A - Z Challenge: eXample and Yuck

Since I haven't read any books that begin with the last three letters of the alphabet (at least none that I can remember lol), I'll be winging it from here.

X can be for "example". As in, for example, I now work for a teeny tiny mountain town water company - I am the office gal. It's amazing how terribly the place has been run for the past 50 years. And no, I'm not joking. For example, apparently no one has enforced the Rules and Regulations very well. Like people who haven't paid their water bills have never been shut off. Totally serious. No one has ever enforced water conservation because no one is on a meter - it's flat rate for unlimited water use and this town uses like three times the national average (roughly 250-300 gallons per day, which to a third world country would be considered outlandish waste of water). Seriously? You bet. And since we're in a major drought at the moment, you can bet that's going over real well. For example, their billing statements have no due date listed even though technically the due date is the 10th of each month (according to the Rules and Regulations). It's never been enforced, so payments trickle in all month long and late fees have only been added if a payment isn't received by the next billing cycle. Crazy? Yes. Truth? Of course.

Y can be for "yuck". As in, it's a yucky situation for Boyfriend and myself because we're now enforcing said Rules and Regulations and in fact, today (Tuesday) is shut-off day. We're happy to work with customers and create a payment plan (no interest, can't beat that shit) and have them sign a contract. There are about five people who keep telling Boyfriend that he can't shut their water off; I think they think that he's bluffing. Unfortunately he's not bluffing. They don't pay, they get shut off. And a few people want to take their matters and feelings to the Board of Directors. I wish them luck because the Board is semi-new within the last year and they want action, which exactly what Boyfriend is doing.

Another yucky thing is that the system is so old (50 years) and there are actually a handful of houses that we can't turn off. And the homeowners know it. Slowly, Boyfriend has been renting a backhoe and digging up people's yards to put in a proper service so that can be shut off. And no, they weren't nice yards, either, so the water company digging up their yard was actually an improvement. Seriously.

Oh the fun.