Pooling Our Resources

One week and one day ago, we took a mad dash to the local BJ's Wholesale and picked up a 15' x 42" Intex Easy Set pool. We decided to purchase it for Zoe's birthday. She'd asked for a jump party at Monkey Joe's but the party and pool price were comparable. We thought it best to invest in something we could all continue to enjoy.

The next morning, we sauntered out to find a level spot. Mom made lemonade and we settled on a levelish spot with partial shade. Joe was golfing in a tournament with his Dad so we decided to throw the pool up and surprise him. Dad thought a load of sand would level it up nicely. While he went for sand, I watched the instructional DVD.

We put the sand out. Even though I voiced concern it would shift and needed a box frame around it, my Dad assured me it would be fine. We rolled the pool out and began to inflate the top air ring. After 33 years my Dad's air compressor picked the most inopportune time and went kaput. Then the storm rolled in for another healthy dose of foreshadowing.


We began to fill the pool when the storm clouds passed by. The pool almost immediately began to lurch to one side. Remember I said the site was level-ish? The pool may be "ready for water in 15 minutes" but if isn't level you're wasting precious water and time. You cannot fool water. It is in cahoots with gravity and there is nothing to be done about it but to level things out. We hauled out the sump pump and filled buckets to water the garden.

By the end of the day, we'd watered the garden by carrying many buckets of water. We'd attempted to level the sand again. We did a good job but still not level. It took more water to figure this out. Which meant more buckets to be carried to the garden and flower beds. And when all was said and done, I looked like this and still had no pool to show for it.


We vowed to get it the next day. And even though we didn't, we did finally get it together by Monday night. On Father's day, my husband and my Dad dug the trenches with pickaxes to lower a wooden framed box around the sand so we could build up the site and finally get it level. I did mention the need for this in the beginning but I was told it could be "eyeballed". By Sunday night they had a box filled with about 1/4 of the sand we actually needed. Turns out our eye balls were way off.

I spent Monday helping Dad shovel sand out of the bed of his truck into the box. It took four loads and it was as Magnum says, "Africa hot." We worked really hard all day and when it was over he was shocked I'd worked so hard. He seemed proud even. I told him all I wanted was a pool for my kids to swim in and I was determined to get it for them. And we did.