Some Days You Have Water, Some Days You Don’t

Yesterday marked seven weeks that we have been in Grenada and Friday was two months of marriage for Jade and I!  It’s pretty crazy how time flies.  At seven weeks we’re both feeling much more comfortable here and acclimated.  On Monday a neighbor was driving down the street while I was waiting on the side of the road for a bus and he yelled my name out the window and waved.  I instantly felt more accepted as part of the community and it was a really good feeling.  It makes me happy to say, “morning” or “afternoon” to someone as I walk down the street and have them return the greeting.  Even better yet is when they say it first.  I like when my neighbors are outside their house and they warmly wave and speak to me as I’m walking down the driveway.  It’s nice to not feel COMPLETELY foreign here.

My landlord family is building their second apartment right now and it is due to be finished in December.  Construction started Monday and the first steps are plumbing, or something.  I’m not going to pretend I know anything about building a house, but I do know that having something professionally done here does not mean the same thing as in the states.  We have building codes and regulations that have to be followed.  I feel pretty comfortable saying those don’t really exist here.  Exhibit A is our bathroom window that allowed water to gush in during that big storm.  I failed to mention how angry Ms. Moore was and how she ranted on about how she told the window guy to slant it so the water didn’t pool.  She said he didn’t listen to her because she’s a woman, and that’s probably true.  Exhibit B is our wall that leaks water from the point where it meets the ceiling.  Explain that.  Exhibit C is how often the dorms on campus flood, and I don’t mean when it’s raining outside.  Whole floors just randomly flood. 

So anyway, they started on the plumbing here.  Sunday evening John told us the water might be out for a few hours Monday morning.  I luckily got up early Monday to take a fast shower ten minutes before they cut the water.  We went all day without having running water, but we have reserves for that.  Jade and I have learned.  Ms. Moore told us Monday evening the water was back on and to turn on the lower faucet in the shower to get all the dirt out of the water line.  The bathroom and kitchen are the farthest opposite rooms in the house so clearing the water line in the bathroom makes sure we have clean water in the kitchen.  We still didn’t drink from the faucet Monday night.  So Jade is running muddy water in the shower and realizes it isn’t draining.  Awesome.  Now we have a shower with a pool of dirty water.  He let Ms. Moore know and she said the workers would be back Tuesday.  I needed to do a load of laundry Monday night.  Fail.

So I cooked a tasty dinner (if I do say so myself) of falafel in pita with homemade tzatziki and then went on to do dishes.  I filled the sink, washed most of the dishes and went to let some water out.  It didn’t budge when I pulled the plug out of the drain.  Again, awesome.  I’ve got a sink of dirty water AND a shower of dirty water.  You may have thought that if the shower didn’t drain then of course the kitchen sink wouldn’t drain, but I didn’t.  It never crossed my mind.  I give up to another TIG moment (This Is Grenada) and open the cabinet door under the sink to put the sponge away.  There’s water all over the space under the sink!  I yell for Jade, quickly go for the mop bucket and pout.  Jade starts turning the little knobby thing at the joint of the pipe to the right.

Side story:  When we first moved in, the bathroom sink leaked a little from that same spot.  The pipes are not metal; they’re like plastic PVC or something.  I told my landlord and she sent Kurlon to take a look at it one day.  He knew exactly how to solve it with a little pipe glue and tape, but he warned against tightening that knobby thing and stripping the pipe.

We’re back at the moment when I’m getting the mop bucket and Jade is turning the plastic knob.  In my mind I’m seeing the knob crack from being turned too far and the entire sink full of dirty water gushing out all over my kitchen floor, lower cabinets and Jade and I.  I’m pretty sure I yelled at him at the point.  Oops.  We placed the bucket under the leak and Jade went upstairs to ask for pliers.  I was just relieved my awful vision didn’t come true.  Jade returned with pliers and drained the sink and we went the rest of the night having running water, but not really being able to use it.

The water was off most of the day Tuesday and the shower still had muddy water in it until about 2pm.  The construction manager had me pouring buckets of water into the kitchen sink and into the shower to help them diagnose exactly where the problem was.  As they dug behind our house it suddenly smelled like sewage outside.  Clearly, they hit our sewage line.  I was grossed out, but mostly for the guys working on the lines!  I told Jade by text since he was at school and his response was, “Farm sewage to remind me of home? Or gross human feces?”  Who knows what the rest of the week or two will hold?  All I know is some days you have water, some days you don’t.  Some days you have an excess of water you’d like to get rid of and some days the water is unusable.  What can I say?  This is Grenada.  And for the most part, I wouldn’t have it any other way.  It’s all part of the experience!

In other news, Jade has midterms starting Monday.  Can you believe it is already that point in the semester?  I’m looking forward to midterms being over so we can do something fun the weekend after the tests!  If you think about it, wish Jade luck as he’s preparing to go into the madness of next week!  It would mean a lot to him.