Shocking
I have had some near misses with electricity. Once the toaster wasn't working in the morning, and being bleary-eyed, I decided to put my finger in to see if the elements were hot. A quick zap and I was charged up for the day, bleariness behind me. Beats coffee.

Also, when I was about 14 I decided to have a listen to find out what electricity sounded like. I got an earphone (small and made to be inserted right inside the ear) from my Dick Smith science set, put in in my ear, and leaned over to the wall outlet. It fell from my ear onto the bedspread, where I decided to leave it, and then I put the wires into the electrical plug. A brief pop and burned hole in the bedspread followed. It took a few years for me to fully appreciate that it might have done some real damage to me. Can't say I'm too much smarter now though.

Not certain that these would have been able to kill me, but they were uncomfortably close.

Also, I was driving to Coffs Harbour one night (6hr trip from Sydney) in pouring rain in my crappy old car, not doing anything too dangerous, just travelling the speed limit of 100km/hr, and following the taillights of the new car in front. I crested over the top of a hill and started aquaplaning (while the other car went on it's merry way). I was out of control fishtailing right then left then right about 4 times before I said "fuck it", waited until it was almost straight and jumped on the brakes. An out of control skid followed, for about 200 metres (slightly downhill), as I drifted from my side of the road through the other side of the road onto the soft shoulder and finally gently taking out a wooden post just before the trees. Thankfully no-one was travelling the other way during this eternity, or I would have been a wet corpse.
(Skippyfillet, Sun 28 Nov 2004, 13:42, Reply)