Laptop case helps me discover heating pad had gone dangerously bad

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modeltrains

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Last night the metal sheathed case, body, or whatever it is called, of my laptop helped me discover that my heating pad had gone dangerously bad.
Was lying on heating pad in bed using the laptop when I started getting a buzzy tingly feeling when touching the laptop’s metal exterior.

Say what?
The laptop now has an electrical fault?

Ahh crap.
Ain't that all I need after the kind of week it has been.

Unplugged the laptop’s power cord and the tingly feeling when touching its metal case went away.
Also, the transformer box in the power cord was HOT!
Oh no, after all the other problems this week now the laptop is going bad!

For whatever reason I got up, took laptop to kitchen counter, let the transformer box cool for a while, then plugged in the power cord and touched the metal case.
No tingly electric feeling.
Unplugged the power cord.
No tingly electric feeling.
This is interesting.

Took it all back to the bed and set it up as before, laid down, repeated earlier experience, tingly touch when plugged in, not when not.
Huh.
Did what's causing that happen when it slid off the bed to the floor the other night?
But it wasn’t doing that at creative writers group that morning or at lunch.
Or on the kitchen counter 2 minutes ago.
Hmm …

Had an inspiration, got up and unplugged the heating pad.
No tingle when touching the laptop’s metal case.
None.
Zero.
Okay then, the heating pad has gone bad in a dangerous way.
Got up, cut the cords off it and tossed it in the trash.

Went to Walmart this morning and they were out of replacements for it.
Had either King size 2ft wide heating pads or little 9 inch square ones.
I got one of the 10 dollar 9 inchers just to have something.

Hmm, wonder how close I was to getting electrocuted since these neurological, endocrine, mitochondrial, diseases can give serious night sweats?

And it may also be a minor miracle that the laptop took no damage.
 
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