Swimming with Chippy

I swam on Saturday. It was refreshing and nice to avoid another treadmill defeat. I am sore from said swim. Being sore is always bittersweet. It is obviously bitter because I can't move without cringing, however sweet because I know I worked some muscles that obviously needed working.
There's something about the monotony of swimming that I love. Maybe it's the only quiet environment to let my thoughts run rampant, under the counting of course... twen-ty-five, fi-i-fty, seven-ty-five, one-hun-dred, one-twenty-five, one-fif-ty, one-seventy-five, two-hun-dred... etc., each syllable a stroke, every three strokes a breath, each length a new number. I like the repetition. I like that there are no surprises. I like that unless I wimp out, each lap will require the same amount of strokes and will look essentially identical to the one before. Somehow in that safety I am able to lose my mind in itself and it's okay. I think I will start swimming more often.
One thing I don't like about swimming is lane-sharing. I have whined about it before, but nothing has changed. When I swam the other day, it was more crowded than I'd anticipated. Ironically I'd thought on my way there 'I hope I'm not the only one, I hate it when the lifeguards watch.' Then go figure the whole pool was full. What can ya do. I actually started with my own lane, but 750 yards later a chipper old man flagged me down. We decided to split the lane (vs. circle swimming) and that was that. The first time we passed each other, no big deal. I decided to embrace this as an opportunity to practice my stupid sighting stroke and every now and then to look forward and gauge where Chippy was to avoid collision. During lap two I looked up twice and didn't see him, and figured he must be behind me. Then out of NOWHERE we collided. I'd been essentially hugging the lane line as I swam, I don't like to touch strangers-- especially those that are 90% naked. Chippy, however, was sprawled out in the lane, recklessly flapping his arms as if he were trying to beat Michael Phelps' world record(s). I was very flustered by the impact and started treading water to make sure he was okay (slash passive aggressively express my disapproval of his technique). However, this incident was very much a hit and run as Chippy continued on as if nothing had happened. That just pissed me off. It's an appropriate place to get mad, though... I just used it and swam the rest of my workout a little faster. Fortunately on one of his breaks, Chippy found another lane. I only enjoyed another 500 yards of my own lane before some girl came, then a different girl after her. I don't like lane sharing, but there's really nothing I can do about it. And despite being so close to naked strangers, I am glad I went.