Spa Talk 5.

Monday, August 25, 2025, 9:45 am.

M.’s aquafit class is still going on. He is infamous for his thunderous voice with which he shouts the instructions to those gathered for the exercises in the indoor YMCA pool. He comes across as a drill instructor, and the class has a ‘bootcamp’ ambiance. His students seem to like it, and he always has good attendance.

Some of us enter one of the two outdoor spas for a quick hot soak before the next aquafit class, starting at 10:15 am. A man and a woman in their forties are chatting in Spanish. My rudimentary knowledge of the language is inadequate for understanding what they’re talking about.

S., a seventyish woman with a few tattoos, leans against the wall and stares towards the pool. She tells me that she is following a cleansing diet. “You’re trying to lose weight,” I ask her. “Yes, I could lose seven or so pounds, but I also want to clean out my system. I’m on the fourth day of the diet, mostly fruit, vegetables, and liquids,” she tells me. Well, I think you’re doing the right thing,” I let her know. She remains quiet for the next 15 minutes until we’re ready to leave the spa and enter the pool for aquafit.

S., a talkative man who just turned 80, descends the steps into the spa. “You’ve been behaving yourself this weekend,” he says to me. “That’s what I’ve been told,” I retort. “How about you?” “Just chores around the house,” is his reply. “Have you ever taken M.’s aquafit class, I ask him. “Yes, once,” he says. “I guess it was alright, but I can’t stand his voice.” “He sounds like somewhat of a dictator,” I remark. “I don’t need that here, I get that at home,” S. utters. I get his point. Nough said.

Enter J., a tall man in his late sixties with a large white mustache and a grey cap. He places himself diametrically opposite S., and they are ready for a meaningful fifteen minutes of banter in the hot water. “I normally don’t take the 10:15 am class, but the 11:15 am osteoarthritis class. But M., my wife, is out of town, and my schedule is pretty loose. So, I’m taking the earlier class. It’s always strange when she is away. After forty-five years of marriage, I’m used to the routine of the two of us together in bed. So, I’m not used to sleeping by myself.”

“Fifty-two years for me,” S. says. It’s comfortable enough.” “No snoring to disturb your sleep,” I inquire. “Not anymore,” he remarks. “I’ve been using a CPAP mask for years. “Me too,’ says J., “although I had to get used to it. But after a few months, it became more natural.” “Never heard the term, what is it? I asked.” I was made to understand that the CPAP mask streams a positive airflow to keep your airways open. It prevents obstructive sleep apnea (OAS), a sleep-related breathing disorder caused by blocked or collapsed airways. While not uncommon, OSA is associated with adverse health conditions like cardiovascular disease, stroke, and diabetes.

“After four heart attacks, I’m very aware of the risks I’m dealing with,” S. shares his feelings about sleep apnea, snoring, and deep sleep. “Before I used the CPAP mask, I never got to the stage of deep sleep, with rapid eye movement (REM), which is a necessary precondition for the brain to clean out its garbage and give the body a chance for a real rest.

“I have a more compact CPAP mask for travel,” said J. “It’s easier to transport.

Then, the conversation between S. and J. moved on to travel; they had both done lots of it, including trips to Antarctica. J. said that he was on a smallish cruise with about one hundred people. What struck him most was how clean the snow peaks were. In the Arctic, the snow is heavily contaminated with industrial, residential, and traffic pollution from the northern hemisphere. These conditions are not as prevalent in the southern hemisphere, and Antarctica remains relatively unpolluted.

Next, the conversation went on to cruise travel in Asia. S. had traveled to China and the countries of Indochina. J. had visited that part of Asia as well: Thailand, Vietnam, Laos, and Hong Kong. He remarked how friendly the population was in Vietnam, notwithstanding the devastation of the war caused by the Americans. The Vietnamese were a lot friendlier to Americans than they were to their compatriots, in his view. Especially, people who had fought on the ‘wrong’ side of the Vietnam War were given rough treatment. They spent time in re-education camps to correct their erroneous ideological and political ideas. They were often paid significantly less than others who were not ideologically suspect.

The conversation ended with a veiled statement about the political conditions in the US at this time. They both agreed that the country had already turned to the other side and that we were moving towards a political system where government, industry, and the military were in cahoots under the leadership of an ‘all-knowing and all-powerful leader.’

With this parting thought, we climbed out of the spa to the pool where the next aquafit class was to start in 5 minutes.

MvR – August 25, 2025. ✍️