Actually for a lardy old fart I'm doing OK in the sun but my brain is dying. Listen to this. (Must we? If you would please.)
So I'm working with "wor littlest'un" as the Nippojordies put it. And because she is using the second reel on downstairs only and refuses to wear unfashionable window cleaning gear the tap for her reel is often on the floor and she would occasionally not switch off while scraping off bee poo from the windows while the brush merrily pumps water.
After about five hours of window cleaning it's looking a bit touch and go if we'll have enough water to finish even though there were about 600 litres at the start of the day's run.
We get to the last two houses and I say I'll do the conny trad to save a bit and can she go careful which she does. Then I have the backs of one final house to do and hopefully just enough water so I switch off the pumps before driving off so as not to uncover the outlet and get an airlock.
Now the final back of a house is down from a lane which is (count'em) 53 steps down. When I stand at the top of the back garden I can see over the house, the M5 motorway, both Severn bridges and the Welsh hills beyond. (Is that Wor lass out running with some pervy photographer wheezing and taking "art shots" as she goes?)
So I park the van nose down/outlet down. I run the hose and cross my fingers and water dribbles out, just enough for me to think I'll get the upper three windows and maybe do the bottoms trad. I scrub and wipe and the flow continues but oh so slowly but just enough to make a jet.
So I do the upper windows and think I'll climb the 53 steps back to the van and get the trad gear for the bottoms. I go back down and there is still just enough flow for me to do the downstairs, wipe the frames and finish off trad.
My daughter who is minding the van blocking the lane and helped me run the hose out calls out ... "Dad! Shouldn't you have turned the pump switch back on?"
I did have enough water and with the pump on, instead of gravity dribbling the water out I had enough to finish the job.
There is no hope!
