Coffee, Hide'n Seek with Fire Sprinklers

2oth Apr'2006 it was yet another lazy sunny thursday after noon.
The time was 1510 hrs and perfect to grab a cuppa frm the cafe`. I sipped ice cold water then picked up a large pack of Hide'n Seek for me and my dear comrades in the lab. I was at the lab door by 1523 hrs. At a killing pace made my way through the artery of charis and ethernet cables and onto my L3C ( Last Lab Last chair ). Handed over the big box of Hide'n Seek to Murthy. The aroma of coffee from my cuppa was spreading in the lab. The vapours from the coffee cup placed infornt of my 17' LCD were settling on the screen. Murthy with his standard accent offered Hide' Seek to everyone and I quickly grabbed a small piece of Hide'n Seek.
The choco chips in the biscuit melted on my dry tougue. I was extra careful today not to spill coffee on my favourite creame coloured pants. Carefully picked the cup in fornt of me with my left hand and from my right hand wrapped the cuppa with a tissue. As i could feel the vapours from the cuppa tickling my nose slowly took a deep sip holding cuppa safely with both my hands. Murthy standing besides me quickly exclaimed about a weird sound of air gushing. Quickly I saw the sound was coming from the fire sprinkler right above us on the roof. Murthy fumed when few drops of water dripped on his head. But now the sound ws lot more intense and i could hear a distant water trying to gush out. With in no time the Sprinker was in full glory water simply gushed out with full force. All we did was to run out of the lab along with Adithya. Adithya screamed a bit :) after he walked out of the lab to get hold of the facilities. I quickly grabbed my cuppa and ran with it while taking few sipps.

Waiting outside the locked lab for the security officer and facilities to take control of the situation. I gazed from the glass window water getting sprinkled in all directions with full force upto 7ft inside the lab and on the glass window. All of a sudden I remembered "Black Mesa Labs" from the game "Half Life" where in the time warp experiment fails and the aliens constrained are set free and they start hopping all over the "Black Mesa Labs". Luckily there were no aliens out here in our lab.
Just then i see Muthy lurking back into the lab along goes Sachin also. I quickly go and clear all the artery of charis inside the lab to make for Murthy to carry the computers outside the lab. I see Murthy removing the computer cabinets and Sachin moving all the LCD monitors. In the extreme corner i see one of CRT monitors flickering I proceed 2 steps forward and i could fell cold water entering my shoes and my socks getting wet. I see secuirty officer infront standing on a chair struggling and holding the sprikler to plug out the water from leaking. As i proceed towards the flickering moniter the lights in the lab go pofff. Right behind the monitor i see a power strip drenched with water with its red lamp barely flickering. With my wet index finger i slowly extend my arm to switch off the power supply to the power strip.
The moment i made the contact with the switch I realise that that this could be my last flip of a switch & oops there it goes a nerve wrecking surge of current down my arm through the index finger. Just at this moment the facilities personel cut off the main power to lab. I consider myself lucky to be alive tonight to write this near death experience. Saddest part is i see my Hide'n Seek pack completely dissolved in water that was kept on my desk. The facilities put up a placard at the lab door and whisk me out.
Well i go again to cafe' and buy a small pack of Hide' seek and ensuring i enjoy it in the Sun outside the cafe' along with another cuppa :)