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Darwin Awards
2008 Slush Pile

This item was recently submitted by a reader.
Should I include it in the archive?
Vote to tell me what *you* think!

It apparently takes more than one..

2008 Reader Submission
Pending Acceptance

... to change a light bulb.

This is a true story and actually happened to my fiance and me this past Monday.

Here goes.

So, I leave my job for my lunch break thinking that it was going to be just another normal day. About two minutes down the road, I get a phone call from my fiance.

At first I think something is horribly wrong because she starts bawling. After a couple minutes of calming her down she is able to tell me that her windshield in her car is shattered (She wasn't in the car at the time) because a light pole fell on it. So, I tell her I'm on my way home.

When I arrive, I see that there is indeed a light pole bent over her car. Not touching it, mind you, this becomes very important later. There is no one around at first so we start wondering what happened.

At this point we see two maintenance guys for the apartment complex walking toward us. We ask them what happened and they start explaining. One of the guys had been changing the light bulb on the pole, using a ladder leaned up against it, when the pole (made of weak fiberglass) started to lean. As the pole was falling the guy tried to change the direction of the fall, so that it wouldn't fall on the car.

I'm guessing that in the process of a little man trying to change the direction of a falling light pole, while standing on a flimsy ladder, made him lose his balance. HE FELL THROUGH THE WINDSHIELD OF MY FIANCE'S CAR!

At first I thought, well that's not too bad. I mean he lost his balance trying to save the car which actually probably caused less damage than a pole falling on it. But then he tells me this, which makes me look at him like he's some kind of disgusting insect. He and his buddy had been trying to get the HOA to get a new pole for weeks because it had been dry rotting. HE CLIMBED UP A LADDER LEANED AGAINST A DRY ROTTING FIBERGLASS LIGHT POLE!!!

So, the car is at the shop now and insurance is taking care of it.

The maintenance guy, by the way, came out of this without a scratch.

Submitted on 06/19/2008

Submitted by: Russell
Reference: no reference

Copyright © 2008 DarwinAwards.com

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Bruce said:
Definitely Keep: Personal Account
Maintenance people aren't exactly known for being members of Mensa, and this is a prime example of why that's the case. Thanks, Russell. I bet this was something you're insurance company got a good laugh out of.


James said:
Definitely Keep: Personal Account
So you had the pleasure of meeting Laurel and Hardy in person, eh?! A very funny PA! Thanks, Russel, and I hope your insurance rates don't go up on account of these bozos!


Darwin Awards III: Survival of the Fittest

Hardback. 304 pages. Autographed.
$15
The human race's most popular humor series returns with a brand-new collection of macabre mishaps and misadventures. Honoring those who improve our gene pool by inadvertently removing themselves from it, the Darwin Awards III shows once more how uncommon common sense still is.

Salute the sheriff who inadvertently shot himself--twice! Witness the insurance defrauder who amputated his leg with a chainsaw! Heed the story of the farmer who avoided bee stings by sealing his head in a plastic bag! Cringe at the man crushed by a branch he'd just severed... directly over his head!

123 new stories, 18 full-page illustrations, plus discussions of transgenic animals, the origin of life, and more.

Autographed by Author!

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