Fire in the lab!
The burning question was: what caused it?
It is not every day that you walk up to your chemistry lab at 8pm. But then again, it is not every day that you find your lab on fire!
I was walking back to my dorm one evening after a sumptuous dessert (a blueberry cheesecake from a nearby bakery) when something in my peripheral vision drew my attention. It was my lab: smoke was seeping out from every single one of the windows and doors. As I got closer I saw dense fumes emerging and found the lab was locked. Perplexed, I called the authorities.
Luckily enough, the principal of my college was nearby and received the alert. He quickly reached the site, where he found me biting my nails nervously. He asked me and the other staff helping to get buckets of water to douse the fire. Ah, little did my unsuspecting botanist principal know! Promptly, I advised him against doing this – my knowledge of chemistry told me that if the fire had been caused by flammable liquids, electrical equipment or burning metal, water would cause more problems than it would solve. At my behest, he called the fire brigade and we waited there, handkerchiefs covering our noses. Never was I more proud of my chemistry degree than I was at that moment.