I have often deliberately tested the horseÕs electric fence with a green blade of grass to see if it was on and I have, on occasion, accidentally zapped myself on the leg of the same fence a few times and I also have some vague recollection, that once, after a bit to drink, I bushed my bare backside on an electric bear fence while squatting to take a pee.

While each provided a jolt of varying degrees, none was quite as memorable or disconcerting as zapping my tongue with a 9 volt battery. Could it be that Rapaire and I have saltier tongues than others? Or just that we are the only ones whoÕs knowledge is practical rather than theoretical, when it comes to doing dumb things?