Green peas

[r.magnay]

This is a true story which has taken place over the last couple of weeks and I reckon it warrants sharing.

Two weeks ago last night, I was working down at Docker River, 250Km West of Ayers Rock on the WA Border, On the Friday night about 6.30 I had put a pot of water on to boil some dehydrated green peas to go with my evening meal. The owners of the Donga (PowerWater) had recently put a couple of lounge chairs in the donga which I had discovered earlier, created some quite dramatic static electric shocks when I got out of the chair and touched the cupboard, sink, stove etc. I had worked out that if I removed my shoes or thongs...(the footwear type) which had been insulating me from the floor, I wouldn't get a boot. However, I sat down to watch the news and suddenly smelled the peas boiling their brains out, without realising I jumped up to remove them from the stove, of course I hadn't removed my thongs (the foot wear type) and when I grabbed the saucepan I got a shock, this caused me to spill the boiling water over my arm and as you can imagine did some serious cooking of my arm! I sat up all night putting chux wipes into the freezer and cooling my arm, I had to change them about every 10 minutes when they warmed up and stopped relieving the pain. By about 5.00 am I had stopped the arm cooking and could bear to leave the burns without too much attention. I packed up the camp, cleaned up and wrapped my arm in a couple of wet chux and a bandage, I then put some water bottles in my car fridge and turned it up to freeze, I wasn't going to get caught somewhere out by Lasseters cave with an unbearable pain and no first aid! I then drove home (750Km). On the Monday morning Sheryl and I went to the chemist, got some advice on what to dress it with and then dressed it. I went bush again the following day and dressed it daily myself, the next week I went and saw the nurse at the clinic who redressed it and said to continue treating it as we had been. I have now stopped dressing it and it is all but totally healed with no signs of scarring. It is a bit pink and I will keep sun screen on it but other than that I reckon it is pretty much totally healed!.........Thursday was my birthday, I only got home from out bush about 3.00pm, we went around to see my son and his wife and our two grandkids who have been away for a couple of weeks, but my daughter and her husband came around to see me a couple of hours ago, they brought me a small present, some jubes... which I love, and a packet of "P" plates, they have the white background with a green P on them, I am not too sure when or how they fit into the driving system so I said to them, "What the hell are these?" They said, "A packet of green P's...you shouldn't burn yourself with them!"...bloody smart arses.

[manfredvijars]

...

[Neville Briggs]

Ouch Good story Ross ( sort of without the pain)

[Heather]

Good to hear you have healed up ok Ross.

Heather

[Bob Pacey]

I'm with you Ross but I would be working on revenge. A nice poem in the local paper works. !!!


Bob

[Jasper Brush]

G'day, Ross.

A true fair dinkum Aussie yarn.

I like the bit about driving 750 k's home.

Mate, I wouldn't go that far for my holidays.

To the top of the class.


John

[r.magnay]

I knew you would like it manfred!...Thanks Neville, actually apart from when I took the cold off the burn to see if I could stand it, there was very little pain....if I hadn't had a freezer at my disposal I hate to think just what would have happened though. Thanks Heather, I know you are familiar with burns injuries, I am amazed at how well it has healed up! I think I might leave sleeping dogs lie Bob! Glad you enjoyed it John, 750Km is about the furtherest community I go to now days, a few years back I did quite a bit of work up around Borroloola, I had some work at Kiana Station, 1,070Km from my place to the homestead, one day I drove up there, set up camp and then did three hours work before I knocked off....those days are gone!....I still do between 40 and 50 thousand klicks a year in my work ute though.