Hot water on demand

Photo: Looking west on Mass Ave. in Harvard Square, from the sidewalk in front of Mr. Bartley Burger Cottage.

T-minus seven hours until I have to be at the airport for a flight to Colorado. I have cleaned up the huge sewing mess I created in the last three days, including vacuuming, am mostly packed, and am in the middle of lunching. Rough life, you say? No, not by any means. But I have had some trouble settling back into it.

For instance, I pause before getting a glass of water from the tap to think: do I need to do anything to this water to make it drinkable? Iodine tablets? Chlorine treatment? Filter? Boil? All four? And the reality is my water is probably more filtered than bottled water, given my dad's propensity for gadgets.

And how amazing is it to have hot water on demand? Just twist the left faucet and there it is! No turning on the water heater, or checking one's watch to see if the solar water heater has had a chance to work its magic, or, reality for most of the population, boiling water. Just turn a knob. Just wonderful.

And while I'm on the topic of commodities, electricity 24/7 is certainly a great convenience. "Load shedding" as they call turning off the power for up to six hours at a time on most days of the week, was not as big an inconvenience as not being able to drink the water, for instance, but sure is nice to flick a switch rather than fumbling around for a flashlight for middle of the night wanderings.

Additional adjustments include:
1) Looking left-right-left when crossing the street
They drive on the left hand side of the road, which necessitates looking right-left-right when crossing the street. Took me weeks, and a few close calls, to get used to.

2) Being able to eat salads when I go out to eat.
The fear being the veggies being washed in local water and then served wet; most/all bugs are killed with proper cooking or once the veggies have dried.

3) The American Health Care System
While reassuring in that it has taken good care of me for this long, it was a hassle getting health insurance again, particularly since I had confounded the state's new heath insurance program by not paying and then leaving the country. Oops. On the other hand, unlike in Nepal, in the US one needs a prescription for most medications, although that's supposed to be more of a protection than an inconvenience.

And on that note, we're at t-minus 54 minutes until I must leave for an appointment in Harvard Square, so I must skedaddle.