UPDATE TA pool police

Lets start with: I apologised.

My intention wasn’t to be a shithead. But my execution was the opposite of what my intention was.

I didn’t want to cause a scene. But I guess I can audition for theater.

Today: Our children aren’t in the same group/time slot, making the chance of meeting her again a little smaller. It has been bugging me all week how I behaved with many, and I mean many scenarios crossing my mind what could happen. I did want to say I was sorry and I didn’t know how I would do it.

I chose to stay in a group dressing room we commonly use and sent my husband to bring our child to the pool.

I didn’t know she used the same dressing room.

We locked eyes as she walked in and I loudly said “can I apologise?”. (Big room and I didn’t want to whisper from the other side. First thing that came up to say. Yes, this time it was more public with others in the same room.)

I guess she could see that I actually meant it because she extended her hand and we shook it while I said “I apologise. It was really really really not my day.”

To all the people who said they were sorry for my husband. He knows about my abide-by-the-rule character “flaw” and helps me manoeuvre within society as I help him with his. Someone asked if I would report someone stealing food; no, but I would tell someone counting out their cash that they are at a card-only check out. That was what I thought had happened, that she had forgotten or never had the memo. Plenty of aunts/uncles/family who pick up a child and the parents forget to tell about the blue cover rule this swimming pool has.

Ironically: I went to Ikea today as soon as the restaurant part of the store opened. There was a couple with their cart full of unopened boxes at breakfast. It caught my eye because the store hadn’t opened yet. I understood that they were going to return the goods. How else would you get a cart full of boxes, right?

After breakfast, I coincidentally saw them again near the check outs where they were talking to an employee asking how they could get to the customer service. There is a small path with an automatic gate for people without something to buy. The employee pointed at the path and said they could ring a doorbell and security would open it.

A minute later and I saw someone complaining to their partner that they had gotten angry looks. She said “they aren’t allowed to go through there! But I was. So I just kept on walking and then they looked angry. They shouldn’t have been there in the first place.”

I wouldn’t have done the same, I would have asked if they had missed the check out and if they needed help. But in that moment I saw another rule following little sheep. We could’ve knitted our own wool shoe covers together.