Something about swimming (III)
-Creatures of habit-

I swam in different waters today. Where usually I’d inhabit the third lane from extreme right, I took the centre lane. This part I tip-toed to with trepidation, for even the waters felt colder. This is the lane which dissects the blue rectangle block in half and which many avoid for obvious reasons.
Firstly, it’s a mother’s warning that centre lane is where you will most possibly experience some form of danger and difficulty; cramps, breathlessness or sudden inability or forgetfulness to swim. For the life-guards to get to you, they will have to cut through four lanes a- side, most inadvertently being hindered by several bobbers along the way, and all these essential minutes, only having ascertained it not a prank. Of course, normal swimmers in the neighbour lanes will not even try to rescue you since they are not the mandated life-savers.

Secondly, the kind of swimmers there are harder to assess. Just today, I was doing the usual can’t-look-in-front front-crawl when suddenly I felt some strange inhibition. A palm was placed atop my head by an old man swimmer from the opposite direction to stop me proceeding and banging into him. Quite akin to a policeman signaling “no going ahead” (pun not intended), this was his own way of avoiding collision. Thirdly, centre lane is attention-grabbing. I have memories of the campus pool, where lanes are numbered according to the efficiency of the swimmer. Lane one is fastest, lane ten for those opting for aqua-aerobics aka water walking. Lane five is judgment lane because obviously, if you were a lane six swimmer you were below average. Centre lane is viewed with intensity and interest.

Could these, then, be the reasons for snorting in more water, battling bigger waves and experiencing more jerky motions and strength-less kicks? Is it more pieces of queer pieces of band-aids, dark thread, hair and leaves I see on the pool floor?


Or could it be that I am just a creature of habit- third lane from extreme right, and that only?