Well, some of you have been asking about the results of the hot tub adventure.

We decided on the 6-person ultra nice Vanguard model made by Hot Springs, with extra jets (moto-jets, too!!), and built-in fountains. It is super nice. And it’s the one that had that special moto jet feature that Nick was looking for. Let’s just say that it had all the features that we deemed necessary for our enjoyment. They threw in the steps, a vacuum, a spa care starter kit, and a rubber ducky, too. You have a choice of inside and exterior colors. We liked the pearlescent white interior and grey wood exterior—a nice color combo. Now, before we took delivery we had to have an electrician come and install electric to the beast. And we also had to have a sturdy base—straight and level—on which to place the thing, too. Oh, joy.

It really wasn’t all that bad. This thing carries over 400 gallons of water in it, so the base we put it on is made of concrete. Nick and I have never done anything like this before, so it was an experience for the both of us. Getting the concrete pad level and square was not as easy as you’d think, but we did it. It took a week—but we did it!

We did not attempt to do the electric ourselves. We really don’t know much about it, so we let a professional do it for us. I’m glad we did. It seemed confusing to me and I don’t mess around with things like electricity. After 2 weeks of these home projects, we were ready for delivery. It was delivered at the exact time we had picked—Friday at 3 p.m. So, here it was! It looked gigantic—actually looked like a mini in-ground pool turned on it’s side on a trailer—yikes! Set-up was not difficult—only took 2 guys to move it up the driveway to the side of the house where we find it has a great view and lots of privacy. They got bogged down in a huge bed of daylilies that are about halfway to blooming. No big deal—just dig ‘em up and move ‘em to an out of the way spot. After careful measuring, it was time to place the spa on the concrete pad. These guys nailed it the first time—exactly where we wanted it. And now for the hook-up. Sit back and let these guys do their thing. They hook-up the electric from the junction box to the spa. Lots of stuff going on here. Like I said, me and electricity don’t mix and I don’t feel too comfortable with Nick messing with it, either. Everything seemed to be going fine until the final hook-up. Oops—uh, Houston, we have a problem. OK, start all over again and check to see it anything was missed or overlooked.

Well, they tried but ran out of time. It was getting late on a Friday and these two guys were about to start their vacations on Saturday. Anyway—you could say we were disappointed—especially my Nick, but we were willing to wait for a technician to call us on Saturday. So, our first night, we were unable to us our huge hot tub. As they say, "hey, it happens!"

Nick called there as soon as they opened on Saturday. We were told that a techie would be

calling us soon, and indeed he did. He was a trouble shooter, and the guy sure know his stuff! Nick is a little more adept at following directions on electricity than me—so he took the phone. Ok, now, don’t panic!! Really, it wasn’t that bad. It was one crossed wire—that’s it. And we were listening to our spa come to life. All these buttons, lights, and jets. Yikes! OK, Houston, we have lift-off. If ever you saw my Nick with this huge grin on his face—well, it was worth the price of this leviathan. So, you’d think it was all over, eh? Well, not really. It’s just starting. Seems you have to read the brochure, or manual as they call it. So, grab a drink and a comfortable chair cause this is gonna take a while. This thing just doesn’t have an on and off button, it’s got more bells and whistles than Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus. This is technology at it’s most confusing or best. It depends on how you look at it. So, I passed the book to my other half ‘cause I know he likes stuff like that. He loves gadgets, and this thing has them in droves. He took to this stuff like a duck to water. Then again, he knows a lot about these spas, because he has two friends in Dallas that have spas themselves.

So, this thing is a lot like taking care of an in-ground pool. Add your chemicals, check your ph, the calcium, the chloride/chlorine. The place that sold us the hot tub called on Saturday afternoon and said we needed to bring in a sample of our water from the tub on Sunday for analysis. Saturday night was the first time we would use our new hot tub. And we loved it ! Nick got the temp up to 106 degrees—that’s enough to boil lobsters, I think. Once you got in, it was truly wonderful and very relaxing. The adjustable jets were pure heaven. So, after all, it seemed like a great addition to our healthcare regimen. We took a water sample to the store on Sunday and found out that our calcium was low. Just a little more chemical additive and things are fine.

Yep, I think this whole hot tub experience was worth it—excuse me while we soak and relax—ahhh.