ceci n'est pas une pipe...

(... the joys of owning a home)

in case you missed it, spring is here. and with that, means turning on sprinklers and watering the ground and new freshly planted flowers and such. this weekend, i turned on my backyard outdoor water, and was greeted with a not so fun surprise: a big, fat hole in my pipe. the greeting went as follows: i turn on the spigot outside, nothing. i open the storage unit attached to the house, where i know the water goes through, and the water turn off is. i move the mower, puppy pool, rake, and crawl around a furnacey type thing and over some plywood onto an elevated step. i spend about five minutes reading weird labels on the myriad of piping next to the wall, and i finally find one that says 'outside water'. i turn it, and hear a rushing of water. 'yes! i'm good!' i think.

wrong.

approximately two point one seconds after the water rushing noise inside the pipe, i hear real rushing water, hitting pavement and spraying out with forced pressure. and that noise is not outside, appropriately under the spigot... no, it's inside my little storage unit, spraying all over my bbq grill and mower.

damn.

i turn the water off, and inspect... luckily, it was from just one spot, and the hole is large enough to see but not gaping. well, maybe it is- i actually have no frame of reference for pipe damage, so maybe this is extensive? but in my head, i can just put some putty on it, wrap it with plumbing tape, and then call a plumber when i'm ready (and richer). in the meantime, the backyard will stay a dry, dusty dirt bed of weeds and misplaced mulch.

what was super surprising to me is how i approached this incident: in the winter, i was super paranoid about winterizing and making sure my pipes didn't freeze.. i had one small scare, but was ultra happy to get through the winter, disaster averted (or so i thought). this spring, i didn't even fathom to think that this pipe could have been damaged, and i just willy nilly turned it on! seeing the damage, i quickly turned off the water and just kept going. in my head, i thought a nasty word or two, then moved right along, like no big deal. i half heartedly have thought about how to fix it, but know that really i watn to just plug it up, wrap it up, call it good. but i don't trust myself, so i know i'll end up calling someone or doing some research and get it fixed right. eventually.

i can't help but think this is how i approach my life sometimes: i can begin with huge amounts of anticipation, second and third and fourth guessing what is to come, and taking precautions to plan for them. then, once the anticipation has been managed (not necessarily dealt with. perhaps even just forgotten), i then surge ahead, no holds barred, and rush out. so much pressure! i do sometimes feel like i am bursting at the seams with force, pressure, forward motion. and for the most part, i just quickly shut the pressure off immediately, and ignore what needs to be fixed. and then, if i remember what needs to be fixed, i will take the shortcut route, and hope it holds up under pressure for a long period of time. obviously, though, plumbing putty and tape can only hold up under so much pressure, right?

so. because i know i need to deal with things (aka feelings, pressure, life, water, pipes, etc) when they happen, rather than ignoring them... does anyone know a good plumber??