aemeijers wrote:
David Nebenzahl wrote:
On 9/28/2009 2:04 PM SteveB spake thus:

How many of you use a five gallon plastic bucket for a ladder?

Me.

I know it's not such a good idea, and I cringe when I see someone
else do it, from being a safety professional and suffering from the
hypervigilance of PTSD. And yet, I just did it, and with little
reservation. I have seen people "walk" these remarkable distances,
and use them quite adroitly. I also have heard tales of woe and steel
pins and screws. And yet, if I need to do something straight up, and
all I need is a foot or two, I grab a bucket, because I can never
find the damn ladder.

Plastic buckets sometimes break when you step on them. I know this.

I've had it happen to me.

But I *still* sometimes grab one when I need to get up about a foot or
so ...



I'll second the steel pins and screws stories. 2 coworkers of mine, in
seperate incidents, trashed themselves pretty badly with stupid falls
doing household repairs with improper ladder rigging. One is back up and
running, although he limps a little, can forecast the weather, and has
to carry a letter for airport security. The other guy, well, he is sorta
back to work, uses a cane now, but he ain't ever gonna be right.

I was already getting a little more paranoid with advancing age, but now
I double-check everything before I leave ground level.

--
aem sends...

Don't ignore ground level - slippery floors, lighting, look out for
blind drivers backing out of parking spaces. Fortunately, my daughter
is a sales rep for human hardware - if I ever break a bone, I will have
an "in" with select orthopedic surgeons and, perhaps, a discount on the
hardware. Knock on wood. Had nasty, painful tendonitis in each
shoulder, separately. Took anti-inflammatories until they made my
stomach hurt. Decided I could go another 10 years without my family doc
- switched to hot showers with stretching exercises (alone) So far,
for the past 35 years, ice packs and/or heating pads have cured all that
has ailed me.