Team Powerwasher Power

I spent most of the day on a ladder.

Had the day off today to compensate for a few Saturdays and I feel like I did a few Saturday's worth of work today. I powerwashed my house, and I'm peculiarly aware of some muscle groups - particularly of the arm variety.

The interesting thing really is that I paid for today's use of the powerwasher over a year ago. Early rental deposit? Nope. Unhappy customer credit? Nope. Bought it last year and forgot I had it until now? Nope.

Typically, I imagine most people would go one of two directions with the "I think I'll powerwash my house despite what the experts recommend and I'll need a powerwasher to do so" urge.

Alternative one is to add this tool to their tool belt. (It would be horribly uncomfortable to have a powerwasher strapped to your belt, so please remember that literalism can kill) There are a myriad of people like this where I live. Big houses, proportional shed, loose cash falling from them like Fall leaves. Between them and selling gargantuan packets of screws to people who need a total of 20 is why a local Home Depot can do a million in business on a good weekend. So, I could have fallen into category one.

Alternative two is the rental route. Again we find ourselves in Home Depot. (I find myself in Home Depot quite a bit more often than I had realized I would since buying a house. In fact, should I choose to disassemble my entire home, I'm sure I could find a bin, shelf, aisle or box for the sum total of it's parts at the store. There are probably 100 unrealized houses strewn across the expanse of that place. Rather than buying all those parts and assembling a fine, new home, I have chosen the "home replacement plan," wherein I slowly - over the course of decades - completely replace my home piece by piece. In the homeowner world, I'm more of a hemopheliac than an organ replacement. I suppose I should prefer the financial bloodletting to a major system failure. But what should I do with my 200 count boxes of screws left lying around after I use the 20 I need? Horrors! Now I need to buy another shelving unit! Sorry - was this a rant? Where was I?)

Ah yes - Rent. I could have rented my powerwasher. This is more up my alley. Though I chaff at the realization that after just 10 guys rent the $500 powerwasher for $50 a pop (please note my stellar math skills - It's an art degree that I have) it's all butter for the store, I do realize that it's the only way I'm going to have a powerwasher with which to powerfully wash. I 'own' it for a day but the real owner rakes in money like Fall leaves.

So did I rent the powerwasher? Nope. Nay - nor did I buy it. Well, sorta.

Turns out that a third alternative exists. One I don't usually think of. (Ok, a 4th really, but theft will lead to owning nothing and the only powerwashing going on would be in my brief and hyper-paranoid prison showers) So, there's another way for me to clean up the place.

Last year one of my new neighbors (I had just moved in) came to my door. Someone had the bright idea of harnessing the power of community. I live in a development based on the cul-de-sac (good concept, awful word) and probably 10 of the families in the immediate vicinity decided that instead of running out and buying it themselves, and instead of renting it for one stressed day - we'll use the power of community and get the best of both possibilities. I gladly wrote him a check for $50. I haven't used it until now, but I've lost nothing. I'll use it again sometime soon, and it won't cost me a thing. (ok - overpriced gas)

I wonder what else I miss along these lines? What other aspect of good community could help us all, were we to actually talk to our neighbors? I think there must be significant benefits that we miss out on when we're a society of loners - of fence builders and door closers. How many people really know their neighbors? What if, instead of a powerwasher, I could go to community for help with raising my kid, or a ride to work, or a hard situation? Could my $50 emotional investment yield a return of $500 in wisdom? Help? Love?

Of course - that depends. We share the powerwasher, but it has a regular place it's kept. Will everyone put it back when they're done? (it's 1 AM and as I write this it's sitting on my back porch - Hypocrite!!) Will they clean it up? Maintain it? Keep the parts, the directions and the warranty? Misuse it? There is a lot that could go wrong. It's a risk. My $50 could have been blown in the past year if the wrong kind of people were in it with me.

So far they haven't been. My neighbor knocked well. There are some in the neighborhood who were not asked. Some are not known, some are known - and were not asked. While there is wisdom in selection, you just never know.

For my part, I can't control the others in team-powerwasher. (But I could hose their flowerbeds if it got ugly) The person I can be responsible for is me. I can be the guy who is safe to invest in. I can be the guy who follows through and cares for our little community. I can be the door that others are able to knock on. That much I can do. If everyone follows suite, we should be ok, and I'll be powerwashing for years to come.

If I want the benefits of the community, I need to invest a little of myself and I need to follow through with caring for others' investments. To that end, I think I'll go put away the powerwasher.

And maybe someone in the cul-de-sac might need part of a box of screws.