Update on Life

I have wanted to write more in this greatly designed social media platform, but this isn’t Twitter, where you throw out quick one-liners. This is the kind of place that demands far more thoughtful, insightful discourse. That has intimidated me from writing because I’ve grown too used to the lazy, quick Tweeting. However, I recently concluded a research article I submitted for publication, and that has made me feel much more confident about my writing abilities. Additionally, I went back to some of my old stories that I’ve laid aside due to self-doubt. This one I began back in 2008, however, is damn fine storytelling and I really should continue and finish it. I have some great stories that just need the actual work of writing. I keep fearing that I’ll fail, so I stop and don’t continue. It might be really good that I ignore Twitter for some time (and other social media, including the new Threads). Focus on writing. Focus on composing. Heh, and focus on the damn pool in the backyard that keeps not fully functioning, allowing algae to grow. So frustrating and expensive.

Here is the pool just six days ago:

Here it is four days ago:

Shocking the pool works to change the color, but it doesn’t seem to fully get rid of the algae, which means I have a more expensive problem probably with the Pentair salt cell, which will cost, well, about the same as I’ve spent on all these chemicals these past few months, I guess.

You can see how this milky blue just won’t go away, from just two days ago.

So I turned the pump off two days ago, giving up on the pool, and this morning, this is what it looks like:

I feel like this is just a false hope setting me up for disappointment. But I’ll run the little robot all day long while I’m at work and see what happens.

So, update on life? This is my focus, getting the pool back in shape so I can swim. It felt good swimming for a while there while the pool worked. Then the sun decided to heat the state of Alabama up to 100 degrees for five days straight, and the algae said, “Yay, we can grow and thrive!” Ugh.