dadiOH wrote:
HeyBub wrote:
"[RICHLAND, Wash] Workers cleaning up the Hanford nuclear
reservation are going after radioactive wasp nests."

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/htm...dwasps11m.html

And you thought you had troubles...

*GASP*

In 1958 I was operating a U of H solar observatory at Makapuu Point in
Hawaii. It was my first job out of college and pretty much a flunky
one.
In addition to the observatory, the U of C had some meson counters
there and I was supposed to maintain them. A weekly chore was
checking their accuracy with a slug of radioactive beryllium which
was kept in a lead lined hole in the ground some distance away. I'd
go fish it out with a (literally) 10 foot pole to take it back to the
counters.
Now Makapuu is a pretty boring place - not much there except scrubby
brush, mongooses, roaches and yellow jackets - so I fought the
boredom by irradiating yellow jacket nests on the way back.

I never *dreamed* my onslaught against boredom would spread so far

I think that's the sight I saw on the Discovery Channel. Don't you have to
stop for a day at 7,000 foot or so to acclimate yourself to the rarefied
atmosphere?

They told the story of a carpenter who was brought up quickly for some sort
of repair. Midway through the repair, some passing scientist asked him how
the work was progressing. The carpenter said things were pretty screwed up.
"No matter how much I cut off this blankety-blank board, it's STILL too
short!"