a lil' smokey!

So coupla nights ago... after a grand time at my cousin's to-be-in-laws party, we got back home to find the house smelling of smoke! Quite strange and my cuz, A. & myself went to go investigate (in our mildly inebriated state). We reached the conclusion that the smoke was actually coming from the basement but our theory was quickly crushed as it is quite normal to burn garbage in the alley behind the house (an interesting fact if you think about the BILLIONS of people in this country... where does their garbage go... besides the few dumps that many poor people live on). So, back to the story... all us tired folk decided to hit the sack and just turn on the fans and air conditioning extra high.
Next thing u know... my uncle is waking us up to go to the balcony as the entire flat is full of smoke! LUCKILY, my grandfather, the early riser that he is, woke up to find the house TOTALLY filled with smoke. So he quickly calls the fire brigade and the police. The advantage of living in a well-off South Delhi location is that these guys come quickly! About 15 of them show up and first stand around trying to discuss what to do. One thing to note is that the ONLY difference between the cops and firemen are the gum boots (rain boots) the firemen are wearing! THere is NO fire-retardant clothing... cotton shirt pant combo is the order of the day.
So.. now finally ONE fireman decides to break down the basement door (which, by the way, is an illegal clothing boutique in a residencial-only zone). After he breaks down the door and affirms our earlier drunken suspicions, ALL the cops and fireman gather around the door to see what HE is doing! Not that anyone helps him... but rather they all grab their hankerchiefs and protect their mouth from the smoke. Long story short... an iron had been left on some clothing and it started to smoulder but no fire but a very dangerous amount of smoke had been released. We were extremely lucky... and all thanks to my grandfather!
The owners came by in their P.J.'s... paid off the cops so that their illegal boutique could resume its activity (it should be due to open next spring, maybe) and life went on. Oh yeah, I forgot to mention the same firefighter put on the ancient oxygen tank to actually go find the source but it took two or three of them to figure out how to use it... and then one of the masks straps broke... so... now our lone brave firefighter is holding an old metallic flash light in one hand and the back of his oxygen mask with the other... I guess he must KNOW how to use gum boots to turn of an iron! :)
Tonight is the wedding reception... and then hopefully I'm off to visit my grandmother again in Dehra-Dun.
Ciao!
Hey... someone write me at jup@canada.com so that I know that SOMEONE is reading this! :)