overall, this isn't as bad as i thought it would be. but it is only day one.the allens are finally entering the late 19th century and getting city sewer, and the ghost of baron haussmann smiles. we are paying thousands of dollars--because the EPA demanded we do so, not by choice--to rip out our perfectly-functioning septic systems (two of them) and replace them with what will hopefully also be perfectly-functioning city sewer lines. i did manage to salvage our greywater system for the time being, provided the guys boring a 125 foot long hole six feet below ground don't "accidentally" hit it in the name of progress. we chose to bore rather than trench (which all our neighbors seem to have done, with really unattractive results) because we are desperately trying to save our 60-80 year old cottonwoods. and, of course, the first thing the borer guy told me when he got here yesterday was that he had to bore directly underneath the oldest, largest, and most vulnerable one to reach the city connection. hopefully he won't kill it--even if he does, we won't even know it for a couple of years. it would completely alter our yard so much if they harm these trees. bastards. we don't even live in the city of albuquerque--we are in a separate village with our own municipality--so how can we be forced to do this? and, to add insult to injury (and very much like the transformer debacle), we have to pay an additional $1800 to get a city water account! right now i am sitting at my desk watching some unknown man do extreme violence to our fruiting grapevines...
tally of collateral damage from day one (yesterday): cut one main sprinkler line, which flooded their freshly dug 6 foot by 8 foot hole, that they claim they are going to repair before they leave. i turned the sprinklers on them this morning to gently remind them.
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