Mrs Parsons asks Winston to fix the sink

Winston opens the door and finds Mrs Parsons, a colourless, crushed-looking woman, asking him to look at her blocked kitchen sink. He follows her into the Parsons' flat, which is dingy and full of children's games impedimenta. The kitchen sink is full of filthy greenish water that smells worse than ever of cabbage. Winston kneels down and examines the angle-joint of the pipe, hating the manual work. He removes a clot of human hair that has blocked the pipe, cleaning his fingers as best he can in cold water. The incident shows the decay of Victory Mansions and the petty irritations of daily life under the Party.