This week so far has been a week of highs and lows. On Saturday our local 33.3 yard long pool closed. I have swum on and off in this pool since I was 14 years old (some 54 years) whenever I was living, or visiting Essex. It is being replaced with a 25 metre pool but I will miss those extra 5 metres a length. I was the last person swimming at the last early morning session and was so intent on completing 60 lengths that I hadn’t noticed everyone else had got out – so for the first time ever I had a whistle blown at me and was chucked out! Luckily our new pool opens on 10th June so not long to wait and who knows we may even have decent showers. The problem is this means a week without a pool or the possibility of getting to the open water lake.

Monday saw the arrival of our parcel of goodies for the swim – I was like a child at Christmas opening it. We have all received a new costume, goggles, hat, bobble hat, hoodie, drinks bottle, tow bag and dryrobe. Big thank you to Selkie, DryRobe, Zoogs, Swim Secure for these I love them all and they will be well used – whether they will make me faster is debatable.

Thursday will see me reach the age of 68 and on Friday we leave for our holiday to Florida. My daughter was asked what she would like to do for her 40th Birthday and she wanted to go to Orlando to visit Harry Potter World at Universal Studios – yes you read that right 40th birthday – my children never grow up, not sure who they take after. Besides Disney and Universal I have to fit in at least 3 sessions a week in the hotel pool. No open water for me as we are too far from the sea and no way am I swimming with alligators. This is certainly not going to be a relaxing two weeks.