We went a couple of days without water last week. Although we do sometimes run out of water, it's usually only for a couple of hours, and not for days. This time though, it took two days for the water truck to get to us. In those days with no access to running water in our home, we learned a couple of handy tricks...
- Leave those dishes in the sink. Avoid looking at it. There is nothing you can do about it until you get running water again.
- Go to work early. Pretend it's because you have initiative and you want to seize the day, but really it's because you want to sneak into the office bathroom to brush your teeth, wash your face, and wipe down your underarms with baby wipes.
- If nature calls, consider the fact that if you go in your toilet, you will probably have to flush it down with multiple expensive Dasani bottles of water that cost three bucks apiece at the local Co-op grocery store.
- However, if you pee outside your house, consider that while everything is frozen outside, it doesn't actually snow all the much, so you will probably have to stare at that yellow patch outside your house for the rest of the winter (ie, until June).
- Always keep a reserve supply of water in your house for moments like this. However, if you decide to go outside and melt some snow from outside, don't eat the yellow snow.
- You can only go so long without a shower. Do you still have that key your friend gave you so you can keep an eye on her house while she's on vacation? Use it. Go take a shower in her house. I'm sure she won't mind.
- Apologize to your plants and the empty humidifier in the guitar room. It's not fair, but the law of the jungle says you've got to prioritize, and any water you have is going to have to go into your vodka water cocktail.
to avoid doing dishes at your own house, invite yourself over for dinner at a friend's house. bonus points if it's chocolate fondue out of a decapitated snowman's head.
Eventually our water service was restored. It was a glorious feeling to have running water again. Now I could do laundry! Now I could do the dishes! Now I could take a shower! I never thought I'd be so excited to do these things.
bought this beautiful print from Ulukhaktok. Water, water everywhere!
