Saturday, February 6, 2010

31 ways to electrocute yourself


Safety first.

I’m back in Zambia, right smack in the middle of the rainy season. The rains have been good for farmers ( thumbs up).

But remember that blog post I wrote about our road being paved? Well, it never happened. (thumbs down). Over the last month and a half, the rains have turned the road into a mogul run and river. It has also turned my house into an island. I on arrived to find that I needed a boat to get to my front door; water up to my shins surrounding the entire house with no dry path.

But hey, water doesn’t stop anyone. Not even the welders and metal fabricators who use our driveway to manufacture door frames and window frames.

Check it out. That’s real time metal working and welding in water.





‘Ah, aren’t you afraid of electrocution?’ I ask Innocent, one of the guys.

Innocent, innocently and with confidence answers “ ah, no, these wires, they are insulated, no problems, they can be immersed in water”. The wires don’t seem to be anything special to me, but hey, what do I know?

I found a site on the internet ‘30 ways to die of electrocution’ – which showcases shows old illustrations of situations where one can be electrocuted.


Well, I think I have number 31.

Thursday, February 4, 2010

anyone lose a dog?

I’m sitting here in Johannesburg airport, looking out at rain POURING down on the tarmac and wincing at lightning bolts as they fill the sky.

Just across the way are some airport guys, dressed in their dark blue and neon green vests. They're running fast while chasing a dog that is running faster.

The little guy is darting in and out of luggage carts, and past 3 airport vehicles flashing yellow lights. I hope that the dog doesn’t get struck by one of these lightening bolts.

That would be unfortunate.