I wanted to run my finger along its length. But as soon as I touched it, a powerful surge of electricity stunned me. I jerked my finger back. I should have known there would be a catch. Lane, whose do-it-yourself skills had just begun to impress me, would later explain that the electric current was necessary for the pipe to heat water on its way up. The shower was something of a mixed blessing. He warned us not to touch that metal tube, “especially if you’re barefoot and wet,” two things that were unavoidable in the shower.
