I used to tell people that I moved to Washington state in order to take a long shower. and I was only sort of kidding…the great drought of the late 80s and early 90s in southern California fell smack dab in the middle of my adolescence. we didn’t water our lawn for several years, and I learned how to take very, very short showers. when I moved up here, the Pacific NW was also going through a much milder (relatively) drought – Mom & I cracked up at people complaining about brown lawns; they looked damn green to us.
since then, I’ve learned that this region may have rain, but the state of its water is nearly as precarious as it was down in So Cal. it’s all a question of timing and temperature, as gradually we drain dry the aquifers and rely on the snowpack.
I’m reminded again of it by Jonathon D’s posts on dishwashing tools and wildfires in Australia, also by November’s unseasonable dryness. (also, when Mark P’s friend says that its always ‘never like this’, he could be talking about almost anywhere, esp. in the last 10 years. global warming, anyone?)
all in all, I’m glad to see it rain again, but I think I’m going to start putting a bucket in the shower to store the “warming-up” water, though what I’ll do with it in this season, I’m not quite sure.