Not at all! Swim away.

Sorry I haven't posted the pics and explanation yet -- will do so today.

Meanwhile, go ahead and treat the pool. You can use bleach + stabilizer OR use dichlor. Sams has 50# of diclor for about $110, which should last you through the winter. Ideally, you'll get a DPD-FAS Taylor kit, so you can manage high chlorine, stabilizer AND work on your high TA. Regardless, you need to be adding a gallon of bleach each PM till you get the pool stabilized.

Regarding pH & alkalinity, you'll need quite a bit of muriatic acid. I'll explain more later, but for now, what you need to do is lower the pH to 6.8 and then LET IT RISE BY ITSELF. You can accelerate the process by adjusting the pool return eyeball so it 'ruffles' the water's surface.

Ben