This whole "arctic blast" hit us pretty hard on Monday evening with an ice storm. With temperatures not reaching over 20 degrees since then, we've had lots of togetherness time, which has been nice. What has been a lot less nice is the fact that our pipes in the well house froze on Tuesday morning, leaving us without any running water for now going on three days. This experience has really forced me to recognize how much water we actually waste everyday. I mean, I've always kind of considered myself pretty aware of water and how much I use. I don't leave the water running while I brush my teeth, I try not to take long showers, etc., but these past few days I've seen that those things are literally just a drop in the bucket. (Nice pun!).
We buy our drinking water in those big water dispensing containers anyway, so we had four of those lying in wait. Needless to say, when your water supply is not only limited but also VERY expensive, you do what you can to conserve. To wash the dishes tonight, I soaped them all up with minimal water, then heated a huge pot of water on the stove to rinse them. It took me an entire hour, or maybe a little more. Then, I scooped up the dishwater in the sink, strained it with our spaghetti strainer, and poured the water into the back of the toilet, so that it could be flushed. That whole 'if it's yellow' jingle has been a mantra in our house the past two days!
Here's a pic of my 'shower' preparations this evening. I use the term 'shower' in the broadest sense.
Pla Shee playing in the ice.
The eggs literally froze, expanded and cracked open all by themselves.
More snow is forecasted for tomorrow night, so who knows if we'll have school Friday. I think we need to move back to Hawaii...
Yes .... you do!
ReplyDeleteI don't know about Pla Shee, but my two have been begging to go to school since Thursday. they are not really liking the "during the day" chores that I have had them helping me with. We should melt off some today but then we have the problem of MUD!!!!
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