The Magician!

I would like to ask you a question. Just how many things can you stuff into a 6" x 6" square drainage outlet hole like the one you see above? I'll tell you the answer in a bit.

Yesterday evening, just after both wifey and me finished preparing dinner, I happen to notice that the kitchen drain was clogged and the water was backing up. Drats, I just cleared that clog a month or so ago.

I quickly ran to the store room and took out my drain clearing snake pipe, I have no idea what it's called, it's that long carbonate like thingy plumbers use to poke (for want of a better word ... hahaha) the drains to clear up clogs.

But after poking (I can't help but laugh at this word ... LOL!) the drain countless times, the water refuse to subside and in fact it even got worse. Ok, this was not good. Normally a quick poke (hahaha!) and shove would do the trick.

With the water still backing out of the kitchen drain and causing a foul smelling mess, I ran out to the main outlet outside the house where all the kitchen and downstairs bathroom pipes lead. That's when I was greeted by an even worse foul smelling odour that it made me almost puke. Trust me, it was that foul.

Water was seeping out from the outlet hole into the drain when it shouldn't be doing that cos it's suppose to go straight into the sewage tanks outside. The water looked as horrible as it smelt. Something must be blocking the outlet I surmised (duh!).

I wanted to call the plumber but wifey said why not try to fix it myself first and if I can't or screwed it up even worse, then we'll call the plumber. Besides it would cost quite a bit to call the plumber at that time of day.

So I started digging into the hole with the 'snake pipe' thingy and no matter how much I dug into it, the water refused to flow to the proper place. And worse yet, it was stinking up the place. So I decided to do the unimaginable and stick my arm into that rancid smelling, foul looking muck and feel around to figure out what was blocking the outlet.

Trust me, I had my misgivings. The water was so thick with brown crud and oily looking stuff that I was afraid my arm would melt the moment I stuck it inside. But I had no choice. It was getting worse. Summoning up every ounce of courage I had, I stuck my hand right into that hole (the very same one you see up there in the picture) and started feeling around.

The hole was so deep that I practically had my hand up to my elbow deep in foul smelling muck that was just inches away from my face! I tried hard not to gag and I could feel tons and tons of stuff in there. Then I started pulling out stuff and the first thing I pulled out was so shocking that I called out to wifey to come have a look.

The moment she saw what I pulled out, she was speechless. We both looked at each other and shook our heads in disbelieve. I actually pulled out a broom, don't ask me how the heck it got in there cos I have no idea. By the way we just shifted into this house a few months back, just so you don't think we put the broom in there.

But even with the broom out, the water was still stuck. Damn, I had to stick my arm in there again. By this time I was splashed with waste water and was already looking like sewage myself. So I stick my arm in again and lo and behold, I pull out a pouch! No words can describe my shock. I'm talking about a tiny 6" x 6" drain and about 1 1/2 feet deep and so far I've pulled out a broom and a pouch.

But that still doesn't do the trick. I keep on digging with arm into that muck. Wifey is intrigued by now. She stands there (albeit quite a distance from me cos of the smell) and waits to see what I pull out. And like a magician on a stage with his pulling out a rabbit from his hat trick, I managed to bring out a pestle (yes, a pestle!), a couple of CD's, a CD case, a few Tupperware covers, a matchbox car, a toothbrush, a cultured milk drink bottle, some unidentifiable metal stuff and a host of other stuff, not forgetting the hardened curd!

The amount of things I pulled out from there was so astounding that wifey said she wouldn't be surprised if I pulled out an MPV next ... LOL! I was seriously at a loss for words. I wonder just what the heck the previous owners were doing that they managed to get all that junk into that small space.

But at least that cleared up the problem though I was so smelly and filthy after the ordeal that wifey told me to disinfect myself thoroughly before she would come anywhere near me ... hahaha ... Trust me, I was so filthy with sewage all over me that I was afraid of touching myself (urrrmmm, somehow that didn't sound right ... LOL!).

And so folks, to answer my own question of just how many things can you stuff into a 6" x 6" square drainage outlet hole? The answer is a broom, a pestle, some CD's, a CD cover, a couple of Tupperware covers, a matchbox car, a toothbrush, a cultured milk drink bottle, a couple of unidentifiable metal pieces and loads of hardened curd.

P.S. - No matter how many times I washed my hands, it still smelled of sewage all night ... Uggghhhhh!
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