Fireworks Mayhem!!!

As anybody who reads this has probably figured out by now I am a volunteer firefighter and have been for the last 8 years! 8 YEARS already Dad!!! Every year here we set off fireworks on halloween night. It is too light in the summer to do any kind of fireworks so we do it on this night instead. Our fire department has been trained in firework detonation and doing light displays. We have three teams to run them, the loaders, the lighters and the cleaners. Tonight I was one of the cleaners. I was going down the line with the other guys, there was three of us, and just as I was getting close to the 6" tubes somebody yelled "DUD". So I went to back up off the line to see where the dud was and before I knew it something exploded and nailed me straight into the arm! It FREAKING HURT!!!! It felt like someone hit me with a freight train! The tube where the dud was, was about 4 tubes down from the one I was cleaning and when it exploded it shattered the tube and sent pieces flying everywhere! It went through all but one layer of my fire jacket and left this huge superficial cut about 5 inches long on my upper arm! This happened about halfway through our display and I didn't take my coat off until after we were done. I just bit my lip, sucked it up and jumped back on the line! After everything was over and i took my coat off it was already swollen and starting to bruise! It has been four hours since it happened and my freaking arm is HUGE!!! It is bruised from the top of my elbow right up to the top of my shoulder. It looks like somebody shoved a baseball into the sleeve of my shirt! I imagine tomorrow will be interesting!

Anyway our trick or treating went well - Dani and Zach loved it! Dani was a giraffe, Zach was a monkey and Ry was a tiger - I went as the Zoo keeper! I am going to bed as I will have some chillins up early tomorrow! Night all, Happy Halloween!!!