When I arrived at work yesterday, JoAnn was all a-twitter because the bathroom had flooded and she couldn't find the source of the sound of rushing water. Suddenly she remembered the outside facet we use for washing cars and cleaning the building.
We found that someone had turned on the water hose outside our building during the night but didn't turn it off so the back patio flooded and it seeped into the bathroom and break room.
First, we learned from our insurance agent that our insurance doesn't cover damage "due to rising water"....interesting. The result of Katrina rulings, I suppose. But I had already called the police so we could have a record of the time and damage
From the police we learned that several homeless people had put up tents between our building and the creek, hidden from our view, but known to the police. The next thing he said stunned me. "This is just one of several tent cities around Tupelo. They were probably trying to take a shower or get water for cooking when they were surprised or simply forgot to turn it off."
I called a construction worker friend who was not working due to the economy and asked if he would like the job of cleaning up, making repairs and drying out the carpet. He came right away, brought two friends and had the whole messed over by 3pm.
So today I learned: Insurance is great..but read the fine print.
Homeless people are in my backyard and I never knew it.
Treat your friends with dignity, especially when they are down on their luck. They are still your friends.
Patti
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