It's hot and dry, we get that. The lake is looking more like the river it was rather than the vast aquatic playground it should be and lawns are brown. Most of them anyway.

Drive around any neighborhood and you can tell who The Joneses are, with their thick, green, well-watered lawns, and those who are just trying to keep up with them, with their dry, brown, dusty patch that used to be landscaped (unless they had their lawn painted, but that's another column).

Austin watering restrictions, that currently limit watering to just twice each week (with days set according to your house number), are about to become more extreme as the city moves to Stage 2 Watering Restrictions the day after Labor day.

In Stage 2, homes may water only once each week. Once a week is not enough to keep landscaping and some species of trees alive. Although you can stand out in your yard in 110-degree heat and hand water as long as you can stand it, most people don't have such fortitude. Not that we are advocating for wasteful water use—we're not—but landscaping will die.

Further, cheaters should beware. The city will step-up their enforcement and is encouraging neighbors to narc on neighbors by calling 3-1-1. The fine for illegal watering is $475.

Here's the thing though, re-sodding an average yard — about 1500 sq. ft. (a yard 50 feet wide by 30 feet deep) will cost about $600 (0.25 per sq. ft. for sod, 0.15 for labor) and that does not include replacing bushes or trees that die. So if you're a gambler, or if you have a much bigger yard... just sayin'.

Point being, Austin needs a more reliable water plan beyond sucking the Colorado River basin (out of Lake Austin) dry, and builders need to start making xeriscapes the norm, as they do in Arizona, rather than planting thirsty St. Augustine grass. It's time to have a bigger conversation about water use beyond saying "don't use water."

Stage 2 Watering Restrictions include:

• Watering allowed 1 day per week for all Austin Water customers
• Hand-watering allowed anytime
• No automatic-irrigation after 10 a.m. on designated watering day
• Vehicle washing on designated day before 10 a.m.
• No charity carwashes
• No automatic fill valves for pools or ponds
• No outdoor fountains except to provide aeration for aquatic life
• No water to be served at restaurants unless requested
• No washing of sidewalks, driveways, parking areas or other paved areas