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Welcome to austinagrodolce … My family and I garden with more intention and enthusiasm than allocated budget or overall design plan. It shows. Wildlife populations don't seem to notice our lack of cohesive design, they just like the native plants here. It seems by growing local we've thrown out a welcome mat. Occasionally, we're surprised at who (and what) shows up.



Thursday, June 28, 2012

Water for the Win

Recently I have begun an every day routine of spending at least 20 minutes swimming laps in the pool.

I have my reasons. (There are always reasons....)
1.  I cannot imagine watching the Summer Olympics this year from my vantage point of being as old as (if not older) than many of the parents who will doubtless be featured in variations of those "up close and personal"athlete's stories, unless I am doing something, anything, that qualifies as active.

2.  Swimming is the one form of exercise I can enjoy outside right now without sweating.

3.  Once I pass a certain totally-made-up-in-my-head number of days pursuing this activity?  I will feel absolutely justified, if not obligated, to share that I'm swimming every day with everybody I speak to for a time span of over three minutes.  (Random folks I know who might be reading here?  Consider yourselves duly warned...).

I might even begin bringing it up with telemarketers rather than simply hanging up.
    
    Telemarketer:  May I please speak with AustinAgrodolce?


    Me:  Speaking


    Tmarketer:  How are you this evening?


    Me:  Pretty good, actually


    Tmarketer:  That's great.  I'm calling tonight on behalf of...


    Me: (interrupting) Say!  Do you exercise regularly?


    Tmarketer:  Um, I'm calling tonight to talk to you about....


    Me:  Because I've been swimming laps every day now for a while? And I'm really getting into it.


    Tmarketer:  Yes, well, I'm calling....


    Me: (Interrupting again)  I could probably help you get started with an exercise program all your own if you have a few minutes?


    Tmarketer:  ........


    Me:  Tell you what. Just give me your home phone number and I'll be happy to call you some night around dinner time, or maybe early on a weekend morning?  And we can talk about what YOU need to do to get back into shape.  I mean, sitting making phone calls all day can't be very good exercise, right?


Right???

By then if there is any justice in this world they'll have hung up on me, I can get back to watching the Olympics and peace will reign in all the land.  At least, all the land in my living room.

5 comments:

Cat said...

Oh my gosh you're funny! I've been thinking about swimming too. I'm getting rounder :/ My aunt has moved close by and they are almost finished with the building of their pool. I could swim in private which is most desirable as I'm not a 'real' swimmer. Now with the thought of tormenting telemarketers the idea is even more appealing.

TexasDeb said...

Cat: Swimming in private is the bomb. I know you'll love it. The only competition (or observing eyes) I worried about were the various wasps that periodically land on the pool surface. Once I convinced myself they weren't going to be aggressive as I blithely splashed by, we were all fine.

I'm not sure what you mean by a "real" swimmer. I simply swim back and forth. To me it is the smartest way to endure our shared uber-summer. I say, give it a try!

Joan @ Debt of Gratitude said...

I have always wanted to swim. Swim well, I mean. I can dog paddle. I can swim underwater. But my strokes are terrible and I can't breathe right and I've never learned to keep going and breathe for more than a few feet.

In my 20s, I wanted to swim so I could do a triathalon. I got the biking and running down, but never could get the swimming.

And that's why I'm not a triathlete! (Yeah, right.)

Joan @ Debt of Gratitude said...

PS: Good for you! Keep it up. (Both the swimming and the bragging. Every good deed deserves a little promotion.)

TexasDeb said...

Joan, Yay! Thanks for dropping in.

I've never even been tempted to train for a triathalon. I believe I could manage the biking and swimming parts, it is the running bit which might kill me.

Or, I might kill somebody else, accidentally, probably. Either scenario=death for somebody. Not good either way.

My swims are not technical. I get in the water and keep moving for X minutes. Bingo bongo.