I'm guessing there was some 13-year-old Cyrano in the bushes who suggested this stunt to him as a solid strategy for getting laid.

This was my favorite news story of the day (although Sam Elliot visiting the Mercury office was nice as well). I gotta say the Oregonian really made a scoop by finding the ex-wife.

If you can find out about the second date, that would be quite the scoop (double-scoop?) as well. This is certainly the question everyone has asked after I have told them this story. We want to know!

Typically by his age men figure out that incredibly stupid behavior doesn't impress women but there is always going to be "that one guy".

I didn't do it because I'm really sort of a nice guy and this dude was hurt and all but NOBODY'S GONNA MAKE THE "NOT TOO SWIFT!" JOKE? REALLY? CAN SOMEONE PLEASE MAKE IT SO MY TYPING FINGERS WILL STOP TWITCHING?

@5 +1,000,000, but just for your last sentence.

Wait a minute, "an unknown gal"? Sounds like someone I had a fling with back in early 2003. I'm pretty sure, at least, about the gal part.

I've done this before, but only while ripping high on meth and I didn't get hurt.

Not too swift...Ha! there ya go Mecklem...

@CA: THANK YOU. Hands were going numb.

He should be charged.
Idiot.
What if he actually toppled that thing?
Idiot.
They obviously invested a lot in the structural support modifications.
Idiot.

First off, yes that was an idiot decision... stipulated fact in the court of life; but a few things to correct here. 1: Did not climb the chimney, I climbed the support cables, which based on their gauge easily have a tensile breaking strength of over 30,000 lbs. 2. It is a common assumption (and understandably an easy one to make) that I was doing this to impress my date. I'm 25 years old and know that acting like a child, calling girls names, or tripping them on the way to recess isn't a way to get tail. Rather, a few factors were combined that lead to me being VERY uncontrollably impulsive and having honestly just about no control over my actions or thoughts of risk analysis, others, safety, and consequences. Said factors were combined and I bailed on my date while she was asking me to walk her to her car so I could monkey around like an egocentric selfish jackass in order to play, yes, play. And yes, lesson learned, I will not be combing these factors again. 3. Ex wife is not estranged, and I look forward to being the photographer at her first real wedding. Also, the Oregonian did not identify themselves when they interviewed her and she thought she was talking to a trauma nurse as it was the first news of the incident she had herd. 4. Second date?!? Are you fucking kidding me? What self respecting woman would go on a second date with somebody who blows them off and nearly kills themselves when they are just trying to get a walk to their car? Yeah, burned that bridge. 5. Taylor "not to swift" Anderson joke = awesome. 6. Unknown gal... can we please keep it that way? I put homegirl through enough already. 7. I've done shit like this a million times before and WAY more stupid, since I was three years old, sober, and have never been hurt. Does BAD things to ones subconscious ego and self confidence. Was high time I got that checked. 8. To Jay: Trust me dude, my doctor bills are enough of a punishment. There was no way I was bringing down that chimney via climbing on support cables, period. And I am pretty sure my near fatal injuries where enough to deter any person with common sense from attempting this in the future. 9. How is this news? 10. Are your lives really so boring that you need to mock injured people who have certainly already be informed of their idiocy to feel better/superior about yourselves? There is a war going on, an upcoming election, art to be made, bikes to be ridden, books to be read, and co-ops to shop at... is this really a wise use of your time? 11. Ever smoked a cigarette (kills more people than just about everything else combined), ridden a bike without a helmet, eat fast food or a conventionally grown strawberry (any idea how many toxins and poisons there are in those?), been overweight (second leading cause of preventable death in the US), driven past ten at night (any idea how many drunk drivers their are then?), driven drunk, driven an SUV (thanks for increasing our dependency on foreign oil and the asthma most americans are suffering from), etc etc. My point, life is dangerous. I'm not saying that as far as degrees of danger go that my action wasn't WAAAAAAAAY out in left field, but let thou who hath not done something stupid throw the first insult. "Every man dies, not every man truly lives." 12. Ever seen "Man on a Wire" or any Dean Potter climbing film? Did you like them? How is this different aside from the fact that I fucked up and they didn't... oh and there is that whole planning, preparation, lack of first date being pissed of etc, but you get my point. 13. "Fuck all ya'll, quit writing rhymes and go play volleyball." That quote would be way cooler if any of you even bothered to take the creative time to at least rhyme. Look, I just did it on accident.