Posts Tagged With: Fire and Rescue

~ Multi-Grip Valentine ~

Posted on February 10, 2016 by mamaboe

I get the award for THE BEST Valentine’s gift to a hubby this year.  I don’t care if you gals got your hubbies season tickets to a private box at Oriole Park at Camden Yards.  I don’t care if you got your Beloveds a case of his favorite, over-priced microbrew and a booklet of homemade coupons for favors that you made out of candy sweethearts.   I WON this Valentine’s Day.  I’m the queen.  Put a Capital on that:  I’m the QUEEN of Valentine Wifey Gifts for 2016.

“WHAT???”  You beg, jumping up and down in excitement, “What makes you the Queen this year, Mama?”

I’m so glad you asked!

I thought about My Captain, and how difficult he is to give to during any holiday.  He’s impossible to shop for for Christmas, Birthdays, you name it.  It’s not that he’s high-maintenance, or overly particular.  It’s that he is exactly the opposite!  He is LOW-Maintenance.  He doesn’t want anyone spending time and money on him.  He ignores the argument that other people might enjoy giving as much as he does.  He refuses to be a receiver.

Santa gave up on him decades ago.

So I thought about him.  And I thought, and I thought, and I thought.  What makes this man happy?  What, within my realm, could I possibly give him to make him grin ear-to-ear, and feel absolutely taken care of, the way he makes me feel so supported?  What do you give such a  man???

Which led me to this stroke of genius:  HELLO!!  He’s a MAN!  The answer was suddenly so obvious, if it had been a snake, it would have bitten me.  Twice.

My friends, I bought him a TOOL. But not just ANY tool!  I bought him a genyouuuuuiiiine, original, one-and-only FIRE FALCON.

fire-falcon-product-sheet

I gave it to him today, in advance of Valentine’s Day, because I have NO ability to keep a secret, and I just CAN’T WAIT!!!!  Patience has never been my strong suit. Thank goodness My Captain finds it charming!

At least, I tell him he does.

What is the Fire Falcon?  I mentioned it in my last post: Stovetop Grease Fire, A Love Story.  This is the best, fanciest, hardest-core, extreme firefighting tool ever made, here, and around the world.

It’s not cheap, because it’s made of highest grade materials, like composite, steel and fiberglass.

It has advanced engineering, and was created by one of the oldest, saltiest firemen in the nation.

It is The Cadillac of fire-overhaul and battle weapons. This thing is THE BOMB, and every firefighter out there secretly covets one of these.  Believe me, it’s right up there with the lastest iPod, or iWatch, or gizmo gadget.   Anyone who uses this thing can’t HELP but channel a little bit of Batman when he’s working.

fire-falcon-tool-view-2

What, exactly,  does the Fire Falcon do?

When a firefighter is in a fire, they have to COMPLETELY extinguish that fire, and they have to get it right the first time.  And if the fire has extended into areas that are hidden, ie: behind walls, or over ceilings, or under floors, they have to find it.  To do this they have to expose these areas…they have to open the walls or the ceilings, or the floors, to find a sinister little phenomenon that they call “Fire Extension.”   Using the right tool to expose this can mean the difference between life and death….No Joke.

See the three-pronged grapple talons, or, as I like to call them, ‘whosie-whatsies’ on the one end?  (Do NOT judge my kitchen rug…I’m not a photographer, people! I’m a Mama!)

2016-02-10 11.03.17

It’s closed, then with a twist of the multi-tool handle, the spring-loaded talons open.  It can be used to break through a ceiling or wall, and the talons will fold down as it passes through the drywall, then open to a grapple-hook of sorts… (Do NOT judge my poor camera skills!)

2016-02-10 11.00.32

…which then can grab more dry wall, or whatever they are trying to clear to get to fire extension.  It saves valuable time and muscle resource, and come on, it’s cool as all get out.

See the loop on each end?

2016-02-10 11.03.11

Those are for attaching rescue carabiners, in case of a need to bailout of a window, or off a roof, or some such calamity.  In other words, a firefighter in need of extreme escape can ram the grapple hook through a wall after attaching his rope to it, and then fling himself down and away from the inferno with a much greater chance of survival.  That’s a good thing!

And see this other end?

2016-02-10 11.03.30

It’s a hammer. It’s a Prying End. It’s a combo-grip.  This end is great for prying apart trim work, breaking doors,  ramming walls, and other forcible entry needs, and it’s also a mighty comfortable handle.

2016-02-10 10.59.56

And look at the grip.  THAT is a grip, baby! (I’m talking about the handle, not the hand!)

2016-02-10 10.59.28

OF COURSE I did my homework, and asked the company to send the right size for My Captain.  The Fire Falcon comes in many sizes to fit each firefighter!  My Beloved is a long, tall drink of water, and he needed a big one!

I think he liked it.  I KNOW he wasn’t expecting his Valentine’s present to be made of Steel and Fiberglass.  I definitely know he is the only one on his shift that is getting one for Valentine’s Day!  He’s special!  So yeah, I think he liked it.

2016-02-10 10.59.30

Wanna know how I know?

2016-02-10 11.01.09

I win!!

 

Love,

Valentine’s Queen, 2016

 

 

Categories: Family, Fire and Rescue | Tags: , , , , | Leave a comment

~ Are You Freaking Kidding Me??!! ~

Posted on September 12, 2015 by mamaboe

“Lest We Ever Forget” has already been forgotten in many places across the nation.

“Are you freaking kidding me?”  You ask, having been watching several news clips about September 11th.

Yup. Case and point: My Captain spoke all day at our local middle school to 7th graders who were not even born when the attacks occurred, who had no real knowledge of the why’s and how’s of it all going down, and who really, to be honest, in their lack of understanding, did not care about it.  Apparently the 60 second news bits they had seen didn’t quite bring it to life for them.

??????????????

But after My Captain spoke to them, and showed them the timeline, and his experiences there with Urban Search and Rescue, they all got VERY sober.

??????????????

The whole room was bathed in quiet contemplation of a world that was different before terrorism came to our soil.  They listened respectfully about how so many innocent people died during our nation’s introduction to the new reality of domestic terrorism.

??????????????

My Captain grows increasingly frustrated that “Lest We Ever Forget” is, in reality, being forgotten.  Being there is one thing, trying to bring children to that place with mere words and pictures is quite another.  You can tell them that the fire at the World Trade Center burned around 1500 degrees…and that we know this because it takes that much to bend steel…and you can try to explain why the people above the 77th floor or the 93th floor would rather jump than burn and suffocate….but it is just another story to them.  It could be another “Terminator” movie in its surreality.

How do you take those children back to that awful day?

On Facebook, I saw firefighters in other states lamenting that their children heard nothing but a passing paragraph in a history book of the tragic, life-changing, country-changing events of that hateful day.

And I realized that at some point, we have to do something to stop the growing apathy…because that will lead to ignorance…and that will lead to history repeating itself.

I’d like to find someone we could work with to videotape next year’s school visit for My Captain, so that when he can no longer share these experiences with the kids in person, his video could.   A video of his story could also be something that could be shared county-wide or further, because I don’t think our whole national school system is talking about this to the generations who were not there!

But until then, he feels his efforts aren’t enough.  He knows he’s swimming against the tide of apathy and ignorance of that fateful day.  He still tries his best, though.

??????????????

And in the end, all you can do is have lunch with the kids after your lecture,

…and allow them to have their childhood back.

But Beloved, please know that, inadequate as it may seem to you, every time you go to that school and do your best to impart the history of that horrible, horrible day, you ARE honoring those firemen, and policemen, and innocent people who were murdered.  You honor their memories and their sacrifice.  You DO.

YOU have never forgotten, and those souls will always know that.

And to you, Dear Reader, if you agree that we mustn’t let this slip into sound bites and relative oblivion…if this moves you at all, or speaks to you on some level, will you please help spread the awareness and share this post?  No pressure.

Okay maybe a little pressure.

But not an uncomfortable amount.  Just enough to make you want to share.

Continue reading →

Categories: Fire and Rescue, Urban Search and Rescue | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

~ Icing On The Cake ~

Posted on September 4, 2015 by mamaboe

Yesterday, on My Captain’s 50th birthday, the entire Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Operations Staff were out pounding the pavement for their annual Muscular Dystrophy Association Fundraising Drive.

11921893_10200762663826261_5701443589108881464_n

In other words, they were trading in their good looks and charming dispositions for the loose change in the ashtray of every vehicle that stopped at the intersection they held up.

??????????????

It was a hot, humid day, as always.  Actually, it was a hot and humid 3 days, as all three shifts in the county get to participate.  They actually compete against each other to see who can raise the most donations.  In years past, My Captain’s shift has fared really well on that contest.  I don’t know what they were doing to win…maybe going shirtless and just wearing their running gear pants and suspenders or something.  (Obviously, the female firefighters could seriously pull in the moola with that maneuver).

One year, I offered to stand out there with them. It was hotter than this year, and I, in all of my soft and squishy mama-ness got overheated and nearly passed out.  It was rawwwwthar embarrassing, took time for the guys to get me out of the street and into the shade, and basically was a big pain in the butt for people trying to accomplish something other than dealing with me!

This year I was like, “Hey Hon, do you want me to come hold a boot for a while?” and he was like, “Er…don’t you have a birthday cake to make or something?”

But fortunately, they didn’t really need me and my begging talents.   All the fire stations’ shifts were already out.  This is Engine 732’s crew.  They are the next station over from My Captain’s station.  Their station is shiny and new and big and has professionals to clean the place unlike My Captain’s aging firehouse.  Those things don’t make 32 a better fire shift, but it is something I like to bring up over and over again, just to stir the pot.

??????????????

And here is Station 8’s Captain, none other than My Captain’s best friend, (since 3rd grade when his father forced him to play with My Captain,) Ty.

11150923_10207606873078979_8846563956867914_n

Ty lets his wife hold the boot.

Well, he kind of has to, since she is a firefighter:

292758_1477863203871_1936282_n

paramedic/badass:

998103_3392138099547_1121213104_n

at Fire Station 34, who probably doesn’t fall out in a little heat during the MDA drive.

But the point is, she gets to play.

And I don’t.  I mean, geez, you fall out one time and they never let you come play in the traffic again.

Where was I?

Oh yeah, Captain Ty was out in the traffic, too.

11150923_10207606873078979_8846563956867914_n

I think we can all agree that Ty is hot.  No, I mean HOT, like, it was stinkin HOT, and humid out.

That, and he’s really good looking and virile.  If you like that sort of thing.

Which Maggie does.

189861_1007708930308_387954_n

And she’s no slouch herself.

188525_1007709530323_7831055_n

I want to be her when I grow up.   I also want to be a Moose.   Like a real Montana Moose.  But that is for an entirely different counseling session, altogether.

??????????????

Back to My Captain’s shift.  So they were out playing in the traffic, raising quite a bit of  money for Jerry’s Kids.

??????????????

And nobody got hit this year.

Which is nice.

Last year, My Captain had a few near misses.  We won’t elaborate on why people with ADD shouldn’t play in traffic, I don’t care what their rank is.

At the end of the day, the guys counted up all the donations.  I think My Captain’s shift pulled in something like $8,000.  THAT is a LOT of pennies, folks.  Some of them, Canadian.

I think they also received a few Hershey’s Park play tokens, and a few ladies’ phone numbers, but MDA let them keep those.

??????????????

But NONE of this is the point to this post. The POINT is that last year, for My Captain’s birthday, I had the time to bake him his favorite Boston Cream Pie.

10636238_10204075150816437_4868796932900200302_n

It was a real Beaut!

THIS year, however, my kitchen is all torn up, I’m not sure where all of my baking pans are, and I didn’t have time.   It’s his 50th birthday, and I couldn’t even bake him a ding-dang cake, even though he was working all day in the heat for MDA during his shift, AND running emergency calls, AND trying to get administration stuff done.   And I couldn’t even give him a homemade cake.

I suck, is what I’m saying.

But I DID go buy a cake that the shift could share after they got off of the roads last night.  And since I suck, I didn’t order it decorated ahead of time, so I had to write the birthday wishes on it myself.

2015-09-03 11.20.42

I had a little trouble with the icing.

Ahem.

My Captain sent me a photo after they cut into it, to show me how well the icing fared, as it sat in the fire house, for hours, waiting for the guys to finish the MDA  street walking……2015-09-03 15.52.09

Eeeesh.

It’s a damn good thing that My Captain has low expectations in a mate.

Don’t judge.

Categories: Family, Fire and Rescue | Tags: , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

~ Getting Old In A Firehouse ~

Posted on September 3, 2015 by mamaboe

A half-century.

Fifty stinkin’ years.

Most of those fighting fires as a Captain, and saving lives as a Paramedic.

Most of those getting up ridiculously early.

Most of those having sleep interrupted, often several times a night, to respond to 911 calls.

Most of those mentoring younger firefighters and paramedics.

Most of those training and supporting Special Ops men and women in the art of collapse rescue.

Most of those in the front, right side “Officer’s Seat” of the fire engine.

And today, being his 50th birthday, as he came onto his shift at the butt-crack of dawn, he was reminded so very well of exactly how much respect he has earned.

??????????????

Firehouse style.

2015-09-03 06.46.13

Happy Birthday, My Beloved Old Fart!  May you have many, many more.

(And may you have an opportunity to get them back!)

??????????????

Categories: Fire and Rescue | Tags: , , , , , | Leave a comment

~ Firehouse Feng Shui ~

Posted on July 27, 2015 by mamaboe

I was sitting in My Captain’s office for a moment, having just delivered the shift a big ol’ pan of Icebox Peanutbutter Pie, waiting for My Captain to finish his email, and try said pie, when I noticed his desk.

2015-07-26 18.40.17

And I began to look harder at it.

??????????????

Eesh.

??????????????

What a piece of crap his desk is.  The man has put 28 years of service into Montgomery County Fire and Rescue, and his desk is a piece of broken down trash.

He doesn’t seem to notice it.  He’s got things to do.  Places to go.  People to save.

2015-07-26 18.41.13

Then I looked at Lt. Tom’s desk.  Its legs were totally rusted.

Then I got up, walked down the hall to the Watch Desk (where emergency information is received) and immediately noticed it was a little worn as well.

??????????????

And chipped.

??????????????

Of course Mr. Ward doesn’t notice it, because he’s got work to do, places to go, people to save, that kind of thing.

2015-07-26 18.41.56

And just outside the door into the engine bay is the shelving unit that holds things to be repaired.  It looks about as good as I feel some mornings.

11774370_10155796494625468_1561977458_n

What the heck, man?

And just down the hall in the kitchen, right smack dab in the middle of their eating area is this beautiful view.

0516151720aI found myself wondering why the county allows this station to fall to rack and ruin.  It’s bad enough ANY firemen would have to work in this kind of environment, but that the cream of the crop, the Special Ops team, should be housed like this blew my mind.  Why aren’t we taking better care of our heroes???

Turns out they tend to take care of themselves. Like here in the laundry room….the guys needed shelves for their air cylinders,

11352963_10155796650700468_1343323622_n

and also for other gear.

11774599_10155796651150468_755624206_n

Did they wait for the powers-that-be to find the money, approve the money, and begin the ordering process?  Nope.  They just built what they needed themselves.  ‘A ‘shift did, in fact (the shift after My Captain’s shift.) They have no time for bureaucratic mumbo-jumbo.  They have a job to do, and so they do what needs to be done.

My Captain tells me that, while the men wouldn’t mind a station upgrade, on the whole they are too busy to be much effected by it.  The money they’d need to fix up the place gets slated for other priorities, so if they can’t make it themselves, they shake their heads, and make do.

And even then, when you’re running out the door to go help someone in a fire, or someone having a heart attack, the state of your desk isn’t high on your priority list.

In other words, they’re too busy getting it done to notice how good it all looks while they’re doing it.

I understand that, I really do.  But I just wish that the people in charge of taking care of these guys would crack open a Better Homes and Garden magazine every now and then.  SOMETHING.  Something to show the love, for Pete’s sake. Matching pillows or mood lighting for crying out loud.  Maybe a lovely center piece on the watch desk, or some nice textured artwork.  Bring in some Feng Shui….

or at least desks that aren’t falling apart.

Categories: Fire and Rescue | Tags: , , , | 2 Comments

Blog at WordPress.com.

%d bloggers like this: