It's the Water!

 

It was dark. 

The dogs and I were walking down the lane for their early morning duty. 

A skiff of new, wet snow covered the surface, and it was a bit slippery in places.

As we approached the end of the lane, I could hear water, louder than water usually sounds when it goes pitter patter on the shed roof. 

I thought it strange that the rain was coming down so hard on the shed when we really hadn't felt much of anything wet on our walk. 

Strangeness turned to dreaded reality when I realized that the water was not coming from the sky. 

It was bubbling, like a boiling pot, at the waterer which serves the hay field. It was  also flowing, riverlike, down our way and down a hillside to the south. 

Definitely an OMG moment so early on a Sunday morning when the worst thing on my mind until that discovery was how some unruly, irresponsible fans had tarnished the image so many of us have of Gonzaga University at last night's nationally televised basketball game. 

That feeling of disappointment would have to wait.  

We had a water crisis on our hands. 

I walked with the dogs back to the house, feeling helpless, almost as helpless as I had felt a few years back when a pipe near another waterer broke in the middle of a blizzard sending nonstop geysers of water spewing into the air. 

On that day in March, it was cold, we had deep snow that had mounted up during previous storms. The lid to enclosure where the water is turned off was frozen solid. Also, Bill was at a day-long meeting. 

Besides, he wouldn't be much help because he was healing and using a knee roller from foot surgery. 

After my discovery that time, I crawled over snowbanks, trying to figure out exactly where the problem had originated. I dug up snow that covered the turn-on lid and I pounded furiously with a pick to break the ice off the lid. 

I also cursed a lot that day. 

That water leak involved an entire day of neighbors being summoned to help and finally one bringing a pump so he could find the second turn-off valve.  

We have a valve that serves the barn and the barnyard and one that serves the waterers in the pastures. The one that serves the barn is easy to find; the other is not. 

I often say that day-long trauma was the second worst day I can ever remember---exceeded only by the day our house burned down in 1984. 

Everything, from start to finish, seemed to go wrong that March day, and, with Bill recovering from surgery, I felt a heavy sense of responsibility to fix the problems.  To make matters worse, at the end of that day our beloved ZAGS lost.  

With all those bad memories percolating in my mind, my mood wasn't all that great this morning when I reached the house and announced to Bill, "We've got a problem." 

Bill listened as I suggested that the first thing we had to do was find the valve and turn off the water. 

I was not in a mood at the time to go out and tackle that challenge in the darkness. 

Fortunately, Bill was, and this time he had both feet working, so he went outside, opened the lid, saw standing water, got his pump and hose, drained the enclosure and eventually found the second valve.  

I went back outside just in time for him to hook on to the valve and turn the water off. 

What a relief, and how fortunate that we had no snow or ice to make the job harder! Just darkness. 

So, now, we do have water all around from yesterday's steady rains and from that tank at the end of the lane, but we succeeded in stopping that situation. 

When the weather turns better in the spring, we'll figure out what exactly needs to be done to fix the problem. 

Richie Outdoor waterers are a dream on a farm, but when they go bad, they can provide quite the challenge and the recurring question, "Do we really want to deal with all this stuff?"

Usually, once the problem is solved, we must motor on until the next catastrophe occurs.

Anywho, that's how this day has begun, but the good news is they say the rain will stop for a couple of days. 

Before it began yesterday, I actually accomplished some significant yard work, cleaning out leaves and winter residue from the area round where my periwinkle patch is.  

We talked yesterday about how much easier the yard work will be this spring because of the lack of significant, long-lasting snow.  

The best part:  very few wormy-like ridges of mouse dirt to clean up.  The mice have had it easy this winter, so they've taken it easy on the lawn. 

Now back to the ZAGS.  

Yes, in conjunction with this water disaster, ironically, the men's team lost last night. 

It was a great and competitive game and a tough defeat, but I think the real loss was reflected in the behavior of fans who threw garbage on the floor toward the end of the game and continued to do so after being asked to stop.  

And, they did as the proud ZAG Nation and sports fans across the nation watched.  

Those actions are really sad for a university and for its athletic department, its students and athletes who have worked hard forever instilling and enjoying universal pride in the institution.

Twas not the class act we always expect to see.  

Gonzaga is so much better than that, and Gonzaga deserves better from the fans in the Kennel. 

I hope those responsible will find a way to help restore the almost sacred pride so many have in this fine institution. 

Happy Sunday.