#196 words

[eventsfalmouth-blog]

Lesson One: Health and Safety (Electricals)

The event organiser, whether an individual, collective or local authority, has prime responsibility for protecting the health, safety and welfare of everyone. (Conway 2009: 20-21)  When running any event, the health and safety aspects are crucial, especially when it comes to working with live electricals. It is vital that the power is switched off from the mains when plugging and unplugging cables from the sound system. If unplugged when the PA (public address) system is live, it could potentially damage the equipment therefore rendering it useless.

Damage could also come to the cables if they are not rolled up and stored correctly. If there are tangled cables spread across a staged area it could cause a safety risk and breach health and safety regulations. There is a particular way in which you can roll a cable to prolong its life and avoid tangling.

How to Coil (or Wrap) Cable 

                 (Fig 1. RocketJump Film School, 2015)  Pro Tip: How to Coil (or Wrap) Cable 

A risk assessment form must be carried out before any event. Risk assessments ensure that your event will be run safely and no harm will be caused. 

References: ELECTRICAL SAFETY. Health and Safety Executive [Online]. Available at  http://www.hse.gov.uk/event-safety/electrical-safety.htm [Accessed 5th November 2015].

CONTROLLING THE RISKS IN THE WORKPLACE. Health and Safety Executive [Online]. Available at: http://www.hse.gov.uk/risk/controlling-risks.htm [Accessed 11 November 2015]. 

Bibliography: CONWAY, D.G. 2009. The event manager’s bible: The complete guide to planning and organising a voluntary or public event. 3rd ed. Oxford: How to Books.  List of Figures: Fig.1: ROCKETJUMP FILM SCHOOL. 2015. Pro Tip: How to Coil (or Wrap) Cable [Online tutorial]. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ypvmoCOzVxM [Accessed 5th November 2015].

[stareandwrite]

I took the radio call on Washtenaw in Humboldt Park around 7pm. No sign of life for a few minutes, but then a kid with neck tattoos and a hoodie ambled up and motioned that the rest of them would be right out. Two guys and two girls; the first guy sat up front with me. “Is this one of those freaky cabs?” a voice from the back called out. Like Cash Cab? I wonder. “No, man, Taxicab Confessions, where they tell all the fucked-up shit they did, yo.” Got something to share? I ask...This leads to a graphic discussion of all the positions that they’d do it in in the cab. I tell them it happens. The one in the front wonders if he could get his crotch up to the partition where his girl could have at it. They whoop it up when I tell them that there would be extra charges for that. “By the way, yo, we’re gonna kill you,” he announces, dead-eyed, and tells his buddy in the back to give him his knife. “Just playin’!” he cracks up. ... They get out at the Diversey Rock-n-Bowl.

- Dmitry Samarov in Chicago

Samarov has written Hack (Stories From a Chicago Cab), which The University of Chicago Press will publish in October. John Hodgman blurbed the book. John Hodgman! He wrote that Samarov is "as skilled a navigator of the forgotten American city as you’ll find, and his writing is funny, grim, humane, and welcome.”

This people-watching scene comes from a longer blog post called "Black Friday." You should go read it here, especially since I cut a sentence to keep the post under the strict, arbitrary 200-word limit.

Unless I've wildly misunderstood, Samarov himself submitted this to "Stare and Write." I'm so grateful.

You, too, should submit a true people-watching story. Do it here. Thank you.