Two years ago I went to the SM Mall in San Fernando here in the Philippines, and while in Ace Hardware I spied a 15 foot above ground pool, yup, gotta’ have that! Hand over my Visa and off I go. They bring out the box, its 10 foot high and 4 foot by 4 foot square. Did I mention I have a Honda Civic? The two employees helping me are smiling and looking at the box then the car. Can’t say as I blame them, it was a problem. They have a roll of plastic tie down stuff and want to put it on the roof, that ain’t gonna’ happen!

What did I learn while in the Navy, besides how to operate a Day Care Center? Problem solving that was it! Ok lets open the box and see what we got, a huge rubber pool liner was first, put that in the trunk, poles and pumps and stuff in the back seat. Damn Honda’s can hold a lot. The two kids’s were amazed and had a new respect for the Cano (American). Homeward bound with my new treasure I go with a self-satisfied smile on my face.

Setting up the pool is easy I’m thinking, my back yard has a workshop/place to have cocktails I had built there and 16 feet from the door is the wall around my fish pond. The pool is 15 feet across (round), with 6 inches to spare on both sides. So I pretty much screwed myself getting back to my water pumps and tanks, but I’ve got a pool!

 “Prior planning prevents piss poor performance?” I wish I had remembered that back at Ace Hardware. Did I have chlorine, of course not? Deal with that at a later date! I’m set to go, I think, and my wife brings up the subject of water. I’ve got a well and a pump, how hard can it be? Four hours later my electric meter is red lined the pump is red hot, and I have less than an inch of water in the pool. Plan “B”, drink a beer and think this through. On the 4th beer it pops into my head, “a water truck!”
Next morning the truck arrives and we pump it dry, we now have a foot of water and I’m out a thousand pesos (Approx $20.00). I need the depth to be 4 foot 6 inches; three more trucks and we’re there. Son-in-law shows up with 50 pounds of pool chlorine, all is well in Dinalupihan Bataan on the Island of Luzon. Pool party starts and we are enjoying ourselves.

Happy ending? Hell no, Ace Hardware has no idea where I can get a replacement filter for the pump they sold me. So I clean the filter everyday with my power washer. Lasted 3 months and then gave up the ghost. Drain the pool break it down and stow it till next year. One year, five letters, six e-mails and four phone calls to Long Beach California to Corporate headquarters and no response, no answer at all, even the phone calls, were put on hold(but the music was good)!

This year I tried a new approach, I contacted their European Office, and three days later received a phone call from Mega Manila, they have filters there, how many do I want and could I pick them up at Handy City Hardware at Robinson’s Mall, again in San Fernando?

Now to knock down the fishpond wall and build a platform and screen in the pool, I knew it would cost me more money, but I have a rich Uncle. I am the one who chooses to live here and soon will swim here too without having to listen to 10 boom boxes all playing different songs.