Photo courtesy of Arsene Werner on X
BEEP BEEP BEEP
Nothing quite ruins a blissful study break (read: nap) like the piercing screech of a fire alarm. Students file out of the building, annoyed at the interruption to their day. They blearily mill about, waiting for West Brow Fire Rescue to clear the building. Both fire related incidents this semester, one in Mac and one in Founders, were due to burnt popcorn.
Beyond being an inconvenience to everyone involved, all instances of fire alarms are reported as a "fire incident" and are included in Covenant's annual security report. The report itself states: "the National Safety Council reports that cooking accidents are the number one cause of residence fires and fire injuries. Covenant College students should be aware of the risks regarding unattended cooking, the dangers of disabling smoke alarms in rooms, and the preventative actions that can save lives."
Out of the goodness of our hearts, and in an attempt to protect the sanctity of your nap time, we, the writers of The Bagpipe, would like to provide you with instructions on how to microwave popcorn (taken from the Orville Redenbacher website).
Remove plastic overwrap. Unfold popcorn bag.
Place in center of microwave, with the correct side up as indicated on bag.
Set power on high for 4 minutes.
DO NOT LEAVE UNATTENDED WHILE POPPING. STAY AND LISTEN. Popping times vary from 2–4 minutes (1–2 minutes for mini bags).
For best results, stop microwave when popping slows to 2–3 seconds between pops. Overcooking may cause scorching (that’s bad, in case you were unaware).
Bag is HOT! Remove bag from microwave and carefully pull on top diagonal corners.
Avoid contact with escaping steam.
Orville Redenbacher recommends that you only pop fresh popcorn in clean microwaves. Most importantly, "Because microwave ovens vary, always cook your popcorn to 'sound'—and listen to the pop to know when to stop." You should remove the popcorn bag from the microwave once the pops slow to about one pop every two seconds.
Cooking popcorn is a small issue to be sure. But, we can see how care in the little things can have bigger consequences. We all need to do our part to take care of our community. Even if that means watching the microwave for four long minutes.
Thumbnail courtesy of Arsene Werner on X.