Redmt
Well-known member
We all hear of Darwin Candidates. I've never actually seen one or got to participate in the nomination until yesterday.
I have a bunch of heavy plate steel for sale on CL. A guy called a couple days ago and asked about all the particulars, size, weight, cost etc. I measured out a few pieces and worked him up a price for something that would work for a welding table. The 2 pieces he decided to come see were 180# and 230#. When people are coming out I ask them to call from town so I can meet them at our front gate. It takes an hour to get here. He was leaving then and I figured he was a couple hours out. No call as expected. I get a call from Cal Fire that there's a guy looking for me. It seems he ignored the instructions and just decided to come anyway. He ends up sitting at a locked gate somewhere, decided to go to the Cal Fire Station because his cell doesn't work. I tell him my wife is heading out to get the mail at the community mail boxes and she will meet him there to bring him up. He decided to just go looking for our gate again. He runs across my wife and asks directions! So,,,, she brings him up and I show him the steel. He decided that what he thought he wanted was to small and picks out a 533# piece of 3/4" plate. I forgot to mention he's driving a Honda Odyssey mini van. We spent the next hour trying not to destroy it loading a 5' long piece of plate in his wife's mini van with bald back tires. Mission accomplished and he's on his way. An hour or so later I get a call from a neighboring rancher 10-15 miles down the road, that there's a guy with a big piece of plate in the back with 2 flat tires and needs help. What the hell am I gonna do?? I suggest that he calls a tow truck. End of story I thought. A couple hours after that I get a call from the guy, very bad cell reception, but I got enough that he decided to just drive on the flats and was down to the steel wheels and they were throwing sparks everywhere. I called Cal Fire back and told them the story. They dispatched an engine from town to head this way and they were heading towards town to find and stop the guy before he lights the country on fire.
I officially nominate him for my first Darwin award. I hope he doesn't have any kids.
I have a bunch of heavy plate steel for sale on CL. A guy called a couple days ago and asked about all the particulars, size, weight, cost etc. I measured out a few pieces and worked him up a price for something that would work for a welding table. The 2 pieces he decided to come see were 180# and 230#. When people are coming out I ask them to call from town so I can meet them at our front gate. It takes an hour to get here. He was leaving then and I figured he was a couple hours out. No call as expected. I get a call from Cal Fire that there's a guy looking for me. It seems he ignored the instructions and just decided to come anyway. He ends up sitting at a locked gate somewhere, decided to go to the Cal Fire Station because his cell doesn't work. I tell him my wife is heading out to get the mail at the community mail boxes and she will meet him there to bring him up. He decided to just go looking for our gate again. He runs across my wife and asks directions! So,,,, she brings him up and I show him the steel. He decided that what he thought he wanted was to small and picks out a 533# piece of 3/4" plate. I forgot to mention he's driving a Honda Odyssey mini van. We spent the next hour trying not to destroy it loading a 5' long piece of plate in his wife's mini van with bald back tires. Mission accomplished and he's on his way. An hour or so later I get a call from a neighboring rancher 10-15 miles down the road, that there's a guy with a big piece of plate in the back with 2 flat tires and needs help. What the hell am I gonna do?? I suggest that he calls a tow truck. End of story I thought. A couple hours after that I get a call from the guy, very bad cell reception, but I got enough that he decided to just drive on the flats and was down to the steel wheels and they were throwing sparks everywhere. I called Cal Fire back and told them the story. They dispatched an engine from town to head this way and they were heading towards town to find and stop the guy before he lights the country on fire.
I officially nominate him for my first Darwin award. I hope he doesn't have any kids.
