PPE aka Personal Protective Equipment

Okay, I’m an official moron, idiot, and imbecile.  Why you ask.  Have you ever heard someone say that it is important to always wear your PPE?  Most likely you heard it around the workplace, at your employment but what about around the house or in my case playing racquetball at the local recreation center.

Personal safety is and should always be a major concern.  Day after day, month after month, year after year, injuries occur whether you are a policeman, a firefighter, a skilled laborer or simply working around the house with your tools and equipment.  You know what; most could have been prevented if you only would have donned PPE aka Personal Protective Equipment.  PPE can be anything from protective hard hats, safety eye glasses or eye protection, vests or clothing that make you visible to others, good safe work shoes or boots, sturdy harnesses if you are in danger of a fall and others such as a clean respirator.  Yeah, breathing fresh and clean air is somewhat important.

I don’t like hard hats!  But they are a necessity.  They are specifically designed to protect the noggin against anything from a falling or flying object or not ducking when you should have.  Accessories include cold weather inserts, protective face shields or protective hearing equipment.  Something that is not always checked is the date of the hard hat.  They actually have an expiration date on them as well as the insert.  Don’t they last forever; evidently not?  Take a look at yours.   

Take a good look at my picture and what happened to my eye.  It didn’t happen on a job site but I’ve witnessed numerous eye injuries over the years because someone didn’t take the time to go get their safety glasses and I don’t mean your polarized special ops sunglasses. But if you order now I’ll send you two pair for the price of one.  Just pay separate shipping and handling; just kidding.  Seriously your eyes are kind of important and wearing eye and face protection are just as important as putting on the hard hat.  Even playing racquetball! Watch out for the other guy.  Do as I say and don’t do what I do.  You’ve heard that said time and time again.  Why don’t we adhere to our own advice? Duh!

What is that smell?  It is enough to gag you.  I can’t handle changing diapers, period.  I always said I should have donned the PPE but respiratory equipment and protection is extremely important.  You can’t see the stuff in the air that can hurt or kill you.  Dangerous chemicals, saw dust, fumes from paint spray and even spraying your yard for pests and insects can cause permanent damage or even kill you.  Using respiratory protection is simply a preventative means of protecting yourself even if you think there is plenty of adequate ventilation.

My wife is constantly digging through her purse and grabbing the hand lotion.  Most guys wait until the hands are cracked and bleeding; right?  Rugged and calloused hands are a sign of a hardworking man.  Stupid, huh?  We need the use of our hands.  Did you know that every year hand accidents tally up over 150,000 and I

bet you more if they were actually reported?  And what about protecting the epidermis layer of our
body, the skin? Skin injuries, coming in contact with chemicals, skin diseases, skin cancer, burns and even skin eating infections are always a threat.  Find the right clothing for the job being performed.  Rubber gloves, those new gloves that are cut resistant, simple work gloves and heat resistant gloves are always important.  I know that I’m not the brightest guy in the world and believe me I’ve probably grabbed a hot pan more times than I want to admit but even around the house PPE is important.  Use the hot pad, dummy!

Listen to what I’ve got to say.  Whaaat?  You can’t hear me.  Okay, I grew up in the sixties and time after time I was told to turn down the music or it was going to make you lose your hearing.  I don’t know if it did or not but I do know that my hearing is shot.  The answer, PPE.  Nobody really can account for noise pollution because we really don’t recognize the danger.  Millions of workers in America are losing their valuable hearing due to high noise levels.  Everybody knows there is a problem.  OSHA established the standards and they tell us that anything above 85 dBA is dangerous.  Tell that to the kid with the car base rattling your teeth when he drives by.  He won’t listen. We didn’t. Again, this isn’t just a workplace issue.  I always make sure that when I’m at the range I pull out either the earplugs or the head gear to protect the hearing I have left.  PPE can protect you. 

It’s not impossible to teach an old dog new tricks but when the old dog is just plain stubborn it’s only going to hurt the old dog.  I need to follow my own advice and be smart about how to protect myself. 

I’m headed out the door to buy another pair of racquetball glasses aka PPE.