The Sound of Dryness

Hello dryness my old friend
You've come to taunt me once again
For the principles of good hygiene
Suggest a bath a day keeps you clean
And the mission is imprinted in my brain, to remain
Oh the sound of dryness

No, it's not one of my inappropriate and lewd songs. I woke up this morning without running water or just water for that matter in my apartment. As usual I stumbled into the bathroom and opened the taps of the shower only to be greeted by an eerie silence. Thinking that I was still in a dream, I got on the scale and was rudely awakened. In my dream I always weigh at least 20kg's less. Sometimes I have trouble registering a reading. Not so this morning.

As the gears slowly start turning and some thought enters my mind, I realise that there must be some sort of problem somewhere in the water distribution centre/dam/lake/reservoir/private swimming pool of some overpaid government official. What the hell am I going to do. My hair is sticking up in all directions with a bit of static electricity making things even more ridiculous. And I desperately search my memory for a past Mr Bean episode. What would Mr Bean do? Alas, I don't think he was ever without water. Can't imagine why, it's hilarious once you have a flushing toilet again.

Ah ha, genius strikes. I have a mini water cooler on my counter so I can at least wet a face cloth and try and flatten my hair. No small feat as I probably use far too much product in my hair. But the label on the outside promised strong, sexy hair. And sexy hair is at least a little bit of sexy. Oh, of course - I must brush my teeth too. Having done this, I use the last bit of water to freshen the love of my life's water bowl. Ok, no morning coffee which is wise since I can't use the loo. Or I can but it's not really what I had in mind with regards to leaving some sort of legacy once I pass on. So I use the deodorant and perfume rather liberally and I set off to work. Where there is coffee and toilets in working order. Today I'm getting my money's worth. I may not get my bonus this year but I'm going to drink water and use the loo with reckless abandon.

As I drive to work, I can't help but think how many people start their day without water every day of their lives. Not because of some glitch not allowing water to their homes. But because there are no pipes taking water to their homes. Or cables taking electricity for that matter. In the 40 minutes I spend at home getting ready for work, I use more facilities and appliances than the majority of South Africans even have access to. You want coffee? Well go gather wood outside so you can start a fire and put the kettle on. Or if you are slightly more fortunate, heat up the paraffin stove. But you still need to walk in the freezing cold to the closest tap and fill containers with water. While you are outside, you may as well stand in a long line to use one of the few shared outhouses available. Then back inside to heat water for coffee as well as for taking a hasty bath.

I felt great shame driving to work this morning. Had the drive been longer than 10 minutes, I probably would've shed a tear or two. Because it is unthinkable that so many people still live without access to these basic necessities. But what leaves me even more embarrassed is how so many of these people show up for work on time, looking presentable and cheerful. And I'm sitting in my office grumbling because my tv remote's batteries went dead and I had to get off my rapidly expanding arse to switch my flat screen tv on to catch the news. There's nothing funny about that. And it takes not having water one morning every year or so, to remind me of this. That is what is even more shameful.

I don't know about all of you but I can do better. And I'm going to try.