We went to the pool all day. It was an L-shaped pool, a swim club in the Baltimore tradition -- just a pool, wading pool, basketball courts, ping-pong table, a shuffleboard court. No golf, no tennis.

No one EVER showered before entering pool, despite what the sign said.

In the water, we played: Marco Polo, underwater tag, freeze tag, regular tag. It was a strict place, so no toys were allowed in the pool -- no balls, no floatation devices. But it was in the pre-liability era, so there was a high dive. We did cannonballs and pineapples (holding one leg up, while the other was extended.) I learned to dive off the high dive and swan dive, but my attempts at a back flip -- ouch!

You could get benched for running. The lifeguards were power-mad.

During Adult Swim, we played: I Doubt It and Hearts and Pitch. We ate: nutty Buddies, frozen Snickers, ice cream sandwiches and Rocket Pops.

There was no better feeling than falling asleep on a chaise toward the end of the afternoon, when your skin was as brown and fragrant as a toasted nut, and the sounds -- splashing, yelling -- faded into the background, and suddenly your mom was shaking you and it was time to go home.

You put a dry towel over the car seats, even if they were vinyl. Within an hour of eating dinner, exhaustion came on you fast and, despite the summer ban on bedtimes, it was hard to stay awake.

Repeat every day until Labor Day, except for the two weeks at the Delaware beaches.

What was your summer routine?