Thursday, October 13, 2005

Fireman Not Needed

Ok, so Kathy and I smelled smoke in the building, so after putting down my laundry I went to the hall to investigate. I looked out the 2nd story window and saw a lady running out of the next building over and yelling, so I ran down the stairs the the 1st floor, which had a lot of smoke in the hallway. I went outside and saw a fire burning in the corner apt. I ran back inside and the lady came with me and banged on the door to no avail, as no one was home.

She went back outside, so I pulled the firealarm and searched for an extiguisher, which I found in one of those glass boxes by the elevator. I broke the glass with my hand, cause I didn't have anything else. Briefly saw lots of blood, but didn't pay attention to it.

Ran back outside via the stairwell, and climbed up the the apartment, and started sweeping the fire at the bottom with the extinguisher. The fire had by this time set the entire deck and most of the wall with a sliding glass door in it ablaze. Once I got it out, using the entire contence of the extinguisher, or so I thought, I noticed that there were a lot of people watching me. I also noticed that the shingles on the building were still burning. So I called for another fire extinguisher (damn that's a weird word to type) and used almost all of it, on the building itself, trying to get in the cracks between the shingles and door frame. I found a metal rod laying by the door, and was just about to start pulling shingles off the building when the Fire Department showed up. With about 5 trucks.

I told them what happened, and what I did, and they took it from there. What was burning I think was this: I saw two metallic round things that could've been torch holders of planters. Not sure which. But one of the people on the HOA Board gave a big speech to everyone watching that you should never leave Lin-seed oil out in plastic bags on a deck. A Russian lady said he obviously doesn't know what he's talking about, but the man insisted he was right, cause they showed him that in the navy (prolly back in the 50's or 60's judgeing by the mans age.

So I walk over the the other building and saw Kathy and her housemates waiting with the other 200 or so people now mingiling about. She said I was wonder where you were and when we came outside I was like, "oh my god, there's jay!" "I knew it!" she told me she knew I had to be in the middle of it doing something.

Was kinda weird once we got back inside knowing that Kathy was gonna drop me off at home earlier that night, but didn't. What would've happened if I went home? How big would the fire have gotten since no one there was doing anything? Would anyone have died?

later Kathy said some stuff, that made me agree to what my buddy Firefighter Chris Garcia said to me once. Girls are attracted to guys in dangerous situations, that's why girls like firemen more than cops.

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