August 8, 2026

There’s a famous scene in Caddyshack where the unkempt and quite odd assistant greenskeeper, Carl Spackler (played by Bill Murray), asks to visit the home of the quite wealthy and eccentric Ty Webb (played by Chevy Chase). Spackler asks if Webb has a pool, and Webb famously replies: “I have a pool and a pond. The pond would be good for you.” 

When you look at the way I have vacationed over my 64 years, I too have enjoyed pool and pond destinations. I grew up mostly as a pond guy, and I still love that. But I have snuck in a few pool vacations over the years. So, I’ve got that going for me. Which is nice. 

My July was highlighted by two spectacular trips – one fits that pond description, and the second was a pool experience for sure. And I loved them both.

We started July off with a pond vacation. Like we do almost every summer, we go camping for three nights just below Fresno, California. The days are above 100 degrees, but we have a secret weapon. Every day, we pile into a bus and head six miles up the river, hop in inner tubes or other floatation devices, attach a few coolers to some of them, and float for four hours down the very cold and mostly mellow Kings River. This was year 52 of this gathering. Jill’s been a part of it for about 40 years, and I’m nearing 30. This year there were about 75 people there – friends that we see every summer, and a few new friends that joined for the first time. The camp has a large open air camp kitchen where we prepare meals for each other, and everyone has a job making the camp run – helping prepare and clean up meals, running games, training rookies, and more. It’s not fancy, but despite the heat and dirt, we all feel lucky to be together on the river, and people leave with renewed friendships and filled with river spirit.

One of my favorite annual River Trip moments happens around 5:30 AM every morning. I wake up while almost everyone is still sleeping, make a cup of coffee and stand at the bank of the misty Kings River, enjoying the cool morning and the quiet flow of the river. The heat is coming, but on the riverbank before the sun comes up, there’s actually a chill in the air. Then I open our camp kitchen, start the giant urns of coffee, and start cooking enough bacon for 75 people. A few early risers come by and chat about the day and how much we love everything about the River Trip. Usually, they’re up early quietly doing something good for everyone that no one asked them to do. I get the kitchen ready for that day’s breakfast crew, and by 7 AM, we are working (and laughing) together so that precisely at 8:00, not 7:59, not 8:01, we ring the bell and officially start all our campers’ first meal together. Beautiful scenery, a little work, a lot of camaraderie and smiles, and good food to show for all of it – that’s a great start to a perfect day on an ideal vacation.

I’ve been doing pond vacations all my life. As kids, our family went camping all throughout Arkansas – Sylamore Creek, Mountain View, the Buffalo River, Blanchard Springs Caverns, and so many more. As a teenager, our family could be found almost every weekend camping on an island on Lake Ouachita, spending our days water skiing, inner tubing, throwing rocks, and playing games. One summer, my Dad had all of us bicycling through Ireland for three weeks, camping along the way. That was before bicycle tourism was a thing. It’s hard to call a trip to Ireland a “pond” vacation, but let me tell you – it wasn’t fancy at all. And it was spectacular. As a college student preparing to spend a year in West Berlin, I went cycling with four friends from college through Amsterdam, Germany, Switzerland, and France. We had very little money and stayed in youth hostels. Again, it was no frills, wonderfully active, and it was sublime. 

There’s a slowness to these pond vacations. There’s no schedule. There are no planned activities. There’s reading, playing games, talking, and taking advantage of what nature has to offer. On that island on the lake with zero plumbing or electricity, I remember spending hours skipping rocks, telling stories, and listening to/singling along with Jim Croce/Bob Seager/John Denver/Linda Ronstandt/The Eagles/Harry Nillson. For the bike trips, there was a plan, but in most cases, the plan was merely a suggestion. That day’s Plan A was quickly replaced by Plan C or Plan ZZ. You went with the flow. You’re fixing your own meals, usually with very limited ingredients and cooking utensils. And again, it’s wonderful.

So yes, I’m a pond guy for sure. Always have been, and I hope I stay that way.

But the pool is pretty nice. 

And unlike Carl Spackler, I’ve been fortunate enough to enjoy a few pool vacations in my lifetime. Jill and I got married 25 years ago. Way back in 2001, while enjoying a three-day honeymoon in the Bay Area, we started dreaming about an Alaskan Cruise. Neither of us had taken a cruise, and neither of us had been to Alaska. Last month, a few weeks after our awesome River Trip pond vacation, we changed that. 

We explored Denali Park, then took a 7-night cruise from Seward to Vancouver. While on the cruise, we were treated every bit as well as Julia Roberts’ Vivian Ward when she went shopping for the second time on Rodeo Drive in Pretty Woman. We saw Mt. Denali (it’s only visible 30% of the time), glaciers galore, amorous grizzly bears, lots of bald eagles, spawning salmon, Alaskan husky sled dogs, and majestic fjords. We enjoyed delicious meals every day, floated down rivers. spent time with sled dog teams on Alaska’s Mendenhall Glacier, and the list goes on. 

I shouldn’t be surprised by how wonderful it was. Dudley Moore told me this at the end of Arthur. He asked Liza Minelli’s Linda if she had ever been on a yacht. Linda answered, “No. Is it wonderful?” To which Arthur replied, “It doesn’t suck.”

I’ve been fortunate enough to have some extraordinary pool vacations in my life. And just like in Alaska, I often feel like I have to pinch myself to believe that a kid from Arkansas is really doing something that I thought was reserved for people a little fancier than me. 

I splurged back in 2009 and played golf with Ryan, his godfather Craig, and his Uncle Steve in Ireland. We played iconic and gorgeous golf courses steeped in history. Who knew that I could still hit the same bad golf shots on some of the world’s most famous courses? Golf by day and pints of Guiness by night. That was living at its finest.

I will take these pool luxuries when I can get them. Paying for a premium economy seat so that my 6’2” frame is not jammed into airplane seats where the leg room seems to be decreasing each year is a little luxury that goes a long way. Seeing Kenny Chesney last year at the Las Vegas Sphere felt like having a reclining chair at the most psychedelic pool ever. Though paying $54 for a drink at The Sphere was a pool extravagance I could do without. We signed up for a small group tour of the Vatican a few years back, then learned we were the only people who signed up for the tour. We were looking for our tour group and saw our last name on the sign (the only time I’ve ever seen that!), then enjoyed a private tour of the Vatican with an art teacher from Rome.

Writing this piece made me think about what really separates vacationing at the pool and the pond. It’s not the destination. It’s not just the scenery. It’s the level of service and the extent to which others are looking after your welfare. And it is how much you have to do on your own to make the vacation work. When you’re poolside, almost everything is taken care of. People are looking after you and making sure you are comfortable. And there’s a level of luxury beyond what you are used to. While around the pond, all of that fun and stunning scenery is out there, but you have to do the “work” necessary to make the most of a remarkable opportunity. Because of that, the pond usually brings people a little closer together. When you don’t have someone looking after your every need, you lean on the people around you a little more. Togetherness is forced, and, if you’re with the right people, that togetherness often surpasses the fun and beauty.

I don’t need pool experiences to be happy. But my goodness. I feel beyond fortunate when I get them. Who doesn’t love being taken care of in a spectacular setting? And I would not give up my pond vacations, past or present, for anything. Somehow, because you have to do the work that allows you to make the most of the opportunity, because you rough it, at least a little bit, and because you often share the moment with others, the pond seems a little more special.

I hope I have more pool experiences coming my way in life. I will savor them all. But at my core, I’m proud to say that, just like Carl Spackler, I’m a pond guy, and I am for grateful how my pond vacations have and continue to shape me into who I am.

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Post #147 on www.drmdmatthews.com

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NOTES

My late friend Nancy Pallathena loved the, “The pond would be good for you” line from Caddyshack. She would always remind me that I was most at home around the pond. We got to laugh about that so many times, and writing this makes me miss her.

My family took phenomenal summer vacations when I grew up. Driving to Destin Florida and staying in a house at the beach. I mentioned the bike riding in Ireland. A Winnebago trip out west. Driving to Washington, DC. They were amazing trips, but I wouldn’t describe any of them as fancy. There was a lot of do-it-yourself attitudes in our trips. I feel beyond fortunate to have taken those trips my family, and I think the lack of cushiness on our summer vacations brought our family closer together. I’ll be curious to see if my dad is offended by me labeling our epic summer trips as pond experiences.

We saw so much in Alaska, but we did not get a glimpse of a single moose. I’ve visited Maine, Montana, and Alaska, and I’ve never seen a moose. My life is still complete without seeing one, but come on, I’d like to see at least one!

Sometimes, there are little surprises that elevate day to day living into a poolside moments, if you take the time to recognize then stop and savor the moment. Eating a perfect piece of seedless watermelon on a hot summer day is pretty darn sublime. Sitting on our couch with our two Scottish Terriers cuddled up  – that’s good stuff too. And we are in my favorite time of year in southern California – the days are warm (80-85 degrees) and the ocean temperature is above 70. I’m too much of a wimp to swim in ocean temperatures below 65, and it is sensational right now. Seeing the ocean is always a pool moment, and swimming in the ocean when it’s pool temperature – come on. It’s perfect!

And yes, this blog post is on the long side. But I’m trying to do something a little different here. Jill and I have been reading a lot of Ann Patchett novels and memoirs this summer. She’s interesting, she’s lived on this earth about as long as I have, mostly in California and Tennessee, and she is supremely talented. I like her novels, and I love her memoirs. Her memoirs are filled with vignettes – short glimpses into moments that expand into remembrances earlier in her life – childhood, college, early work, prior friends and lovers – and I find the whole genre of writing to be fascinating. I think I have done that sometimes in my blog posts, but never on purpose. So this post is an attempt to do just that, write about my vacations this summer, but use that story as a springboard to interesting moments in my life that may have shaped me into who I am today. 

Before you say it, I’ll paraphrase the famous Lloyd Benson line from 1988: “Mike. I have read Ann Patchet’s novels. I have read Ann Patchett’s memoirs. Mike, you are no Ann Patchett.” Yes. I know. I continue to be an aspirational writer who loves the journey.  If you have read this far in the notes, thanks for being on this journey with me.

Pictures below: Juneau Sunset, Jill and I on the Mendenhall Glacier, Water Skiing on Lake Ouachita (AR) in 1980, Carl Spackler and Ty Webb in Caddyshack. And the golf picture above is of Ryan and me while golfing at the incredible Old Head Golf Course in SE Ireland back in 2009.