Rude awakenings

Sometimes having trouble sleeping can be a good thing.

I wasn't feeling so well last night, so I took some fakequil before I went to bed. I was tired, and thought I'd get to sleep quickly. Unfortunately, such was not the case - I laid there with a sort of strange alert restlessness, and I felt strange. Kind of like my skin didn't quite fit, if that makes any sense.

DH came to bed a little afterward, and since he's been fighting what is probably bronchitis, he suggested putting on the humidifier. So we put it on, and settle down to sleep.

I started smelling something strange, sort of like burnt computer components. Not a very strong scent, but it was there. DH didn't smell it, so I chalked it up to medicine-head on my part. I still couldn't quite get to sleep.

All of a sudden, I hear a *pop* and a flash of light, and sat up to see flames on top of the humidifier!

I jumped up and yanked the cord out of the wall, patted out the flame, and turned the lights on. Apparently it had shorted out, and melted through the cord where it attached to the unit. No damage to anything other than the humidifier, fortunately, but if we'd been asleep, who knows what would have happened?

So old humidifier went out to the trash - it was an el cheapo unit that we bought for $10 almost 15 years ago, so it was probably due for replacement anyway. I got a new humidifier today, with automatic shutoff.

Hopefully this one won't spontaneously combust!