I spend my life on youtube looking at artsupply and stationery hauls and never seem to get around to doing them. So I’m starting with a swimming supply – sort of – haul. There’s a sale in one of the big sports shop and I was in the market for quite a lot of stuff, not all of which I wanted. I wanted a spare pair of trail running shoes – they are end of line and therefore impossible to get – well in my size anyway. The size below fitted onto my feet but made it clear they would cripple me if I tried to run in them. Bloody sorry I didn’t buy several pairs when I had the chance, in the last sale. Nor could I see my way around to where they had things like yoga mats.
This left the swimming section of my shopping list which consisted of:
- Look at the swimsuits and be nice about Speedo and Arena’s assumptions that all women who swim have A cups, max.
- You’re allowed get some noseclips if they are the right colour if not, well you’ve a box full of ones the wrong colour already
- A swimming bag because bah, Bonnevoie
- Some paddles and maybe some flippers as well
- If and only if they have cloth swimming caps, a couple of spares would be handy
- If they have a Garmin Swim and it is reasonably priced or if they have a Vivoactive and it is reasonably priced and you’re feeling particularly flaithiúl, maybe get that.
So, what I eventually wound up with was this:
Quite.
- Arena swimming bag, pink because I like it better than black or red and they did not have aquamarine/turquoise/mint/your choice of shade in that area of the spectrum. But at least I have one to deal with the idiosyncrasies of having to haul towels around quite a way from lockers in my current local swimming pool
- Two small Jack Wolfskin backpacks which weren’t on the list but are smaller than my North Face backpack and one of which might make the lugging of stuff to work a bit more Treasa friendly. The other is most likely to be used to lug art stuff around if I want to go urban sketching.
- Pair of paddles for swim training. I looked at a float as well but I already have a pullbuoy to sort out my alignment in the water (ha) and if I get that right the kicks should fix themselves. Allegedly this will help with strength training and I am hoping for a little help with my arm muscles as I seem to have what I’ve heard the young people call “bingo wings”. Quite.
- 3 nose clips in the correct colour; yes, indulgent, but I like aquamarine ones and since these things get lost on an ongoing basis…
- two spare polyester caps. Again, there are some stunning silicon ones on display but my past experience with trying to wear them has never been that positive. Maybe I should try again.
There was no Garmin swim and I didn’t feel like blowing money on the Vivoactive – the reasons for this will be blogged in about 30 minutes from now max.
Currently, the two pools closest to me in Luxembourg are closed for extended periods for refurbishment; one until the start of September and one until the start of October. The pool situation is a bit tight here at the moment as a result, although I have two alternatives, one of which I have already checked out. The thing is, I have a deep desire to get back swimming regularly, not because I was particularly fast (I backstroked but…) but because I felt a lot better for it. Not that I feel bad now but once you drag yourself out of a house, and to a pool and drop into the water, the world always seems to shine a bit more.