Sometimes living in the Philippines can be frustrating. Lately, I’ve been feeling that frustration. It’s kind of like recently, when Klaus wrote a column entitled, “My patience is wearing thin…” that’s how I feel today!
Living in the Philippines, there are constant reasons to make your patience wear thin, or bring your frustration to the surface. It seems that there is always at least one reason for it, sometimes more than one can be in play at a single time. I remember a few months ago, we had a brownout (in western terms, we would say BLACKout – no electricity at all), and also no water all day at the same time. Most of the time, I can let these little frustrations slide off my back without getting too bent out of shape. However, from time to time, these little inconveniences have built up a little at a time and even one more minor inconvenience brings all that frustration to the surface.
This is the case with me for the last day or two. It’s been building up for a couple of weeks. Lately, our water pressure has been very low. Sometimes, if water is being used in 2 or 3 places in the house at the same time, there is no water at all in our master bathroom. If you go to wash your hands, you open the faucet and find that nothing but the sound of air coming out. Ay, sus! Next step is that you go around the house and tell everybody to stop using the water for a while, so that you can do whatever it is you need to do. Usually, if you can convince everybody to stop using the water, you will be OK, and have adequate water pressure to take care of your business.
Yesterday, though, it was mid-morning, and I was about ready to go out and do some things around town. I better take a shower and get clean before going, though…. NOT! NO WATER!!! OK, no problem, I’ll go tell everybody to turn the water off. Oops… there is no water anywhere in the house! My next step was to go to the Davao Water District’s website. They are usually pretty good about putting announcements there to let you know if the water will be off for some reason. Nothing there, no water interruptions listed. So, I have my niece call the Water District, and they inform her that they are working on pipes a few blocks from me, and that is why there is no water.
Niece: When will the water be back on?
Water District: We don’t know.
Wow! Thanks for the information! Ha ha…. Well, the water came back on at 5pm last night. Just in time, because I had a dinner meeting at 6pm. At least I got to take a shower. I didn’t get too frustrated yesterday, though.
About 30 minutes ago, I went to the bathroom to have a shower. Hmm… that sound of air was coming out of the faucet again! NO water!!!! Today, my patience is gone. I am frustrated and upset!
We have a water dispenser for drinking water, with the big 5 gallon water jugs. I’m about to rig one of those up to my shower! Luckily, my smell can’t come through the computer. If it could, you would probably never come back to this site again!
Sigh, yes, Bob, such of these little things (that slowly pile up and later became bigger issues at home and affecting our family life) back in my country got into me and frustrated me for no ends (have practically grew up there for 20+ years) thus I decided to work and live abroad (as an excuse to dispose myself of these little negative things).
Still hoping though that everything wil be good (and working) one day in the Philippines. Hope is a good thing, maybe the best besides love. Still hoping, still praying.
Ah, I suddenly shared your mood for ranting there, Bob.
Don't worry, smell or not, we'll be coming back for more insightful articles here in the site. 😉
Hi Jio – Thanks for your support – smell or not! 😉
I will say this – in the 7+ years that we have lived in the Philippines, there have been massive improvements, and things work a lot better now than they used to. So, there is improvement, and most of today's inconveniences are probably very minor compared to what you experienced in your childhood! 🙂
Hi Bob, Your frustrations are I am sure shared and felt by everyone. There it may be the water, here it is something else. I think its only human nature to have issues that frustrate us-regardless of where we live-or how. Life is what it is and I know you accept it as it comes. What else can a person do? Get angry-that won't bring the water back. In your case you wrote a blog entry about it and probably felt better for it. I know you well enough to know that you have most likely rationalized the issue and are now looking only at the positives that your life is filled with. Happy Thanks giving. Ron
Hi…I can kinda relate to all of this..interesting how you always come up with something that at least one or maybe more that read these pages has experinced…2 weeks ago and for about 2 weeks the water here had lots of air in the pipes…gosh..I knew what it was..the well or water level was dropping and the well pump was just sucking enough water to make some water come thru the pipes and lots of air..
I did not mind it…its the landlords responsibity to take care of this and of course being single..I thought I can handle it..and did..but it took 2 weeks of all of this before they dropped the pump down 30 more feet….I thought..well! as soon as the landlords wife become tired of all of this or he wakes up and understands that this is a good way to blow a new well pump then maybe they would do something about it.
I do know this from the past how ever!! If you have a woman living with you and you lose the water..wow!!, Most that I have seen or been around just can not stand it…for me how ever I learned a long time ago..some times just let things take there course..in do time it will all come back around again…
So..Hope you get ur water back to normal…and oh..Happy Thankgiving to you Bob and your nice family…………… 🙂
We lost power other night around 11:00 pm , we had a snake in the house we almost had him trapped.. then power goes out for about 5 hours i hope he found his way out. it has been raining for about a week maybe the reason he came in. when in Manila if you didnt take shower by ten , no water at all. In bohol my neck of the woods seems every time it rains we dont have water..
only Frustration i have is not being able to get a good chili cheeseburger plate with half and half and salad on side with ranch dressing.
Hi Bob,
I sure empathize with your frustraions. All the great modern things I've seen in my
lifetime. Yet when people talk of these modern marvels: space travel, micro anything, medical advances, I alway say I am most grateful for hot running water. Runnig water was good, but hot running water on demand, what a luxury! If I were a
poet, I could write odes of praise, appreciation and sheer joy to the miracle of hot running water. My house is old and failing apart;my 20 year old car is held together by my 86 year old mechanic and heaven knows when I had 6 weeks of no internet, I was frustrated to tears. Nothing worked and I spent more time on hold to Microsoft—time I will never get back. That's the achngly painful reality-time wasted-my life on hold and at the mercy of corporations out of my sphere of control. Yea gods! Doesn't anybody care? Nope. Is customer service only a fond memory? Yes. And I live in the "enlightened, progressive west". Geeze, do I relate to your frusrations? Oh, yes!
Guess it is a truism that misery loves company. I know I gain comfort knowing that I am not alone. It won't get your water supply regulated or Feyma's appliance problems solved, but doesn't it offer a wee bit solace knowing you all are not alone?
Thanks for the chance to rant. And I don't care how you smell! You're an amazng man, you're strong—-moving to a foreign country, building up all those businesses and learning a new language and dedicated to your
equally amazing family. So thanks for being there and sharing so much with all of us at LIP
Karen.
Hi Ron – Ha ha… it's true. After writing that column, I did feel better. Not only that, but an hour later, I went into the bathroom and found that there was water! So, I got a nice shower and feel great now!
Hi Dan – Well, I'm glad that you got your water back too! When we lived in General Santos we were on a well too, but here in Davao we have city water. The water here in Davao is excellent, it is even drinkable for us foreigners. I drink tap water often. We still get bottled water for most drinking, but it's not a must.
Hi Karen – Isn't it funny how easily we become addicted to technology? Things that we never even thought of 10 years ago are now necessities. How did we live without them before! I totally agree with you about hot water! It's a blessing from God!
LOL and this is why water tanks are sold everywhere. When we build our house we plan on 2 tanks, 1 for NAWASA and 1 for rainwater. The rainwater tank can be connected to toilets and outside faucets, use NAWASA for everything else.
Hi Louis – Yeah, I agree about the big storage tanks. I would like to have one here, but I don't intend to spend that kind of money on a house that I am renting. It is something that we will certainly have when we build, though.
Hi Allen Smith – Yikes! I do hope that the snake slithered it's way outside in the dark!
Hi Bob, yeah, I can feel with you. In our place there are always "water interruptions" in the morning, during lunch time and also in the evening. Sorry, I should say "low pressure". Since we are living in this part of Davao we get informed of "permanent restructure and water pump changes".
Drinking water, no problem of course, yah, good think, you and me can work at home and nobody cares if we took a shower or not. Or maybe later somebody cares? 🙄 Anyway, that's not the way it should be. So, whether I like it or not, I'll take a shower between 5 and 6 am (brrr!!!) and go back to bed. 😆
Hi Klaus – Maybe it would be better to just stink than to get up that early! 😆
Hi Bob – Will be putting in a large water tank back home when the time comes. Will also add "on-demand" hot water system (LPG). I can live with tabo tabo, but having a nice hot shower available on command is a bit of stateside I'd like too have around! 😆
Hi Paul – Having hot water is almost a necessity for me! Feeling that cold water rushing over your skin is like torture! 😆
You know at first I enjoyed the cold showers, now that the weather has been cool lately take a bucket bath with a pot of hot water mixed in.
Hi Bob- I think what you are going through is a sign of the times. Today in the Philippines the design of houses are western with all the mod cons available but the utilities can be developing world standard. When I first visited the Philippines allthough there was a shower there was also a 45 gallon barrel of water just in case so I never needed to smell.
I think for those just in case times you need to revert back to the old days so you never need to worry about a shortage of water.
Just a thought !!!!
Hi Bob & all. All I can think about is getting back to the P.I. as the snow is flying here in Canada. I have my ducks in a row. Lots of money,retired I just can't walk very good & lots of pain. I needed a good laugh & you provided again. Yes I believe what allan said Misery loves company. Thanks again. Guy
Hi Bob
I have experienced that water shortage in Davao you mention! I was in the shower once all soaped up and then the water stopped! How about installing an overhead tank for storage of water. That way, you are independent of the water brown outs!
All the best
Malcolm
Hi Louis – I'll take the cold shower if I have no other choice, but I despise it!
Hi Jim – Yeah, I have taken the cold showers out of a bucket of water, but I try to avoid it! Let's just say that having that doesn't do much to cheer me up!
Hi Guy – Well… now you have me thinking! I'd rather put up with the cold shower from time to time instead of the snow!
Hi Malcolm – That has happened to me too! Get all lathered up, and no water! ha ha… it's like, what are you supposed to do! As I said on a previous comment, I'd rather not spend the money for the big water tank on a house that I am renting! We'll have one when we build a house, though.
Hi Bob – Seriously when I built our house I had a ground tank to store incomming water and a header tank to give me pressure and supply in case of a brownout installed. Even although we have only been back three times to our house since it was built it has been a blessing as the last time we were there we had two brownouts but always had water.
Just something to think about when eventually you get round to building your own house.
🙂
I couldn't agree with you more on this Bob. I was always under the impression that all the services used to wait for me to come home to start a mainteneance spree.
Man o man it used to always get up my nose. (Black) Brown outs, installed a generator, water cut off due to something or other, installed deep well, but then the power went off, no water, installed a hand pump as well.
Installed internet connection, sorry sir we have a problem parts coming from Manila. Installed cable tv, sorry sir the bad reception is due to others tapping your line illegially. Installed telephone, sorry sir the bill is that size coz others are tapping into it.
Hahahaha it just seems to go on and on. Now I find it best to have a beer or several and wait for the cloud to pass.
Hi Jim – Water storage is most certainly on my list for when we build.
Hi Jack – Oh man…. you are really bringing up valid points there! If it's not one thing it's another!
Hi Jack (and to all of you!). I got almost the same answers regarding Internet, Cable TV and telephone landlines. Maybe that's how the staff has been trained. 🙄
Hi Bob, regarding # 12: Good idea! This morning I turned around at 5.30 and allowed me another one hour of sleep. At 10 am or so I might be able to take a shower. In the meantime I work online. Good think, indeed, we "can't smell through the Internet", haha
Hi Klaus – But, you have a student coming for tutoring today! Did you remember?
I'm with you, Bob. First of all that brownout thing is not just a matter of wording. It's a shame that for soem reason the Philippines has decided to use a technical phrase completely different than its actual meaning. Brownout was a technique used by some utility companies back in the US years ago in an effort to reduce peak load demands. The voltage supplied was reduced, easing loads on the power company but with sometimes disasterous results … some appliances can literally burn up or be damaged by low voltage. because of this it is no longer used … instead, if necessary, utilities will use "rolling blackouts" where certain areas are shit off and then restored in turn.
A blackout means no power … tis will not damage anything except one's temper .. to use the completely inaccurate phrase is just, well, … not smart.
In our subdivision water is suppled by the home owner's association. It is only supplied three times a day for an hour or so, so everyone has a home supply tank. In some illogical way this is believed to save water … defies the law of physics or accounting, but really let's everyone know how important the directors of the association are … they control the tap.
About 40% of the homes are now being supplied by a company associated with Manila Water … a huge Lopez or Ayala or some big family holding.
That's right, for a few hundred residential customers (average water bill is 3 or 400 pesos per month) we have dueling water companies … duplicated pipes, meters and all physical plant … this is while schools have no books and people starve. There's actually talk of a third water company moving in and makigf more cuts in the streets. *sigh*
Why would anyone take the second water choice? Ah, proudly serving 24 hours per day. They do, but to use your washing machine, prepare to do laundry at 3 am … the only time the 24 hour water is stong enough to fill the machine.
Life sure is fun at times …..
Hi Dave Starr – I just thought of one tip, after reading your comment. There indeed is one time when a lack of power (blackout) can indeed harm your appliances…. when the power comes back on. At the time when the power comes back on, it is possible that there will be a spike in the voltage. If you left your appliances switched on, this spike can damage the appliance. So, if a blackout occurs, it is a good idea to turn off things like the air conditioner and such, so that it won't get hit when the electricity is on again.
The water situation in your neighborhood sounds very convoluted!
Hi Bob, I know. But she beared with me, hahaha 😆
Yep, convoluted is too weak a word. I could see dueling entities if there was actual money at stake … but there are 300-odd homes and perahps 500P a month gross billing. That's about completely 150,000 pesos a month total before expenses and Meralco gets over 100K for the electric bill for the water pump … so people can afford to put in water mains, buy meters, pay readers and collectors, etc. for maybe 50K per month?
Makes no sense to me.
And on the AC issue … better ones should have an auto restart delay timer built in … don't buy one without it 😉
Hi Dave Start – Honestly, I've never seen an AC unit with an auto restart delay timer! Never even heard of it. Now, we haven't bought an AC unit for about 7 years, is this something newer than that? The units we bought are not low end units either…. ❓