep turning around, watching the clock. It’s been 15 minutes, are they really NOT going to let me move?

            I eye the empty lane longingly. It is taunting me with its vacuity. Damn! Do I dare just get out and go jump in that lane? Would the lifeguards really come over and tell me to get out?

            I do consider trying it. After all, I am an old lady. Would these 12-year-old guards really have the nerve to tell me to move if there’s no one using the lane?

            I decide not to risk it, but I am so mad! At about 10-12 yards long, I have to turn around over 150 times to do maybe a mile in the Dive Tank. Meanwhile, there sits that beautiful empty lane taunting me.

            It’s a far cry from the first time I came to King Pool when the lifeguard checked me in and offered me a big lane cuz there was a cancellation? Who knows? But since then, they’d been nice about letting me switch.

            It’s such a big deal in this Pandemic. I can’t stand it anymore. Already, I can’t ever get a regular lane in the Big Pool, but I could switch if no one showed up.

            The resources are so scarce. The pools are so booked up. If someone doesn’t show or is late, tough shit, right?

            Oh, if only I ran the pools! It would be a different world. Non-residents could sign up at the same time as residents. The pools would be open 24 hours a day.

            And there would be Pool Switching allowed if someone was late or didn’t show.

            It’s only fair, right?

            RIGHT!!!!

            I will write a letter of complaint to the Pool Manager. Like that will do any good. If there’s one thing I’ve learned after all these years of swimming, letters (or verbal) of complaint NEVER accomplish anything.

            Except maybe make me feel better

            I finish lap 174, the whistle blows, I climb out of the Dive Tank, tired but a good tired.

Even with the Change in Policy, the Dive Tank is better than nothing. Yet....next time, I might just jump in that empty lane and see what happens.

            After all, only live once!

Nirvana

 

“Do you know what time it is?” Witchy Woman has just gotten out of her Cube Car after pulling up behind me. I’m still not sure if she’s really a witch. She seems less witchy the more I talk to her, but you never can tell. Witches are everywhere. They live across the street from me, or at least, they introduced themselves as witches. And they are very nice and funny, always waving hi to me and chatting when we take out the garbage cans. Maybe most witches are like this, just normal women going about their day. Yet, they can spring up and wreak havoc. I’ll never forget the Wiccan in my Research Writing course at Woo Woo U who threatened to report me to the Dean cuz I didn’t stop the student sitting next to her from looking at Facebook during class.

            Tonight, though, I’m mainly worried about talking to anyone at a less than socially distant range. Witchy Woman and I both have our masks on, but still, she seems to be edging toward me. I back up slightly as she continues to engage. “I forgot my phone tonight,” she continues. “But I don’t want to wait around outside, you know?”

            “Yeah, it’s cold. I don’t have a watch, but hey, wait a minute, I do have the time on my Fitbit.” I wrestle it out of my pocket from under my big fuzzy swim coat. Pulling it out, I hold it out under the streetlight, but I can’t really read it. I take a guess. “Well, I think it’s 7:20.”

            She nods.

            “I can’t really see very well,” I laugh, going ahead and opening the hatch of the Fiat to grab my stuffs. I don’t mind waiting outside even though it’s a chilly 46 degrees out. By the time I get my stuff and walk up there, it’ll be 7:25, only 5 minutes before our reserved time. And, here, at King Pool, they sometimes let us in a few minutes early to set up, unlike the Time Sticklers at El Cerrito!

            Witchy Woman has gotten her stuff too, and is now falling in step with me as I walk toward the pool. Again, I’m a bit nervous about the Social Distance Protocol, but we’re both masked and it is outside with a chilly wind blowing.

            “Do you like your car?” she asks.

            “Oh, yeah, I love it!”

            “I want a car like that. It’s so cute and small.”

            “Yes, the Fiat is easy to drive and it’s zippy too. It gets pretty good gas mileage and cuz it’s fairly new, it starts!”

            She laughs, “I have a Honda. It always starts. Is yours an electric?”

            “No, I couldn’t afford that. It was $10,000 more.”

            “Yeah, I hear you. I just think I need to do something about my Carbon Footprint.”

            I know I’m in Berkeley when a casual conversation on the way to the pool delves into our Carbon Footprints!

            “Yeah,” I agree, “I drive so little, that I figure that’s my contribution.”

            Nodding, she’s thoughtful. “Yeah, I drive quite a bit.”

            “Really? I drive less since the Pandemic.”

            “I drive more. I just need to get out of the house. Go places. On errands.....” Her voice trails off.  And I think how strange this is. That people want to get out of their houses during this pandemic. I know it’s fairly common, and in fact, probably the majority of folks feel this way, but for me, I like being home and not driving anywhere. Who needs it?

            “It’s interesting how the Pandemic influences our behavior differently,” I comment non committally.

            “Yes, and it’s going to be another year of it. Not till 2022.”

            “Gosh, I hope not, but you could be right.”

            We both are at the stand in line point now. Stopping to the 6 feet apart situations. She is just so familiar to me. “Do you normally swim at this pool?”

            “No, at the Y.”

            Oh, I think, this is where I know her from. “Which Y?”

            “Berkeley usually, but sometimes Oakland.”

            “Me too, I mean not Berkeley but Oakland. Maybe I’ve seen you there.”

            She doesn’t respond to this possibility. “I like Oakland better than Berkeley. The people are nicer.”

            “Yeah, Oakland is a friendlier Y than Berkeley.” I don’t elaborate, but think of how warm the women at Utopia are. How much I miss them and DL!

            “I had this whole routine,” she continues. “Swim and then sauna. It was my Nirvana!”

She cackles, her witchy one.

            “Yes, that’s right,” I grin.

            “I just don’t know when that will ever happen again,” she sighs. And I have to agree. It seems like a wonderful dream now. And we’ve all woken up in this nightmare with no end. Even with the vaccine beginning to be administered, the reality is that Utopia or Nirvana is a long way off. If ever.

She moves forward in line now as the lifeguard with his blue forehead laser thermometer calls her to be tested. I wish her a good swim, but she doesn’t hear me. Is on the pool deck now chatting to one of the other swimmers.

I head over to the Dive Tank, the steam rising from it in magic glowing puffs.

As I undress, shivering in the cold, I glance up at the half-moon. Its pale light drifting down through the foggy pool puffs. Dipping my toes into the water, I grin.

At least I can swim! And, as I plunge under the surface, the warm water embracing me, I think how this is as close to Nirvana I will get. At least for tonight. And, maybe till 2022!

Swimmer's Grin

 

“M’am? …..M’am??....Hello????”

I’m shivering on the deck beside the Dive Tank. Grin as the lifeguard tries to get super swimmer lady to stop. She won’t.

            “M’am!” He’s a bit more forceful this time. She stops. Looks up at him.

            “It’s time,” he informs. Like she didn’t know. But maybe she didn’t. She was really into her laps!

            

We’d been swimming together in the Dive Tank for the last 45 minutes. She lapped me about ever 20 laps? (It’s hard to tell in the Dive Tank.) But she was a bit faster than me. Even with my fins on.

            Now, as she pulled herself out of the Tank, she grinned at me, a distinct difference from when we had gotten in. I’d said “Hi”. She’d glared at me. Or maybe she had said “Hi” back and I just hadn’t heard her behind the muffled mask that is our world now.

            Recently, Ian had just been talking about this not understanding what anyone is saying anymore behind their masks. He’d been at the Vietnamese restaurant, picking up our #56, Ginger Chicken with garlic rice and extra broccoli. The young woman who always serves us had chatted with him. He didn’t understand her except that she was saying something about not going on vacation. Which he could nod and agree with. But other than that, he was just nodding. Not understanding. Not really having a conversation or communicating.

            It’s our world now.

            Except when you get out of the pool. We don’t have our masks on. Yet. And, so tonight, when super swimmer woman grinned over at me, I grinned back. We could see each other’s grins. It was communication that was unique to the pool. I took advantage.

            “It’s hard to get out,” I offered, trying vainly to dry off in the dark windy night.

            “Yeah, it is,” she agreed. Then she glanced over at where the lifeguard had gone to start pulling on the pool covers. “Hey, do you know how many laps in the Dive Tank make a mile?”

            He looked at her blankly. “No, not really,” he muttered,  before continuing his arduous task.

            “I asked the same question the other night,” I said. “The lifeguard just laughed at me and said, ‘It’s not really made for swimming laps’!”

            Super Swimmer was also trying to pull on her sweats over her wet suit. “I did 172 laps tonight but my Fitbit said I did 44!”

            Here we are. Slaves to our devices. And they’re wrong! “Well, maybe it just counts how many times you turned around?” But as I said this, I knew this couldn’t be right. She had to have turned around over 300 times! Maybe Fitbit doesn’t count up that far with lap swimming? I have no clue. I only wear my Fitbit for counting my steps. But with the Dive Tank, I have sorta given up counting. Even though all athletes count! Swimmers count their laps. Runners count their miles. Bikers count their miles. It’s a serious athlete thing. And Fitbit cashed in on it.

            “I guess we could walk it out,” I offer. “You know, measure out the long pool and then this Dive Tank and see what the difference is…..” My voice trailed off. This seemed plausible on the surface but in reality, probably not. “Though we never have that much time when we come here under the strict 45-minute time limit!”

            She laughs. “Yeah, but that’s a good idea. Maybe I’ll try that next time. In the regular pool I usually swim 80-85 laps. So, it’d be interesting to see how that translates to this pool.”

            I yank my big fuzzy coat on over my wet towel wrapped around my waist. I haven’t figured out yet whether it’s better to put my pants back on over my wet suit or to just leave the wet towel wrapped around me. Oh, for a hot shower at the pool! Then being able to change into dry clothes. Gosh, we took so much for granted.

            “Maybe I’ll see you next time,” I say to her. “I try for three times a week, but I often don’t make it that much. It’s hard.”

            “Really?” she says. “I am swimming more since the Pandemic. Before I was swimming 2 times a week but now, I’m doing 3 or 4.”

            “Wow, that’s great. I am swimming less. I was swimming 4-5 times a week and now it’s only 2-3.”

            We both laugh. “I never swam 5 times a week!” she exclaims, grinning ear to ear. The ‘Swimmer’s Grin’ as Julianne calls it. It’s still true. Even in the night. Even after over 300 turns in the Dive Tank. Even during the Pandemic.

            Swimming. There’s nothing like it.

            Now if we could only figure out how many laps are a mile in the Dive Tank!

           

That Big Moon

 

“I wish that Big Moon were warmer!” It’s Witchy Woman. Of course, she’s commenting on the moon. But I like this idea. It’s so weird.

            “Yeah, the bigger the moon, the warmer it should be!” I proclaim.

            She cackles. Then turns to the woman standing in line, 6 feet or more, behind her. Not wanting to continue the Moon Talk with me? I shrug and shiver.

            One thing she is right about. It would be nice if it were warmer, moon-related or not. It feels a bit crazy to be standing out here in the dark, in flip flops and swimsuit, thankfully covered by my new fleecy coat my sis gave me for Christmas.

            Is the Dive Tank worth it?
            Last night, I’d gotten to swim in the Big Pool. Would I get to again? Or would I be banished to the Dive Tank?

            It does sound like a banishment, doesn’t it?

            The Dive Tank. Like I’m gonna be inside some deep, dark TANK. Without any diving gear.

            The lifeguard comes out, mask and clear plastic hood over his face. The plastic scares me. It’s like I’m in a Sci Fi movie. Our world is poisoned and we all have to wear protective gear.

            Which is true. The coronavirus has poisoned our world. People are dying and getting sick with no end in sight until the vaccine becomes available. And it sounds like this isn’t gonna happen till the spring or summer. And even so, we will all still have to be vigilant. Wear our masks. Swim in our own lanes.

            I honestly can’t even envision a world where I’m back at the Y in the sauna. Hangin' out and chatting it up in Utopia.

            Utopia is gone.

            Hey, but at least there’s the Dive Tank. Actually, I’m kinda curious about it, but do ask the lifeguard if I can swim in the big pool. “If someone doesn’t show up,” he says. “We’ll let you know.”

            I try to hide my disappointment.  “The Dive Tank is that little pool over there?” I ask, nodding toward the far end of the pool deck.

            “Yup,” he says. “You’re good to go,” the woman lifeguard says after waving the blue plastic thermometer at my forehead.

            Does it really register my temperature? I’m dubious. Maybe it just shows if I’m burning up or not.

            Which I’m not. I’m freezing! I do wish that moon were warmer!

            I head over to the Dive Tank. It’s square with 3 lanes sectioning it. I finish gearing up with my cap and plugs and mask and stick my toe in. It’s warm!

            I jump in and swim 4 strokes. At the wall already. Okay, this is gonna take a lot of turning around. But again, I’m just SO happy to be in the water. I don’t even care. Hell, I could just float in here and be happy. What is it about the water that is such a necessary component for my well-being?

            Who knows? As I turn around again, I wonder if I should count my laps. Like how many would equal 80 in the big pool? 200? That would be funny. It reminds me of when I was a kid and I would go out into our backyard pool and swim back and forth back and forth, counting 10, 20, l50, 200 laps. I was a very serious swimmer even as a 10-year-old!

            As I come to the wall, the woman lifeguard has approached me, “There’s an open lane!” she hollers at me.

            “Cool!”  I grin, but thinking how goddamn cold it’s gonna be to move all my junk and walk around the big pool to the chairs on the far side.

            It is cold. Again, I wish that moon were warmer! But once I’m in the big pool, swimming, wondering how many laps I did in the Dive Tank, I’m so happy. Swimming! How did I live without it for 35 days?

            I was very cranky!

            I swim on. Decide that since it’s been about 15 minutes, I’ve probably done about 600 yards. I go with this and start in on my fins backstroke yardage. Swim for about 10 minutes when….

            “Hello!!! HELLO!!!”

            I stop, the guy lifeguard is hollering at me. “The person who had this lane reserved just showed up. We’re gonna have to ask you to move.”

            “Oh…., okay….” I glance up at the clock. It’s been 25 minutes. Shouldn’t anyone who is so late have to forfeit their lane and swim in the Dive Tank? I mean, c’mon. How long are they supposed to hold the lane for someone? When tutoring at the writing lab, we hold someone’s spot for 10 minutes. And this is what it seemed like they had done here, too, when they’d gotten me initially. It had been about 10 minutes, maybe a little more.

            So, it doesn’t make sense for me to move again, but I guess that’s the protocol here when you reserve the Dive Tank.

            I slowly glide to the other end of the pool, readying to get out again into the frigid air, even more frigid cuz I’m wet.

            The Woman Lifeguard hollers at me again, “Never mind. You don’t have to move!”

            “I don’t?”

            “No, it’s fine. You can stay in that lane.”

            I don’t know what happened. I never saw the person who was 25 minutes late for their lane. Maybe they just left. Maybe they’re over in the Dive Tank.

            All I know is that I’ve got the lane now. And I’m gonna make the most of it.

            I turn over onto my back and gaze up at the moon through the misty steam. She looks warmer now.

            Or is it just the all the swimming? Warming me up. I grin as I reach the wall and turn, following the moon with my gaze as I swim back and forth back and forth back and forth…..

The Giant Glowing Blue Cube

 

My first glimpse of it takes my breath away. The steam rising off the surface. The lights glowing under the water, illuminating the turquoise waters. There’s nothing like a pool at night. Surrounded by the darkness, the blue glow magical and surreal.

            I can’t wait to dive in!

            But first, I had to find it!

            I was so excited. I had a reservation at the King Pool in Berkeley for the Dive Tank. I had no idea what this meant, but I didn’t care. I was on a roll here. First snagging the cancellation at the El Cerrito pool the day before and now getting into the reservation system of the Berkeley Public Pools.

            I tried lap swimming. To no avail. Once again nonresidents get the short end of the stick since they’re not allowed to sign up till 48 hours after residents. Okay, sure they pay taxes to the city of Berkeley, so I guess this gives them priority. But since the City of Richmond has NO pools open, all of my taxes are going where?

            I don’t even want to think about that.

            So, when I did get into the King Pool reservation system, no lap swimming was available. But there was something called the Dive Tank. Oh! That sounded like an adventure. I booked it right away. And it was only $3! I’m a senior in Berkeley even though I’m not a resident!

            I used to swim at King Pool in another lifetime. Just graduated from UC Santa Cruz. Lived with a bunch of college friends up on Marin. I used to walk down to this pool to swim laps. I don’t remember much about it except it was close to my house and it was always really crowded.

            That’s one thing I have to say for the Pandemic. I do get my own lane. If I can get one booked!

            So, I thought I knew where this pool was. Still, I took the precaution of putting it into the Google Maps and reading the directions before I left. Sounded simple enough. Get on 80, take Gilman, turn left up Gilman, turn left on Hopkins and then it’s there!

            This sounded familiar, but I still gave myself lots of time.

            As I walked out of the house, the phone started talking to me: “Take 32^nd street south, turn left on Barrett Ave.”

            Okay, I know this. It’s when I get into the dark streets of Berkeley (and I think Berkeley is the darkest town in the world!) that I was worried about.

            In the car, the phone stopped talking to me. Damn! I pulled over on 37^th street and jabbed at the microphone icon.

            Nothing.

            Okay, well, I know where I’m going, right? I’ve been to this pool before. And as I got off the freeway and drove up Gilman, I was still confident that I knew where I was going.

            I didn’t.

            I pulled over several times on the dark bumpy street of Gilman and punched at the phone each time.

            Nothing. It wasn’t talking.

            I pulled away from the curb, a tailgater flashing his lights at me for going so slow. Well! Where was Hopkins? Santa Fe. Stanton. Gee Street. No Hopkins.

            Till Gilman ran out and there was Hopkins. Okay, this looked familiar. I turned left. Past the shuttered Monterey Market. That was familiar. Audrey Flint used to shop there for splendid dinners of fresh vegetables and pasta. Damn, that was a long time ago.

            As I drove up Hopkins, the darkness was daunting. Again, why doesn’t Berkeley believe in street lights? Or the street lights they do have are so dim that it’s like someone was shining an almost used up battery flashlight.

            I looked for the pool. I thought it was visible from the street. Or at least this was my memory. But all I saw were houses, some with cheerful Christmas lights, but most shrouded in darkness. What was everyone in Berkeley doing on a Monday night? They were probably at a séance, evoking the dead to visitations for the new year.

            That’s how spooky Berkeley is!

            I drove past a vast softball field, it too completely dark. Then up to the Alameda with the overly bright Chevron station. Still there!

            But now I knew I’d gone too far.

            Damn!

            I looked at the time. The phone did provide this. 7:23. My reservation at the Dive Tank was for 7:30.

            I had to be close as I did a U-turn on the Alameda and headed back down Hopkins. Trying not to let my panic take over. I had, after all, gone swimming yesterday, but hell. I’d gone to all the trouble of putting on my suit, my big coat, gotten in the car and found Hopkins street.

            I wanted to swim in the Dive Tank!

            As I inched back down Hopkins, I spied some figures in the night. They were dressed in big coats with flip flops.

            Swimmers!!!!!

            The pool had to be here. I pulled over and parked, watching them load their swim gear into the trunk.

            Okay, the pool must be up that driveway. I don’t remember this, obviously, but it must be there! I got out of the car, loaded up myself with all my swim gear, and headed up the driveway. A man and his kid, both sopping wet, were meandering down the drive, the kid was whining, the dad was tired.

            What’s a little kid doing swimming at 7 at night? Shouldn’t he be in bed?

            Oh, who cares. I knew I was near the pool now and as I made my way up the crest of the hill, seeing the bold blue words painted on a closed building: COME SWIM—I grinned. The pool must be behind that building.

            Sure enough. A short line of swimmers were shivering in the dark. My we’re a stubborn lot, standing out in the cold darkness of a chilly December night. One woman was chatty. Talking about her swim schedule: “I always try to swim 3 times a week but lately I’ve had a time of it.” The man ahead of her didn’t answer. She was undaunted and turned to stare at me in a friendly way. I said hello. She nodded, “Hello.” Then she cackled in a faintly dastardly way.  

            Oh dear, a witch of Berkeley was swimming at King Pool! I hope she wasn’t swimming in the Dive Tank!

The lifeguard finally came out with the requisite clipboard and COVID-19 Questions.
“Can you swim laps in the Dive Tank?” I asked him. He nodded, “Sure, but there are only 5 swimmers here tonight, so you can swim in the lap pool.”

            “Really? Cool! Any lane?” After yesterday’s lane situation, I had to make sure.

            He seemed puzzled, “Yeah, any empty lane.”

            And, so I entered the magical realm of the giant glowing blue cube. As I stuck my foot in the water, the warmth tickled me. It was a heavenly feeling to slide into the water, the steam rising in front of me, the blue glow of the lights shining at me and the moon overhead.

            Tomorrow, I have another reservation for the Dive Tank. I saw that this is a short square pool. I don’t care. I just want to swim in the magical blue glow.

            Google Maps notwithstanding.

Who Could Have Ever Imagined?????

 I am going absolutely nuts with the reservation system/s at the El Cerrito Pool.  Here's the story, ala emails. I think you'll go nuts too!

El Cerrito Swim Center <el-cerrito@rectrac.com>	Tue, Oct 27, 5:36 PM (4 days ago)
to me

 

Hello Swimmers, As some of you are aware, the online website for reservations crashed today a few minutes  before reservations went live at 4pm. We have been in contact with our vendor  who provides the online service and they are looking into the issue.  Because of this, we are stopping reservations for the day and pushing our  reservation timeline by 24 hours. This means:   Residents can register online on Wednesday 10/28 at 4pm Non-Residents can register online on Thursday 10/29 at 4pm   We are so sorry about the inconvenience, if this changes at all we will let you know.   Thank you, Swim Center Staff       El Cerrito Swim Center <el-cerrito@rectrac.com> Wed, Oct 28, 12:59 PM (3 days ago)  to me Hello Swimmers,   Unfortunately the issues with our system have not been resolved. We hate to do this, but we have to push registration  by another 24 hours. Resident Registration will begin on Thursday, October 29th at 4pm Non-Resident Registration will begin on Friday, October 30th at 4pm Somethings in the system may change based on the updates. We will send an email with those changes  so you will not be surprised. As soon as we know what those changes are, we will let you know. We are so sorry about the inconvenience, but are working hard to get this resolved! Thank you, Swim Center Staff Thursday, Oct 29th, 6:54 PM El Cerrito Swim Center <el-cerrito@rectrac.com> ys ago)  to me Hello Swimmers, Thank you for your patience while we are trying to fix the issues with the reservation system.  Reservations will still take place at the following dates/times: Residents: Friday, 10/30/20 at 10am Non-Residents: Friday, 10/30/20 at 2pm We understand this is not ideal, and not the way we want reservations to happen.  But with November being only 2 days away, we need to get something out quickly.  Please keep in mind you will only be able to reserve the FIRST WEEK of November, 11/1/20-11/8/20.  The remainder of November we are still working on and will get out as quickly as possible. The vendor was not able to find a solution in the module we had been using, so we had to switch to a different module  within the online system. We are sending these instructions out tonight so you can play around in the system to get used  to it before it goes live tomorrow. You will not be able to book anything, but you can see what it looks like. Please follow these steps in order to reserve a lane: o Go to www.el-cerrito.org/onlinereg, log-in, and click on “Swim Center Reservations” (as you would normally) o In the top “Activity Search Criteria” the page will default to the correct Category and Type.  You will have to select a Subtype based on your lane preference (if it is left on All Sub Types,  not all the lanes will be visible as only the first 500 appear on the page): o Family Lanes o Fitness Lanes 1-2 o Fitness Lanes 3-6 o Fitness Lanes 7-10 o Masters Lanes o Click “Search” o The subtype you selected will appear below based on lane number first (example: Fitness Lane 3 will  appear before Fitness Lane 4), then by date and time (there may be one or two date/times that are not in order,  keep scrolling down) o Once you find the lane you would like to reserve, click on the green + button to the left. The lane will  appear at the bottom of your screen in a green box, and a blue – will appear next to the lane o A red x means that lane is not available o To reserve multiple lanes, repeat the steps above until they all appear in your green box at the bottom of the   screen o If you are registering more than one person in your household in multiple lanes, you can put all  of the lanes you want into your shopping bag. You will assign household members to them later. o Once you have all your lanes selected, click “Add to Cart” at the bottom of the screen. PLEASE NOTE,  YOUR LANES ARE NOT GUARANTEED UNTIL YOU CLICK “ADD TO CART” o If there is more than one person in your household, it will go to a new screen o Each household member will be listed with the lanes selected appearing under each household  member o Select the correct lane for the correct household member o ONLY SELECT ONE HOUSEHOLD MEMBER FOR EACH LANE!  Will show a “Problem reservation” in a later step if you select the same lane under more than  one household member. o Click “Continue” o If there is an additional household member swimming in your lane with you, click  “OPTIONAL – ONLY CLICK IF an additional household member will be joining my lane” o If you do NOT have an additional household member swimming, continue to the next step o Read the waiver, and click the box “I agree with the above*” then click “Continue” o Select “Proceed to Checkout” to complete the transaction o Complete the transaction with appropriate Credit or Debit Card Number  (Visa, MasterCard, or American Express Only), then click “Continue” o Print or save your receipt to show the day of your reservation We realize and understand this has been a stressful process, and hope that by next week we will have a  better solution for the remainder of the November reservations. If you have issues while you are registering, please keep in mind that the office is closed,  and the phones may not be answered right away. We will be monitoring email and responding as quickly as we can.  You can email your questions to recreation@ci.el-cerrito.ca.us. Thank you, Swim Center Staff This email was sent from the El Cerrito Recreation Department. Please see attached files for important information.  If you have any questions, please contact us at (510) 559-7000 or by replying to this email.  Visit Us at www.el-cerrito.org/recreation Register Online at www.el-cerrito.org/onlinereg  Office Hours: Monday & Wednesday 8am-4pm Tuesday & Thursday 8am-6pm         Friday, Oct 30, 1:56 pm Hello again Swimmers! Sorry for the massive amount of emails, but we are learning this system along with you!   After sending out the tips and tricks below, we realized that one of the search criteria is not working the way  we described. In the Additional Search Criteria when selecting “Show Sections with X Spots Available?”,  select "1 Spot", but the in Subtype please make sure to still only select ONE Subtype and not ALL Fitness Lanes.  Selecting all will not bring up all available time slots and only show very limited options. Some tips and tricks for the new system: o Remember the lanes had to be separated out in order to show all lanes on the screen (it only allows 500 to show  at one time). You must select your lane criteria in “Subtype” at the top and then click search o PLEASE KEEP IN MIND that if someone places a lane in their cart (not just the green box at the bottom of  the screen) before you, once you click “add to cart” it will go to a screen saying “The MAX ENROLLED  Count has been reached.” You can click the cancel button to be taken back to your previous screen. o There is an option to search by available lanes only, which also allows you to have more than one  Subtype of lanes on your screen: o In “Activity Search Criteria” hold the control button down and select all Fitness Lanes  (1-2, 3-6 and 7-10) - Do not do this step! Only select ONE Fitness Lane option! o Click on “Additional Search Criteria” under the “Activity Search Criteria” area o The second box on the left labeled “Show Sections with X Spots Available?” select “1 Spot” o Click Search, and it will bring up only lanes that are available to reserve o If you have a specific day you can swim (for example, you can only swim on Sundays), in the “Additional Search Criteria” box you can selec t a specific day of the week and click Search o Remember, anything you change in Activity Search Criteria or Additional Search Criteria,  you must click the Search button afterwards o Please be aware, the more you limit your search, the less that will show. You can always click the  HOME button at the top, then click on “Swim Center Reservations” again to be brought back to the  default settings. Also know, this is only for November 1st through the 8th. We are working on the rest of the month and  will hopefully have a solution early next week.   If you have issues while you are registering, please keep in mind that the office is closed, and the  phones may not be answered right away. You can email your questions to recreation@ci.el-cerrito.ca.us,  we will be monitoring this email and responding as quickly as we can. Thank you for your patience, Swim Center Staff   This email was sent from the El Cerrito Recreation Department. Please see attached files for important information.  If you have any questions, please contact us at (510) 559-7000 or by replying to this email.  Visit Us at www.el-cerrito.org/recreation Register Online at www.el-cerrito.org/onlinereg Office Hours: Monday & Wednesday 8am-4pm Tuesday & Thursday 8am-6pm ReplyForward     Friday, Oct 30th, 3:23 PM

 

Hello Swimmers,

 

Thank you for your patience. The swim lane reservation issues have yet to be resolved by our vendor.

 In the meantime we have been working hard to develop an alternate way for swimmers to book lanes on WebTrac, which unfortunately it is not quite ready. Rather than push out these new reservation steps with a bunch of flaws, we are going to work on it through the night to have it ready by tomorrow.

For tomorrow, we are only allowing the first week of November for reservations, Sunday 11/1/20 through Sunday 11/8/20. This way we can try to work through all the bugs and get a system that will work properly. Reservations will take place tomorrow:

Residents Friday 10/30/20 at 10am
Non-Residents Friday 10/30/20 at 2pm

We know this is a short time frame, but with November only 2 days away, we want to allow people to reserve as quickly as possible.

Thank you for your understanding, we will send an email before reservations begin with information on the new process.

 

Thank you,

Beth Frazer

Recreation Supervisor

 

 

 

From: Carol Jameson <cjameson.jameson@gmail.com>
Sent: Friday, October 30, 2020 3:23 PM
To: Beth Frazer <bfrazer@ci.el-cerrito.ca.us>
Subject: Re: Swim Center Saturday 10/3/2020

 

Hi Beth,

 

I'm VERY confused and couldn't reserve anything for the coming week. WHAAAAAA!!!!

 It looks like all the lanes are already taken? (As far as I can tell)

 While I appreciate your emails, they are too complex for me to wade through all the content, understand it, and then practice it. 

 Is there anything I can do? It's very frustrating! I've been able to reserve Saturdays for the last two months, even as a non-resident, with your prior system. I hope this new system is less confusing in the future. 

 Complainingly yours,

Carol

 

Hi Carol,

 

I’m so sorry you were unable to get any reservations. Unfortunately everything is already reserved for the week.

 

I would keep an eye out, we do still get some cancellations which will show up on the site to reserve. If not, we will be releasing the remainder of November in some fashion soon, hopefully you can get something then!

 

Thank you,

 

Beth Frazer, CPRP

Recreation Supervisor, Aquatics & Facilities

City of El Cerrito

Recreation Department

7007 Moeser Lane

El Cerrito, CA 94530

(510) 559-7015

bfrazer@ci.el-cerrito.ca.us