Lake quiet this morning. Took the shorter route and let the breathing settle before I picked up the stroke. The left shoulder clicked on the reach, so I kept that side a little shorter. No need to pull harder just because the water was smooth. Coming back, the hands were still warm enough to manage the ladder properly. Sat on the dock with the towel around my shoulders while my wife put the timer away. The sun was on my shins and I could feel the pulse slowing without counting it. At home the coffee tasted good. Legs loose, shoulder a little dull afterward. A good swim, though not one for the record book.

Sorting the wax box for the next season. There are tins in there older than some of the store staff, and a few I keep moving aside without using. I know what snow I bought each one for. That does not mean I need three half tins of the same thing. Set the sound ones together and wrote the contents on the lid where I can read it without glasses. My grandson asked why I did not just buy whatever everybody uses now. Sometimes I do. Sometimes I already have what works. I want to show him the difference on snow, not talk at him for an hour over a box. He has heard enough of the clinic story for one visit.

A fellow I fitted for boots years ago came by with his grandson. He remembered the old store bench and the way I made him walk before paying. I did not remember his name at first, but I remembered the narrow heel. He laughed at that. The boy wanted to know whether wooden skis really worked. Told him they got us home well enough. It was good having them in the garage, looking at the racks without asking when I was going to clear them out. My wife brought chairs. They stayed a while. Afterward I found the old pair we had been discussing and left it out. The boy said he would like to see it next time.