Wanna laugh ?
Today , as a break from making a quarry engine , I decided to make a couple of quarry slate wagons , one plastic , the other brass , both Slater’s kits , both beautiful. So , there I was with a 70w soldering iron doing the arty bit when I put the iron down whilst still looking at my superb work , and missed the iron stand .
The iron slowly rolled across the table and fell off the edge just as the movement caught my eye .
I shall never understand why I did what I did next .
I grabbed the iron in mid flight .At the same instant ,I heard a hiss ,and sanity returned in time for me to drop the bloody thing again , and quick . It hit the floor and sat there with a malevolent look on its face , slowly burning a hole which gave off a pleasant wood smell like a barbecue–by this time the smell from my hand was joining in with the delicate aroma of burned pigskin . Not being in the mood for culinary comparisons , I said "Oh , Dear , I have burned my hand , what a silly thing to do ". … I then put my hand in a bowl of cold water which happened to be there ready to wash my soldering job in . I then had the problem , how to pick up the iron , now smouldering quite happily on the floor , and still keep my hand in the luxurious cool of the bowl . This problem was exacerbated by my being disabled ,thus unable to perform the contortions of a Houdini as necessary to extricate myself .
Brilliance suddenly asserted itself . I took my wet hand and sprinkled the water on the floor to stop the smoke , which it did quite effectively ,accompanied by a loud bang as the fuses blew because of the iron being an electric one . At this point , I lost my reason , and grabbed the cable at the socket end in order to drag the iron off the floor . The iron then swung into my leg , causing a smell of trouser to mingle with the aforementioned wood and pigskin .
I cannot finish the models because I have so much plaster on my hands . My son mended the fuse when he popped home to see if i was OK ,
his comment that my hands were now safe being insulated by plasters was , I think , uncalled for .