Safety Signs

When we moved into our house, more than 26 years ago, DW and I had to get used to our new space. We had gone from living together in an apartment near Algonquin College to living in several abodes in South Korea, to staying with my folks, and then DW's folks, and finally, to our first and only home.

We had more space than we knew what to do with on three levels. But as time went on, and kids helped fill some room, our space became less empty.

I found that I'd spend a lot of time turning lights off, particularly in the basement. Someone would go downstairs to retrieve food from our pantry or from the deep freezer, and forget to turn lights off on their way back up.

It got to be so much of a peeve for me that I placed a sign on the wall as you headed upstairs. You couldn't miss it.

It's still there after all these years.

DW got to the point where she wouldn't bother turning on the light at the top of the basement stairs, and one day that came at a cost, where she slipped and broke a toe.

The next day, I installed a bulb with a motion sensor, and covered the light switch. The light comes on as soon as you're at the top of the stairs and goes out 90 seconds after it last detected motion. I actually installed these bulbs throughout the basement, and no one needs to turn on a light to see down there.

It's all in the name of safety, I told the family.

The other day, when DW went to the stove to make soup for lunch, she saw that I had installed another sign, though I hope that this one will be temporary.

I don't know why this has started happening lately but it bothers me much more than forgetting to turn off a light. It's a safety issue that must be addressed without delay.

Because I'm not working (apart from the odd background work or real-estate photography), I tend to tidy up in the kitchen after DW heads to her home office for her job. We make our own breakfasts—I make a fruit smoothy; DW often make herself some pancakes, or French toast, or an omelette—and when we're done, I'll empty the dishwasher and the drying rack next to the sink, and start loading dirty dishes from breakfast.

DW typically cleans any pots or pans that she's used, and we've been leaving those upside-down on the stove to dry. It's a gas stove so there are burner grates that allow air to pass under the pots and pans. Any water drips land around the burners and quickly evaporate.

So, as part of my cleanup, I'll put those pots and pans away after they've dried.

The other day, as I was finishing my cleanup, I picked up a small sauce pan that had dried on the stove. DW had used it to make a berry sauce for her morning pancakes.

As soon as I picked up the pan, I was shocked to find it burning my hand. I quickly put it back down and saw that the burner that was underneath was still running. After making her sauce, DW forgot to turn the burner off.

DW and I have very different habits when it comes to food preparation. I will take out all of my ingredients and then put each one away as soon as I've used it. The salt and pepper mills go back in the cupboard; the milk container goes straight in the fridge. The sugar jar goes back in the drawer with other ingredients. For me, by the time I've prepared my meal, the only thing left sitting out is the dish I've prepared.

DW, on the other hand, takes out her ingredients and leaves them out until after she's finished eating. This drives me nuts, especially if she's taken out the milk or anything else that needs to be refrigerated. If I'm in the kitchen when she's preparing a meal, I'll put the milk carton back in the fridge if I see it sitting out.

But lately, she's forgotten to turn off the burners after she's finished cooking. The same goes for the oven.

When I use the stove, I make sure everything is turned off, and I confirm everything's off by locking the controls on the stove (the lock button beeps if the oven or any burner are still on).

When I burned myself on the sauce pan, I didn't get upset. I just wrote the note and placed it over the stove. The pan cooled and I put it away.

My concern is that DW seems to remember to turn off the hood fan, but with the burner running, there's a CO2 problem. Also, the cats sometimes hop onto the kitchen counters and I've caught them walking across the stove.

I'd hate to think of them doing it with a burner going.

I'm also worried about anything placed over the burner that could melt. I'm not quite as worried about the pots and pans but we once melted a pot on our old electric stove.

When DW saw the note, she asked me about it and I explained what happened. The burn to my hand was minimal but I explained my fears of other consequences. I asked her to get into the habit of locking the stove every time she finished using it.

It might take a while, but that's what the note is for. It's for our collective safety.

It's a safety sign.