I proved that a light burns brightest before it burns out.

I got the bright idea to go down in my recently bricked up water meter pit and free up the shut off valve.

The cut out in the cement floor is about 18 inches square and the pit is about 7 feet deep and 3 ft diameter inside.

I have the cutting table off the chop saw down in the hole as a ladder. but it is narrower than my size 14 shoes.

I sat down on the edge of the hole and felt for the ladder with my foot. thought I had the step located with my foot and kinda slid off the floor.

Whoops foot pushed improvised ladder over and down goes a one-eyed, elderly, portly fat old blacksmith down into the void. A good foundation is not necessarily a good thing at times. No way to put the brakes on the runaway blacksmith, so raise arms to facilitate the slide down into the void, and avoid injuring arms.

No blood evident and nothing injured but my pride and a pair of slightly damp bib overalls. LOL

Landed on my feet and size 14's missed the bucket I had lowered into the void, so no prybar necessary for extraction.

Used bucket to set on and Marvel Mystery Oil to lubricate froze up ball valve.

Attempted to remove my body from the void. After 3 tries to no avail, reach for cell phone,swallow pride and call neighbor to come to the rescue.

Wouldn't have been so bad but, he had a hard time with extraction due to the shaking of his body and tears from the laughter.

Wouldn't have been so bad, but I was laughing so hard I couldn't see either, but that came to a halt when he grabbed my bib suspenders and helped lift me out. My laughter changed from a humourous roar, to a high pitched sort of squeek, when he gave me the snuggy.

I gotta be nuts for sharing this with you, but just a warning don't get old and try to be a kid again, and don't try to drink and read this, well go ahead a good laugh is a good laugh.

May you laugh till your sides hurt and you are laying on the floor writhing in pain, well you will get some of the floor clean anyway.

Thanks, Irn. Good story, glad you didn't get hurt.

I laugh cause I been there on a couple of occasions.

Jr
Thanx for sharing this moment with us, by the way, Bambi says thanx too. Her side was almost healed up from the last time
Alan

IRN--You painted a very good picture of what a fellow can get into. From the reaching for the improvished ladder to the inevitable slide down in the tight quartered hole, then making the best of it and fixing the valve. I would have give any thing to have had that on film. He heh. What is great, you had sense enough to not wreck both elbows and armpits.

Glad, it all came out allright.

Congrats on a great humorus story.LOL

Chuck

Irn, thanks for the laugh! Your description shows you to be a pretty fair "Wordsmith", too! :D

Jr.,

That was too funny not to share. Quenchcrack is right-you are quite the wordsmith. I could just see you sliding down the hole. Thank goodness you were not hurt.

I got mixed up, I thought I was looking at the "Build a Story" thread. Good yarn Irn.

I can just hear them, 50 years from now, around the Chrissy dinner table... "D' ya 'member when Grampa fell down the well?"

Glad you werent hurt Jr. Think of how much worse you would have been embarressed if they had called all of your friends in the big red trucks to come and get you. :oops:

Could have been much worse---does the term straddle injury ring any bells...

Thomas