You don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone

Under the rocks and stones

There is water underground

~ Talking Heads “Once in a Lifetime”

Things were going swimmingly yesterday—haaaaa, see what I did there?—until the well pump gave up the ghost.

No running water.

After some frantic texts and phone calls with Ken at work, we came to the logical conclusion that we were screwed. I called a local company, someone called me back right away, and he came out within the hour. He checked a few things, tested a few gizmos, and said, “Yep, you’re screwed.” Not really. He just said, “Yep, you’re pump’s blown.”

He gave me an estimate, I okayed it, and although he tried to get the service guys out by the end of the day, they just couldn’t do it. I zipped up to the store and got several gallon jugs of water and we decided we could get by for a day or so. They came first thing this morning and got us all fixed up. What a wonderful sight to see water coming out of the tap, even if it was kind of black and debris-laden from sitting in the pipes! It cleared up quickly, and I can say that the shower I took just a little bit ago was one of the most enjoyable showers I’ve ever taken.

It made me think about how easy it is to take something as simple as running water for granted. We did without for a day, but we were still able to get enough bottled water to get us through. There are people in the world who never have access to clean running water, and are subject to so many water-borne infections and dehydration. It may seem like a simple thing to us, but thank science for organizations like Water.org who work to help communities around the world have access to safe and clean water. Such a simple yet vital part of a healthy life.

It also made me think about how woefully unprepared I really am for the imminent zombie apocalypse, but that’s a story for another day.