You know that type of weather where you look out the window and think it is going to be really wet and gross out, then you walk outside and there is a slight mist, you put your umbrella away, and your hair is barely damp by the time you next go inside? That is exactly how I would describe Cornell’s new shower heads; except your hair is not barely damp, it is dry.
Cornell is in a drought. There is no way that you attend Cornell University and are not constantly reminded of this. To take initiative, Cornell has decided to convert the shower heads in the dorms to N2915-V Earth ® Showerheads. Nothing against these showerheads, honestly. They mean well. The 1.5 gallon per minute flow rate has the intention to save water. This is the equivalent of a coke-sized bottle of water with a hole in the cap, dripping slowly onto your head and body. Well, that may not be fully accurate but it is what it feels like. We really need to save water. This is definitely the wrong way of doing so.
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The traumatic decrease in water flow will achieve the opposite of its intentions. The lack of water flow make it difficult to get every last bubble of shampoo out of your hair. Who wants to walk around with shampoo remnants in their hair? No one. Thus, it causes the showerer to linger under the water to de-shampoo their hair. The longer the shower, the more water that is used. That is a fact. These low low pressure shower heads will add an additional 15 minutes to the average shower. That is not a fact, just a very educated estimate. This gargantuan water use puts us right back to where we started--in a drought.
But wait! There’s more! There was an email sent out to students to address the anger and rage that everyone has had. Students were informed that there is a little, magic, silver button, that when clicked magically increases pressure in the shower. After receiving this email I ripped my clothes off and hopped right into the shower. This button did nothing. There was a hot, or as I should say moderately warm, second where the water graduated from a mist to a light drizzle. By the time I stepped away from the water to grant myself a little squirt of shampoo and went back under the water, the drizzle vanished. This magic button was only able to grant me one thing: appreciation for the previous shower heads.
If Cornell would like to save water and keep their beloved students happy, they should revert to their old ways. Until then, I will be one of the many students walking around with white soap bubbles in my hair.
