tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1750120863647373520.post3814814053641018174..comments2023-08-08T11:48:10.725+01:00Comments on swisslet: king of the world...swisslethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16708248700851998044noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1750120863647373520.post-11565980054460428772008-06-17T16:04:00.000+01:002008-06-17T16:04:00.000+01:00And once again, you're speaking my mind for me...And once again, you're speaking my mind for me. Stop that, it's very disconcerting.Rolhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02103804480646939038noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1750120863647373520.post-54715427579979230222008-06-16T21:55:00.000+01:002008-06-16T21:55:00.000+01:00I don't know about anyone else, but my mind wa...I don't know about anyone else, but my mind wanders crazily in the pool because there's nothing much apart from the endless counting of lengths to occupy my mind. Sometimes single thoughts will get stuck in my head for what seems like an age, and sometimes I'll flit around like a butterfly. Other people in the pool are endlessly fascinating though: the things they choose to wear, the ways that they swim... especially people with a really wonky breaststroke kick or trying to do the butterfly. There are the people who swim with flippers on, or with those odd scoops on their hands. The ones who think they're boss and ostentatiously tumble-turn in front of you, the ones who seem to do nothing but chat, the ones who wear a swimming cap with their ears sticking out.... all sorts. And, if I'm being completely honest, if all the lanes are equally full and people are swimming at similar-ish speeds, I'll choose the lane with girls in rather than boys. Partly it's because they're generally less aggressive and more considerate, but let's face it, it's a lot to do with the fact that a lady of any shape or size is nicer to swim behind than some hairy-arsed bloke in a pair of speedos.swisslethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16708248700851998044noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1750120863647373520.post-57286708834258755052008-06-16T21:41:00.000+01:002008-06-16T21:41:00.000+01:00I can't believe I just wrote "stationery&...I can't believe I just wrote "stationery". Clearly I am deranged.Hghttp://hydragenic.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1750120863647373520.post-13649540229562496992008-06-16T21:39:00.000+01:002008-06-16T21:39:00.000+01:00Ah, lane swimming etiquette... one of my favourite...Ah, lane swimming etiquette... one of my favourite observational topics. Yeah, I normally try to act considerately to the less powerful swimmer, but if they seem determined to be permanently two feet ahead of me (quite literally) then I tend to switch direction a metre or so behind them just as they reach the end of the pool.<br><br>The weirdest encounter I had recently was the woman who ignored the "Swim Clockwise" signs at each end of the pool and persisted in going the other way. Fair enough, I thought, give her the benefit of the doubt. She'll soon notice me swerving pointedly out of her way on each length. She'll work it out in her own time...<br><br>"EXCUSE ME! EXCUSE ME! YOU KEEP DELIBERATELY SWIMMING IN FRONT OF ME! IT'S VERY ANNOYING!"<br><br>"Actually," I replied, "you keep swimming in front of me." I pointed to the signs, trying to exhibit a kind of tactful respect.<br><br>"WELL I DIDN'T KNOW. YOU COULD SEE I WAS GOING THE WRONG WAY AND YOU STILL KEPT BLOCKING ME!"<br><br>"Well, I think that actually you were blocking me. I didn't want to stop you in the middle of the lane and make a big scene..."<br><br>"WELL, IT'S MOST INCONSIDERATE OF YOU."<br><br>Then she flounced off, leaving me utterly speechless. And continued to COMPLETELY FUCKING IGNORE the sign for another few lengths. The most annoying thing was that I ended up ranting about her to the other (stationery) person in the lane and probably came across to them as some kind of deranged control-freak lunatic.Hghttp://hydragenic.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1750120863647373520.post-21167953179261002362008-06-16T21:10:00.000+01:002008-06-16T21:10:00.000+01:00I think, though, that these annoyances help to mak...I think, though, that these annoyances help to make us very grateful for the little pleasures which help us through the days. Today, for example, a woman let me go ahead of her in the supermarket - I had a bottle of water, she had a year's worth of groceries for an entire tribe. <br><br>That small gesture of kindness made me remember - sometimes people are actually nice.Cathttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11858850210791504996noreply@blogger.com