Forgetting dangerous things

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Okay so this is very embarrassing and extremely scary since it just happened like seven to eight hours ago. So My uncle and a friend of his came into the house for a small visit, so everything was going normally awkward for me at least as always nothing strange there. When I get this craving for a sweet so I go to the back of the house where my mother is cutting this kind of cake into individual pieces, in the way there I saw my mother's cellphone so I figured I would dial this number that supposedly makes the phone ring as if there were an incoming call so my mother would think she was getting a phone call and well... that was my idea of a joke since I am an utter failure when it comes to telling jokes so I think over time I developed that kind of prank-some lame joking style.

Only that the phone did not ring so I just kept going there and when I got there I started to cut a piece but she wanted to cut the cake thing in a special manner so I just waited while we were taking so I saw the oven and as I joke I put the cellphone in and turned it on BUT I was making sure she was watching me so she would tell me to take it out, I would take it out and that would be the joke for strange as it sounds.

My mother was indeed watching me, only that apparently she didn't saw me turn it on and on that moment my mother told me she wanted me to bring her this plate thing and the cellphone thing just slipped right out of my mind and well we only knew when the burnt rubber smell alerted us and that was when my uncle and father went to see what it was (we live in this place where burnt rubber is not an unusual smell so at first we did not know what it was) and came back to tell us. That's when my mother remembered and asked me if the cellphone was still there and complied that she made sure to turn the oven off when she used it a couple of hours before.

And she had, so I just told them that I did turned it on and explained what had happened, I was feeling very nervous and I don't think they really got it but I think that since they saw I was being completely honest and comprehended that I did not meant to leave it there for literally no more than a second, they seemed to give me a break and talked things calmly, my mother seemed specially understanding but I still feel very uncomfortable and cannot tell what exactly I am feeling, I know it is the whole alexithymia thing but I certainly do not feel good.

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Needless to say I won't be trying to fit in with any sort of joke I mean, I have always known I am extremely bad telling jokes and that little pranks were as close as I could get to joking. In the past I have left things on when I am cooking but never like this. From the various times I have forgotten about the stove or oven only a handful have had messy outcomes. This was definitely one of them and I just don't know what to think.

Also I do not really know why I am making a subject out of this, I guess I would like to know what you think and if something similar has happened to you, I mean is it normal that I forget such dangerous things as the stove or oven when cooking?, also does anyone have an insight into this awfully not even funny sense of joking. I mean I do not even like to do these jokes I am just trying to fit in, they are like nervous energy liberating much like an awkward laugh. I feel very uncomfortable around people I guess I have to make some serious decisions starting with no more jokes that I don't even liked doing anyway.

Thanks for your attention and/or replies. I am sorry for the bad grammar, I don't even have the energy to keep checking and that is saying something.

I know exactly what you are talking about. as far as dangerous things, I have done some things that are quite similar in sort of an absent-minded or forgetful state. Leaving bratwursts in the oven until they caught fire, forgetting to turn off the grill outside, leaving various burners on and such, setting a pair of scissors or a knife on the bed and forgetting about it until I hop into bed that night and find it... yea, I do stuff like that all the time.

I have a terrible case of CRS (Can't Remember Sh...stuff) and my mind frequently bounces from one subject to another, typically with no returning to the original subject. So things like this happen all the time to me. I have forbidden myself from using the outside grill because of this. Last time I forgot to turn it off, it stayed on for a week.

Cat, I'm glad you are reflecting seriously about both this incident and your specific tendencies which led to it. And I'm glad your family did not behave angrily towards you as a result, though they certainly could have.

Jokes are not a mandatory part of being social. Also it's quite possible to enjoy humor within life without resorting to jokes. Jokes being the least sophisticated form of humor and practical jokes being the basest form of jokes.

Practical jokes are perpetrated at the expense of others and benefit the individuals performing the joke. I learned this early.

My sister (who's one year younger than me) and I were watching professional wrestling on TV; the fake kind of wrestling which is choreographed and involves outrageous violent acrobatics. In the spirit of that kind of "fun" we hatched a plan.

Our four year old sister had fallen asleep on the floor with her little blanket. We got some rope and carefully started to bind her & the blanket into the fetal position she was in. During the process she awakened screaming in terror. We had bound her enough that the ropes didn't just throw off (we hadn't meant for them to be able to throw off) and her flailing caused the rope to tighten in areas; probably causing pain.

My mother flew to the scene from the kitchen and unbound her. My little sister was frightened, hurt and inconsolable. My mother was shaken and angry.

We, the practical jokers were disappointed; it was supposed to have been fun for everyone. It took a while for me to understand that we had used our youngest sister for our fun without considering that waking up bound in place would be frightening, hurtful and humiliating for her.

Surprise and taking advantage of vulnerability are key elements in practical jokes. No one wants to be surprised as the subject of a joke. Practical jokes are always at the expense of the surprised individual.

I am not saying this in order to shame you nor to make you feel worse about the cell phone incident. I am saying it in order that you may have a realistic understanding of the exact nature of practical joking. It might help you in allowing practical joking behavior to fall away from your social interactions without feeling that you've lost anything of value.

Although I personally don't have this problem it reminds me of something. Fires due to overheated cooking hobs occur quite frequently in nursing homes because this kind of forgetfulness is very common in elderly people.

After such a fire the home management gave us the job to install tact switches, that is, after ten minutes the hotplate, oven, microwave, or water heater would turn off automatically with a clearly audible beep and the person has to push the button again in order to continue the process.

Definitely less expenditure than a burned--down house.