[ WP ] We 're used to fresh water , internet , telecoms , electricity , etc as `` essential services '' to our homes . Write a story about life in a world with an additional , or different set of `` essential services '' to homes .

`` Mom! The soup nozzle's broken again!'' 
 
 It had been 50 years since the enactment of the so-called `` Universal Sustenance Act'' and for the most part, it had been fine. 
 
 What had started as `` universal basic income'' in theory had become `` universal basic services'' of which the USA was but a single act. 
 
 As the soup networks rolled out, global starvation slowly dwindled while legions of contractors profited from the intricate and extensive array of heated and cooled pipes, pressure vessels, pumphouses and rehydration facilities. 
 
 But that was 50 years ago, when the soup-network was seen as merely a supplement to already-full stomachs. 
 
 Then, the `` powers that be'' moved onto other things. Us `` Soup-heads'' became seen as second-class citizens as resources and jobs for the lower classes dwindled. 
 
 So we dealt with a range of increasingly common defects. Blockages, when the soup-head caught a chunk or two. Infestation; soup was meant to be held at near-freezing temperatures in the high-pressure of the transit lines. But of course that used extra power, and often, we'd get sick on rotten soup. Now, more recently, some scandals had arisen around the source of the ingredients... 
 
 `` Just blow into it honey!'' I shouted back. 
 
 `` I do n't wan na! Eww!'' 
 
 `` Just do it!'' 
 
 She blew hard into the soup-nozzle, there was a groan as the back-pressure cleared the blockage, and then the now-typical stream of black foulness poured from the pipes and into the sink. I could see she was on the verge of vomiting, just from the smell. 
 
 `` Ok, now let it run for a bit ok... Swish some water in your mouth!'' 
 
 Eventually the soup ran clear again, a thick hearty broth of protein and vegetables. 
 
 I shuddered at the thought of taking another mouthful. 
 
 The machines would n't let us starve, but their calculated approach to our continued survival was almost enough to drive you to the end.
