Sun 24 Dec 2006
Last year at this time — Christmastime to be precise — I spent most of the holiday season sopping up the water from not one, not two but THREE floods in my condo building.
The first was caused by a stuck drain and an overflowing washing machine in a suite down the hall on December 17th.
The second was the result of a faulty hot water feed pipe that burst on December 20th but wasn’t noticed until midway through the 21st.
Keeping with the Biblical theme of the season, my neighbour across the hall, Noah (it’s Christmas - would I lie to you?!), experienced a stuck drain in the kitchen while simultaneously suffering a burst pipe in his bathroom on December 25th. He wasn’t home at the time. I was.
These three events were completely unrelated believe it or not, though tied at the hip by one unmistakable common trait: they all involved copious amounts of water that wasn’t supposed to be there!
Between the ship traffic in the hallway and the carpet surfing I was still able to make a turkey and all the trimmings on the big day. I have to say, though, it was the first time I’ve overseen a dinner of any kind attired in a slicker and gully jumpers!
Well, guess what?! Flash flood… sorry: flash forward a year. Exactly.
Away to the window I flew like a flash,
Tore open the shutters and fell flat on my ass!
I stuck out my hand to help break my fall,
I was sitting in water clear up to my ba…
Anyway, you get the picture!
Wet carpets, wet window sill and a TV set in dire need of a sponge!
I guess the eaves along the roofline are just no match for the rains we’ve had this past three weeks. They’re overflowing and it appears as though there’s a crack in the window seal on the outside wall which is allowing the water to get in. And it is - lots of it.
I guess this is my new Christmas tradition - water torture!
Wringing out AND ringing in, I remain your obedient servant.