Monday, November 21, 2005

Blood is Thicker Than Water, Or So You Thought

I had an awful swim on Saturday. I just felt terrible in the water, which surprised me, because I've had some very good swims lately. On the way home I was thinking about Gloria asking me how my swim went, and me saying "Awful--I was lousy," and it just sounded so predictable.

So I decided to tell her a different story.

I walked in the door and the first thing Gloria said was "How was your swim?"

"Those bastards at the gym," I said. "I've really had it this time."

"What happened?" she asked, alarmed.

"They thickened the damn water," I said.

"They did what?" Gloria asked.

"Lap pools are supposed to have a viscosity of 2.5. I felt like I was swimming through molasses, so I asked at the front desk on my way out, and sure enough, they thickened it to 3.0. Bastards!"

"What? You can't do that," she said.

"I know!" I said. "What were they thinking?"

"I mean you can't adjust the water like that," she said.

"Sure you can," I said. "It's no different than adjusting the pH factor or the water clarity. Viscosity is just another chemical process."

"I had no idea," she said.

I did tell her the truth.

Eventually.

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