At first I thought people were just so impressed by ME as an individual that they sought out my advice on everything, including minor injuries, car trouble, tree trimming and barbecuing.
But I soon realized the title ''firefighter'' implies much more than the ability to put out a blaze or rescue people from imminent danger.
It is generally understood that firefighters know at least a little bit about almost anything, and if they don't know exactly how to solve a problem, they usually have a darn good temporary solution for avoiding disaster until an expert can be consulted.
Of course, I couldn't have known as a rookie that firefighters have this reputation for very good reason. It took many years of responding to every type of emergency possible for me to find out that the term ''emergency'' can take on an endless number of meanings.
A 911 dispatch to ''child trapped'' can mean that you will find a child who has wedged himself in between the seat portion and the backrest portion of a rocking chair and cannot get out without losing serious skin.
That's a far cry from fire hoses and axes.
Try, I Can't Believe It's Not Butter. We did, and he came out totally unharmed except for minor damage to his ego after being stripped naked and buttered.
We can only hope that he won't have ''issues'' later on in life.
Miami-Dade Fire Rescue runs on hundreds of thousands of emergencies per year -- 206,414 in 2004 to be exact -- and regardless of what the original reason for calling 911 might have been, firefighters almost always find something that requires them to go beyond ''firefighter'' or ''rescuer'' mode and into ''all-purpose problem solver'' mode.
Firefighters on their daily trip to the supermarket for dinner items often get a small taste of what it must be like to be a celebrity because of all the attention they can attract. Citizens will stop firefighters to ask about plumbing problems, a nagging pain ''right here'' or for help choosing a cantaloupe.
We are, first and foremost, public servants, and serving the public doesn't always have to be a life-saving emergency.
I have always felt that one of the best ways to serve the community is by helping to prevent life-threatening emergencies in the first place.
So, after years of fielding questions from people in the community, responding to a myriad of emergencies and disasters and seeing just about everything you could imagine (as well as many things you could never imagine), I have come up with a list of common health and safety concerns and some tips on how to deal with them.
Each piece begins with an overview of the issue and some background information along with a photo or graphic.
To make this happen, and open another line of dialogue with people, we have joined forces with The Herald's new Neighbors to start this column. Getting involved is simple: Just send an e-mail and ask your question.
Although I won't be able to respond to every one, I will get to as many questions as I can. Except, perhaps, for the one about choosing a cantaloupe.
