Ask LadySmokeater just about anything....

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Ok I havent posted my own thread in this area, and Ive been here for a couple months.
I got this idea from stlf, and from the pm's I have gotten about me being a firefighter.

So ask away. Anything goes, well so long as this is G-rated. I'll answer what I can, and what I cant, well I will try to find an answer. I used to do this with history questions when I was teaching. The kids loved it, and I learned alot too!

Oh, and I might even ask you a question back....

Over the last 50 years in our society, the concept of romantic courtship has undergone a dramatic evolution (or devolution depending on who you ask). What do you think will become of courtship in the next 50 years?

Would you please explain your username? I understand it is perhaps a reference to your being a firefighter but could you explain it more specifically?

what would be your Dream Come True?

what is YOUR ideal mate like?

what is your favorite non-domesticated mammal?

do you drive?

how fast can you run?

I think that the dramatic evolution in courtship has to do with the way society is growing in leaps and bounds via new technology. Never before could two people in opposite parts of the globe talk via Email/chat or phone and then get on a plane and (depending on layovers) be to the other person's door step in less than 24 hours. The ability for this generation to have anything and everything all at once makes it difficult for some to rationalize "working out" a troubled relationship, or in some cases to turn away from temptation (be that another person, gambling, drugs etc). In years past, it was very hard for a person to obtain a divorce and they things had to be "worked out" or the person simply suffered with the problems at hand. Again the temptations of a person is also greatly influenced by the media and the constant bombardment of the senses via TV, Internet, etc. Im not saying that technology doesnt have its advantages, but one could argue the disadvantages are the degradation of the society we live in. And I do think that modern relationships are suffering in many ways. Not all, but many.
I feel that relationships will evolve to a point that would shock even our most liberal minded people. Perhaps people will only hook up to mate and perpetuate the species as in the "Cave man" days. Or perhaps the institution that we know as marriage will no longer be the norm, and people will live with whomever. But like all things, humans will eventually complain that that isnt working and it will come full circle again. The cycles we see, though, will move faster than in the past because I think that the ease and speed of the dissimination of information and ideas will cause things to happen faster.
(but lets hope we dont regress to that, and that folks find marrage or atleast perminate relationships the optimal choice.)

What do you think will occor in the next 50 years LowFreq?

I agree about the future of marriage...

It's well-known that marriages tend to end in divorce more often than not but, many people today still have a romantic delusion about it. I see the popularity of marriage decreasing over time. Relationships will become flexible, or admittedly limited in time. Not neccessarially set to an amount of time, but rather the partners will agree that it's not "going to last forever." Having children will not be dependant upon being in a relationship because the raising of children will become the responsibility of the community. (This will be related to the rise in socialism, in which the individual will become less important than the society in whole.)

What is the meaning of life?

LadySmokeater is a direct reference to my being a female firefighter.

In the past, firefighters were often called various nicknames. Jakey or Jake (after a J shaped key that was used to open the first fire alarm boxes) Truckie (the crew on the truck companies or ladder trucks) Hose Jockies, Dragon Slayers (not a favorite of mine) and Smoke eaters among others.
The term "Smoke eater" came from the days before SCBA's (Self-Contained Breathing Appratus) when firefighters literally held their breath or ducked low to breath in a burning structure. They were "eating smoke". And it killed many. At the smoke in a house fire is hot enough to blister your lungs and toxic and lacking O2 to boot. Anyhow, it wasnt untill the 1990s that the FDNY accually forced their guys to use their SCBA's. They had to wear them, but not breath thorugh them.
The first SCBA's came out of the mining industry (Drager and Survive air and MSA are examples) Im not sure where Scott originated from, but it is the preferred brand in the area I live in. The first packs had steel cylinders that weighed over 25 lbs, thats not counting the gear, mask or the pack that holds it. They are filled with compressed room air, not oxygen as most people think. Over the years the packs became lighter. First aluminum then composite materials. The ones I use at my station are carbon fiber wrapped, and weigh in the neighborhood of 12 lbs. They have some on the market that weigh a mere 6lbs, but they are "high Pressure" (4500 PSI) as opposed to the ones most folks use (2600 PSI) and require a higher pressure compressor and are more expensive. The standard air pack lasts a reasonably fit firefighter working moderately about 20 minutes. Some can make it last 30 or more, and I have seen some drain the pack in 5. You have to teach your self how to controll your breathing even when you are working so hard it feels as if your heart will explode, and when you are afraid. They make "hour packs" but the lightest ones weigh about 40 lbs and no one should be inside a burining structure that long. Those are best for the ladder trucks that dont have air piped to the top.
So now we really arent "Smoke Eaters". We have come a long way since the days of Benjamin Franklin and his first Vol. fire company in the US.
I like the moniker "Ladysmokeater" though, because it tells that I am a female firefighter, and it echos of the past.

PS just a little side bar: Our gear (boots, helmet, bunker pants, suspenders, jacket, gloves, flashhood, face peice and airpack) plus an ax weighs a wopping 75 lbs or more!! !! That doesnt include the tools we keep in our pockets or if we are dragging a hose line or carrying extra tools. The physical exertion we put forth is enough to make a person afraid their heart will beat right out of their body. I guess thats why the number one killer of firefighters is cardiovascular realted (heart attack and stroke)

Having enough money so that I could donate to wonderful causes anonomsly, keep my family from wanting anything, and work with out the pressure of wondering if Ill get introuble. Then I could be as excentic as I wanted... lol.

What about you?

My ideal mate would be a wonderfuly understanding man, that thinks its cool that his woman is a firefighter. He would be a hard worker, good with kids, and good with investments. He would also be a lot of fun and we would shair many of the same intrests. Oh, and maybe he might even be able to sing.... that would be a bonus....

My favorate non domesticated animal is the Dolphin. What a wonderfuly intelegent animal! Did you that they (and humans) are the only animals that mate for pleasure?

Yes I drive. Usually too fast. I also have a special licence that allows me to drive a fire truck. The largest trucks I have driven are the ARFF trucks at the airport.

My running speed in not too fast. But it increases exponentally with the size of the dog that is chasing me!

What is your favorite non domesticated animal?

Ours is not to reason why, ours is but to do and die. Alfred Lord Tennison, I believe.

The meaning of life is so very objective. It will vary from person to person and year to year.

But one could also theroize that the true meaning is no meaning at all. That we are all part of a really twisted cosmic joke that hasnt reached the punch line yet.

What do you think?

sounds reasonable, except maybe for the singing part . i cannot imagine why a guy would have a problem dating a firefighter.

wow, i did not know that.

i used to drive too fast, but my insurance started getting too expensive.



i would have to say the raccoon. i raised an abandoned baby a few years back. he was ultimately put in to a wildlife rehabilitation program and released back into the wild. they are quite intelligent and are an excellent example of a generalist species.

LOL! Well it was put to me like this by a guy I know: "most guys dont like the idea of their woman sleeping in the same room with several men" and "what man wants the mother of (or future mother of) his children running into a burning building?"
*sigh* funny, many firemen dont seem to have a problem with their woman doing the job, but then the worry about her being hit on by another guy.... and round we go.


About the racoon. I always wanted a pet racoon or opossum. Or maybe even a squirll. I knew a girl once that had a pet opossum, it was so ugly it was cute. It was a little baby and loved being held and cuddled. Quite a bit more loving that I had ever though it could be really, then it was "accidently" killed by her mother.

did you know that in the new willy wanka movie they trained all those squirls? I had no clue they could be trained!

What part of your personalty do you try to nurture and encourage the most?

What part of your personalty do you try the hardest to fight and get rid of?

Do you think that every one is good inside some where or can people be rotten thro and thro?

My desire to know more about the world around me. I love to discover knew things, and to become more educated in my field. I try to indulge in my seemingly endless thirst for knowledge when ever I can.



I chatter alot about things I have learned. Aparently not everyone finds trivia as intreaguing as I do, and they become irritated by it. I have to fight the urge to randomly interject bits of trivia into conversations. I was told it was rude.



I think that there are some souls that are bad. No matter what you do, no matter what happens, they are just bad. I think that they are rare, in that there are more "good souls" or "neutral souls" than "evil". But those that are "Evil" I think are beyond the help of society.


What about the same three questions back at ya?