The first actual chore I can actually remember being given was to vacuum the living room. This task was given to me by my mother. I think I was six or seven. Sometimes while vacuuming I might get distracted or maybe just have to go pee. I would leave the vacuum on. My mother would always scream, "You can't leave the vacuum running in one spot! I will explode! Turn it off!" I was probably eleven years old before I realized that this simply was not true. Not because no mother would give their child an appliance that was likely to detonate, but because it just didn't seem possible. Still, thirty years and several vacuum cleaners later, I still turn the vacuum off if I am going to be away from it more than ten seconds. It's not because I'm saving electricity or because I hate the noise. It's because somewhere in the back of my mind, I can hear my mother's voice. "It's going to explode!" Sometimes I feel that was about the Watchtower. There are some things that they teach that I no longer believe. Still, I can hear that tiny "faithful and discreet slave" voice in the back of my mind about various things. It nags and pesters me, even though I don't believe in the Watchtower anymore and am about a fly's length away from not believing in God anymore. er
The vacuum cleaner is going to explode!
by easyreader1970 3 Replies latest jw friends
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kitten whiskers
Cute story! You told it well and made a good comparison to the fear we were fed by the Society! I'm sorry vacuuming is such a life threatening chore! I feel for you, but can't help but laugh too! Ahhhh...the things we are told as kids and the deep impressions they make in our minds! Your poor mother must have been a nervous wreck if she believed that!
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momzcrazy
The "don't run with forks" rule is still applicable though! Luckily it missed his eye.
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WTWizard
Leaving a vacuum cleaner (that is, one with beater brushes, not pure suction) turned on in one spot can cause wear and tear on the carpet at that spot. It can also waste electricity (the exhaust can get rather hot--about 100 F/38 C or more) and create wear and tear on the motor and belts. However, there is no way in hell that a vacuum cleaner will blow up just from leaving it in one spot.
What could cause a vacuum cleaner to blow up is if the bag gets too full. In that case, there is a risk that the bag could rupture. The explosion will not damage anything, but it could be quite messy. And most vacuum cleaners will simply stop sucking up dirt before that happens.