Waiting for a locksmith

[RichardB]

what he did took less than 5 minutes but I couldn’t have done it.

"Invoice total £1000:
For hitting pipe with hammer, £1.00
For knowing where to hit pipe with hammer, £999.00."

Old joke, but it makes the point.

 

[Profpointy]

"Invoice total £1000:
For hitting pipe with hammer, £1.00
For knowing where to hit pipe with hammer, £999.00."

Old joke, but it makes the point.

Very Tangentially reminds me of a story from a mate of mine who used to own a caving equipment shop. Bear with me, there is a link of sorts. Anyhow he got a phone call from someone at a nuclear power station where after a safety audit they got a black mark for not doing a particular test. The test involved, and I'm not making this up, hitting the outer casing with a rubber mallet and listening at a different place to check for cracks, just like was done for railway wheels. Anyway they couldn't easily do this in the desired place because an intended stairs hadn't been installed on their reactor. The nuclear guy had heard of portable wire caving ladders which roll up and can be carried along tight spaces and that if he could buy one they could go along a narrow gangway then send the ladder up to the desired point.
My mate pondered for a moment then said "there's a crucial word in your explanation, and that word is up". Caving ladders are tied on the top of a pitch and unrolled down it. You can't unroll a flexible ladder up a climb.

Long story inspired by "hit it with a hammer"

 

[RichardB]

Very Tangentially reminds me of a story from a mate of mine who used to own a caving equipment shop. Bear with me, there is a link of sorts. Anyhow he got a phone call from someone at a nuclear power station where after a safety audit they got a black mark for not doing a particular test. The test involved, and I'm not making this up, hitting the outer casing with a rubber mallet and listening at a different place to check for cracks, just like was done for railway wheels. Anyway they couldn't easily do this in the desired place because an intended stairs hadn't been installed on their reactor. The nuclear guy had heard of portable wire caving ladders which roll up and can be carried along tight spaces and that if he could buy one they could go along a narrow gangway then send the ladder up to the desired point.
My mate pondered for a moment then said "there's a crucial word in your explanation, and that word is up". Caving ladders are tied on the top of a pitch and unrolled down it. You can't unroll a flexible ladder up a climb.

Long story inspired by "hit it with a hammer"

Do you know, when I was caving in my younger days, I would have given my back teeth for a wire ladder that unrolled upwards. It would have made Swinsto Hole a Hole lot easier.

 

[Profpointy]

Do you know, when I was caving in my younger days, I would have given my back teeth for a wire ladder that unrolled upwards. It would have made Swinsto Hole a Hole

Thinking about it now he should just have hired this chap instead

View: https://youtu.be/rPUAlR1qiRQ

 

[Pale Rider]

When I was proper poorly a few months ago, I managed to lock myself out of my house, but inside my back yard.

Someone heard me calling for help so paramedics and the fire brigade turned up.

I was a bit confused which led one of the paramedics to accuse me of being drunk - if only that's all it was, because I would have been sober in the morning.

Anyhow, one of the three nines people called a locksmith to get me back in my house.

He asked for £60, but happily accepted the £50 I had to hand.

I suspect he was so amenable at least partly because he knew it was a medical emergency - of sorts.

There's also no doubt trades in the North East are a lot cheaper than down south.

 

[Profpointy]

Do you know, when I was caving in my younger days, I would have given my back teeth for a wire ladder that unrolled upwards. It would have made Swinsto Hole a Hole lot easier.

Ah the old getting to the bottom and finding some clown has taken the ladder away. Happened to us once, and despite us having left our own ladder rolled up and clipped in, the f**&*s hadn't dropped it down the pitch when they took their ladder out. As I'm sure you know, it is free climbable but isn't easy.

 

[RichardB]

Ah the old getting to the bottom and finding some clown has taken the ladder away. Happened to us once, and despite us having left our own ladder rolled up and clipped in, the f**&*s hadn't dropped it down the pitch when they took their ladder out. As I'm sure you know, it is free climbable but isn't easy.

I see you know where I am talking about . We laddered the pitch from Valley Entrance first, and it was still there when we got to the bottom (we were doing an express trip on single ropes). But unfortunately the rain had started and by the time it was my turn - I had volunteered to go last as there were some youngsters with us - the crawl passage was filling up. I exited into Kingsdale floating on my back with about 3" of airspace. As I stood up and started to organise the kit for the walk back down, I turned round and ... airspace had gone. That was a bit close for comfort.

 

[numbnuts]

Sign in my Blacksmith workshop
"You don't pay for what I do
you pay for what I know"