I saw my last edition of Los Angeles Schools' little employee bulletin "The Spotlight" a long way back. There always was a listing for employee recreation but the cutbacks in the last days meant going to amusement parks and professional sports.

But once this also included activities such as softball leagues and aqua aerobics. A bit over twenty years ago I spotted the listing for the latter and saw a respite for my Achilles tendons stinging from the then boilerplate regimen of high impact at the health chain.

Yes, there's the joke about "hinge and twinge" but in two pools, depending on time of year, and three instructors over time we had different ages and levels of fitness. One technique was the whirlpool: we moved around in a circle then reversed direction to fight the current we'd created.

L. instructs a cardio kick boxing class (no bags poked in this one) at a certain location which also has a pool in the story. Her mantra, her platform (she wants to also get a Zumba class and show 'em how it's done) is "hot, sweaty and uncomfortable". No, she's not mean and she draws a good number. One is me and when she told us she was subbing at next day's aqua class, come on out, you have known for a minute which one of the kickers took up the offer.

No, you would not say I was seen in a Speedo but that is the brand of trunks I swim in and this is at L. A. Fitness. Product placement over.

The clientele gathered in the slightly over-warm water. At the Hollywood High of 1991 the treatment for the pool lived up to the City Schools' rep for undependability. We once were in practically dishwater hot water, which was actually exhausting, but when the heater was more in the spirit of North Grand, translates to "down" as if you can't tell, actually it was bracing once one submerged into the chill.

Clientele for our narrative of 2012 were mostly, well, not quite who you'd find in the k-box class, but give them credit for showing up. From what I've observed through the window class is largely waving their arms a bit and gossiping. Today three were on a tear about diabetes. Yipes, time to move on down a bit but then L. showed up.

And shook them up. We did cross-country ski movements, a staple In aqua, moved water with the arms in various ways. Yes, L. got the leonine share of their surprise, with a little going over to the fellow whose somewhat famous whoop gained some top end in these surroundings. And off came L's shoes as she joined us.

Yes, it was a different morning for the regulars and reciprocally for the irregular.

Fitness does that.