Memorial Day Weekend

This Memorial Day weekend marks the fifth anniversary of  the beginning of my last summer with NVPools. For the longest time, that’s what Memorial Day weekend was all about, it’s when the pool opened. I spent so many summers at McLean Swim & Tennis and by summer, I mean THE WHOLE SUMMER. I can remember going to the pool on the first day it was open, getting there before it even opened, sitting on the white brick wall outside the main entrance and wondering who the lifeguards were going to be. My summer revolved around the pool. I think I went pretty much every day. A big milestone was the summer when I was 8 because that’s how old you had to be to go by yourself. I remember learning how to do a flip on the low dive and then the high dive. I worked up the courage to learn a one and a half and eventually a double. I think I pulled off a double twice, but I know I missed more often than that. I remember swimming the length of the pool underwater and the countless number of games of Cross Pool (that’s sharks & minnows for the younger crowd). I learned how to kayak at MSTA when the Zimmers brought theirs a few times. Sure 25 meters wasn’t that far to paddle, but learning how to turn and more importantly, how to roll a kayak, was limitless fun. I can’t even begin to count the number of friendships I developed through the pool. Some were just for a summer or two, but others have lasted a lifetime.

The summer of 1984 really changed things for me. Watching the Olympics got me interested in swimming again. Seeing Steve Lundquist win the 100 meter breaststroke was magical. I couldn’t wait for the following summer so I could rejoin the swim team and try to be like him. The major event of that summer was when I decided to become a lifeguard. As a small kid, I always wanted to be like the guy lifeguards and date the girl guards. My older sister had been a lifeguard and I knew she had fun doing it, so I signed up for a class. The manager, Stu Roberts, was the instructor. I had no idea how much taking his class would affect the next 20+ years of my life. Stu hired me for the remainder of the summer after I passed his class and I couldn’t have been more excited or proud. To sit up in the lifeguard stand, twirl my whistle and enforce the rules was huge. 

Lifeguarding taught me a sense of responsibility that I didn’t have previously. I used to joke that used to guard the life of a Secretary of Defense. When I worked at McLean Racquet & Health Club, one of the members that came in every morning to swim a mile was Frank Carlucci. He was one of Reagan’s Secretaries of Defense and I remember thinking there was no way I was going to let anything happen to him.

As the years went on, I worked part time at a couple of different pools, but once I went away to college, I realized I needed a job every summer. What better than being a lifeguard? My certifications had expired, but I was able to get recertified and for the summer of 1995, I worked as a Supervisor for NOVA Pools. It got me all excited about being around pools again and I learned more that summer about running a pool than I had previously. My lifeguarding bug was back. I heard from a coworker that I could go work for a rival pool company as a manager and make the same I made as a supervisor. Sounded good to me.  My best friend Mike and I went all the way out to Chantilly (at the time, it seemed really far) to the offices of NVPools and told them we wanted a job. We met with one of the owners and he basically hired us on the spot. For the next four summers I was a manager for NVPools. As soon as I was done with my last exam at school every year, I raced home and let NV know I was ready for work. There was always a sense of excitement over the three weeks between when I got home and when the pools opened. There was getting supplies to the pools, cleaning bath houses, making sure the pools stayed clean, meeting new staff, company meetings and staff meetings. It was stressful, but there was a sense of fun to it and I always felt productive. Plus, I knew there would be hundreds of kids who were going to be just as excited as I was when I was their age for the opening of the pool.

After four summers of working in the field, NV offered me a full time, year round position. Who would have thought that that one decision 15 years ago to become a lifeguard would turn into what I did for a living? I was now hiring and teaching those 15 year olds the same way that Stu had done with me. Leading up to Memorial Day weekend was always stressful, but I like to think we always had fun. My favorite part, outside of the actual opening of the pools Memorial Day weekend, was teaching lifeguarding classes. I took it so seriously (some would say too seriously, but I blame Stu and Matt Behl) because I wanted my students to take it as serious as I did.

Obviously when I left NV, Memorial Day weekend changed for me. For as long as I could remember it was about opening the pools, seeing people I might not have seen since Labor Day and knowing that for the next 100 or so days, my life would be consumed, one way or another, by the pool. Here I am now, five years later, wearing an NVPools shirt, missing all of that. That’s not to say that I’m not happy about where I am now (I am happy), but when something that defined who you were for many years is taken away form you, I think it’s natural to miss it.

Don't You Like It?

Recently I’ve been reminded of a certain type of conversation that used to take place when I was much younger. It was the type of conversation you had as a kid with your parents where you were part of the conversation, but not really. For me (and my siblings) it usually happened at dinner time. I would be eating eating dinner by myself at the kitchen table, my dad would be sitting on his stool, watching Uncle Walter on the news and mom would be down the hall in my parents bedroom. I would be enjoying a big plate of spaghetti when dad would chime in. The conversation would go something like this:

Dad: Where’s your bread?

Me:  (my mouth full of food) Huh?

Dad:  Why aren’t you having bread?

Me:  I don’t know.

Dad: Don’t you like bread?

Me:  (looking puzzled) What?

Dad:  (yelling to mom) Honey! Why isn’t Robbie having any bread?

Mom:  (yelling back) I don’t know.

Me:  (somewhat confused) I like bread.

Dad:  (to mom) Doesn’t he like bread?

Mom:  I don’t know.

Me:  (somewhat more forcefully) I like bread.

Dad:  (to mom) How does he not like bread?

Mom:  What do you mean he doesn’t like bread?

Me:  (desperately) I like bread.

Dad:  (to mom) He doesn’t have any bread with his dinner.

Me:  I like bread, I just don’t want any.

Dad:  (to no one in particular) I don’t understand why he doesn’t like bread.

Me:  (as I continue eating) I like bread.

There were some variations, but that was basically about it. What made me start thinking about this was recently a client bought the office some lunch. He had some bbq delivered to the office and people started getting their eat on. One guy asked if I was going to have some. I wasn’t hungry and I wanted to give everyone else a chance to get some so I said no. His response was, “Don’t you like bbq?”  I started laughing. I gave him a brief version of the conversations I used to have and he quickly understood.

This has happened a few other times recently. Why is it that when someone offers you something to eat or drink and you decline, they tend to ask, “Don’t you like...?”  When did declining something mean that you don’t like it?

Not The Guy From Police Academy

The Washington Redskins made a move last Sunday that, while it's taken me a few days to touch on, is a very good move. They resigned Tim Hightower. (I would have written about it sooner, but I was still a little bummed about the Caps) When the Redskins traded for Hightower last year, I was excited about it (see, I can be excited about some things the Redskins do). I didn't feel they had to give up much (Vonnie Holiday and a 6th round pick) for a guy coming off a season where he rushed for 5 touchdowns and over 700 yards. I thought he'd be an upgrade over Clinton Portis. Unfortunately he tore his ACL during the first half of the season and was placed on Injured Reserve.

Hightower became an unrestricted free agent after last season and I hoped he would be resigned by the Redskins. I know they have Royster and Helu, but I think Hightower is the better option. He signed a one year deal which is completely understandable for a guy coming off a knee injury. I'm really curious to see what he can do if he can stay healthy for the season. His rushing yards went up every year in Arizona although his rushing TDs dropped from a high of 10 in his rookie season to 5 before joining the Skins. He also averaged 40 receptions a year for the Cardinals. I feel that he is the kind of running back that can stay in for any down and that helps keep the defense guessing. Here's to a healthy 2012 season for Tim Hightower.

The Hockey Playoff Beard

Last Saturday the Washington Capitals were eliminated from the Stanley Cup Playoffs by the New York Rangers. The Caps lost Game 7, 2-1, ending their run. This year, for the first time, I decided to grow a playoff beard. I've seen players and friends do it in the past, but I always thought it wasn't something for me. There are no official rules to a playoff beard, but there are some basics. You can last shave on the last day of the season or the day before the playoffs begin. After a loss, you are allowed to trim. Some say you are not allowed to wash it, but others say go for it. You can either not shave anything or you can go without the neck beard, but once you decide on what you're doing, you must follow that until your team is eliminated from the playoffs. I decided to go with no neck beard and I would only trim around my mouth after a loss.

I have grown goatees in the past, but always kept it trimmed. This was going to be something brand new for me. I shaved on April 8th, the day after the last day of the season and a few days before the playoffs would start for the Caps. I didn't think to take a picture until 8 days into no shaving which was the day of Game 3 of the series with Boston.

The next picture came on April 20th, between Games 4 and 5. At this point I started to look like House.

The next two pictures were on April 23rd and 25th. The 25th was Game 7 of the Boston series. At this point I was definitely starting to feel out of my element in regards to having facial hair, but being the slightly superstious person I can be when it comes to sports, there was no way I was shaving as the Caps won the series.

I took one the day after the Boston series on April 26th and then one the day of Game 2 against the New York Rangers, April 30th. I was now 3 weeks into it and people were starting to ask questions. There were a few compliments and even more comparisons to House.

Things got a little crazy at work and I forgot to take a picture until May 8th. That was the day after the Game 5 loss in overtime. I got another on May 10th after the Caps tied the series at 3-3, sending it to another Game 7.

The last picturewas taken on May 12th after the Caps lost to the Rangers 2-1 in Game 7.  

After 34 days and 14 games, it was time for the playoff beard to go. Obviously I wish the Caps had won and moved onto the conference finals. That would have given me at least 10 more days and put me on track to start looking like Wild Bill Wichrowski from Deadliest Catch. Guess we'll have to wait until next season.

Yeah, It's Crap

My latest Bag of Crap