I didn’t mean to become the villain.
One day, the water sparkled like hope.
The next, it judged me. Silent. Murky. Coated in shame.
I used to believe pool care was simple. Add, stir, ignore.
But then the stain came.
And it spread
like my unread emails.
Loud in its silence.
Mocking in its permanence.
This is not just a story about algae stain removal.
This is a confession.
Of avoidance. Of overcorrection.
Of the emotional chaos behind every misstep.
You’ve been warned.
Chapter One: The Green Begins
It started with a speck.
A single green smudge near the deep end.
I looked away, pretending it wasn’t there.
Like that text I didn’t answer. Like that email marked “urgent” from three weeks ago.
But algae never forgets. And unlike emails, it doesn’t sit quietly. It spreads.
First, the corners. Then the steps. It crawled over tiles with the commitment of a thousand Monday deadlines.
Chapter Two: Bleach and Regret
I panicked.
I dumped in shock like a chef seasoning food with their soul. More is better, right?
Wrong.
The water turned cloudy. My filter wheezed like it needed therapy. The pH mocked me with its imbalance.
I told myself I was doing my best. But I knew the truth: I was doing the bare minimum and expecting pool perfection.
Chapter Three: The Stain Confession
“It’s just a stain.” That’s what I told my neighbor when they raised an eyebrow.
But it wasn’t.
It was a symptom. A symptom of laziness. Of shortcuts. Of skipping vacuuming because I was “too busy” binge-watching true crime documentaries.
My pool was innocent. I was the criminal.
Chapter Four: Redemption and Rinsing
I scrubbed like I was trying to erase regret. I balanced the pH like my self-esteem depended on it. I cleaned the filter with the urgency of a missed deadline.
I learned. That algae doesn’t magically go away. That stains are consequences. That unread emails and pool neglect both pile up fast.
Chapter Five: The Moral
Don’t ignore the first green speck. Don’t lie to yourself about “getting to it tomorrow.” Don’t pour chemicals in like you’re solving your problems with a credit card.
Be present. Be consistent. Be less dramatic than me.
But if you must spiral, at least spiral into action.
Case closed.
