Truisms I Didn't Need to Test, Thanks

[leahbobet]

Y'know that one about when your house is on fire and you have to decide what to grab on your way out?

Well, apparently for me, it is my wallet, my passport, my birth certificate, and the flash memory card where I back up my fiction.

---

So okay, clearly I am not On Fire nor did I get back in to find my stuff On Fire. Short version is: about forty minutes ago the alarm went off, which I would have rolled over and ignored at this hour, except that I could smell smoke. And upon a minute of inspection it was not candle smoke or some other kind of innocuous smoke and was making my throat hurt pretty badly. At which point I got my contacts in and my clothes on very fast and went outside, amazingly remembering my grade school fire safety training about getting the temperature of a door with your hand before you open it, lest you get a faceful of fire.

I have no idea where the actual fire was. I think it was down the hall from me or down the hall and a floor up or down, because the other half of the hall -- the elevators are in the centre -- was full of smoke.

The usual smartassery people make about being woken up late/early by the fire alarm gets really annoying when you are worrying about your apartment where you live. Yes, that is some people's coping mechanism. My coping mechanism likes pacing and quiet and sort of wanted to punch theirs in the nads.

They let us back in about five-ten minutes ago, since the fire was out and enough smoke was cleared out to make it manageable. My apartment smells enough like smoke to start the back of my throat going raw again, and the five fire trucks plus command post plus ambulance plus Fire Marshal van have gone home.

I don't think I'm getting back to sleep.

---

Not recording this for any particular purpose, except that putting things into manageable narrative -- thinking about it in terms of structure, style, pacing, and word choice, how to communicate it to you instead of oh Jesus I don't have fire insurance and my plants my textbooks my books my teddy bear I've had since I was two my computer with my words which is my life -- is also part of my coping mechanism, and I wanted this out of me and away so I don't have to wake someone up with a weepy adrenaline comedown at a way too early hour.

Calmer now. Going to read.

Comments

[haruhiko.livejournal.com]

Glad you're okay. I know it'll be hard to calm down, but if anything take comfort in the fact that you managed to stay level-headed enough to remember tips from grade-school, and that level-headedness will serve you well if anything remotely similar to this should happen again (heaven forbid!).

[leahbobet.livejournal.com]

Thanks. And yeah, I do take a certain comfort in my crisis reaction being...well, cold and evaluative instead of a freakout spazfit.

Sort of feels like a bad dream in broad daylight.

[matociquala.livejournal.com]

It is good that you are safe.

[mrissa.livejournal.com]

Sounds like the right things to grab to me: anything more would make me worry about you spending too much time in a burning building.

Glad to hear you are Mostly Okay.

[leahbobet.livejournal.com]

I think I hovered over, of all things, my good fountain pen. But yeah. The rest is a lot more replaceable.

words which are your life

[gvwilson.livejournal.com]

If you want a safe place to back up your writing, just let me know...

Glad you're OK.

Re: words which are your life

[leahbobet.livejournal.com]

Thanks. I have -- the flash card -- I just hadn't backed up in *cough* weeks.

There is a moral here that's do your backups daily, I think.

[jaylake.livejournal.com]

I'm glad you're alright.

[shiroiko.livejournal.com]

Thanks goodness you're safe.

[hawkwing-lb.livejournal.com]

Glad you're okay.

[sartorias.livejournal.com]

Oh lord that was scary. Glad it wasn't your apartment.

[leahbobet.livejournal.com]

Oh yes indeed. Before I did finally get back to sleep (around 7:30am) I couldn't see anything in here but how big a firetrap my place is. Books, papers, notes, more books...

[hysteriachan.livejournal.com]

I'm glad you're safe! o_o That's a scary experience. Sounds like you did a remarkable job of keeping your head through it.

[samhenderson.livejournal.com]

Wow. What a way to wake up. Glad you're ok! And that the words are ok. Not to mention the bear.

[leahbobet.livejournal.com]

Yeah.

Maybe it's silly, but the words are...well, irreplaceable.

[cathemery.livejournal.com]

I am tremendously glad you and your stuff were not On Fire.

[leahbobet.livejournal.com]

Thank you. So am I. I expect it hurts a lot. :/

[kafkonia.livejournal.com]

I'm glad you and all your stuff is okay, if a little smokey.

[leahbobet.livejournal.com]

It's a lot better today. I wonder if I just had the smell stuck in my nose last night.

Thank you.

[noizangel.livejournal.com]

*hugs*

[boywhocantsayno.livejournal.com]

Yikes. Glad to hear you're safe.

[sarcasm-hime.livejournal.com]

Wow...I know for certain I couldn't get my contacts in in a hurry. Should probably find my birth certificate...hehe.

The one thing I hate about apartment buildings is how all the false alarms eventually dull your response time, which is worrisome. I don't know how bad your building is for that; ours is pretty annoying.

[leahbobet.livejournal.com]

Oh, don't worry about dulled response times.

When you wake up to a fire alarm and the smell of smoke everywhere, you move fast.

[jmeadows.livejournal.com]

Oh man, I'm so glad you're okay. Your response seems very...Leah-ish. Calm, taking things as they come, and not freaking out because something is on fire. A very respectable thing, seeing as how it woke you up!

*hugs* Really, really glad you're okay.

[leahbobet.livejournal.com]

*hugs* Thanks.

And...heh, I think I was freaking out some, just I freak out very quietly. My hands were shaking for about an hour afterwards.

[jmeadows.livejournal.com]

I think I would worry more if there wasn't at least a little quiet freaking out. But I find the loud freak-outers very annoying and useless. :)

[leahbobet.livejournal.com]

Yes. They are. Part of why I unjustly want to kick them in my unjust way.

[clarentine]

eek! Massive destruction is so terrifying when it comes off the screen/page and approaches one's own world. Thank god for fire alarms.

[obake.livejournal.com]

Yay, I'm glad you're okay and it was a scare and nothing more. As for the words, back up back up back up :) My ubermegasooper flash drive is always either plugged into my computer or in my purse.

[tacithydra.livejournal.com]

Jesus! I'm glad you and your words are okay.