It all started last Thursday. It was the perfect day to put up the new pool. But, first, I needed to level the ground. Since the ground was pretty level to start with, I knew this wouldn't take long. I started at Home Hardware where they suggested 3 bags of play sand to level off the small area that dips down. Too be safe, I ordered 4 bags. Little did I know that these bags of sand were no bigger than a 5 pound bag of potatoes. When I got home, I surveyed the 12 square foot area where the pool would be set up and decided, I should take another route with this levelling.
I buckled the kids into the mini-van and drove to the local place where you can buy yard stuff in bulk. They suggested a yard of crusher dust. OK...so, how big is a yard? Can I fit it in the back of my van? If you know anything about this stuff, you see the humor in that question. Rather than paying the $60 delivery charge, I went home to find a neighbor with a truck. Not only did I find a neighbor with a truck, but I found one who knows all about landscaping and ground levelling!
With a huge pile of crusher dust in my backyard and a crash course in levelling, I bid adieu to my new best friend. Confident with my new knowledge, I started with a level and an 8 foot 2X6. I spent an hour checking and re-checking the outer edges, then moved on to the big finale. I carefully opened the box that held the new pool, moved the instruction book out of the way and began laying the pool over the area that would become its home for the next three months. Next...the water, and we wait.
When the water was noticably filling faster on one side, I tried numerous methods to level the ground while the pool was filling with water. No, that is not how I poked a hole in the liner. That was the next day.
I decided to start over the next day. While the pool was draining, I got a head start on re-leveling the ground. Julia (my 8 year old daughter) held the pool out of the way while I started digging in with the rake. And THAT is how I poked the hole in the liner. The language Julia heard that day was mild compared to what she would hear at the Nickelback concert a few days later.
After patching the hole and getting down on hands and knees with the level and 2x6 again, I kept reminding myself that it's better to take the time and do it right this time. I went inch by inch ensuring that every rock, hole and bump was removed from the area. I was half-way through when my new best friend (my neighbor with the truck) saw the water draining from my backyard and decided to check up on me. He took the rake and finished the levelling in 10 minutes. We spread out the pool again and started filling. The neighborhood kids had a very quick swim after supper that night.
I can hardly wait for next year, after the frost throws all that levelling off and I get to start over.
