A bleak day with Barcelona lost under a thick blanket of smog based cloud. Aesthetically it is quite attractive with buildings looming out of the mist with their foundations lost in greyness but I like the sun and I miss it every minute it is supposed to be shining.
There is a parallel greyness about my colleagues who are looking somewhat drawn and haggard, as the awful prospect of unbroken teaching days becomes an un-escapable continuing misery; where the nirvana (if I may be allowed a cross-religious allusion) of the Easter holidays seems distant indeed.
I am at present being bullied by one of my colleagues. This is not as negative as it sounds as the bullying is at my instigation as her task is to remind me of my stated intention of going to have a swim each day. She vaunts her prowess on her Wi-Fi fitness board while pointedly reminding me of my non-swimming status. She tells me that my lack of brownie points is matching the state of the National Debt and that there will soon be no way back.
I have taken the first step and put the swimming bag into the boot of the car, but I have not checked to see if all the necessary impedimenta are in place for the swim to take place.
In the Municipal Pool it is essential to wear a very unbecoming swim hat; to wear sandals to the pool; goggles to protect the eyes and earplugs. The clothes have to be placed in lockers that only lock if you buy a lock to secure it, so lock and key have to be in one of the pockets. A glasses case is essential too because there are simply too may health and safety issues connected with lodging them in a shoe for the duration of the swim. Then there is a towel and soap. And of course the card to get in. What used to be a fairly casual visit has now become a major journey!
This is merely an excuse and not a convincing one for my lack of effort. I know that, just like banana yogurt, I will like it when I try it. I do enjoy swimming and all I have to do is allow the car to continue on to the next turning on the motorway and I’ll be there. Perhaps this afternoon is when the correct approach to exercise re-asserts itself. Meanwhile there are still two teaching lessons and a departmental meeting to get through before the freedom of the open motorway and home. Or a swim, as I should say!
Which I actually had!
Slipping into the comfortable waters of the pool had a delicious sense of re-entering a natural element. I could tell that I had not had a real swim for some time by the growing ache in my shoulders, but this will not last and as long as I keep it up I should be back to normality in a few days.
The only downside to the experience was forgetting to put in my earplugs. I only remembered when I was at the pool side and I simply couldn’t be bothered to go back in to the changing rooms; unlock the locker; dig out my swim bag from the pile of clothes under which it was buried; go through the pockets to find the plugs and then traipse all the way back to the pool.
I made an executive decision to suffer the consequences of water in the ear. This was fine until I shook my head at the end of the swim and only managed to unblock one ear. The other remained stubbornly waterlogged and I had fears of having to live with it like that for a couple of days – which has happened in the past. Gingerly prodding it with a perfectly shaped index finger finally broke the dam and hearing was restored.
Restored in time to go to Sitges to reclaim my glasses which had a wisp of metal masquerading as an arm of my specs fixed to the lens: so much paid for so little!
For our evening meal Toni (for it was he) had a yearning to go to Burger King with which I complied. He now has a vivid recollection of what the food was like and I do not think that we will be repeating this eating experience any time in the near (or indeed distant) future!
To compensate for the awful meal we called into a pastry shop and bought a custard-filled pastry confection topped with a glorious selection of fresh fruit. It may have cost more than the meal for two in Burger King but it was a bloody sight more tasty!
And there is some left for tomorrow to lighten the dark start of an early class!
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