The Water Challenge:

Thursday September 19th marks the start of the one week water challenge. What is a "water challenge" you may ask? For this exercise, we have been asked to collect all water from outside the building we live in for one week. This means, that if I wish to shower, use the toilet, wash my hands, or drink water in my dorm during the next week, it must all come from outside. I must bring into my dorm a bucket of water to use for bucket baths or toilet flushing. The other option is to walk to, and use the facilities elsewhere, a.k.a, if I want to shower, I would walk over to the athletic center, and do so there. If I need to use the bathroom, I would do so before returning to my dorm. In the coming week, I need to 'plan accordingly.' 

The Plan: 
Because 1.) I do not know where to get a bucket and 2.) even find a place on campus to fill it, I am going to go for the 'plan accordingly' option. Instead of showering in my dorm, I will shower in the sports center (Hopefully I will make it over there every day!) Instead of drinking water in the tower dining hall, I will fill my water bottle up in Pendleton Hall on my way to class. Instead of using the bathroom in my dorm, which, unfortunately for the sake of this exercise, is just across the hall from my room, I will use the bathroom in the library before I leave at night. If I need to use the bathroom while I am in my dorm I will use one in severance hall. Severance, although connected during the daytime through the dining halls, is not actually connected to tower in the evening hours, and will require me to walk out and around to use the facilities there.  

The Results: 
So, it's been almost a week, and despite a few slip ups, I have made it. For the last week, with the exception of Saturday and Monday mornings, when I sleepily stepped into the shower, I have been using the showers in the sports center. The most difficult part of this experience has been finding the time; Incorporating into my day the time to walk over to the sport center, take a shower, and head on to the next activity. Some days I did not feel like walking over or did not have the time to walk over to the sport center for my shower, and simply decided to go one day without it. For many, the exercise of getting out and walking miles to the nearest source of water, is part of their every day. Not doing so could, in some situations, put you at great risk. For many, the act of getting water is a part of their everyday schedule. One of the things I noticed during the exercise was the lack of normalcy in my schedule. I could not always count on being at a certain place at a certain time, say making it out of one class in time to make it to pool open hours etc. The normalization of ones schedule would help enormously. Overall, I had a great time. Although I did not take it to the extreme, the exercise reminded me just how nice it is to have water so close at hand. It is a resource that here in the US we can count on.