--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: taste failure in the tap water," description: "\"“taste failure in the tap water,”\" — Sherman Alexie" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af2/sherman-alexie-444_failure_taste-failure-in-the-tap-water-2463156_2463156.png" --- # taste failure in the tap water, ![“taste failure in the tap water,” quote by Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af2/sherman-alexie-444_failure_taste-failure-in-the-tap-water-2463156_2463156.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af2/sherman-alexie-444_failure_taste-failure-in-the-tap-water-2463156_2463156.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af2/sherman-alexie-444_failure_taste-failure-in-the-tap-water-2463156_2463156.png) > ““taste failure in the tap water,”” [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker laments that even basic needs like clean water are compromised, symbolizing broader systemic failures. **In simple terms:** Basic needs are failing. Key Takeaway Advocate for clean water. Themes environment social justice inequality health Mood concerned urgent Type activist reflective When to use this quote - urban planning - community activism - personal health Key Concepts systemic neglect resource scarcity public policy Questions to Reflect On - What policies ensure safe water? - How does this reflect larger inequities? A Different Perspective Solutions require collective effort. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Failure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failure/) [Failure Tap](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failure-tap-679304/) [Tap water](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tap-water/) [Taste](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/taste/) [Taste Failure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/taste-failure-349442/) [Water](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/water/) ## Related quotes > [Being able to taste failure, it makes you kind of want to throw up. It makes you just hate the game.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerrit-cole/being-able-to-taste-failure-it-makes-you-kind-of-want-to-throw-up-it/) [Gerrit Cole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerrit-cole/) > [I like that Brita makes tap water taste good, so you don't need to spend money or waste plastic with bottled water.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-curry/i-like-that-brita-makes-tap-water-taste-good-so-you-don-t-need-to/) [Stephen Curry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-curry/) > [I have always been a big advocate of tap water-not because I think it harmless but because the idea of purchasing water extracted from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-steingraber/i-have-always-been-a-big-advocate-of-tap-water-not-because-i-think-it/) [Sandra Steingraber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-steingraber/) > [In the cafe bathroom drinking free tap water Thinking; "Damn, I should've been a better father to my daughter"](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/slug/in-the-cafe-bathroom-drinking-free-tap-water-thinking-damn-i-should/) [Slug](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/slug/) > [“With a century and change between the 1880 convention and now, I’ll admit I rolled my eyes at the ideological hairsplitting, wondering how a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-vowell/with-a-century-and-change-between-the-1880-convention-and-now-i-ll/) [Sarah Vowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-vowell/) > [Though it may be more romantic to picture the bereaved as gaunt, I imagine you can grieve as efficiently with chocolates as with tap…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lionel-shriver/though-it-may-be-more-romantic-to-picture-the-bereaved-as-gaunt-i/) [Lionel Shriver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lionel-shriver/) > [Forget bottled water; tap water is just as good! Pour it into a reusable water bottle, and always have fresh water on the go…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ashlan-gorse-cousteau/forget-bottled-water-tap-water-is-just-as-good-pour-it-into-a/) [Ashlan Gorse Cousteau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ashlan-gorse-cousteau/) > [“It's interesting that penny-pinching is an accepted defense for toxic food habits, when frugality so rarely rules other consumer domains. The majority of Americans…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-kingsolver/it-s-interesting-that-penny-pinching-is-an-accepted-defense-for-toxic/) [Barbara Kingsolver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-kingsolver/) > [I had a very simple, unremarkable and happy life. And I grew up in a very small town. And so my life was made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ishmael-beah/i-had-a-very-simple-unremarkable-and-happy-life-and-i-grew-up-in-a/) [Ishmael Beah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ishmael-beah/) > [“You don't find the concept of illicit love at all engaging?” “The concept, maybe. But in literature? That's like ordering a glass of tap…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nenia-campbell/you-don-t-find-the-concept-of-illicit-love-at-all-engaging-the/) [Nenia Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nenia-campbell/) > [I drive a hybrid, moving into an electric car. I only drink tap water, never consume food that's travelled.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nassim-nicholas-taleb/i-drive-a-hybrid-moving-into-an-electric-car-i-only-drink-tap-water/) [Nassim Nicholas Taleb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nassim-nicholas-taleb/) > [“Bottled water is not better than tap water. As you can tell, I’m quite passionate about water being your beverage of choice. 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I leave the faucet open and know what it’s like to have my fingers around a minuscule…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kharla-m-brillo/this-is-how-my-day-usually-goes-i-leave-the-faucet-open-and-know-what/) [Kharla M. Brillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kharla-m-brillo/) ## More by Sherman Alexie > [“He says the earth is an oval marble that nobody can win. He says the sky is not blue and the grass is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/he-says-the-earth-is-an-oval-marble-that-nobody-can-win-he-says-the/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [“Now, in the old days, Indians used to be forgiving of any kind of eccentricity. In fact, weird people were often celebrated. Epileptics were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/now-in-the-old-days-indians-used-to-be-forgiving-of-any-kind-of/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [Since Jesus was human then he most assuredly farted and burped. 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I think most of that has become racially based, and people don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/i-don-t-think-there-s-a-whole-lot-of-class-literature-at-all-i-think/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [She wanted to be buried in a coffin filled with used paperbacks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/she-wanted-to-be-buried-in-a-coffin-filled-with-used-paperbacks/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [“Is there really a difference between that killing and this killing? Does God approve of some killing and not other killing? 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So, yes, fundamentalist assholes can also…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/my-parents-banned-nothing-though-the-christian-fundamentalists-in-my/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [“Or maybe I could have anesthetized myself with homework and extra credit and binge-reading.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/or-maybe-i-could-have-anesthetized-myself-with-homework-and-extra/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [“Dear wife, I'm sorry that I am mysteriously incapable of folding clean laundry, but I iron, oh, I iron. Sweetheart, I'll make your white…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/dear-wife-i-m-sorry-that-i-am-mysteriously-incapable-of-folding-clean/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [“Gordy,” I said. “I need to talk to you." "I don't have time," he said. 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So I think there's some strong identification for women, and their political and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/i-think-that-white-women-are-more-apt-to-read-laterally-so-i-think/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) [Explore all 546 Sherman Alexie quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) ## More Failure quotes > [When you do things they're absolutely right at that time for you and it can always teach you something about yourself. You can take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kym-marsh/when-you-do-things-they-re-absolutely-right-at-that-time-for-you-and/) [Kym Marsh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kym-marsh/) > [Failures happen. You can't cry over them. You just take it in your stride because you know that you have done your best... Sometimes,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/divya-dutta/failures-happen-you-can-t-cry-over-them-you-just-take-it-in-your/) [Divya Dutta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/divya-dutta/) > [No one is completely unhappy at the failure of his best friend.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/groucho-marx/no-one-is-completely-unhappy-at-the-failure-of-his-best-friend/) [Groucho Marx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/groucho-marx/) > [“Rhiannon's Law #28: If you're going to fuck up, be sure to fuck up good and proper. Nothing makes failure acceptable, so you might…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/rhiannon-s-law-28-if-you-re-going-to-fuck-up-be-sure-to-fuck-up-good/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Failure is a part of life and you have to learn to deal with it. Failure is something that is part of life's cycle…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-powell/failure-is-a-part-of-life-and-you-have-to-learn-to-deal-with-it/) [Colin Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-powell/) > [If my child had prejudice in his head, I'd be ashamed. I would see it as my failure as a parent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/if-my-child-had-prejudice-in-his-head-i-d-be-ashamed-i-would-see-it/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [First action was a mistake. What about the second? third? fourth and fifth?...Mehn you are bad...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/first-action-was-a-mistake-what-about-the-second-third-fourth-and/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [God's love never fail :)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/god-s-love-never-fail/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Don’t you just hate nights like that, when you think over every mistake you’ve made, every hurt you’ve received, every bit of meanness you’ve…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlaine-harris/don-t-you-just-hate-nights-like-that-when-you-think-over-every/) [Charlaine Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlaine-harris/) > [“Our failure to understand another being's inner reality doesn't make that reality any less real, or any less valuable to that being. (p.255)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-schulz/our-failure-to-understand-another-being-s-inner-reality-doesn-t-make/) [Kathryn Schulz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-schulz/) > [I hope that the Palestinians don't make the mistake of unleashing a new intifada. They've tried it twice before, and the consequences were bad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-segev/i-hope-that-the-palestinians-don-t-make-the-mistake-of-unleashing-a/) [Tom Segev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-segev/) > [Don't take too much comfort in the fact that you're successful today because tomorrow could bring failure. There's no surety in life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-savage/don-t-take-too-much-comfort-in-the-fact-that-you-re-successful-today/) [Michael Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-savage/) > [“It took me years to learn to sit at my desk for more than two minutes at a time, to put up with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erica-jong/it-took-me-years-to-learn-to-sit-at-my-desk-for-more-than-two-minutes/) [Erica Jong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erica-jong/) > [failure in the theater is more public, more brilliant, more unreal than in any other field.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lillian-hellman/failure-in-the-theater-is-more-public-more-brilliant-more-unreal-than/) [Lillian Hellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lillian-hellman/) > [As we are coming to the end of the year, I want you to forget about the past, the failure, the negative thoughts or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/as-we-are-coming-to-the-end-of-the-year-i-want-you-to-forget-about/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Browse all 27,498 Failure quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failure/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“taste failure in the tap water,”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Sherman Alexie" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/taste-failure-in-the-tap-water/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Failure" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/taste-failure-in-the-tap-water/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af2/sherman-alexie-444_failure_taste-failure-in-the-tap-water-2463156_2463156.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af2/sherman-alexie-444_failure_taste-failure-in-the-tap-water-2463156_2463156.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af2/sherman-alexie-444_failure_taste-failure-in-the-tap-water-2463156_2463156.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“taste failure in the tap water,” — Sherman Alexie", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Sherman Alexie", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“taste failure in the tap water,”", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/taste-failure-in-the-tap-water/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/taste-failure-in-the-tap-water/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```