Murphy's Law

Mr Murphy has been hard at work following me wherever I go.

On Sunday I was watering the garden in that tremendous heat with a very long hose that reaches from the wellpoint to the top of the garden, which is about 175 feet. This has necessitated joining quite a few lengths of hose, particularly as they are inclined to perish in the fierce ultraviolet rays we get here over South Africa (thanks all you CFC users). Of course the hose jammed at a join because it fitted perfectly between two bricks at the side of the path. It is as though the gap was specially measured. When I tugged at the hose, it parted at the join, so I had to go to the well and turn off the pump, then walk 100 feet to rejoin the hose, then back to turn on the pump. This was only onerous because of the sweltering heat, not because I am old and decrepit.

When I had finally finished spraying, I put the hose down in a bush to secure it while I once more set off to turn off the pump. Mr Murphy again spotted an opportunity and the hose snaked out of the branches and lay down on the lawn, continuing to spew borehole water in a perfect trajectory that followed me all the way to the well. I was soaked by the time I turned it off, but thankful for the cooling drench, much as the plants were.

This morning I turned on the municipal hose to wash the upstairs windows - we have a high pressure gun-style tap on it - and blow me down but the tap shot off and the suddenly free hosepipe whipped around and blasted me in the face. Another free shower.

You may notice that Murphy only seems to work with water, but this is not the case. Perhaps I was secretly hoping to get a cooling shower because of the heat we are currently experiencing. So I got what I wished for.