Obsessing about Water - by Amy

You may wonder why water is so important to me, having read the blog about finessing the shower to get hot water. Upon our return, during the rainy season and the dog days of summer, I find myself downing  2 Nalgene bottles of water a day. So, yes, I guess I obsess about water. Do we have enough potable water at home, that we purchase in large water cooler bottles for $1? Do we need to fill up all of our pitchers and Nalgenes so we can go get some more as potable water from the tap is a miracle that only occurs in 1st world countries? Is my water bottle continually full at school? The kids have already been admonished by me that they can't laugh when my voice cracks - why is that so funny when they know that not only are the teachers talking 5 hours a day, but we have to teach above the din of the playground, other classrooms (in my case, the computer lab, which has classes coming in and out all day), and the construction noises thoughtfully added to the mix by Alex? We were forewarned by the teachers who were here during the rainy season last year that this is also the time of more frequent power outages, sometimes lasting for  a few days. At our household, power outages are accompanied by water outages. You don't want to be around Alex when he misses his shower - not only does he get stinky, but he gets cranky, too!

Having read "Amy's top 10 ways to take a hot shower" way back in January, you may have wondered, as we did, if there would ever be a time when we needed a list titled "Amy's top 10 ways to take a cold shower." Si, claro - of course there is! As the weather heats up, so does the water that comes into our house and the difficulty to get enough cool water to take a refreshing shower. Here's the list:

1.       Become a master of adjusting the water faucet one micrometer at a time to get the right temperature.

2.       Take a shower in the late afternoon, before the power goes out, eventually taking the water supply with it.

3.       DO NOT run any water anywhere else in the entire building (which includes the 2 families downstairs and the teacher next door) while someone is in the shower. It reduces the water pressure, thus increasing the temperature in the bizarre water heater contraption that also serves as a shower head that depends upon a very precise water pressure. (Try to forget that the electric water heater right above your head is connected to the electric source with some very shaky looking wiring and has been known to give innocent bathers a little shock. Case in point - Alex took took a shower yesterday right after our water supply came back. Flowing water was followed by an air pocket. The blast of water that followed the air, caused a large spark inside the water heater. Luckily, Alex was standing outside the shower and not under the shower head at that point.)

4.       Wait for the constantly fluctuating water pressure to peak. If the water pressure is too low, there will be enough cold water to turn the water heater on, but not enough to counter balance the hot water to obtain a luke-warm shower.

5.       Take a shower right after a power outage has started as the water pressure will still be somewhat strong but there won't be power to turn on the water heater. This will result in a cold shower, but when it's this hot, who cares!

6.       Don’t take a shower when the lights are dim. The power, like the water pressure, constantly fluctuates, so you may suddenly find yourself in a very hot shower.

7.       Wait for cooler weather as a warm day heats the water in the river and in the black plastic water storage tank. Warm water gets even warmer when it runs through the water heater.

8.       Learn to accept that the Honduran weather is a lot hotter than where we're from in the US and that everyone sweats, whether you've had a cool shower or not.

9.       Appreciate every day that there is water coming to the shower, no matter what the temperature is.

10.   Take hot showers and sweat it off once you get out.