Picture this: the trees are full of life, flush with flowering greenery; a toad, sitting on a smooth stone, cooks slowly under the summer sun; the grass grows, its shoots reaching out into the blue beyond; the air, a fiery furnace, causes a necklace of sweat to materialize on you. It’s hot in Connecticut — you and your kids, recently returned from school, are all too aware of this. If only there was something you could do about it.
There is! Throw a pool party! You probably expected this given the title of the article, but that doesn’t make it any less true. Pool parties are a great way to get together, chill out, and have fun. Think about the fond memories you have of being a child — how many involve pool parties? Why not get the good times going again as an adult? And if you don’t have any memories of pool parties as a child, then hosting a pool party is the perfect way to heal your pool-party-less inner child.
But wait, you may say, “I don’t know how to throw a pool party” Have no fear pool partygoer, the ultimate pool party checklist is here! We’ll teach you how to throw a pool party with our patented ultimate pool party checklist, a thorough, well-researched, guaranteed recipe for a good time. Here’s your first pool party essential:
A Pool to Host a Pool Party In
Despite the infinite number of advantages of owning a pool, some homeowners have disenfranchised themselves from being amphibiously frolicsome and have restricted themselves to enjoying terrestrial recreations only. Our hearts go out to these poolless people, and thus we offer them the opportunity to be baptized into the bucolic bliss of pool ownership — which they can plot out just by dialing (203) 967-1203 to contact Shoreline Pools and get to work on their dream pool a reality today! (Please note we do not provide reification services for other dream-based phenomena). Once you have a pool to splash around in you can start knocking off the other elements of our ultimate pool party checklist.
Ultimate Pool Party Games
No list of backyard pool party tips would be complete without mentioning one of the best parts of any pool party: pool games. From recreating the exploratory exploits of Marco Polo by using a call and response technique not unlike echolocation, to imitating the spread of a zombie virus with Sharks Versus Minnows, to a simple game of Pool Volleyball even cooler and more cinematically influential than the one in that old Top Gun movie, there are a plethora of ways to splash around with following the Ultimate Pool Party Checklist. Of course, some of the rules of these games may be unclear to you, so we’ve written a clarifying guide below.
Marco Polo
For this game one person is the titular Marco Polo. They go into the pool and close their eyes for the remainder of their time as Marco Polo. Everyone else hides and moves around the pool. Marco Polo then calls out Marco, and everyone else calls back Polo. Using this information the person playing Marco Polo will then try to tag another player making them Marco Polo and starting the game all over again.
Sharks Versus Minnows
This game starts with one person as the Shark and everyone else as the minnows. The minnows will start by holding onto one side of the pool. Then they will all try to swim to the other side of the pool. So long as they are touching one of these sides of the pool they are “safe” and cannot be tagged. While swimming, however, the minnows can be tagged by the shark, who has free movement throughout the pool, thus converting them to the Sharks’ team.
One round is completed when all the minnows have either safely crossed the pool or been tagged. Once all the surviving minnows have crossed another round will begin where all the new and old sharks try to tag them again. This repeats until all the minnows have been made into sharks with the last surviving minnow becoming the shark for the next game of Sharks and Minnows.
Pool Volleyball
This one is pretty self-explanatory. You find a ball, maybe a beach ball, and play volleyball with or without a net depending on if you have one. The only substantive rule change is that the surface of the water is what counts as the floor. If you like volleyball, you’ll love this.
Making a Splash with Pool Toys
From pool noodles to water guns, every pool party needs some form of toys to rile up some mischief. Think of how much fun you had as a child using these weapons of water-based mass destruction, running around like a soldier fighting your friends and siblings. You don’t have to join the army to get that thrill again — you just have to buy some pool toys. Then you can join the chaos or even be an instigator yourself. You may get drenched but hey, that’s the risk you take at a pool party. Besides you can always get your revenge with a super soaker.
You’ll Want More Liquids than Just Water
The ultimate pool party needs refreshments. Sure, you could just drink the pool water, but chlorinated communal swimming water doesn’t hit the spot like a nice cold soda. Make sure to pick up some drinks and a cooler while out shopping for food. Speaking off…
Pool Party Menu
Don’t forget your pool party snacks and food. From bags of chips to cookies, to barbeque, there is a dizzyingly dazzling variety of options before you. Just like a spaceship that failed to leave the atmosphere, the sky’s the limit — so go nuts! Or don’t go nuts in the case that someone you are inviting has a nut allergy as it is important to be aware of people’s dietary restrictions.
Maybe try some nice bratwursts or cooking up some hamburgers on the grill. Maybe a salad. Anything could work because what doesn’t go well with water?
Don’t Let the Sun Ruin Your Fun
Getting sunburnt sucks. Don’t let yourself turn redder than a lobster just because you wanted to go outside. Sunscreen is a must for any partygoer that wants to enjoy the simple radiance of the sun without getting burned. When Caeser crossed the Rubicon he changed world history, but when you cross the rubicund (this is a fancy word for red) the only change you’ll find is one that is none too appeeling. So, try sunscreen — the only burn you should be chasing should come from the hot sauce you put on your food.
The Ultimate Pool Party Checklist’s Ultimate Check: Guests
At last, we come to the most important ingredient in creating a good pool party — the guests. Without guests, it’s just a pool. Without a pool, it’s just a party. What a pool party does is innovatively combine the two together into a simple and elegant solution — which we have found to be much more enjoyable than other forms of combinational parties such as the ill-fated volcano party and the overrated sewer party. It’s self-evident: pool parties are the way to go.
Not only are pool parties a way to relax, they’re also a way to reconnect with people you may have lost touch with and spark up a conversation with an old friend. A pool party is an excuse to hang out, and a pool is a valuable opportunity to gather people together in a world of diminishing connections.
Let the Summer Pool Party Bash Begin!
So, what’s stopping you? Host a pool party and get started on eating, relaxing, and socializing today. The heat is mounting, the summer intensifying, and we’re all looking for a way to goof off with our friends. The perfect way is to host a pool party which, having read this article, you should know how to do. So, get out there, buy some pool noodles, purchase a bag of hamburger buns, gather your community, and chill out. It’s been a long time since last summer, you deserve this. And if you don’t have a pool, be cool, and call Shoreline Pools at (203) 967-1203 to schedule a consultation today.
