[thechat] solder on, dude

[rudy]

we have this gorgeous black rotary dial phone on a fifty foot cord that
covers all the upstairs

last night it was yanked a bit too hard on the way into the bathroom (what,
you don't call people from the tub?), and it stopped working

no problem, says i, after opening the phone and noticing the disconnected
wires

there are four of them -- red, yellow, green, black -- and now i remember
that when i spliced that long cord in, i had simply twisted the wire ends
together by hand and taped them up with that black electrician's tape

from the pile of crap i call my workshop in the laundry room, i dug out an
old spool of solder and the trusty old soldering iron that's been with me
through a couple wives and countless moves, and while waiting for the iron
to heat up, i read the warning on the tube --

    Kester
    60% Tin / 40% Lead
    Hi-Tech Electronic
    Rosin Core Solder
    For Electronic Repair
    WARNING! This product CONTAINS LEAD which may be harmful
    to your health and is a chemical known to the State of California to
    cause cancer, birth defects or other reproductive harm.  Federal and
    State laws prohibit the use of lead solder in making joints in any
private
    or public (drinking) water supply system.  Breathing flux fumes may
    cause respiratory system irritation or damage.  After handling solder,
    wash hands with soap and water before eating or smoking.

what a hoot -- i guess i've had that solder a while, eh?  how long since you
saw a health warning label that suggested it was perfectly okay to smoke?

but hey, kester is still around -- check out their snazzy animated flash
splash page complete with sound effects (ta-da!) and groovy drum loop at
http://www.kester.com (too bad there's so many broken links on their site)


rudy