On one of my August Blog posts, I added this disclaimer to my writings about being placed on oxygen:
Afterthoughts: Do I dare cook on a gas stove and wear oxygen at the same time? Could preparation of dinner result in a fireball? Does this mean I am released from kitchen duties? Perhaps, the lack of oxygen has already destroyed brain cells.
Upon receipt of all of this oxygen equipment, the oxygen company's representative did not tell me anything about the risk of cooking on a natural gas powered stove while using oxygen. So I continued to cook on our gas stove, day in and day out. Somedays when I feel especially bad, I pull up a chair and cook 6 inches from the burners. I continued to do this with the oxygen flowing freely.
This past week my new representative came with a delivery of oxygen tanks. Jokingly, I asked him, "I'm not at risk to cook on a gas stove with my oxygen on, am I?"
He quickly responded, "You aren't cooking with your oxygen on, are you? Oh, no, that is very dangerous. It could blow up you and your house!" He even told me I should shut off the oxygen 30 minutes prior to turning on the gas stove.
YIKES! I wonder how close I came to an explosion from just trying to steam squash or sear steak? Can you imagine my disdain if I had blown myself up just cooking dinner (especially after battling leukemia for 12 years)? That would have made for a fiery obituary.
There is some humor in this post, but I also hope that other readers who might use oxygen will be aware of this very real danger.
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