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My partner is currently driving to Suffolk from Warwickshire. A journey of just over 3 hours on a very good day, sometimes up to or over 5.
She drove home from there only yesterday after a week in a friend's holiday home with her mum.
She did all the checks we all do when tidying up, checking plugs are off, bins are put out and everything is off. She did this several times like most of us do.
When she got back yesterday she said she'd got this nagging thought that she didn't fully check the electric hob was off or that it could have gotten knocked to on when tidying up or something.
I can understand that horrible nagging feeling she has but the chances of her leaving it on are just virtually non-existent to me, as i tried to impress on her.
The owners live miles away and we don't know any neighbours or anything so off she's gone. 😳
Give us your stories of leaving the iron on, or whatever is closest.
Whilst on holiday we got a picture of a delivery left outside the house, where we could see the front window we'd left open.
My ocd means I can’t go on holiday without taking pictures of the cooker switch to refer back to when I start questioning whether it was off or not..
The other year we were in such a fluster getting out the house for some reason or another - we got a few miles up the road and thought "hang on, did I lock the front door?" checked on the ring app - nope. I had left the front door wide open 🙄
My ocd means I can’t go on holiday without taking pictures of the cooker switch to refer back to when I start questioning whether it was off or not..
That actually seems like a sensible solution, tbf.
We messaged our neighbours while they were on holiday, as one day the kitchen window at front of the house had been left wide open.
Turns out their son who didn't live there had popped round to use their washing machine, opened the window and left it wide open.
We pushed it shut & he arrived a bit later to close it properly.
I've left my key in the car ignition overnight with the car unlocked. Only realised after being unable to find the key the next morning, and looking in the ignition as the last place to search.
I also left my garage door wide open one day after loading a bike in the car. My Wife was at work so just had to wait until I got home to see if it had been ransacked or not (it hadn't). There were probably 3 other bikes in there at the time.
She did this several times like most of us do.
Err. No.
Arrived home from a long weekend away and then had that mad “where is my front door key?” scramble. The answer was to be found in the front door lock where it obviously been for the previous three days.
I got a phone call from a neighbour when I was at the airport traveling to Spain for work.
Mrs SC had gone out to scouts and left the stove on with a pot boiling away (neighbour had wandered around the back to deliver a parcel).
Thankfully a downstairs window was open and a small child could enter to then unlock the front door.
Seemed a lot of effort as we always leave the back door unlocked.
Managed to leave the car key in the hire car while we were in Spain.
Unfortunately it was the key for my car, and the hire car was on the other side of security, and the plane I was sat on had just taken off when I realised.
I do a once over check and that is it...partner does a 3 or 4 times check and then insists I get out the house so she can check again...and then once on the way she wonders if she has left straighteners on (despite them undoubtedly being packed away!)...
Left the garage door open a few months back and went away for the weekend, luckily it can’t be seen from the road and later on the Friday night it suddenly hit me “I don’t remember putting the garage keys back in the draw”
Text the neighbour as they have a spare key for our house and he nipped round, locked up properly all sorted.
Also a number of years ago went kayaking one weekend, rushed out Friday afternoon/evening. Got back Sunday evening and walked I thinking it’s bloody chilly in here. Walked through and the old sliding patio door was wide open. Not been broken into, I just left it fully open on the Friday in my rush.
My ocd means I can’t go on holiday without taking pictures of the cooker switch to refer back to when I start questioning whether it was off or not.
Yeah, but are you sure you aren't looking at the picture you took on a previous trip? You're welcome 😁
Yeah, but are you sure you aren’t looking at the picture you took on a previous trip? You’re welcome 😁
that’s why I look at the date as well!
On the subject of irons, most half decent /modern irons have a cut off, I think mines after 30 mins of inactivity.
I'm not sure of the mechanics of how it works, I imagine it's the same technology that triggers your phone screen to flip the screen from portrait to landscape.
My wife used to suffer from the holiday-OCD induced “did I unplug the iron” about a mile after we left home.
I found the most effective way to avoid this was for us to leave for the airport about an hour after she wants to. The the OCD induced “something is going to go wrong on the journey so we won’t get to the airport 3hrs before the flight and will miss it” overrides the “I think I left the iron on”.
After a day at work, we needed to rush to North Manchester for (Hit the North) camping. We had a great long weekend. The tent and everything was packed up and we drove home only to find the freezer door wide open.
I had to throw away what food we couldn't give away or eat in the next day.
This also reminds me, About 10 years ago I was staying at my folks' house for the weekend. It was a nice day so I opened the patio door from the lounge into the garden - a thing my parents never done.
"Where did you find the key?" asks my mum.
"I never says I, it was unlocked" and it had been - for we think the previous 6 years since they moved in.
I went to visit my parents and on leaving various neighbours in the village waved enthusiastically as I drove away. Bit weird really it was a bit of a commuter village when I grew up there and not known for its neighbourliness so felt a bit odd even being acknowledged now. Stopped at the first T junction and my parents cat slid off the roof and down the windscreen.
I did leave the oven on once, over night.
Realised when I went into the kitchen the next morning and thought.. it's unseasonaly warm in here!
Remember the photos the The Crooked House - that was an iron.
wasn't there a famous google map story of someone seeing a burglar?
“I don’t remember putting the garage keys back in the drawER”
FTFY!!
The Crooked House – that was an iron
But was it an accident...?
Anyway tpbiker... any more genius tips? I'll be using that one.
Went off camping for the weekend. Came back to be told by the neighbour that we'd left the garage door wide open. I'd opened it to pull the trailer out, hitched it up and driven off without closing it behind me. Thankfully he knew we were away and shut it for us.
Previous house we had an over-eager PCSO banging on the door one morning like the drug squad were about to make a forced entry. Our gentle-giant-tattooed-biker neighbour had gone off to IOM for a week and left all his upstairs windows wide open. Someone behind had rung the police because they'd been open for a week and they'd not seen anyone in the property. A load of fuss about nothing but I guess when PCSO got no answer at his door she got all excited that something vaguely interesting might actually be happening in our little town.
The cat on the roof for the win !
The wife leaves her car keys in the front door (the outside) all the time. Obviously this means we spend many minutes doing the "where are my keys?" dance on quite a regular basis.
On the subject of irons, most half decent /modern irons have a cut off, I think mines after 30 mins of inactivity.
I’m not sure of the mechanics of how it works, I imagine it’s the same technology that triggers your phone screen to flip the screen from portrait to landscape.
I tell a lie, I've just checked mine, when notionless it shuts off after 30 seconds if it's 'face down', and 8 mins if it's upright.
We were off to a trade show in London early one Saturday so spent Friday afternoon loading up the van with all of the furniture and bit and bobs for the stand. Whilst unloading and setting up the stand ready for opening on the Sunday my better half enquires - "Have you seen the box of stock (jewellery)?"
That was an expensive courier !
Do you have a smart meter? It might show hour by hour usage online and set your mind at ease.
Also I just microwaved my lunch. Except that it was still in the fridge and I didn’t realise until I opened the door of the microwave and found that it was empty.
Re cat....
Was on holiday riding in Vinschgau with a mate. Had left my sunnies at a hut and had a crash on the way down. Drove up to the guy the next day, mate unpacked his bike and rode down. I sat and had something to eat. Went back to the van, closed the tailgate and drove off. Second from last hairpin before the valley floor and a feel something against my leg. Look down and it's a cat.... Scared the crap out of me!
Picked up my mate, making sure the cat stayed put and had to drive ~1000m back up the mountain to return the cat. Mate thought it was brilliant because he got two rides in that day without any climbing.
So many posts and still no mention of the passport check?
I went on a trip to Portugal with a bloke who lived next door to Wimbledon Tennis Centre during tennis fortnight and was able to watch coming from his apartment block live on the TV , with commentary
On an alpine road descent I was trying to catch up my mate to tell him his bag was open but kept having to stop to pick up the stuff that was falling out, so I didn't pay much heed to what sounded like a large plastic pop bottle skating across the road behind me, finally caught him up - hey Daron where's your helmet? He'd rested on my panniers when we got to the summit..We opted not to ride back up.
So many posts and still no mention of the passport check?
I didn't laugh at all when I found out my ex's partner had gone to Heathrow with my then 6yo sons passport 🤣
The day after registering my friends death at the local council I happened to have some work booked at Buckingham Palace, both need photo ID so I'd used my driving licence, except I'd put my deceased friends driving licence into my wallet, luckily our client had forgotten to book me in with the palace so I wasn't getting in anyway.
and was able to watch coming from his apartment block live on the TV , with commentary
Is there a vital word missing here? What were you watching? Smoke? water? soap bubbles? burglars? Boris Becker??
I tell a lie, I’ve just checked mine, when notionless it shuts off after 30 seconds if it’s ‘face down’, and 8 mins if it’s upright.
I've just noticed my accidentally funny typo... perhaps we should have the same safety measures applied to MP's?
I was paranoid about people breaking into my workshop where the bikes are kept.
so I went belt and braces, I screwed the door shut with big long screws using my impact driver. Figured they’d only get them out if they came with an impact driver. Locked the impact driver in the house hidden away for my return. Had to run back and undo it as my 4 yr old suddenly decided she was bringing her bike in this trip. Got bike, did it all up again.
came back after the weekend, well the screws did the job, workshop was still secure. But I’d left the workshop key right there in the lock.
At left the back door open and went to Canada for 3 weeks.
By open I mean pile of leaves and sheepshit in the kitchen open. Thankfully the door to the lounge had shut in the wind so the rest of the house was not used as a sheep shelter...
When she got back yesterday she said she’d got this nagging thought that she didn’t fully check the electric hob was off or that it could have gotten knocked to on when tidying up or something.
Update -
She did, as suspected, turn everything off just fine.
Should have told her to take a picture of the cooker.
I'll ask her how she can be sure she didn't knock it on while checking it was off, without a photo as evidence when she gets back. 👍
Not me, but years ago I went on a blind date with a woman who explained she was currently in temporary accommodation supplied by her insurers. Turns out she had made a fish casserole and left the pan to soak in the sink while she got ready to go out, only she'd left the tap on before leaving. She came back from her night out to find she'd not only flooded her flat, but also the one below, causing the neighbour's ceiling to partially collapse.
That was actually one of the milder red flags from that date.
Taking a photo of the cooker would work for my OCD. Used to make my morning coffee with a Brikka and one of the reasons I stopped was the nagging feeling I was cooking the house.
I know a lot of folk on here are sceptical about "smart" tech but this is one area it excels! Now have a smart-plug on my soldering iron that times out after an hour. This is after a mate came round and pointed out the one in my garage was on (having last used it 3 days ago 😳 😂)
I also suffer immensely from 'have I shut/locked/turned off etc'. So now whenever I go away for more than a week I video the house from top to bottom, with narration, showing windows closed and locked, sockets off, lights off, doors locked etc. This will invariably be checked on the train to wherever for reassurance. The other half is now understanding of an irrational fear - I've never left anything on or open before but for some reason now I think I will. Have I tempted fate ....
I did leave the oven on once, over night.
Realised when I went into the kitchen the next morning and thought.. it’s unseasonaly warm in here!
Forgot I’d done this when typing earlier. Oh that feels warm!! Left it on for about three days whilst I’d gone over to my parents for Chris at a few years ago.
Glad it was when electricity was cheaper. If I did that now I’d sound like tiger king “I’ll never financially recover from this”
My worst one was getting halfway to Heathrow and realising I'd left all my meds on the kitchen table. Briefly thought about what would be involved in convincing a US pharmacy to replace them once we got there. Decided prob better to turn around and get them. Was glad of the 3 hours grace we'd left for the airport, as we used up an hour of that going home again and then getting stuck in the rush hour.
A few years back we had a week biking in southern Spain. Getting dropped off at the airport managed to leave my hand luggage in the taxi, which drove off. Fortunately my passport was in my pocket. Tried to contact where we had stayed to see if they could contact the taxi firm. No answer as they were out biking. Had to choose; take the flight or stay and find the bag (wallet, keys, ipod, etc). Took the flight.
Hours later the biking outfit we'd stayed with rang to say the taxi driver had dropped my bag back with them, and a friend of theirs was bringing it back with him on a later flight.
And that's how I met Guy Kesteven, having driven from Manchester airport (after a cab home and back for the spare keys) to where he lived and met him as he got home. Top bloke, although the question 'did you pack your bags yourself sir?' mustn't have come up 😀
I once got up in the middle of the night for reasons I couldn't fathom, and went downstairs to a horribly strong smell of gas and the cooker merrily hissing away to itself.
I turned it off immediately and VERY CAREFULLY opened all the doors and windows, then spent the next half an hour or so shivering while waiting for the gas to disperse.
We've since replaced the cooker with one that turns off if there's no flame burning(!).
I think we're all quite lucky that (a) I woke up and, (b) I didn't try to turn any lights on when I came downstairs. Come to think of it, this could/should be in the "bullets dodged" thread.
Surely you can take all the pictures you like but you could still have knocked the cooker back right after taking it. Full video of the entire house and subsequently leaving the house is surely the only way
So many posts and still no mention of the passport check?
When I was travelling all the time for work I'd check it in front of the driver as I put my bag in the car and ask them to confirm they'd see me check it.
She did all the checks we all do when tidying up, checking plugs are off, bins are put out and everything is off. She did this several times like most of us do.
errr…… nope. One relatively half arsed check that things are switched off here. I’ve gone away for days and forgotten to lock the door!
I managed to leave my gas hob on when away for a fortnight. Turned down low mind you . Stll burning when i got home.
We arrived at a holiday house in the dark and pissing rain. Chucked the kids and bags into the house, made the beds and all went to sleep.
When I woke up the next morning I looked out of the kitchen window to see the rear door of the van still open. It was facing the road and had 4 mountain bikes in it!
The walk outside to see if the van still had anything in it was nerve wracking but amazingly everything was still there. I guess the rain had kept any light fingered people indoors that night…a very luck escape!
Show her this when she gets back.
Lolz. Brilliant.
She'll love that 😂
able to watch coming from his apartment block live on the TV ,
This is doing my head in. Burglars, smoke?
This thread is great .. for the things I've actually done, house/ car keys in front door overnight, gas hob on whilst out all day ... to name but a few. And I'm much happier knowing that my 'shit I forgot to do' paranoia when leaving the house to go on holiday is happening everywhere else as well ... although I'm not sure I'm at the 'videoing every room' stage yet ...!!!! Lols
I managed to leave my gas hob on when away for a fortnight. Turned down low mind you . Stll burning when i got home.
Nice to come home to a lovely warm house.
I left the side door of my van fully open while I went for an MNPR ride once. 2+ hours right by The Church in one of Manchester's suburbs. Big bag of tools and one of my other bikes inside, still there when I came back.
This also reminds me, About 10 years ago I was staying at my folks’ house for the weekend. It was a nice day so I opened the patio door from the lounge into the garden – a thing my parents never done.
“Where did you find the key?” asks my mum.
“I never says I, it was unlocked” and it had been – for we think the previous 6 years since they moved in.
I left the work shop door unlocked for a month...
So many posts and still no mention of the passport check?
Drove my mum to the airport, and she'd left it in a "safe place" at my house.
When I go away I turn water and gas off at mains, used to work for an energy company the engineers used to. Always concerned I ve left something on, one less thing to worry about.