Organization Monkey

i’m thinking of the idea of a new year resolution a little differently this year.  instead of deciding to do/not do something in 2009 i am choosing to be mindful, of my water use, in particular. by choosing to be mindful of my use of water i’m using i hope to appreciate it more and use just enough for the task at hand.  i could have decided to resolve to “use less water,” set a timer for my showers, feel cheated and get rid of the timer within a month.  hopefully by choosing to be mindful i can remain positive instead of reinforcing the inherent failure of a resolution.

in the year 2000 dave and i lived in catacamas, honduras, a city with mostly broken water pipes.  when the water would occasionally come through the pipes we would fill saucepans and dump it into trashcans stored in the kitchen and bathroom.  we would use the water by skimming from the top of the trashcan, letting the dirt that came through the pipes with the water settle to the bottom of the trashcan.  we would heat this non-potable water to bathe with, boil this water to clean dishes with.  on good days the water would come through the pipes with enough pressure to push through the shower head, to which was attached something like a toaster that would heat the water.  sometimes, though, i would be all soaped up and the water pressure would fail and i’d be left there all soapy, which was disappointing.

when we returned to the u.s. after that year you can imagine how excited i was about the water here.  i could hardly believe that one could simply turn on the tap and get drinkable hot water whenever one wanted!  you wanted a hot shower at noon?  no problem!  over the past seven years, though, i feel like i’ve lost the appreciation for water.  it’s just something that comes through the pipes.  i’m hoping that by choosing to be aware of my use of it i will regain some of my appreciation for water.

p.s. wondering why we were in honduras? dave’s field work for his phd in anthropology. here’s a link to the pdf of his dissertation. see page vii for a nod to the things i lived through for his education.  it’s so sweet i even hate to mention that he forgot to put in there the part about the gunfire and diving behind the pizza counter.  and just so you know, i’d do it all again because he is brilliant.

do you like the idea of choosing to be aware/mindful of something in the new year, rather than a resolution for yourself?  if so, leave a comment.