Rolemommy

Joe the Plumber...Where Are You Now?

Now that Senator McCain has been sent back to his day job, I know you're all wondering...what's going to happen to Joe the plumber (bet you thought I was going to say Sarah Palin). Well, I'll tell you what Joe, or Sam or whatever his name is, is doing now that he's no longer on the front page of newspapers or on the tips of the tongues of debating presidential candidates. He's unclogging drains.

To be more precise, that's what my Joe the plumber was doing yesterday. You see, over the last two years, we've kind of let the clogs in our house fester - to the point where it takes at least 10 minutes for the kids' tub to drain. I was in denial for the better part of that time but the other night, we came home to find our basement ceiling saturated in water. While I began conjuring up visions that those clogs were going to cause our ceilings to cave in, I instantly phoned our plumber (who I happen to have on speed dial) and explained our situation.

The next morning, Joe showed up early...(imagine that) and proceeded to tell me that the water on the ceiling had nothing to do with the clogs in the drains. It was actually connected to another problem that I was going to have to deal with - our gutters were stuffed with leaves and dirt and the excess water was pouring into our house. Translation - I had to hire someone else to clean out the gutters. While Joe was about to leave, I asked him to fix the drains since he was already at our house and I figured if I didn't ask right then and there, another two years would pass.

And so, Joe checked our drains and found lots of gunk and hair. So much so that it took him at least four hours to snake everything out. Finally, after he had gone out to rent an airvac to suction out our pipes, the problem was fixed and we were able to enjoy tubs and showers that empty within seconds - what a concept.

As I watched Obama's first press conference later that afternoon, I thought to myself, how lucky I am to have Joe the Plumber in my life. And I'm sure now that the other Joe is out of the limelight, his customers feel the exact same way.

Incidentally, if you are like me and are wondering how you can prevent your drains from clogging so that you don't have to hire Joe the Plumber to fix them every few years, our favorite Green Home Mom, Michelle Roberts, co-founder of Ecohealth Designs offers her tried and true advice:

The Eco-Friendly Way to Unclog Drains:
Mix Boiling hot water, a bit of baking soda, and vinegar!

The big thing is, wipe down your shower and drain after each shower or bath.
Preventative is always the best.

Posted in: Blog, Role Mommy Confessions on 11/08/2008