Stupid water pipe

For those wondering what happened in Boston, I found a picture (I admit it's not great, but it's the best I can do):

( No, really, not great )

As a reminder: boiled water isn't just for drinking and food prep. If you're in a "boil water"-affected area, don't give tap water to your pets, don't wash your hands in tap water, don't brush your teeth with it, don't shower longer than is necessary. Don't even blink.

Clean Drinking Water: Boston and Beyond

You know what? I thought about a post on my friendspage about what a pain in the ass it is to have to boil water. And I thought about jadelennox's thoughts on being a spoiled first-worlder. And I thought, "All right, let's start a fracking meme I can get behind":

Restore the balance of drinkable water to the world. For every day my city has to go without drinkable water, I hereby pledge $1 to a charity that helps bring drinkable water to the actual Third World—minimum of $10, in case Deval Patrick's "Days Not Weeks" comment is accuracy and not just wishful thinking/crowd control. (I might bump that up to a minimum of $20; I'm unemployed, but even so.) According to The Water Project, "every $10 donated provides 1 person with clean water for 10 years", and that seems like a fair tradeoff, doesn't it? I'm still researching likely charities; Water For People also looks likely.

Join me. Make our "tragedy", by which I mean "minor inconvenience for a week", into someone else's life-saving opportunity. Boost the signal. Pass it on.