The Pool Noodles Granddaughter

The pool noodle.

Yup, that’s me, granddaughter of the man who invented the pool noodle.

And you’re right, it’s as glamourous as it sounds.

Don’t get me wrong, there’s nothing wrong with being related to the guy, it’s just that, well, the family now is pretty well off.

Which is great! I get to go to the best schools, go on family holidays and if we ever get sick, we know that we’re lucky enough to be taken care of.

But when people come round and see our house, the cars we drive and the other fancy things we own… well… they expect we’re famous or something.

And we’re not.

One day my grandad just got sick of teaching my dad how to swim, so he cut up some foam and voila, instant floatation device.

Then people caught wind of it, and yup, they all wanted one for their kids as well.

I mean, who wouldn’t! The kids can swim, the parents can sit back having a drink and not need to be saving their kids from drowning every five minutes.

Win-win, right!

Yeah, it is, and I’m so grateful for my grandad for creating the noodle. I’ve definitely used a few in my lifetime!

But… it’s a bit awkward to be remembered as the girl whose grandad invented the pool noodle.

Every time I tell someone they crack up laughing!

Not good when trying to fit in at school.

But what’s a girl to do? Lie?

I’ve never been a fan of lying, and I’m not ashamed of my family’s history… I just wish they’d invented something a bit more interesting, like the toaster, or bookmarks… something!

We had to do an assignment at school about someone in our family that had made a difference to the community, and I really didn’t want to do it on my grandad, but no one else has really done anything. We’ve all been able to live off his success.

So my dad works the business with my grandad, and plans to take over it when he retires, and my mum’s been a lady of leisure since my parents got married. President of the P&F, volunteers at the soup kitchen when she can, but ultimately plays tennis at the country club for most of her days.

Especially now that I’m old enough to take care of myself.

Yup, I’m an only child too!

I don’t even have a sibling to share the ‘success’ with.

So, back to the assignment. I wound up doing it on my grandad after all.

The point of it was to share how they’d helped the community in a positive way, but I just wrote down the same thing that I told you above. That my grandad got sick of teaching my dad how to swim and invented the pool noodle that day.

And the only reason it became so popular so quickly was through word of mouth!

My grandad had NO IDEA how to run a business! He was a mechanic! Happy working under cars, in his little car world until voila! Instant fame and success.

What a life, right.

Who wouldn’t want that?!

Well, me, to be honest.

I mean, it’d be great to be able to invent something that made a difference to the community, but I’d like to think that there would be some meaning behind the invention instead of just lazy parenting.

The assignment got an A regardless, but I think that’s because my mum has so much sway in the school, and not because what I wrote made an emotional impact on my teacher.

My best friend at school cracked up when I shared what I’d written with her.

She’s been my friend since primary school and knows all about my woes with my family’s legacy.

Her family aren’t very well off though, so I try and keep my complaining to a minimum and share anything I can with her.

I don’t want her to feel like I’m rubbing my wealth in her face.

But she understands.

She’s one of every other kid in the western world who’d used a pool noodle, and she thinks it’s hilarious that I’m the granddaughter of the creator.

It’s one of those things where you forget that someone actually created it, instead of it just popping into existence.

Like fire, or the wheel! Useful contributions to society!

But no. It’s the pool noodle for me.

My parents know that I don’t like being known as ‘the pool noodles granddaughter’ either. So naturally they tell everyone they meet, just to embarrass me.

Parents can be so annoying sometimes.

Although, in spite of everything I’ve said above, I get along great with my grandad.

He’s the same as me. Thinks the whole situation is a bit of a crock.

If it was up to him, he never would have gone into business, but my grandma looked at the potential profits they would have made and forced him into it!

And, there you have it. A product that defines a culture was born.

He tool me golfing with him one day, and the bloke that owns the course is a close friend of my grandads.

My grandad actually loaned him the money for his friend to buy the course.

One of his better investments if I do say so myself.

The course became a hot tourist attraction for our state, with people flying in everywhere to play on it.

We’ve even had a few celebrities try it out.

Anyway, we went golfing one day, enjoying the game when my grandad turned to me and said “Mel, I don’t want you taking over the family business when you’re older. I want you to create your own path, make your own impact, create something special that’s just for you. Leave the noodle business to your parent.”

I couldn’t help but smile and give him a big hug.

I never wanted to take over the business anyway, but having his blessing meant a lot.

It also means that I won’t always be known as the pool noodles granddaughter.

Bliss.