One, twice, three times a hosepipe

The weekend has very hot, sticky and muggy. On Sunday afternoon, we decided to get the old paddling pool out which we thought at the time would be a fantastic idea. Sadly, its reappearance proved to be the catalyst for some rather traumatic events.

Firstly, I ventured into ‘spider outhouse’ and retrieved the paddling pool and hosepipe reel. Mum and Lois were settling down on the grass beside the empty pool and I went to attach pipe to water mains and switched it on. Maisie, holding the hosepipe began to wander down to the bottom of the garden to join the others and fill said pool. Seconds later I heard screeching as Maisie innocently walked towards Lisa and Lois with hosepipe in hand (and not pointing downwards) and soaked her sister and Mum. I perhaps shouldn’t have trusted her but assumed she would just put it in the pool. My instructions were not robust enough.

After much flapping and screaming the trauma was over. Fingers were pointed and harsh words were spoken. Mum went inside to get changed as it was her who bore the brunt of the water canon, on this first occasion anyway :)

I put the troublesome hosepipe end in the pool where it was supposed to have been left and it immediately started glugging away, filling the pool. Tranquility was restored. I went off to fetch a couple of glasses of wine but had barely got to the kitchen before I heard a fresh wave of screeching from the bottom of the garden. I danced through the washing lines to the source of the trouble and the hosepipe had slithered out of the pool and repositioned itself on the grass pummelling waves of h2O into poor Lois who had been left sat on her own. Maisie was almost as traumatised simply watching the drama unfold. Mum came out with fresh clothes and a grumpy face.

Poor Lois was completely saturated so I placed the hosepipe head firmly in the flowerbed and I went to fetch a change of clothes for Lois.

As I was running down the stairs with the new garments I heard a third pandemonium outside. I can’t remember exactly how it happened on this occasion but suffice is to say Mum and Lois got sprayed again and once again Maisie stood helplessly witnessing the ordeal. Mum’s new clothes not only had digestive biscuits smeared all over them (Lois’s comfort food after the previous incident) but they were wet (again).

Thankfully it was nearly tea time, so we turned off the cursed hosepipe, emptied the pool (it wasn’t actually very full) and went inside to reflect on the farcical aquatic terror.