Who turned on the tap?

Last evening a strong fresh wind blew in. Usually the cats stay on the back terrace until bedtime, but with the wind and a little rain, I opened the back door and they all shot in like they were being chased by a ghost.

At about the same time Miguel showed up after a hard day's work. He had finished his day with a beer (or three). While he made coffee I read on the sofa in the living room.

Sometime after we'd finished our coffee I noticed some water in the middle of the living room floor. Where was that from?

Then I noticed Maya walking around the edge of the dining room floor, and as I investigated further, I realized that water was overflowing from somewhere in the house. Following the river - I mean stream - it led me to the bathroom.

The tub was full, and the bathroom floor was flooded. The floor has a lip so there was a small pool on the floor, but once it reached the top it over-flowed its banks and started flowing through the rest of the house.

I did not turn on the tap and Miguel swears he didn't. However, the effects of alcohol make his denial suspicious. But whoever turned on the tap didn't close the drain and didn't turn on any hot water, so that is odd. Maybe one of the cats bumped against the tap as they chased each other through the house, all worked up from the wind? Maya is pretty heavy - I imagine if she knocked against the tap she might be able to open it.

Who do you think did it?

1. Slightly tipsy Miguel
2. One of the cats
3. Our aluxes

I'm going with #2.

Since the tub was already full, I told Miguel he might as well jump in and have a bath. I didn't exactly mean at that precise moment, but before I knew it he had stripped down and was relaxing in the tub. Which meant I was left to swoosh the water through the house toward the drain in the laundry room using a great Mexican invention - the rubber side of a large squeegee. In my rush to stop the flow from spreading farther, I neglected to take the plug out of the drain in the laundry room, so as quickly as I pushed the water in, it ran back out again. Sometimes I'm not so smart.

Once I got everything figured out, it took about 30 minutes to clear all the water and mop the damp spots. Smokey laid on top of the suitcase to stay clear of the rising flood but once I lifted the suitcase out of the water, she and Maya thought it was great fun to run through the river as I pushed it along, slipping and sliding and tracking their little paws over the dry areas. Minina mostly sat on the edge of the banks and watched, but occasionally she ran across too - the challenge to scale the river banks was too tempting for a curious cat.

This weekend is the four-year anniversary of Hurricane Wilma, and I was pushing flood water through the house at that time too. Today is also the two-year anniversary of Miguel's near-electrocution. Last night we were on the alert for possible poisoning in the streets. I am thinking I'm not really fond of October, maybe we need to go somewhere for vacation next year at this time.

Any volunteers to come and baby-sit? I can't guarantee that everyone will behave, that a cat won't turn on the water, or that an aluxe won't lock you out of the house. But I can guarantee an adventure! (this is my life every single day).