Your car's not earthed
but it is a large conductive object which is at a lower potential than you are, if you've been walking around in rubber soled shoes, and with a sufficiently larger capacitance than you, such that when you touch the metalwork, a current flows from you to the car.
( K2k6 has a proper job these days, Wed 14 Apr 2010, 11:56, 1 reply, 16 years ago)

why should it happen to me loads
and not to other people anywhere near as much. I wear pretty ordinary shoes.
( Vipros. clever got me this far, then tricky got me in, Wed 14 Apr 2010, 11:58, Reply)

It happens to me a lot too
Always has done. I was quite a curiosity at school because of this!

Some people just hold a charge better than others.
( K2k6 has a proper job these days, Wed 14 Apr 2010, 11:59, Reply)

plus
not to be faectious, but long haired/ bearded people seem to hold a charge better. I've got long hair and I'm pretty much walking static on a hot day
( Amberl was stripey and dominated Europe, Wed 14 Apr 2010, 12:01, Reply)

I've got short hair
and am clean shaven for the most part. But I can understand your logic.
( K2k6 has a proper job these days, Wed 14 Apr 2010, 12:02, Reply)

I get a lot, I put it down to all the shell suits I wear
eh, eh, eh...
( Naked Ape call me Caitlyn, Wed 14 Apr 2010, 12:03, Reply)

so basically what you are saying
is that we are better than most other people?
( Vipros. clever got me this far, then tricky got me in, Wed 14 Apr 2010, 12:12, Reply)

Yes.

( K2k6 has a proper job these days, Wed 14 Apr 2010, 12:13, Reply)

I suspected as much

( Vipros. clever got me this far, then tricky got me in, Wed 14 Apr 2010, 12:14, Reply)

As an undergraduate
during one afternoon lab, I managed to blow three electronics experiments with my massive static charge.
( K2k6 has a proper job these days, Wed 14 Apr 2010, 12:16, Reply)

one of my mates
zapped the headphones on a listening station in WHSmith and broke it

I saw the spark. it was awesome.
( Vipros. clever got me this far, then tricky got me in, Wed 14 Apr 2010, 12:25, Reply)

Impressive.

( K2k6 has a proper job these days, Wed 14 Apr 2010, 12:34, Reply)

yeah
on account of our sparky goodnature, shocking sense of humour and grounded personality.

I make no apology
( Amberl was stripey and dominated Europe, Wed 14 Apr 2010, 12:14, Reply)