Wednesday, July 31, 2019

What did they see?

Yesterday morning we were rudely awakened at 3:30 am by a loud, persistent honking noise.

"What's that?" asked Ron sleepily.

"The carbon monoxide detector. We've got to get up and call 911," I replied. I tucked our dog under one arm and hurried to the study where I grabbed the phone and punched in the number. The dispatcher told us to keep the doors and windows closed as the firefighters would be testing the air with sensors.

Ron was simultaneously getting dressed and trying to silence the alarm. I thought putting some clothes on might be a good idea so I put our dog down on the bed and slipped into sweatpants and t-shirt. Then I told Ron to come outside and wait for help to arrive.

I went out into the warm night with my furbaby firmly tucked under my arm and listened. The fire station is only a couple of blocks away so I knew they wouldn't be long. Ron still hadn't exited so when I heard the rumble of a large vehicle I called to him to hurry up, they were almost here.

Then suddenly I remembered our collection of spanking toys displayed on the wall. Where would they actually go with their sensors? Was Ron trying to hide them at the risk of his safety? Ron finally appeared in the doorway with the dog's leash, just in case. I decided not to mention the toys to him. The firefighters had probably seen it all before, and it might make a good story for them to tell back at the station.


The truck pulled up outside our house and three men dressed in full firefighting gear came up the drive.

"Well, you're up," one of them cheerfully greeted us. The three trooped inside and we could hear the persistent honks of the detector. After a few minutes the lead man came out and told us their sensors had not detected any lethal gas or CO.

"Have you done any laundry lately? The house smells like fabric softener or Febreeze," he asked. Then I realized what the noticeable odour was. Ron had spray painted a piece of furniture the previous afternoon, and because of the weather, he had done it in the basement beside the furnace. I told the firefighter that, and he said that the paint odour had been picked up by the air conditioner and circulated through the house and finally set off the alarm. He noticed that the CO detector was nearly at its expiry date, and that they often go wonky before they expire. It couldn't be reset, so we promised to buy a new one that day.

We thanked the men and they departed. We checked the house as we turned off the lights, and figured they had only been in the basement, and maybe in the upstairs hall.

All's well that ends well. Our new CO detector is in position, the painting project is out in the garden shed, and our secret is safe.
From Hermione's Heart

16 comments:

PK said...

Sounds like a good outcome all around. Everything worked pretty much as it should have. The alarm woke you, help came, the situation wasn't actually dangerous and you have a new alarm. Even if you 'secret' had been discovered you're probably right about the firefighters. They've seen it all. Glad you're safe.

Anonymous said...

Glad you are both well, but Ron taking time in the house was a bad idea. I would imagine they did go into every room, and thus doubt your secret is completely secret anymore. Someone knowing your secret is not such a bad thing, but now they can wonder who gets spanked, or are both of you spanked at times. Thus, your secret being displayed, we should meet sometime, like Ronnie is doing in London with some spanking friends. It would be wonderful.
bottoms up
red

Glenmore said...

What ? No spanking for Ron for his carelessness?

Hermione said...

PK - I'm glad t know I can keep my head in an emergency.

Red - I really did wonder what he was doing and why he wasn't more bothered about staying in the house. Maybe he is too used to the smoke alarm going off every time there is a spill in the oven.

Glenmore - Hmmm, that's a thought:)

Hugs,
Hermione

Erica Scott said...

(laughing) What an ordeal! I'm glad there was a good outcome in every way.
Aaaaand this is why I keep my spanky stuff in my closet and a vanity drawer.

Spankedhortic II said...

A good looking male/female (delete where appropriate) fire crew person emerging from the house, brandishing one of your weapons of ass destruction........ Let me just go and work on that fantasy for a while ;)

Prefectdt

NoraJean said...

OMG Hermione! ... what a dilemma ... you are right however, I imagine the firefighters have seen everything ... thankfully you left right away (ok sort of :>)) and all turned out well ... nj

Roz said...

Hi Hermione, wow, what an eventful night! Glad the detectors worked as they should and that all was well. I agree, the firefighters have probably seen it all lol. What a dilemma though. All our spanky stuff is hidden away.

Hugs
Roz

QBuzz said...

I bet if they had seen them they would have used them on you to teach you a lesson about letting your CO alarm run all the way up to its expiry date ;D

ronnie said...

Happy it was a good outcome. Your secret's out:) As others have said, fireman have seen it all before.

Love,
Ronnie
xx

Hermione said...

Erica - We thought an ornamental wooden paddle with pegs on it was a clever way to display our toys. Maybe I should have thrown a blanket over it. I'll remember that for next time:)

Prefectdt - A clever idea! That would make a great story.

NoraJean - I agree, they probably weren't shocked.

Roz - It was scary, because Co is odourless and the detector had never done that before.

QBuzz - I hope Prefectdt adds that detail to his story.

Ronnie - Firefighters see too much that they would rather forget. I hope we gave them a chuckle.

Hugs,
Hermione

Yorkie69 said...

Well, you sure do live an exciting life!

Yorkie

Kanga said...

So glad all was OK and your secret is safe! I've not heard of those sensors before but they sound like a good idea.

Kanga Jo xx

Hermione said...

Yorkie - Thankfully it's not that exciting very often:)

Kanga Jo - Welcome! Carbon monoxide and smoke detectors are both required by law here.

Hugs,
Hermione

Anonymous said...

Here in LA, if your residence is legal (which most aren't unless its for sale) you can't even fart without setting smoke or CO detector off.

Lea said...

Glad you are both okay and that there was no embarassment!