Monday, September 06, 2010
SOCIAL SWIM
We have settled in pretty well here.
We know our neighbors. I can hold a halfway decent period of small talk with all of them that I know. About 9 or 10 at this point. If you count the dog people, well maybe 14 or 15. Of course, with dog people the small talk is mostly about dogs but that is OK.
This is better than I had done in a year or two at the old place.
I hadn't anticipated another venue for social contact. The swimming pool.
At first, there were very few people there. A couple of the people I knew already and "the old lady" who seems to live there. We are not sure whether she has a condo here or not!
Well, I am sure she does but she is at the pool all day most days. In the shade. She doesn't speak. More introverted than me.
Otherwise, lately, there have been groups of "strangers".
Over the weekend, we had aliens who were unaccompanied guests for a unit across from us. They were not too annoying but one day they had a dog in the pool area. A definite no-no. John saw that. Actually two no-nos. You must accompany guests but these aren't the first we have encountered. You can lease your condo but it has to be a month long lease. We aren't sure whether to report this or not.
They were force-friendly as in "don't mind us, just move our stuff if it is in your way". That kind of friendly. Passive aggressive friendly.
There was a kid. There was a baby.
The first time I went over and saw them, I was a little cramped on time so I just retreated.
But then, thought better of it. I can't retreat everytime someone else is there. Well, I could but I have a feeling that when the snow birds come back there will be people there a lot of the time. Legal or not.
So I went back the next day and they weren't there! No prob-a-lem.
Then, yesterday they were back and I just went in and got a chaise. Me and my force field.
I dove in "my" side of the pool. "No Diving Allowed". My version of passive aggressive. Transgressive behavior. I am an expert. Just a little here and there. A mild power play. It works.
They were OK. I was OK. They are gone.
Today, I was there awhile with just the old lady and then four obviously gay guys came. Two couples? Don't know. I was sunning. Looked up. No eye contact. When it was time (ten minutes) I dove into the pool. They didn't even blink.
They were OK. I said "good afternoon", very formal. They replied. That was it.
They are condo owners because they discussed the current fund drive to "calm" the traffic on Baristo Road, right behind us. Apparently there are people more upset about it than we are. We gave 200 bucks. 10% of the goal. More sucking up. The prez and the treasurer are neighbors. I am not above that.
Anyway, the guys were fine. I was fine.
John asked if they were worth a visit to the pool to look at. That is my husband all over. Looks trump everything.
I said that the best I could say about them is that they were all "Bears".
A Bear is a gay man who has gotten chunky and is hairy and, on the market, might not have had a lot of capital until one or two smart chunky hairy men invented the Bear brotherhood and now they are everywhere. They substitute cheeriness and a sort of non-gay-stereotypical elan for whatever they lack in the A list looks department. And they are winners for it.
It is a great marketing coup and it has been great for the Bears. They even have conventions. And Cubs. And Bear chasers who aren't Bears. And they have fun.
There was a small convention in the pool. I am not a cub. Nor a chaser. So, there you are. Just diving in and past and on to my chaise.
I said "goodbye" and they sort of looked at me.
Just what I want. An introvert's paradise. An old lady that doesn't speak, outsiders who are too guilty about it to be a pain and Bears who just want to be with each other.
Suits me fine.
