The coal mine
I used to love spending time with my granddad. I'd sit down in the lounge and listen in rapt attention as he regaled us children with the stories of his life. I recall a few of his stories were from his days working as the operations manager at the Witbank coal mine in what was then called the Transvaal in South Africa.

He said that the mines weren't as safe back then as they are now and accidents were more frequent. Injuries ranged from minor things like a cut finger to death. As the operations manager he was acutely aware what went on at his mine. One particular year he said the accident rate shot up dramatically. Mostly because they had a large influx of new personnel in an extended part of the mine they had opened up. In fact there were so many injuries that the authorities started to ask questions and when that happens heads can start to roll. If they start sniffing around they can and sometimes do shut the mine if they aren't happy. Then the unions got involved because they said safety standards at the mine were starting to slide and if they weren't improved then they would call a strike. The whole debacle was turning out to be quite nasty. By then the whole sorry mess was getting quite a bit of coverage in the local press and granddad was taking a lot of flack.

The cherry on the cake for his awful year was when granddad's mine was voted the worst mine to work at in South Africa by Mining Weekly, the industry rag. Grandma said she recalls the day he found this out because he stormed into the kitchen after work, threw down the paper and shouted "Who gives a fuck about these stupid coal leagues anyway!!".
(The Archduke of South London I'm in your Girlfriend eating her organs, Fri 4 Mar 2011, 15:59, 7 replies)

Bravo!
I have been racking my brains looking for a pun this week!
Sir, I salute you.
(Captain Placid 24/7 ball gags, brownie mix and clown porn, Fri 4 Mar 2011, 16:26, closed)

Took a moment or two
but I am now required to smite you with a frying-pan.
( .Yeti., Fri 4 Mar 2011, 16:28, closed)

Git git gitty git
Utterly blindsided.

*Click* grudgingly given. I hope you choke on it. :)
( Scrumper, Fri 4 Mar 2011, 17:54, closed)

Very well played sir...
and I've logged in just for this reply...
( TheMattInAHat has a particular... odour..., Fri 4 Mar 2011, 22:06, closed)

I had actually clicked through to the replies
before it hit me. D'uh.
(Sir Reginald Slapknackers last slapped his knackers at, Fri 4 Mar 2011, 23:54, closed)

Brilliant..
You got me right to the very last word, well done..
(danniekavanagh did nothing constructive on, Sun 6 Mar 2011, 12:27, closed)

Nicely
*click*
( Enzyme is powered by sunlight, Mon 7 Mar 2011, 20:31, closed)