Friday, January 14, 2005
Beware: I am a Walking Fire Hazard
I seem to be a subconscious pyromaniac. First, there was the whole episode of catching my hair on fire during a burlesque dance class. Though fortunately, it lit up in flames and them burned out on its own before I'd even realized what had happened.
Yesterday afternoon, I had another incident with fire. Our light switch in our bathroom turns on the light and the fan simultaneously. Our apartment was damn cold as I was getting ready for work. I didn't want to undress with the fan running - and instead wanted the bathroom to heat up with the steam of the shower, so I lit candles for light instead. As I was washing up in the shower, I heard a loud crackle and thought, "Huh, something must have fallen." I thought that was odd, since I was in the bathroom alone, but didn't think much of it. I decided to peak my head outside the shower just to take a look. I saw the light from the candle flame and was about to close the shower curtain again when I realized - that flame was much much larger than it should be for a candle. I then realized that the mirror above the sink had caught on fire! The mirror was framed in a faux gold plastic and the flame was at least two feet tall!
For a second, I thought - do I call 911? But then I thought the whole apartment might catch fire by the time they came. We have a fire extinguisher in our kitchen, but for some reason using that didn't even occur to me. Instead I remembered the plot in a book C is reading, The Burn Diaries. In the book, the main character sets himself on fire as a method of committing suicide. It hurts too much, however, so he jumps in the shower to put the flames out.
I jumped out of the shower and did an impromptu nude dance carrying the burning mirror back to the shower with me. I stuck it under the shower and watched relieved as the flames began to shrink. I then flipped the mirror over and realized the back was still burning! I was certain that I'd never get the fire under control.
Fortunately, I did get the fire out.
To think... I used to be a bit of an adrenaline junkie! This adrenaline hit was far from fun. But it sure did wake me up! No need for Irish Spring soap this morning!
Yesterday afternoon, I had another incident with fire. Our light switch in our bathroom turns on the light and the fan simultaneously. Our apartment was damn cold as I was getting ready for work. I didn't want to undress with the fan running - and instead wanted the bathroom to heat up with the steam of the shower, so I lit candles for light instead. As I was washing up in the shower, I heard a loud crackle and thought, "Huh, something must have fallen." I thought that was odd, since I was in the bathroom alone, but didn't think much of it. I decided to peak my head outside the shower just to take a look. I saw the light from the candle flame and was about to close the shower curtain again when I realized - that flame was much much larger than it should be for a candle. I then realized that the mirror above the sink had caught on fire! The mirror was framed in a faux gold plastic and the flame was at least two feet tall!
For a second, I thought - do I call 911? But then I thought the whole apartment might catch fire by the time they came. We have a fire extinguisher in our kitchen, but for some reason using that didn't even occur to me. Instead I remembered the plot in a book C is reading, The Burn Diaries. In the book, the main character sets himself on fire as a method of committing suicide. It hurts too much, however, so he jumps in the shower to put the flames out.
I jumped out of the shower and did an impromptu nude dance carrying the burning mirror back to the shower with me. I stuck it under the shower and watched relieved as the flames began to shrink. I then flipped the mirror over and realized the back was still burning! I was certain that I'd never get the fire under control.
Fortunately, I did get the fire out.
To think... I used to be a bit of an adrenaline junkie! This adrenaline hit was far from fun. But it sure did wake me up! No need for Irish Spring soap this morning!
Comments:
I wonder if a burning mirror means anything in your life right now.
On a lighter note, that story truly made me LOL! You are a scream! Great writing!
On a lighter note, that story truly made me LOL! You are a scream! Great writing!
drkmc - you can't tease me like that! I want to know what happened. Though thank god you are writing that comment, so I know you are at least still alive!
So now i know what happens when you stick your arm into water with a hair dryer. yikes~! I'm glad you didn't end up with burns or hearing loss or brain damage or anything like that. How scary! I won't be trying that trick at home!
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