Explaining Your Addiction to Family Members
swimchica623
Member
Does anyone have difficulty explaining their swimming obsession to their family in a way that really allows them to understand why you do what you do? I'm surprised that my parents (I am independent, but still a bit of a youngin' at 28...) struggle with comprehension so much, as my family is entirely comprised of beach bums and my mom was the perfect swim mom.
For me, I think it comes down to nerves on their part and their desire to see the end of the tunnel. They always think a swim will end with "Okay, that's enough!" when in reality it ends with "What's next?"
I've been, perhaps distastefully, comparing swimming to an addiction...but sometimes I feel like I'm going to have an intervention thrown for me if I'm not careful...
For me, I think it comes down to nerves on their part and their desire to see the end of the tunnel. They always think a swim will end with "Okay, that's enough!" when in reality it ends with "What's next?"
I've been, perhaps distastefully, comparing swimming to an addiction...but sometimes I feel like I'm going to have an intervention thrown for me if I'm not careful...
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Well at least we understand each other.
The real trick is trying to explain it to all my friends though. They all think I am batshit crazy for wanting to do this. Even my friends from my college team think I am crazy, but that's never going to stop me from doing it. One quote that I think would be great to help explain our addiction to non-athletes/non-swimmers is one that was posted by @loneswimmer in the quote thread:
"No man has the right to be an amateur in the matter of physical training. It is a shame for a man to grow old without seeing the beauty and strength of which his body is capable."
Spot on. Who cares
loneswimmer.com
I think she enjoys the reactions she gets when she tells people what her husband does for fun. Even if she does have to spend hours on a kayak taking care of me while I'm in the water she still gets trips to nice places like Pensacola, Vermont, and North Dakota. I do have other people I can ask to paddle for me, so she doesn't have to paddle for me all the time.
I'll say this, too. Last weekend, I had an incredible swim. I went about an hour faster than I would have guessed (favorable conditions and everything), and was even fortunate enough to win. But one of the best feelings of the day was when, on the way back to the condo, she told me she was proud of me.
"Lights go out and I can't be saved
Tides that I tried to swim against
Have brought be down upon my knees
Oh I beg, I beg and plead..."
OMG, you beat me to it. Same here.
We're all just carbon, water, starlight, oxygen and dreams
No problem. They all disowned me shortly after taking up marathon swimming a few years ago. The only reason my wife is still talking to me is that when I head off to a swim I just tell her that: "I have to go out of town to take care of some business". Thankfully I pay the bills so she has been spared the pain. To her credit it was her idea that I stay and take my 2nd shot at thew EC while I was there. I'm sure she had no idea how much it was going to cost to go for a 2nd swim.
I've had to make smart, logical choices...not pursuing ANOTHER graduate degree in the humanities (hahaha the first hardly profitable!) waiting to start a family with the right person instead of someone that is just comfortable, not going into debt like so much of my generation.
Swimming is something that is for me. Pure, plain, and simple. It is just frustrating when people think there are other, less pure, motives.
@Swimchica623- the 1500 feels too self-indulgent, especially when it takes a person 40 minutes to complete. The 7 people focused on me during Catalina also seemed self-indulgent. I am still contending with the arrogance and self-centeredness of of safely marathon swimming versus the wonderful feelings I get when I swim in the ocean or down the river.
I told the love of my life that I would either get a Harley, a ponytail and a girlfriend half my age, or I would go and swim the Channel.
And so the Channel it is.
Milko
https://db.marathonswimmers.org/p/milko-van-gool/
I struggle a bit with this, too. I do what I can to make sure my wife is still okay with me swimming, and make sure that my paddlers understand how much I appreciate their help, even if I am offering constructive criticism while we are out on the water.
Swimming is a bargain!
...anything worth doing is worth overdoing.