So Long, Old Friend

I'm a little frustrated these days.
It's amazing to me how this rain barrel has
gotten so many feathers ruffled. The HOA here
has condemned it to the backyard. They claim that
it detracts from the "aesthetics" of the neighborhood.
Have they looked around lately? We have houses
which have been abandoned, yards that are unattended,
even one whose slider was broken many months ago
and has yet to be repaired. And they're concerned
about my water collector? All I can say is, get a life!






Actually, that's not all I can say. I plan to say a lot more
when I can sit down and compose a letter in a civilized
tone. I just fail to see how something as benign, and indeed,
utilitarian, as a rain harvester can be on anyone's Ten Most
Wanted list. I think it speaks to the lack of forsight, the
shallow nature of peoples' thinking, the difficulty in folks
realizing that we have only so much water to go around! It's
not like we have a direct line to some far-off oasis in space
that will replace our water supply when we run out! We need to use it wisely and reuse it whenever possible! Because these 9 people on the Board find it physically unappealing, I am bullied into compromising my personal values. It's just plain not right.

For now, I have it situated in the back of the house, as demanded by the Board. It looks fine here, but doesn't serve its intended

purpose. Out front, I was able to water all of my ornamentals and potted plants. I even used the water to tidy up recycle bins and garbage cans. It also helped with run-off, as we do not have gutters on our eaves. Now I will have to tote water from the back of the house to supply the needed moisture out front. Being painfully pragmatic, this goes against everything that feels right to me.

All I can say is, it ain't over 'til it's over...