Those Were The Days
I hope everyone had a nice holiday weekend. This memorial day we had a little family barbecue get together. I made schiskabobs with chicken, sausage, fresh pineapple and green peppers, and my mother-in-law made ribs amongst a few other things, and my mom made her sinful “Black Forest Cherry Cake” laced with vodka. Wow was it good!
We went swimming, and could hear the neighbors having pool parties themselves as it seems most of the homes in our neighborhood have pools and kids! I never had a pool growing up, but boy I sure do remember my father blowing and filling up my little swimming pool! I really loved that! Either him or my brother used to sit in a lawn chair next to me listening to the radio. Then when I was a teen, I’d go to the nice, big library with my father, pick out a good book, and go to the big Olympic sized pool at the local military base. I would be at the pool nearly every day during summer vacation. I tell ya, those were the days, swimming and lying out by the pool with my friends or just reading a good book with not a care in the world.
You may be a great parent, grandparent or guardian to that special little one (or little ones), however you might just run inside to grab some popsicles, a drink or the telephone, and that’s all it could take for a little one to be endangered and drown. My own brother had to jump into the river I was playing in once when I was little and save me because my father had turned his back for a few seconds. If you yourself have kids, or have family or friends that do, here is a link you may want to check out: http://www.poolsafety.gov
Since 2006, the state of New York has specific swimming pool alarm requirements that can be found in 19NYCRR Part 1228 or in the DOS document titled “Current Requirements for Swimming Pools contained in the Uniform Fire Prevention and Building Code (The “Uniform Code”)”.
This is something that should be mandatory in every state since approximately 300 children a year have been drowning in pools and spas annually. When you sit back and think of summer time pool fun, you want to remember that those were the days with a happy recollection, rather than despair. Be sure to protect those little innocent lives that depend on you. Some day they may thank you for it!
