When we moved in to the San Marcos house, the pool was a deep green color, courtesy of the vigorous one-celled flora that had made it their summer home. Our attempts at eviction had proven fruitless until last weekend’s fateful trip to The Pool Shop. From there I carted home a trunkful of chemicals, and Kathy and I have spend last weekend to this one shocking, chlorinating, testing, vacuuming, speaking lovingly to, scrubbing, and generally working to get that habitat cleaned up. On Tuesday, Kathy brought in a water sample after my overenthusiastic first application of chemicals, only to have the tester tell her “don’t let the kids stand downwind from your pool for a day or two.” Our efforts finally bore fruit, and today our water is cerulean once more, and I have adopted the title of Algicide.