Shower search
One of the things I most look forward to is taking a long, hot shower when I get home. It is rather comical what we have to deal with here. From our little corner of the base we have a variety of options to get a shower. First of all, there is never a guarantee that there will be any water. Sometimes it just runs out. Next, there is no guarantee that there will be electricity, so if you are showering after dark or early in the morning, sometimes there are no lights. In order of closest proximity to most distant, these are my options.
1. The fish tank. This is a gravity fed system (a water tank on the roof) with a fairly reliable water heater, and less reliable water supply and rotten water pressure. It is a 60 second walk to the back of the bat cave building. It stinks like something resembling a dirty fish tank near a sewer. It is indoors, but not heated, and the shower stall is a converted Iraqi commode stall. The water pools around the drain. If too many people have recently taken a shower, the pool is downright rank. This is the last resort.
2. Shower truck #1. This is another gravity fed system with worse water pressure (actually just a dribble) and a fairly reliable water heater. But it is clean and pretty close (3 minute walk). It is like a small trailer park building, and the shower stalls are small, but adequate. There is no heat, but it is usually warm because it is so small. Probably my first choice.
3. The p*sser shower. This is another converted Iraqi commode stall, but it is indoors, in a heated building. Unfortunately the next stall over is a urinal, hence the name. Sometimes the urinal's odor is strong, but we've actually gotten used to that. It is gravity fed, with decent water pressure and a good water heater. Water sometimes runs out here. It is about a 5 minute walk to get there, but it comes close to being the top choice because the building is heated.
4. Shower truck #2. Another trailer like number 2 above, but it is pump fed so it has by far the best water pressure. One problem is the hot water pump cycles, kind of like revving your engine, so you alternate between getting scalded and freezing every few seconds. Plus it stinks like sulphur. No one seems to know why. It is about 2 minutes further than number 3, which makes it lower tier, for sure.
Keep in mind that all these showers are reached by walking (in shower shoes) so as the weather is cooling off, my toes are often frozen by the time I get to the shower, and again before I get back to the bat cave. All that said, we are eternally grateful to have hot water in some form for a shower. But, like I said, it is comical.
