File this under "no shit"

You never realize how important water is until it's gone. Saturday morning, my houseguest and I woke up to a mere trickle coming out of the taps that quickly dried up. I was pissed because I had no idea how I was supposed to fix it. Would this be something a plumber would do? Could my condo association take care of it? A phone call to the management company clarified the situation: a water main had blown up on 13th and Florida and knocked out the water supply for a good chunk of Adams-Morgan. We were told we had to sit tight and hope that the city services had its act in gear. Not bloody likely.

Anyways, not to get too graphic, but you know how I joke about using the cat's litter box in emergencies? Well, this was a situation where I came uncomfortably close to actually doing so. And my whole grooming cycle was thrown wildly off-course. Wash your hands? Forget about it. Get rid of the mascara that's bleared under your eyes? Not in this lifetime. And I hope that you like that stamp from the club you were in last night on your hand, 'cause it ain't going nowhere.

I ended up pushing my poor houseguest out the door a couple of hours earlier than she'd probably anticipated getting up on a Saturday morning. I had to come into my office to take a shower - luckily, Dupont's water supply seemed fairly stable - and it was all gravy after that. At least, until I realized that I'd forgotten to bring a towel with me and had to use the chintzy paper towels that are supposed to be used to dry your hands. I must say that their absorbency leaves something to be desired.