A Great Big Coca-Cola Thank You

Last month the Coca-Cola Company built upon its support of local rain gardens, water conservation and the celebration of its 125th year by giving away 125 rain barrels to the residents of Niles. Not only did Coca-Cola supply the 55 gallon barrel but they installed a drain connection and supplied both the gutter connector hose and run off hose as well. With my affinity for things prefixed by the word “free”; I could not resist.  Rain barrels always evoke images of prairie homesteading with iron willed men and women carving their lives out of the unforgiving land through hard work and self sufficiency. Since I’ve often fancied myself as an iron willed and self sufficient lad I’ve had a hankering to install a rain barrel on my own homestead for some time.

On Saturday morning my wife and I showed up at the Culver school parking lot early to make sure we were in line for one of the free (there’s that word again) barrels. There was a nice festive air to the day. Tables were set up with rain barrel literature, cupcakes and refreshments. We met friends and neighbors, several village representatives and a number of Coca-Cola employees who were ready to discuss both the event and the benefits and uses of the rain barrels. The barrels, it turns out, were repurposed white plastic syrup containers, which at 55 gallons were an easy to handle size.

A few of the Coca-Cola people spoke about the event and demonstrated how to use the barrel. Then we all got back into our cars and lined up to get our barrels. Ours fit nicely into the back seat of the old Malibu so I didn’t have to tap too much into my iron willed self-sufficiency and figure out a way to get it home.

The stark white barrel stood out a little too much against the brick of our house and we decided to paint it a dark green. The cost of the primer and paint plus the 2’x2’ patio stone I bought as a base added up to a little more than I thought I’d pay going into the project, but it was small price to pay for lots of “free” water.  After a couple of coats of paint, leveling the patio stone, installing the barrel and hooking it up to the gutter downspout, I was good to go. I felt so at one with nature that I just broke out a lawn chair, popped open a Bud Light, I mean Diet Coke, and contemplated my new found filial relationship with Mother Earth.

I’ve already watered my plants several times from rain barrel water and I’ve diverted the runoff well away from the house solving a water accumulation problem I’ve had with the old downspout.  I almost can’t wait for the next storm cloud to break. I like the whole rain barrel idea so much that I am thinking of a couple more for other areas around the house. I don’t know how much it really affects overall global water conservation but just filling up the watering cans from my own rain barrel and passing along God’s irrigation to my tomato, green pepper and begonia plants is so cool that it’s enough for me. I give a big thank you to Coca-Cola and I encourage them to continue to recycle their syrup barrels into rain barrels and to offer them to Niles residents.  A cupcake now and then is always nice too.