A Little Hilarity

So today was just an ordinary day. Alison and I had Lesson planning Tutoring with our LCF in the morning and finished around 930. And since we weren’t having Language class until 1130, I found myself with 2 glorious hours all to myself. So since my host mom was at work, I decided to go home, do some reading, take a shower, have a nice breakfast and have a relaxing morning by myself. So I did just that. Got home, did some reading and decided I was going to make some coffee. So I light the gas stove, put a full pot of water on the burner and went to the bathroom while it boils. Now you’ve heard the phrase, “A watched pot never boils” and in Ukraine, even unwatched pots seem to take forever to boil. So after going to the bathroom I went on the internet for a while. Then I decided I had better take a shower before too much time passed, so I leisurely got ready, and hopped in the shower. After a few minutes in the shower I suddenly remembered that I had left the water boiling. Now for those of you familiar with gas stoves the reason for my panic will be obvious. But for those who are not, let me explain. Gas stoves deliver a constant stream of gas into the stove when the knob is turned which is why it’s important to light the stove as soon as you turn the knob. And also, it’s important to turn the gas off should the fire go out because even though there is no fire, the gas will continue to pour through the stove into the room. One of the things that often makes fires in gas stoves go out is if for example…. a full pot of water boils over and the water puts out the fire. So I’m in the shower freaking out for 2 reasons, 1. If the water has boiled over then gas is leaking into the kitchen and 2. the water heater (lit by fire) is in the kitchen also… (fire and a room full of gas… very bad thing!). So I jump out of the shower soaking wet and in my birthday suit. I grab my towel and run towards the kitchen. It’s at this moment rounding corner in the hallway I’m reminded that wet feet and a wood floor don’t make for a great combination! My feet fly right out from under me and I land smack on my side and slide across the floor sprawling like a buttered up cat thrown onto an icy lake. I scramble to my feet and get to the kitchen half cursing half laughing only to find that the water still hasn’t started boiling yet…
So I turn off the water and trudge back to my shower. I must have laughed for several minutes at the whole thing. So to sum up, I suppose today I learned that wet feet and wood floors don’t mix and that Ukrainian water takes a really, really long time to boil!
That’s all folks! 🙂