Fue Loco

If there’s one place where electricians are needed it’s Guatemala. The wiring in every house is a fire waiting to happen; thankfully most of the houses are cement! I must tell you of a frightful event that took place in my shower today (no it’s not another cockroach). The showers here are called Widowmakers and are plastic containers with a heating coil inside which are powered by wires precariously strung overhead; if you touch the shower head while the water is running you’ll receive quite a shock!

When I had finished showering I turned the tap off but to my surprise the water kept coming. Streams of scolding hot water began to flow and quickly turned into steam. A number of thoughts entered my mind: Why won’t the water stop? Should I reach for the tap again with the risk of getting shocked? How nice it is to have a steam room, am I going to die in my shower? I tried turning the tap again….nothing happened, and now along with the steam sparks were flying out of the shower. I tried turning off the lights but this didn’t seem to have any effect other then to illuminate the bright red flashes within my shower head. After a few minutes the shower decided to say goodbye to its last moments of life, hung its head, and then it was no more.