Let there be water!

God giveth water, and the municipality taketh away. :(

You don't realise how much water you use until it suddenly isn't there anymore. For the past 48 hours the water in my residence has been off and on and off and on in a continuous cycle, and it's slowly driving me insane. Why? Consider the following...

1) Showering
Due to the lack of water in res last night, I had to take a fifteen minute walk (carrying towel, toiletry bag and clean undies) to a friend's digs in order to take a shower. This doesn't sound too bad, but consider the logistics of it: 15 minutes each way, 20-25 minutes to shower and make myself vaguely presentable for the walk back...that's a good hour that I spent just trying to get clean. And to add insult to injury, the water came back on half an hour after I got back into res. Not cool. On the bright side, at least I could shower this morning. Right before the water shut off AGAIN.

2) Washing hands
OK OK so for a lot of people, this isn't a big deal. But I am a total hygiene-freak, and I have to wash my hands before I eat, after using the bathroom and whenever I get back from lectures. Thank God there's still water in the geyser...for now. Otherwise I'll have to go and buy hand sanitiser. And it just isn't the same.

3) Drinking
I know all the stories about how Gtown water is dangerous to drink and that I'll end up with Alzheimers if I keep drinking it. But I am way too lazy - and broke - to buy bottled water and lug it back to res every week. At least there's water to drink in the dining hall; somehow I doubt I'll die of dehydration within the next few hours. But it is rather annoying not to be able to grab a glass of water when I want it.

4) Toilets
This is the one that most people don't seem to think about. If there is no water, one cannot flush toilets. Therefore, it is a bad idea to use the toilets in res. However, people get lazy. And as much as I hate to destroy the idealistic image that guys have of us ladies: girls poop. And when half the res can't be bothered to go to the res next door (or the library) to use the bathoom, the corridors start to smell pretty bad within a few hours. I really do pity the girls whose rooms are directly opposite the bathrooms; it can't be fun. Come on ladies, there are fifty-something of us living here. For the sake of consideration - and my nasal passages - take the walk next door if you have to use the toilet. It won't kill you, I promise.

When you think about it, 99% of our basic hygiene depends on our access to water.Yes I know I'm not in quite the same dire state as a person stranded in the middle of the desert, but having to walk next door every time you hear the call of nature does get a little frustrating. Especially when there's no one to let you in to the next door residence, and you have to then walk to the library. Or to the Greens. So to the Grahamstown Municipality: please, for the love of all things clean and hygienic, get our water back on! Otherwise this is going to become a very smelly res very quickly. With equally smelly inhabitants.