I go out to sweep the second floor balcony. I close the door because there is so much dust flying around I don't want to fill the bedroom. Upon completion of the task, I turn the knob to open the door.
The knob spins freely in my hand.
I just fiddled with it for several minutes, thinking: What am I doing wrong here? This is how you open the door isn't it? (It's funny what went through my mind.)
I can see through the window that the dead bolt is open.
So now what do I do. Hang over the edge and drop? (About a ten foot drop to concrete.)
I, fortunately, and for no special reason, had just clipped on my cell phone before I went out. I called the kid (he has a cell) at high school.
He ran home and in ten minutes he opened the door from the inside. The cell phone paid for itself yesterday.
The weird thing is that when I disassembled the mechanism, there was nothing broken. I reassembled and everything works great.
This presents weirdness in both directions: 1) If assembled correctly, I can't see how it could have ever gotten to the point where the knob just spins. 2) If misassembled, I can't understand how it EVER would have worked. :bonk:
PS - Standing out there with no way in, and the only option of going over the railing gave me a very bizarre 911 feeling. (Not as intense as for those hanging out of the building with no option of going back in, but a very strange feeling, and connection, nevertheless.)
Only 10 feet for crying out loud. All you had to do was climb over the railing and hang off the edge. Then you would have only had to jump about 4 feet, it wouldn't have killed you but I'm glad everything worked out OK. [img]/images/graemlins/supergrin.gif[/img]
Only 10 feet for crying out loud. All you had to do was climb over the railing and hang off the edge. Then you would have only had to jump about 4 feet, it wouldn't have killed you but I'm glad everything worked out OK. [img]/images/graemlins/supergrin.gif[/img]
Only 10 feet for crying out loud. All you had to do was climb over the railing and hang off the edge. Then you would have only had to jump about 4 feet, it wouldn't have killed you but I'm glad everything worked out OK. [img]/images/graemlins/supergrin.gif[/img]
See, you missed it. Hanging from the lowest part of the railing would still leave me with at least a 10 foot drop. And then what? I'm still locked out. The cell phone was the ticket.
I called my wife to tell her of the situation. She had the exact same take as you. Just hang off the lower part of the railing and drop. When she came home, I took her out there and asked if she still thought that was a good idea. She changed her mind.
Or a ladder in my back pocket? (The cell phone is more portable.)
I have one of those large market umbrellas on the balcony. I guess I could have done the old Mary Poppins thing. [img]/images/graemlins/supergrin.gif[/img]
Actually, if I was desperate, I probably could have put the broom handle between the railing uprights, bent the handle downward and lowered myself to a more reasonable dropping distance. The cell phone took the desperation away.
Don't feel bad Craig... I park in the basement of the building I work in. Today, for some stupid ass reason while climbing the 6 or 7 steps to get up to the door, my toe hung on a stair and I went down like a sack of potatoes. [img]/images/graemlins/laughing.gif[/img] Luckily there was nobody around. I quickly got up, looked around to see if anyone had seen me wipe out, dusted off and hauled ass...
Sometimes we're just destined to look stupid. [img]/images/graemlins/supergrin.gif[/img]
As for your doorknob working properly after having been reassembled with no problem found? Haints my boy, haints!
Don't feel bad Craig... I park in the basement of the building I work in. Today, for some stupid ass reason while climbing the 6 or 7 steps to get up to the door, my toe hung on a stair and I went down like a sack of potatoes. [img]/images/graemlins/laughing.gif[/img] Luckily there was nobody around. I quickly got up, looked around to see if anyone had seen me wipe out, dusted off and hauled ass...
Sometimes we're just destined to look stupid. [img]/images/graemlins/supergrin.gif[/img]
As for your doorknob working properly after having been reassembled with no problem found? Haints my boy, haints!
My mental re-inactment of that event is hilarious. I've done the same thing so many times
