Living with a pool in the backyard
can be a bit of a bother, considering all the upkeep and labour to keep it
fresh and clean. Then there is the
opening and closing each fall and spring.
But there it was, invitingly cool on a hot summer day. Marge, my wife, decided that we should have a
barbecue later that afternoon, and invited her brother, Frank and his wife
Horphmyra. I can’t say that I really
enjoy their company that much, but what can you do when your wife wants to
visit with family?
The steaks were out getting a bit of
a suntan while we waited for the barbeque to heat up the grill enough get them
started. In the meantime, Frank decided
that we needed to have some bagels, but insisted that they had to be heated in
a toaster. So, into the shed I go,
looking for an extension cord to connect the toaster’s power cord to the
receptacle out of reach in the garage. I
told Frank to keep the toaster well away from the pool, which he did…at first.
Then, the steaks were placed on the
hot metal rungs of the barbeque where they immediately began to sizzle and
smoke and disperse that wonderful odour of burning flesh. Marge brought the salads: potato and greens,
and placed them on the patio table before covering them with a dish towel. Next came the purple grape juice, home made
from the previous fall’s harvest, with a little ginger ale added to give it
some zing.
Horphmyra decided to take a quick
dip in the pool before we ate and was enjoying some diving and swimming in the
deep end. Meanwhile, Frank, for reasons
known only to his insane self, moved the barbeque next to the pool. I envisioned a pool full of filth when he
accidently pushed it over the side. But
fortunately, that never happened. What
did happen was something that only he could have arranged. Not satisfied with the location of the
toaster, which he wanted close to the steak, he proceeded to drag it to the
barbeque and placed it on top of the shelf à côté the pool.
You should never put an electrical
device near water, but this took the cake.
As Horphmyra continued to enjoy the water, Frank, leaning against the
barbeque started it on a one way trip to the pool. But realizing his potential blunder, he
quickly grabbed the handle, stopping its forward motion. Frank smiled broadly, mentally patting
himself on the back for saving my pool.
But forgetting the law of inertia, he really did in Horphmyra, for then,
with all its 120 volts, the toaster fell in.
-Louis Roquain
