Keep smiling even if life doesn't go to plan

We all know that life never goes to plan. We do our best and then suddenly something comes in the way and we discover difficulties. In my previous post I described my "water transfer" project which I did that particular weekend. It seemed everything went well, but… as I suspected, there was a "surprise" waiting for me. The following Monday a friend visited me and we went for a walk to the little dam. I looked at the trough and it was only 80% full. I checked the water tank and surely enough the water wasn't getting out of the tank. "Oh well, that's a job for the next weekend" - I thought to myself and continued enjoying the walk with my friend. What should I do? I didn't have enough time to fix it, and worrying and stressing about it surely wouldn't help.

Saturday came and I made my way to the small paddock to fix the tank. George wanted to come with me to help me, but this time I politely refused. A few months ago, when exactly the same situation happened George came to help me, and… I had an interesting experience. It would be a perfect scenario for a hilarious comedy, yet not so great for a "real life" situation.

As I mentioned, George isn't a vicious or toxic person, he actually always has the best intentions and truly wants to help, but he struggles to work with others. Most of his life he was on his own, everything was as he wanted it to be, he never needed to negotiate anything with anyone, take into account opinions or needs of others, it was just him and his life. Therefore he struggles to comprehend that people are different, and different doesn't mean right or wrong, good or bad, it's just different.

As result of his lifestyle George believes there are only two ways to solve each and every issue, and it is… either his way or it is wrong. Additionally he worries a lot and tries to find a solution to every problem well before he even knows what the problem actually is. And then he gets furious that… the problem doesn't fit his solution. Anyway, that particular time when we went to fix the tank together, all the way there George was telling me how difficult it would be to solve the problem. He was finding hundreds of challenges and then suggesting the solutions, worrying how expensive it would be and how long it would take to fix it - at least the full weekend. When we arrived at the tank I stepped inside the water container and noticed that the issue was simple to resolve - the floater from the filter got caught on the tank structure keeping the hose above the water level and therefore the water wasn't flowing. I said to George that it was enough to release a bit of water from the tank, I would swim to the floater, get it off the structure and the problem would be solved. He got upset with me for objecting him and arguing with him, always taking the simplest way out and not accepting his solution. "You always have to be right! Everything has to be your way!" - he yelled at me. He was so furious with me that… he took the quad-bike and rode away, leaving me inside the tank. Daisy got a bit confused - she loves the quad-bike and usually as soon as the bike starts she starts as well, running, jumping, barking, and will follow the quad wherever it goes. This time, however, she decided to stay with me and keep me company. So there I was sitting inside the tank, like a frog hanging on to the ladder, having no idea what I should do, how should I get out of the tank and back on the ground. I started with swimming to the floater and resolved the first issue. Then somehow I clambered out of the tank, sat on its roof and… just couldn't stop laughing. It was absolutely ridiculous. How should I get the ladder out of the tank?! Oh well, when you don't have many options, the instinct of survival kicks in and you are able to do things you didn't even think you were able to do. Eventually, with the mental and moral support of Daisy, I got the ladder on the outside of the tank and got myself to safety. Released the water from the tank, made sure it was working again and went home, happy that I was able to do it all by myself, without any help from grumpy George.

After this super adventure, this time I politely refused George's help and fully equipped with the right gear, meaning smart-phone and good internet connection (which is the most important tool on the farm; at the end Google and YouTube know everything), beach towel and bikini, I made my way to the water trough. On the way we (me and Daisy) encountered our pets, so Daisy being a half-kelpie (a cattle dog) had to 'organize' them and they all hide in the bush.

I left my "beach equipment" on the ground next to the water container, turned off the water outlet, got the hose needed for letting water out from the trough and went to check the valve on the trough. Last weekend we put some protection around the pipe, so it was a bit more tricky to drag it, but I manage to do the job.

When the water in the trough reached the right level, I walked to the tank to open the outlet and… "No! No! No! I had enough! The stupid water isn't flowing!" - I said to my faithful four-legged companion. She looked at me with her big eyes as if she wanted to say "I've no idea what are you saying, but whatever it is, I am with you, I'm fully supporting you". She always makes me laugh. And so I had to put on my pretty bikini and go for a swim in the tank. You would think middle in nowhere I could go for a swim wearing just my birthday suit, but… oh no, not me… Even putting on the bikini was as complicated as if I was middle on a crowded beach, but I leave this story for another time.

I climbed a few steps up the ladder opened the entry and… wow, hot humid air hit me as if I opened door to a sauna. The outside tin was so hot that I needed my towel to be able to touch it, not to mention sit on it while I was getting the ladder from the outside and putting it into the tank.

Slowly I started to immerse myself in the cold water, trying to catch my breath. Overnight the temperature here drops to 2 degrees Celsius, so it can really cool down the content of the tank. I swam to the hose end, but this time the floater was freely swimming on the surface. "What's going on? I haven't have this issue before… What's wrong with the silly hose?!" - I wondered to myself. Luckily it didn't take long to figure out that air got into the pipe and this stopped the water from flowing. The water was just dripping. This was easy to fix - just submerse the hose in the water and all was good. I swam back to the exit from the tank, looked outside on the opened outlet of the tank and the water was flowing freely, but… how much water will I loose before I get out of the tank and reach the outlet to close it?! "Oh Daisy, if only you could turn off the water!" - I said to my lovely companion who sat in front of the tank as if she was on guard. She looked up at me as if she tried to say "All good, nobody is approaching us, we are safe. I have everything under control!".

If you ever went for a swim in a large water tank you will know how much time and effort all the acrobatics take to get out of the tank. Luckily I have done it so many times already that I am really well trained in that, and I didn't waste too much water.

And so, though my original work of refilling the tank didn't go quite to plan, I had a wonderful day and plenty of fun. All the work, including the 2km walk to and from the tank took us only 2 hours. And I also learned to check the water flow after refilling the tank and make sure there isn't any air bubble in the pipe causing issues at the water trough.