The Water is [not] Always Good.

This weekend I went on a mini excursion to Philadelphia. The weather was akin to a late July hot spell. The novelty of 89 degrees made the stickiness bearable. At some point on Saturday night, after many hours of enjoying the Derby and its accompanying refreshments, my friend Megan attempted to read an obscure text she got from one of those incomplete numbers. "Boil water emergency? Emergency boil water?" By all accounts, she made no sense. So, we simply ignored her. In the light and clarity of Sunday, we then learned of the water drama up in Boston. (We think Northeastern texted all their students to notify them, hence the weird number for the text.)

When I got back home late last night, I realized just how spoiled we are by clean water. Pouring Poland Spring on my toothbrush made me feel like some diva celebrity. (There was once a rumor that Cameron Diaz only washed her face with Evian.) I took a cool shower before bed and freaked out when a little water got in my mouth. All of this said, my address is Cambridge, which has a separate safe water source. Though, the fact that the Somerville town line is spitting distance from my apartment made me willing to abide by the water advisory for the night.

In the midst of all of this, I am reminded of one of my favorite high school memories. It became a tradition for each graduating senior class to put on some sort of comedy meeting in the Spring. When I was a junior, a group of senior boys put on "Thursday Morning Live" which included a live Faculty Jeopardy skit (for the record, it was absolutely hilarious). They also filmed commercials, one of which was for Lawrenceville water. Lawrenceville bottled water is handed out in mass quantities at all Lawrenceville functions. It has a black label emblazoned with the school seal, Virtius Semper Viridis. The seniors showed a nerdy scientist explaining the make up of water and how Lawrenceville bottles it: they go to the water spout for dorm garden hoses and fill them up. At the end of the skit, the nerdy scientist says, "Virtius Semper Viridis: The water is always good." Needless to say, that line has been in my head for the last twenty four hours. I don't think Massachusetts Water Resources Authority will adopt that motto anytime soon.