FROM ROOSEVELT by Linda Schuster: Let it rain!
By:
"Rain, rain, go away. Come again another day. Little Tommy wants to play."
It’s not a song we have had much opportunity to sing this year. Up until now, little Tommy has had as much time to play outdoors as he could have possibly wished for.
What he couldn’t do was stomp through puddles. He couldn’t find any because New Jersey has not had enough rain. We are under a drought warning. This past year has been a year of low precipitation for most of the state, including Monmouth County.
So we find it necessary to conserve water as we head into the warmer months. In Roosevelt we are quite familiar with reducing our use of water and avoiding water waste. We do it every year.
As this year will be even tougher, I wonder exactly what it will mean to Roosevelt residents. For starters, there is a state mandate to install a water meter on every home. Charging for metered water use should serve to aid conservation in general. It makes sense. I like things that make sense.
But I don’t need to point a rain stick toward the sky to discern that the water/sewer bill of every Rooseveltian is about to swing in an upward direction. Large household or small, right now we all pay the same monthly fee. Whether the increase will skyrocket or turn out to be reasonably minor remains to be seen. Care to speculate?
Speaking of the atmosphere, one thing I do know: the residential water/sewer bill in Roosevelt is already sky high for all of us. Monthly household expenditure soars beyond a metered water bill in, let’s say, Hightstown, for instance.
Now from what I understand that is mainly based on the fact that we, as a borough, are paying back a bulky loan for the sewer system. And though that is a separate fee from water charges, it is a part of what is included in the Roosevelt "W/S" bill. If you live here, you pay it regardless of whether you were around to vote on it or not at the time of its inception. Goes with the fabulous terrain. That’s the way it is.
Some questions float to the surface. First, will the borough decide to flush water pipes this spring? The usual occurrence of flushing is performed for the purpose of cleaning out rust and such from the inside of these pipes.
Will we forego the ritual in favor of water conservation? Will we soon be looking at brown water coming out of the faucet? Most of us have some method to avoid drinking raw H2O from the tap. But does this mean that we will shortly suffer from rusty laundry syndrome?
If so, you can guess that Roosevelt residents will be wearing tinged socks this summer. Don’t laugh at us please. It’s the price we pay to live in this Greenbelt. Actually, our socks and T-shirts color coordinate with nature, you see. Blending in with the landscape should serve to heighten our overall awareness of the earth. Who knows what other benefits may return to us in future generations as a result of our sacrifices this season?
The next question concerns our gardens. Will we produce robust and succulent Jersey tomatoes this coming season? If our standard-size toms look more like cherries, what will the cherry toms resemble? Raisins? Will our neighborhood flourish with the vivid blossoms of spring? Or will our buds and grasses shrivel and faint?
How about the precious children who grace our town, the very same children who fill our school and give us town-deserving status year-round? What about them, huh? Will they be splashless, hot and roasted this summer? Will their cheery smiles crumble to the parched, cracked, dry and crusty ground? Will sweat be their sole drop, their only solace in this barren land?
Though advanced upon by cool and comfy, yes, well-hydrated businessmen spewing numbers from their chilly leather chairs in air-conditioned state offices, we will not perish. Our inner strength waxes not furious against those who simply do a job for pay. We recognize the greater good. We retain our peace within us. Our hearts grow not brittle as the sandy soil we tread upon. Though our garments be tainted, we lift up our voices in hopes of a better day:
"It’s raining, it’s pouring! The old man is snoring!"
Listen, we can get through this if we stick together. That may be easier than we thought, as our hands progress more and more clammy. We have done it before. Let’s think of it as an extension of our cooperative investment.
I do find that I gaze toward the sky frequently these days. I’m either looking at planes which I used to ignore, or checking cloud formations.
But hark, what sound through yonder window breaks? It is the murmur, the patter of misted spray and showers in place of sun. Nay, thunderous burst of drenching wetness pouring down! By golly, it finally rained, you guys!
OK, there will be a sunny day here and there. You have to expect that. But the forecast is speaking words like cloudy, drizzle, rain, sleet. Sleet? Hey, how about that snow we had? If it comes out of the sky in a groundward direction, I won’t complain. It’s all precipitation to me.
Linda Schuster is a freelance writer living in Roosevelt, who relishes a slurp and a quaff now and then.