12.15.2010

No water.

Well, I'm excited. My water's off. I'm assuming the pipes have frozen, due to the cold snap we had today. I know I'm not alone in this because I ran into the friendly ajumma who lives downstairs coming out of the building while I was going in holding her rice cooker in her arms and looking bewildered. Didn't think much of it at the moment, other than, where could that dear old woman be going in this cold with her rice cooker? Then I flipped on the faucet to refill the rabbit's water dish and fuck all happened, and it made a bit more sense.

That was at six o'clock. It's now 9:30, as I type. Still nothing. This will more than likely result in me getting to attend my teachers' training tomorrow as a smelly greaseball. Fantastic. During the evening hours, I still held some hope that something would be done, but as we slip into official nighttime, I'm not so optimistic.

I braved the nasty weather to go to Homeplus tonight specifically to gather supplies to do two things: 1. Dye my hair and 2. Make a trial batch of chocolate truffles for all of the holiday events that are coming up, since I don't have an oven and can't actually bake. There was nothing I could do about the dye job being foiled. But, being the rational adult human being that I am, I steadfastly refused to give up my truffle making plan. Now my kitchen has gone from spotless to overflowing with nonsense, and I don't even know when I'll have the chance to fix that.

Things that you cannot do without water, in case you've never been in the situation and don't realize:
  • Brush your teeth.
  • Flush your toilet.
  • Make coffee.
  • Wash your hands.
  • Give the rabbit water.
  • Give yourself water.
I don't drink bottled water, or keep it in my house. Foreigners are really fussy about not drinking Korean tap water, I guess because they think they're in Mexico or something, and Koreans are even more horrified by the habit. But I've drank Korean tap water since the day I stepped foot on Korean soil, and nothing horrific has happened to me yet. Except for that time my water was off and it was two degrees outside and I was really, really thirsty. Which may actually be a blessing in disguise, given that I cannot flush my toilet.

Please. Just come back on. Please.

11 comments:

Sidney said...

alskejrl;kaj YOU DRINK THE TAP WATER??? i buy a huge jug of bottled water at least once a week because my boyfriend intsists that i shouldn't drink the tap water. you REALLY drink it? i would really rather NOT have to carry big bottles of water back to my place (i hate using bottled water anyway, such a waste of money & plastic).

sorry for that. you can come to my place and shower if you really want.

John from Daejeon said...

If North Korea really actually decides to attack the South, it would suck that you didn't pay 50,000 won for a month's worth of water or have a bucket to do your business in.

I'm no Picasso said...

Sidney -- Yes, I really do drink the tap water. On a daily basis. Without boiling it. Maybe my internal organs are made of steel. I don't know. The Koreans who have seen me do it have absolutely flipped their shit about it. The insist I will actually die. I haven't yet, two years strong.

And thanks for the shower offer. If only you weren't an hour+ away by bus. If it's not fixed tonight, I'll have to figure something out. Worse comes to worst, my school has a shower I can use.

John from Daejeon -- I never know if you're joking about this NK war stuff or not.....

Roboseyo said...

I drank the tap water for my whole first year. Nothing happened to me either: I has did no sede iffects at awr.

JIW said...

happened to me at a shithole of an officetell I lived in. But it wasn't because it was freezing outside, it was due to the building's plumbing just out right being crap.

I went to the local love hotel and paid 35,000 won for a shower. It worked...expensive and completely creepy as it was.

Nathan said...

@Roboseyo
hahaha

@INP
I knew there was a reason I liked reading your blog. You keep a rabbit; you're a-ok in my book =D
(<-- Bunny-tragic)

Anonymous said...

I don't have the link on me as I type this sorry, but I recall reading that over 99% of the tap water in Seoul at least is perfectly safe. Nevertheless, the perception that it's unsafe still remains from the 1980s or whenever, so to combat that the Seoul government is prepared to have someone come to your home and do a free check of your water quality with just so much as a phone call to them.

Drink away!^^

Gomushin Girl said...

There's probably a tiny little 목욕탕 tucked away somewhere in your neighborhood, too.
Tap water is totally safe here. Koreans are just in the habit because even after they managed to clean up the water supply, the plumbing and pipes in many houses were so bad it could be contaminated on the way out the faucet. Unless you're living in a massively old, horrific place that hasn't done any repair work since Park Chung-hee was president, you're probably fine. As a matter of fact, there's probably a little sticker somewhere near your kitchen tap certifying that the city has tested it and found it safe (Arisu, if you're in Seoul).
I totally dig tap water.

Kel said...

WAIT A MINUTE who pays 50,000 won for a month's worth of water!? I hope he was kidding. We get 2 five gallon jugs delivered at a time (5,000 won each) and that usually lasts 3+ weeks. For 2 people. And I drink a LOT of water.

I've also consumed tap water here and not died. I just prefer the whole "water cooler" thing. I love hot water on demand. And the bottles get recyled, too! ^_^

Anyway that really sucks hope it gets worked out soon.

John from Daejeon said...

I'm not kidding. Everyone should have an emergency plan as many who recently died freezing to death in their cars in this past week's snow and cold weather in North America and the previous week's in Europe should have had. Here's a plan for those living in not only New York, but especially for those living in Seoul due to the South's proximity to the nut job running what's left of the North into the miserable ground up there.

Oh, yeah, the 50,000 won should also include a month's supply of crackers and peanut butter and please don't drink the tap water in my old, old dong here in Daejeon--the water is filled with impurities due to the age of the pipes.

Gisela Verdin said...

Hey there, I'm a long time reader but I don't usually comment :| , i'm just another silent reader :P

LOL.... I'm always amused that people outside Mexico think the Tap Water here is bad... it's not... I've been drinking Tap water for over 26 years and I'm Ok...(I think...? lol)