Yeah, I swim parallel to the beach too. Call me just a little bit paranoid if you will but I'm a lot more comfortable in a pool than out at sea swimming

Plus less chance of jellyfish where more people are I suppose.
In Europe I haven't seen nets extending into the sea like you describe, but you can pick a point on the beach to swim towards if you want, I do that sometimes. I still don't enjoy the sea too much though. And swallowing water is a lot more annoying too.
Oh man that's heaven, alone in the pool, hell even alone in the lane. Where I swim I rarely get enough space to swim undisturbed, I have to go around other people
And yes it does make you feel awesome, damn true
Except they closed my pool for renovation a few weeks ago. :irritated