Now It's The Septic System

First the snow cancels the Christmas dinner we had scheduled, then a neighbor trying to help clear a path in our driveway slides into a tree & ruins his car; the car can't be towed because the towing company is swamped with towing other cars disabled by the storm; therefore the driveway is blocked & we can't get out for 5 days, and finally, at about 2:00 am this morning we're awakened by the warning buzzer from our septic system, which glows an ominous red when we open the garage door to see what the racket is.

"Too much water," is David's diagnosis, so we call our septic installer once it gets to a reasonable hour. It's Sunday, of course, so we don't hear back. The last time this happened--probably 10 years ago it was either Saturday or Sunday. Why do these things have to happen on weekends?

David's diagnosis sounds correct. I found an on-line manual for sand filter septic systems which says they are very delicate & need to have special care. Too much water can flood the filter & set off the alarm, & we've had nothing but snow & rain for the past 10 days on top of showers, my doing laundry & dishwashing. So now, in lieu of expert advice on what to do next, we are limiting our use of water, including the flushing of toilets. Dishes will have to be done by hand & we'll have to live with the clothes that are already clean.

This really is some December to remember!