Thursday Morning – Check Your Invoices

Last month we told about a scam that is being tried out on fire departments across the U. S.  There is a shady outfit that calls itself Century Manufacturing from someplace in New York that is sending gallon jugs of liquid labeled Wetter Water to fire departments unsolicited and then billing them for $114 (price varies, but always close to that).  Apparently their hope is that whoever gets the invoices will assume that the chief ordered it and they will go ahead and pay it.  Sometimes the jerks phone first and try to generate a sale for several gallons and if the chief says "No" they go ahead and send one anyway along with the invoice.  If you missed this warning the first time around, then click HERE and HERE to review our initial lookouts.

After those postings we receive a few emails from other FD's that had experienced the same irritating contact with Century.  Yesterday another email arrived that I will share with you:

Just to let you know I received a bill for the free gallon of Water Wetter. It was half full due to being damaged in transit. The salesman called and since it was damaged he would send me another for free. This time I got a 2 gallon bucket. This was seven weeks after I talked to him when we were billed for four gallons and they will not take it back, so it is now in the hands of the Attorney General for Arkansas. Stay away from Century products.

This fire official's contact began right at the time of our first alert so he was already on guard for it, and his department isn't out any money on this one.  Make sure that your FD doesn't get slammed by these shysters and check your invoices before you pay them.  If any of you are contacted by this outfit, please write and let us know.

Before we start rummaging through the mail pile, we'd better get started with the equipment check.  You know where I'll be, then we'll meet back in  the day room.

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NHL Playoffs – Conference Finals

Last night's game in Madison Square Garden was a seat-gripper for fans of both teams.  New Jersey score the first goal just 2:43 into the game, added another one less than two minutes later, and by the midway point of the first period they had a 3-0 lead in what looked like a runaway in the making.  But the Rangers dug in and began a comeback by getting their first goal six minutes later.

The Rangers attack continued with a second goal just 32 seconds after the start of the 2nd period and then their 3rd unanswered goal was scored 17 seconds into the 3rd, tying the game up.  (Fans standing and cheering).  The game remained tied until the Devils scored their go-ahead goal with 4-½ minutes left in regulation.  The sealed the deal with an empty-netter at the end to take a 3-2 lead in the series and a chance to take it when they return home to Newark tomorrow night.

Western Conference – Los Angeles (8) vs. Phoenix (3)
Game One: Los Angeles – 4, Phoenix – 2.
Game 2: Los Angeles – 4, Phoenix – 0.
Game 3: Los Angeles – 2, Phoenix – 1.
Game 4 Phoenix – 2, Los Angeles – 0.
Game 5: Los Angeles – 4, Phoenix – 3 OT.

Los Angeles wins series 4 games to 1.

Eastern Conference – New Jersey (6) vs. New York (1)
Game One: New York – 3, New Jersey – 0.
Game 2: New Jersey – 3, New York – 2
Game 3: New York – 3, New Jersey – 0.
Game 4: New Jersey – 4, New York – 1.
Game 5: New Jersey – 5, New York – 3.
Game 6: Friday 8 pm Eastern, NBCSN.

New Jersey Devils lead series 3 games to 2.

Highlights from last night's game:

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Wednesday Morning – Stop and Think Before You Open Your Yap

Everybody in Fire and EMS is constantly thinking about our public image and trying to keep it "positive" in the minds of our citizens.  Even though we try our best to behave, once in a while somebody goes into action before they put their brain in gear and the results can undo a year's worth of good deeds in just seconds.  That's what happened in Union County, New Jersey, a few days ago when a police officer got a serious brain cramp and plunged his department, along with his chief, into a world-wide scorn.  Fox News sent this story out:

Frank Roder, a construction worker from the town of Winfield Park, had taken his son, Aidan, down to the Rahway River to feed ducks Thursday. But when he stopped briefly before settling on a parking space, the impatient boy jumped out and took off — straight toward a ledge 35 feet above the river, Roder recalled.

"He hopped out, and I thought that was OK, I was just going to park," Roder, 38, said, but "he just took off, made a beeline for the edge."

The panic-stricken father jumped out of the cab of his 2006 Jeep Commander and raced after the errant boy, catching him just feet from the edge.  That's when Aidan, eyes as big as saucers, looked behind Roder and said, "Um, Daddy …"

Roder turned in time to see the Jeep nosedive down the embankment and land in the muddy water.

Fox News

Roder hugged the boy and waited as Union County police converged on the scene over the next few hours. A crane pulled the Jeep out, and amazingly, it started right up, though Roder is pretty sure his insurance company will count it as totaled.

He was counting his blessings when a young cop approached him and handed him two tickets. One was for failure to produce the insurance card, which was somewhere in the waterlogged cab. The other was for failing to use his emergency brake.

That's not all.  The Loopy LEO then went so far to say that the man should have disregarded the sprinting moppet and "taken an extra five seconds" to set the parking brake.  Read the full story HERE to see how the police chief is trying to double-clutch his way out of the spotlight, but I don't think he's being very successful with that.

Maybe this cop does this sort of thing frequently, I don't know.  But somethin's gotta change soon now.  Just keep in mind, you are only a few seconds away from dropping into this sort of publicity quicksand if you don't keep your brain in gear all the time.

Let's use that sparkling brainpower now to get this equipment checked out.  I'm going to help sharpen our mental reflexes by getting some good, strong coffee going  before we meet back in the day room.  (Just don't tell anybody what you think about this.)

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NHL Playoffs – Conference Finals

The dark horse Los Angeles Kings and the Phoenix Coyotes put on a good show for the fans last night and played an exciting game that went into overtime.  Putting up six goals in regulation, they were tied 3-3 after two periods and then went scoreless in the third.  The OT winner came 17:42 in the first OT for the  4-3 win.  Phoenix had their chances to win with a 5-on-3 power play in the third period and a power play during the sudden-death overtime.  But the Kings' defense dug in an earned their pay holding off the attacks.

The Kings came into the playoffs seeded last at #8 and marched on through knocking off the top 3 seeds and only losing 2 games total in the first three rounds.  They have a week to rest, heal and get rusty before the first game of the Cup championships round on May 30 versus the winner of the Rangers – Devils series that resumes tonight.  That matchup is tied at 2 games apiece and is assured of playing at least two more games.

Western Conference – Los Angeles (8) vs. Phoenix (3)
Game One: Los Angeles – 4, Phoenix – 2.
Game 2: Los Angeles – 4, Phoenix – 0.
Game 3: Los Angeles – 2, Phoenix – 1.
Game 4 Phoenix – 2, Los Angeles – 0.
Game 5: Los Angeles – 4, Phoenix – 3 OT.

Los Angeles wins series 4 games to 1.

Eastern Conference – New Jersey (6) vs. New York (1)
Game One: New York – 3, New Jersey – 0.
Game 2: New Jersey – 3, New York – 2
Game 3: New York – 3, New Jersey – 0.
Game 4: New Jersey – 4, New York – 1.
Game 5: Wednesday 8 pm Eastern, NBCSN.
Game 6: Friday 8 pm Eastern, NBCSN.

Series tied at two games apiece.

Highlights from last night's game

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Tuesday Morning – Up, Up and Away

There are so many interesting things happening these days that we just can't cover them all, especially off-topic events.  One of those is the first-ever launch of a privately-owned space rocket early this morning.  The launch of the Space X Falcon 9 rocket was supposed to take place Saturday, but a faulty rocket valve shut off the countdown at the last second.  You may have seen a quick blurb about it on the news that evening.

But the valve was replaced and the ship went up successfully at 3:44 am Eastern from Cape Canaveral.  This also launches a new era in space exploration and travel with most future projects like this one being financed by private interests.  They are filling the void left by NASA as the government's space program is being defunded as more cash is getting diverted to reward wealthy political campaign contributors.  The private space industry is the future of space travel and it got off the ground (so to speak) this morning with little notice by most people.

One of the interesting sidelight stories of this launch that is carrying equipment and replacement supplies to the international space station is a small canister of private cargo.  This dedicated parcel contains bits of creamated remains (ashes, if you will) of 308 people, including two well-known celebrities.  One of them is those of actor James Doohan who starred on the long-lived tv and movie series Star Trek.  He is the man who played the role of Scotty, that guy who was constantly "beaming up" Capt. Kirk and his workmates from space places back to the Enterprise.

The other notable is one of the early astronauts Gordon Cooper.  He was one of the Mercury project, and later Gemini program, astronauts in the 1960's, a true space pioneer.  ABC News tells us where they were riding on this final mission:

These ashes are in a canister stored in the second stage of the Falcon 9 rocket, which will separate from the Dragon capsule nine minutes into flight. If all goes as planned, the rocket will orbit the Earth for up to a year before it re-enters the atmosphere and burns up

Celestis' prices vary. A suborbital flight with a return to Earth starts at $1,000, the launch into Earth orbit is $3,000, and a trip to the Moon costs almost $10,000. If you really want to go where no man has gone before, a flight into deep space will run you almost $13,000.

You can read a good summary of the rocket and unmanned space capsule used in this flight on NDTV HERE.

"Beam me up, Scotty!"

The window is now open.

Our own window for getting the equipment checked is now open, so let's get started.  I'm a'headin' for the coffee pot to make sure all is ok there.  See you back in the day room.

Reminder:  Midnight tonight is the deadline for free downloading of the eBook 2 Weeks a Year?  Finding Humor While Deployed in Iraq, a paramedic's tale of his time as a medic in Iraq..  See yesterday's posting about it for information HERE.

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NHL Playoffs – Conference Finals

The New Jersey Devils tied their series with the Rangers last night with a convincing 4-1 win.  The Devils came out in full steam right off the bat and controlled the entire game from start to finish.  Their captain Zach Parise got two goals and the sluggish Rangers failed to score until there were barely more than five minutes left in the game.  The next game will be played in Madison Square Garden and should be a real corker worth watching.

Western Conference – Los Angeles (8) vs. Phoenix (3)
Game One: Los Angeles – 4, Phoenix – 2.
Game 2: Los Angeles – 4, Phoenix – 0.
Game 3: Los Angeles – 2, Phoenix – 1.
Game 4 Phoenix – 2, Los Angeles – 0.
Game 5: Tuesday 6 pm Pacific NBCSN.

Los Angeles leads series 3 games to 1.

Eastern Conference – New Jersey (6) vs. New York (1)
Game One: New York – 3, New Jersey – 0.
Game 2: New Jersey – 3, New York – 2
Game 3: New York – 3, New Jersey – 0.
Game 4: New Jersey  – 4, New York – 1.
Game 5: Wednesday 8 pm Eastern, NBCSN.

Series tied at two games apiece..

Highlights from Monday's game:

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Monday Morning – "Say Kids, What Week is This?"

This is EMS Week…. it began yesterday and runs through Saturday.  This year's theme is incorporated into the banner:

National EMS Week – May 20 – May 26

FossilMedic Mike Ward is keeping us abreast of the activities and pronouncements that are accompanying the focus during the week by posting a daily essay or news item each evening around 7 pm Eastern.  He began his series last night and the first installment is the posting immediately preceding the Lineup.  So be sure to scroll down beyond our morning greeting and see what he is leading off with.  While you're at it, keep on scrolling and catch up on the rest of the Sunday articles you may have missed.

The National EMS Week is sponsored by the American College of Emergency Physicians and you can read more about this year's program on their website HERE.  So if you are assigned to any unit, fire or EMS, that responds to medical emergencies, then check out the web page and be sure to keep up with Mike's daily postings.

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While we are talking about designated weeks, now is a good time to remind you of the upcoming Firehouse Expo 2012 that will be held in Baltimore in just under 2 months from now.

The week-long event includes training, conferences, lectures, and the always-popular Exhibit Hall.  The exhibit hall is open during the final three days of the Expo and for the 5th year running, Firegeezer and STATter911 will be sharing a both right on the central aisle in the heart of the action.

Dave and I will be looking forward to seeing you there again this year.  For me, this is one of my most-looked-forward-to weekends of the year.  I get a lot of enjoyment out of seeing and talking with our readers who stop by for a visit.  So mark your calendar now and begin making your plans.  A lot of people round up a group and ride down in the FD utility van, and use that department gasoline for the trip.

See you there!

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It's time to get the Monday equipment check started now, so let's get going.  I'm headed for the Bunn-O-Matic to make sure there's plenty of that life-extender for us.  See you back in the digital day room.

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NHL Playoffs – Conference Finals

Sunday afternoon the Phoenix Coyotes staved off a sweep by the underdog L. A. Kings by beating the Kings on their home ice, 2-0.  The next game will be back in Phoenix and they will be charged up in this must-win contest.  Now we'll see if Los Angeles is still on their improbable roll, of if their high-flying streak has been snapped.  Phoenix has a real challenge ahead, needing to win three more consecutive games to move on to the final round.  The Kings however only need to win one… and this will show us if they've still "got it."

Western Conference – Los Angeles (8) vs. Phoenix (3)
Game One: Los Angeles – 4, Phoenix – 2.
Game 2: Los Angeles – 4, Phoenix – 0.
Game 3: Los Angeles – 2, Phoenix – 1.
Game 4 Phoenix – 2, Los Angeles – 0.
Game 5:  Tuesday 6 pm Pacific NBCSN.

Los Angeles leads series 3 games to 1.

Eastern Conference – New Jersey (6) vs. New York (1)
Game One: New York – 3, New Jersey – 0.
Game 2: New Jersey – 3, New York – 2
Game 3: New York – 3, New Jersey – 0.
Game 4:  Monday, 8 pm Eastern NBCSN.

NY Rangers leads series 2 games to 1.

Highlights From Sunday's Game in Los Angeles

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Sunday Morning – Weekend Sports

Well, that "wonder horse" did it aqain yesterday.  At the Preakness Stakes in Baltimore, the 2nd leg of the famed Triple Crown series went off with 11 horses in the race, and it had the same story line as the Derby.  The slightly-shorter race (1/16th mile less) was still just barely long enough for I'll Have Another to come from the field and chase down Bodemeister, beathing him by a nose at the finish.

Deja vu in Baltimore  (Washington Post photo)

What more is there to say?  The final race of the series, the Belmont Stakes in Long Island will be held in three weeks on June 9.  You can betcha' that this will be a tv ratings-buster for sure.

You wanna watch yesterday's thrilling finish again?  Here:

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 Have you been watching the Live Hawk Cam from the University of Wisconsin?  We talked about this HERE eleven days ago on May 9 where we linked you to the live webcam set up to view the Red Tail Hawk's nest on a building ledge at the college.  At the time, the three chicks were little, white fluffy things barely able to move around the nest.

Since then, they have grown noticeably and are now well into the fledgeling stage of their life, showing most of their color in their feathers.  If you watch today you will see a lot of wing-stretching going on and a bit of strolling around the nest.

They seem to get along together pretty well, they haven't pushed one of their siblings out of the nest.  But they have established a pecking order with one chick definitely dominant over the others and one of them more or less standing to the outside and waiting to get the leavings at meal time.  Last evening Mama brought home fresh bunny rabbit for dinner.

During the next couple of days I expect to see a lot more and vigorous wing flapping going on as they get ready to take to the air and begin their hunting lessons.  If you haven't already, CLICK HERE to reach the webcam page and put it in your Favorites file for a couple of weeks.

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NHL Playoffs – Conference Finals

For the second time in three games, the Rangers blanked the Devils by a 3-0 score Saturday.  The game was scoreless after two periods and still up for grabs going into the final period.  But New York scored twice in two minutes early in the third at 3:19 and 5:16 to deflate the Devils and held on through the rest of the game, largely thanks to their goalie Henrik Lundqvist.  The third goal was an empty-netter that sealed the deal.

Western Conference – Los Angeles (8) vs. Phoenix (3)
Game One: Los Angeles – 4, Phoenix – 2.
Game 2: Los Angeles – 4, Phoenix – 0.
Game 3: Los Angeles – 2, Phoenix – 1.
Game 4 Sunday, 3 pm Eastern on NBC.

Los Angeles leads series 3 games to none.

Eastern Conference – New Jersey (6) vs. New York (1)
Game One: New York – 3, New Jersey – 0.
Game 2: New Jersey – 3, New York – 2
Game 3: New York  – 3, New Jersey – 0..

NY Rangers leads series 2 games to 1.

Saturday Rangers vs. Devils Game Highlights

Let's get started on our own highlights reel now and get this equipment checked out.  Sunday breakfast will be ready soon and I need to get some more coffee going.

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Saturday Morning

Did you read our posting in Thursday's Lineup about the upcoming annular eclipse of the sun tomorrow?  If you missed it, then CLICK HERE to catch up on it.  Especially if you live in the Southwest U. S. where it will be seen.

Fred Espinak image

Mark Donovan wants us to know that there will be some websites that will be live-streaming the "ring of fire" including NVO News.  You can go to their website HERE to get some good viewing tips and other related info, then tomorrow return for their netcast of the event.  Some other websites that will be live-streaming are:

• The National Park Service HERE.
• Slooh.com will be utilizing telescopes stationed from Japan to New Mexico to show the entire path of the eclipse HERE.
• Panasonic has a string of telescope cameras set up along the face and top of Mount Fuji in Japan to catch it right at the beginning.  That show will start TONIGHT at 6 pm Eastern and 3 pm Pacific HERE.

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NHL Playoffs – Conference Finals

Los Angeles continued its hot pace through the playoffs by winning their third game against the Coyotes and taking a commanding 3 games to none lead.  The Kings went into the playoffs seeded #8 and have torn up the competition beginning by knocking off the league's top-rated team Vancouver in the first round.  I will have to see if I can find out when the last time, if ever, the 8th-seeded team won the Stanley Cup.

Western Conference – Los Angeles (8) vs. Phoenix (3)
Game One: Los Angeles – 4, Phoenix – 2.
Game 2: Los Angeles – 4, Phoenix – 0.
Game 3:  Los Angeles – 2, Phoenix – 1.
Game 4 Sunday, 3 pm Eastern on NBC.

Los Angeles leads series 3 games to none.

Eastern Conference – New Jersey (6) vs. New York (1)
Game One: New York – 3, New Jersey – 0.
Game 2:  New Jersey – 3, New York – 2
Game 3: Saturday, 1 pm Eastern on NBC.

Series tied at one game each.

Kings vs. Coyotes Highlights from Game 3

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We'd better get our own highlights reel started now and get this equipment checked out.  I've got to make sure we have plenty of coffee when we get back to the day room.

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Friday Morning – Let's Go Shopping

Yes, that's right…. today is Friday and that means yesterday was Thursday.  Thursday is when our regular feature Looking Back is posted, but my addled brain lost track of the weekly progress and we missed it.  But worry no more.  It isn't missing, but only late and will be posted first thing this morning.  Sorry about the equipment failure, but all systems seem to be working ok this morning.

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Is J. C. Penney the next giant retailer to take a tumble?  If you regularly scan the business news pages, you probably saw that the department store chain's stocks took a plunge the other day that was their largest one-day drop in 40 years.  And Standard & Poor has put a "watch" on their credit rating now and dropped their listing down into junk status.  It was based on their first-quarter earnings that came in much lower than was projected.  The "experts" say that their sales dropped off primarily from a change in their marketing strategy that shifted from weekly sales promotions to an "everyday low pricing" policy.

My own opinion holds that another big part of their problem comes from having nearly all of their stores located in major shopping malls and those places, with a few notable exceptions, are bleeding customers and going out of popularity for a variety of reasons.  But I'm not writing them off yet.  They still have their catalogue business and have an online sales presence, plus a steady and reliable top office that usually doesn't make these kinds of mistakes that created this latest stumble.  They also have begun a movement to open smaller stand-alone stores in commercial districts, so I don't think they are anywhere near the fatal slide into collapse that Sears is in (as I talked about last year HERE), but they sure do need a rearrangement of their locations and access to their customers. 

James Cash Penney

Penney's is one of those retailers that is a commercial icon in our country that began in 1902 when James Cash Penney opened his first store in Wyoming.  We'll see what happens next.

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I guess by now most of you have heard about the latest detailed, scientific study that assures us that coffee is indeed good for you and has some properties that may lengthen your life span.  And this one says that caffeine has nothing to do with it, plus or minus.  These coffee-good, coffee-bad studies have been alternating back and forth for 50 years now.  You can bet that in about ten or fifteen years a contradictory study will be released that warns us about terrible and irreversible damage to our brains and bodies if we keep drinking coffee.  When I was working, we always greeted these "latest studies" with a bit of mirth and skepticism.  If it was a postive study, then we would gather around the Bunn-O-Matic and toast the enlightened scientist who reconfirmed what we always knew.  If it was a negative study, then we would gather around the coffee maker and remind each other that a good cuppa will help us get through the waiting period before the next report arrived to reverse everything the latest one proclaimed.

We need to grab our GeezerCups now and get this equipment checked out for this morning.  I'll get a fresh pot going before we meet back in the day room.

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Thursday Morning – Look Up!

For you sky gazers out there in the Southwestern U. S., there is a rare opportunity coming up this Sunday to view a solar phenomenon known as an "annular eclipse" of the sun.  Unlike a total eclipse where the moon's shadow completely covers the view of the sun, an annular eclipse occurs when the moon is the perfect distance away from the earth where the shadow is slightly smaller than the sun's display and there is a slight ring of light showing around the edge of the shadow.

This composite photograph taken in 2005 by Fred Espenak shows
the view slightly before, during, and slightly after an annular eclipse.

Sunday's display begins in eastern Asia and crosses the North Pacific Ocean and ends in the western United States in the Texas panhandle.  The shadow will be entering the southern Oregon and northern Caifornia coastline at 01:23 GMT, which by my (unreliable) calculation is 5:23 pm Pacific time.  The map below that is provided by NASA shows the path of the eclipse and when it reaches Texas, the inevitable sunset ends the entire episode about 3-½ hours after it began in China.

NASA

If you are standing at a point within the path, you will see the "ring" for about 4 minutes before the shadow begins shifting out of sun's rays.  If this was taking place during a school day, then the kiddies would be herded out onto the playground to watch it.  But it's after school hours and on a Sunday to boot, so it becomes your responsibilty to do the herding of your young'uns to watch with you.

NASA has a very complete webpage devoted to this event if you want to get into the details of it.  They also have lots of maps including closeups of each state for you lucky folk who are in the path (or maybe planning a day trip to get to an affected area).  CLICK HERE to get to the NASA page.

We don't need any maps to find our way to the apparatus, though.  So let's get going with the equipment check while I make some more solar coffee.  See you back in the day room.

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From Amazon:

Barska Starwatcher Compact Refractor Telescope
includes table-top tripod and carrying case.

59% off!

CLICK HERE to see the details and to order yours.

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Wednesday Morning

I know we have a lot of baseball fans here, so I'd like to pass along this entertaining, but provocative, article posted last night in the Wall Street Journal.  It was written by Rich Cohen, a noted sports writer, and he lays out the case for demolishing and plowing over Chicago's Wrigley Field ball park.  He sets the tone for his essay right off the bat with these opening paragraphs:

Having not won a World Series since 1908, and having last appeared on that stage in 1945—a war year in which the professional leagues were still populated by has-beens and freaks—the Chicago Cubs must contemplate the only solution that might restore the team to glory: Tear down Wrigley Field.

Destroy it. Annihilate it. Collapse it with the sort of charges that put the Sands Hotel out of its misery in Vegas. Implosion or explosion, get rid of it. That pile of quaintness has to go. Not merely the structure, but the ground on which it stands.

It's an amusing piece and obviously written with the proverbial tongue-in-cheek, but I think he is serious in his argument.  He points out that in 1906, before the team took up residence in their current park, the Cubs had a .763 winning percentage which is still the Major League record.  Cohen goes on to lay out the team's fortunes from then on and how they not only tumbled, but became seemingly jinxed after they encamped in what is now called Wrigley.

Set aside a few minutes to CLICK HERE and enjoy this article for what it's meant to be.  I had fun with it.

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Mark Donovan passed along this video report from New Hampshire that was broadcast on WMUR-TV the other day.  It's always nice to see a story that holds the FD in a positive way.  The Manchester FD got to have a repelling drill, rescue boat practice, and happy PR last Friday when they responded to help rescue a Golden Retriever that had fallen into the swift current of the Merrimack River.

The tv's video crew happened to be close by and recorded the entire adventure.  It's a nice story, so enjoy the broadcast video:

Now, let's start our own happy story and get this equipment checked out.  I will be very happy once the next pot of coffee is ready, so I'll get started on that.  See you back in the day room in a little while.

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NHL Playoffs – Conference Finals

Western Conference – Los Angeles (8) vs. Phoenix (3)
Game One: Los Angeles – 4, Phoenix – 2.
Game 2:  Los Angeles – 4, Phoenix – 0.
Game 3 on Thursday, 6 pm Pacific.

Los Angeles leads series 2 games to none.

Eastern Conference – New Jersey (6) vs. New York (1)
Game One: New York – 3, New Jersey – 0.
Game 2 on Wednesday, 8 pm Eastern

New York leads series 1 game to none.

Highlights From Tuesday's Game in Phoenix

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Tuesday Morning – Let's Brush Up on Investigation Tips

Everybody gets that occasional "smell of something burning" call that scatters the whole company throughout the house, sniffing here and there to try and track down the source before your nose gets used to it and you lose the scent.  Those calls can be so maddening when you can't find the source after five minutes or so.  A hot electrical smell takes you to the furnace and all the racks of stereo equipment here and there around the abode.  All the while you're hoping that you don't have to start poking holes in the drywall to check between the walls.  That's the last resort.

You have to call upon your experience and common sense to hopefully get to the source, but sometimes it just stops before you find it.  And that's even more maddening.  The smell is gone and you wish you were, too.  But you don't want to leave with a potential incipient fire waiting to come back in big style a few hours later.  Teeth gritting time.

Many moons ago I had one of those calls and we were definitely getting a burning-wood smell in the house.  It wasn't overpowering, but you could smell it on most of the first floor and it was strongest in the kitchen.  So we went to the scatter-and-search routine and I stayed in the kitchen, poking around, especially at and behind the stove.  Nothing.  The smell was getting softer, but it was still there, just tantalizing us and seemingly playing with us.  After about 15 or 20 minutes of poking and worrying that whatever was burning might be getting bigger while we are doing the Keystone Kops routine, I finally opened the dishwasher for a peek.  And there it was….. a wooden spoon had dropped from the rack and was laying across the heating element just scorching away like a wood-burning tool.

Ever sinces then I always included that pass-along tip during appropriate drills and made sure everybody who worked for me added that to their memory banks.  And apparently I am still doing it by passing this anecdote along to you now.  What brought all this to mind was seeing a press release online about a product recall and I immediately thought, this could be added to the million or so tips for firefighters that you carry around with you. Specifically, if your "smell" seems to be localized in a bathroom, this just might be one thing to check out while you're looking around.

Last week the QMI Agency issued the following recall notice:

Rechargeable Toothbrushes Recalled

Health Canada issued a recall Wednesday of Arm and Hammer's Spinbrush Pro Clean Sonic rechargeable toothbrush due to the possibility of fire, shock or burns.

There is "a small risk that the charging base may overheat, with localized melting and sparking. The risk…appears to increase somewhat with the age of the product," manufacturer Church & Dwight said in a statement.

The company has received six reports of overheating in the U.S. and one in Canada, but no reports of injuries, the statement said.

If you own one of these yourself, then you can read the entire release that gives the appropriate serial numbers and a link to the recall page that has instructions on how to get your money back by CLICKING HERE.  For everybody, here is still one more handy little tidbit to file away and just maybe there will be time you can use it.  It is always good to be able to limit the time you need to spend in somebody else's bathroon, don't you agree?

Now let's spend some time with our own equipment and get it checked out for the day.  Coffee is coming soon.  See you back in the day room.

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NHL Playoffs – Conference Championship Round

The Conference finals are underway now and the bottom-seeded Los Angeles Kings continue their dark-horse run through the playoffs.  Sunday night they beat the Coyotes 4-2 to take a one game lead.  Last night the New York Rangers had a convincing win over the New Jersey Devils, 3-0 to start the Eastern conference final round.

Western Conference – Los Angeles (8) vs. Phoenix (3)
Game One: Los Angeles – 4, Phoenix – 2.

Eastern Conference – New Jersey (6) vs. New York (1)
Game One:  New York – 3, New Jersey  – 0.

Highlights from last night's trans-Hudson series

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