Philosophy Now Forum

New stupid thing I never did before: cut the wrong corner on a bag of milk. Once open, those things are bugger to turn around!

Stupid thing I do regularly: hit my head on the car door, getting in.

Stupid thing I only did once: steadying a board with my knee, drilled through both.

Possibly the stupidest thing I've ever done was to electrocute myself when wiring in a new power point without first turning off the electricity at the main switchboard. While I was performing this perfectly routine task which I'd done many times before my wife had the audacity to question whether I actually knew what I was doing. In my customary didactic style I then proceeded to explain to her which wires needed to be joined to which and in the course of my explanation I managed to touch both the active and neutral wires simultaneously. The shock threw me against the wall and almost dislocated my shoulder but the old girl was completely unfazed by this. After checking that I was in fact still alive she said this: "Since you seem to have everything under control I might just leave you to it".

I had a similar experience.
I was adding an inline master switch to my Atari 520ST, circa 1984.
Forgetting I still had it plugged into the 240v supply I striped the ends of the wires with my teeth.
I only realised my mistake when the second wire, touching my moustache, whilst the other was firmly in my mouth, made a slight crackle.
Luckily I was not hurt, and I realised my mistake.
I could so easily have stripped both wires at the same time, or grounded my self through my front teeth.

Skip wrote:
Stupid thing I only did once: steadying a board with my knee, drilled through both.

Hope it had reverse.

Needed to clean bottom of lawn mower. Instead of turning it off and then unhooking the spark plug, I just went for the plug, and then on my arse.

Dalek Prime wrote:Needed to clean bottom of lawn mower. Instead of turning it off and then unhooking the spark plug, I just went for the plug, and then on my arse.

12v might be shocking but it ain't gonna kill ya.

Walker wrote:Once I joined karma with some assholes.

It was in a run-down row house, long ago, in a big fucking midwestern city.

Went there to score.

Biker gang. I was wearing a suit.

Fucker got in my face. Standing over me with fists balled up after circling the room awhile watching me. Thought I was enforcement, probably because it was after work and I was wearing a suit.

Dumb fucker thought I was spy. Wearing a suit. In a biker gang.

I ain't Pee Wee.

I stood up. When I was done telling the asshole all about his assumptions, he sat down. The bikers sat around watching. The drunk who brought me had passed out on the filthy hardwood floor. I had just met him. I didn’t want to leave him. I told them, I don’t trust you fuckers to take care of him.

They assured me they wouldn’t rob him, that they knew him.

A woman followed me out. She wanted to go with me. I didn’t even know her.

I was a young man ready to lay waste. Young and dumb.

I was lucky they didn’t kill me. Some punk-ass bikers they were.

God’s Truth.

And in another time and place in a bar, I just broke the fucker’s nose for him.

Young and dumb. Different these days. Now they just shoot you.

Why am I not surprised?
Now you are little different, just not young anymore.
If it had been my crew you'd have been tied to the back of the truck and dragged down the road running like a chicken.

No pride in being a jerk, Hobbes. Only for edification purposes, for the greater good.

Bob almost fried my computer. Took forever to restore.

Your crew?

Rock star gangsta you are.

Hobbes' Choice wrote:12v might be shocking but it ain't gonna kill ya.

As it happens, spark plugs require a minimum of 12 000v, but the duration is very short and the ampage very low. It hurts, but won't kill you.

Walker wrote:No pride in being a jerk, Hobbes. Only for edification purposes, for the greater good.

Bob almost fried my computer. Took forever to restore.

Your crew?

Rock star gangsta you are.

MY "crew" : another time, another life.

What do you mean "bob almost fried my computer"

uwot wrote:

Hobbes' Choice wrote:12v might be shocking but it ain't gonna kill ya.

As it happens, spark plugs require a minimum of 12 000v, but the duration is very short and the ampage very low. It hurts, but won't kill you.

True, those coils make things exciting.

Hobbes' Choice wrote:

uwot wrote:

Hobbes' Choice wrote:12v might be shocking but it ain't gonna kill ya.

As it happens, spark plugs require a minimum of 12 000v, but the duration is very short and the ampage very low. It hurts, but won't kill you.

True, those coils make things exciting.

In my defense, it was my stupidity I was writing about, not the death potential.

I'm sure I've done plenty of foolish things, like pulling horses tails, but I've either escaped the consequences, or sufficiently forgotten about them.

Dalek Prime wrote:

Hobbes' Choice wrote:

uwot wrote: As it happens, spark plugs require a minimum of 12 000v, but the duration is very short and the ampage very low. It hurts, but won't kill you.

True, those coils make things exciting.

In my defense, it was my stupidity I was writing about, not the death potential.

I'm sure I've done plenty of foolish things, like pulling horses tails, but I've either escaped the consequences, or sufficiently forgotten about them.

I'm no stranger to the feel of a hot plug myself. One way to find out why your car is misfiring is to touch a shorting lead!!! Ouch.

Knew an electrician who was dealing with stuff in the ceiling. His buddy had to kick the ladder out from under him to save his life. You can look okay afterwards, but your organs may have been slightly cooked.

Actually Hobbes, now you have me wondering what the voltage is on a defibrillator? Anyone know the specs?