Well unWell
On Sunday night the water to our house stopped flowing. Literally. The well is hundreds of feet deep and no brilliant DIY You-tubers could persuade me to tackle this one alone. Go ahead and rig your car winches to stepladders to pull the piping up and out of the ground. Outback style. Nope, not for me. I would settle into the Monday morning dry-faucet blues and carry on.
First thought was of course, the toilet. “Nobody use the toilet!” Use your water bottle for your teeth. You still gotta brush, kids. And it's off to school for them with some overnight squatting at mum's where the water still flows. The dog interprets my stress as a call to play. Luckily he cannot read my thoughts because a most evil and despicable me comes aflame in the war room. Neighbors sharing my well drive off in a filthy mood, no shower, no coffee, and no need to repeat, no toilet. Yes, this is the war room.
You would think I could manage this little setback. Calm down Laurance. I have been on problematic well water before. In Tanzania we had a well with a huge water tank that was topped up automatically with a float. That compensated for the erratic power supply. Whenever I traveled up country, we would use buckets of water to shower and long drops. And we were reasonably comfortable with it. Some sinks didn't even pretend to have a future, no piping attached, just a bucket and an empty tin can beside the drain. Water was premium. We used only what we needed. Hello America. Isn't that a crazy thought?! Use only what you need. I digress.
Got hold of a well drilling and repair company they take quick measure of the level of my desperation. “ Are you out of water?” My response is something like “Drop everything, we are dying here!” Like any good therapist they tell me it sounds serious, tell me about your feelings. Not really. They don't need to ask. They are rearranging their schedule right now, I best get ready for a significant drop in my savings.
The company owner comes over an hour later. This is not a simple fuse fix. The pump must be pulled. We have to retrieve everything from the bottom of the well. All 200 feet of it. And this is the zillion that it will cost. Replacing the pump will be another 2 zill. My face softens into a hanging jowl, my eyebrows do the basset hound. This is going to cost 3+zill and when all is done, when all is spent, I will be exactly where I was on Sunday evening, with a house that has water flowing through the faucets. I won't be the proud owner of a new tiny house, or a new deck, or a brilliant electric bike. I won’t have had a holiday to remember. No, I will be able to get water from my faucets. That is it.
Clearly I am not the only one with well problems because another day passes and we are now taking showers at the gym, using paper plates and exploring the local public toilet options. Generally trying to stay away from home for as long as possible. And when the Well Gods are sure we have suffered enough and are ready to really appreciate them, they cavalcade in. Now let me tell you, they come with some very fancy gear. A crane that raised the 200 feet of galvanized piping, new pvc pipes, awesome wires, stainless steel fittings and crown glory, a shiny, new pump.
I watched this process like a fresh intern. With immense admiration. The piping and pump were retrieved, inspected, replaced, and then returned to the deep, finally capped with a new lick of green paint on the well head.
The relief of a home with flowing water... If only I could summons that kind of gratitude more often. And the cost was no longer eating at me. They had done an incredible job, got my well in perfect shape, let me live again.
But things were out of balance.
I felt like I had a visceral debt. I needed to settle the debt right now. Not with the intangible, soulless, leveling of a credit card. Nope, that would not match up to their efforts and goodwill. Nope, this had to be gold coins. But I didn't have gold or silver so the 3 zillion was to be in local currency. American Dollars. A thick wad changed hands, balance has been restored, and the water flows so generously.
