"I really don't think anyone in Clapham is going to be setting fire to the water coming out of their taps," I tell you, adding, "No, your house isn't going to tumble into some newly created abyss".
Sometime in the middle of the night, the television turns back on, the lights flash open and the taps start running again.
And with that, Percy - who's listening to the interview - taps his watch and signals it's time to say goodbye.
About 80% of Lagos's piped water supplies are thought to be stolen, only 5% of people receive it in their houses, taps are often dry, sanitation is non-existent across much of the metropolis and the hospitals are full of people suffering diarrheal and other water-borne diseases.
Leading shares fell to their lowest level for two months, as fears that the US Federal Reserve would soon turn off the money taps refused to go away.
The final passage, however, is also a flawless rendering of the real-life miracle of snowfall, a few light taps upon the window ushering in a flurry of some of the most beautiful prose ever printed.
Denman said as soon as the TFA was enacted "the taps were turned off" on specialty timber supply.
Hiles would happily renew the deal, "but if in three years' time they are digging up half the area and flames are firing from the taps, we'd obviously think again," he jokes.
Idea: The Hippo water roller is a drum that can be rolled on the ground, making it easier for those without access to taps to haul larger amounts of water faster.
Its minimalism taps into a more optimistic idea of architecture, as does its erstwhile politics.
Simone Bresi-Ando is the founder of I'mPossible, a networking and mentoring group for women of colour, but her latest project has her asking women to fill out a survey which taps into every part of their lives.
