[Elecraft] Stupid, stupid, stupid - OT

[Joe Malloy]

Darwin, Keith wrote:

>Worst of all was the time I came in from playing outside and found my 25
>watt soldering iron on my bed.  The iron was on and the bedspread was
>burned / melted under the iron.  I had apparently left it plugged in
>when I went outside hours earlier.
>

Soldering irons! That reminds me of another goof-up: I was working as a 
radio technician for the city of Binghamton, NY, and was, of course, 
quite used (ha!) to soldering.  One day, while repairing some old boat 
anchor of a VHF public works radio I suddenly smelled and odd smell, it 
almost (!) smelled like human flesh....well, it *was* flesh -- mine: I 
had put my left hand down on top of the plugged-in iron (some Weller 
unit) and apparently missed any nerve endings that might have reacted to 
the heat.  I bear the scar of a Weller tip and barrel to this day -- and 
I've never done that again.

Ah, the good ole days!

73,

Joe, W2RBA