It’s 9:00 o’clock at the Hopewell Retirement Home and the residents are settled to watch the Sunday night movie. Most everybody is in their pajamas.

Frank tells his wife he’ll pass on the movie. He’s had a rough day. Up early for Sunday school. After dinner Frank made his rounds doing odd jobs for neighbors. Putting up drapery rods, hanging pictures, installing door chimes. All to insure good will on the hall.

"I’m beat," says Frank. "Don’t call me unless it’s an emergency. On second thought, don’t call me, period."

No sooner is Frank tucked in than the fire alarm goes off. Frank refuses to budge. "I told you, I’m not getting out of bed, I’m plum wore out!"

But he gets up, puts on a robe and heavy socks, and makes his way to the second floor stairwell. Nobody gets on the elevators in case of fire - drill or otherwise.

By now 200 plus residents are in the parking lot. It’s 38 degrees and most of these folks are not pleased with the interruption.

Two fire trucks come rolling into the compound as residents watch anxiously for signs of smoke or fire.

Nothing! Minutes later the fire crew leaves the main building and climb back aboard their trucks. As one firefighter steps onto the back of a truck he comments to Frank, "That’ll cost ’em $700 for tonight’s trip."

It’s the next day before residents find out what happened. The night watchman, a lady rent-a-cop, was watching the Sunday night movie and decided to make popcorn.

She put the bag of corn in the microwave, set it at full power for seven minutes and went to the bathroom. By the time she got back, the smoke alarm was going off and the fire alarm sounding. The lady cop didn’t show up for work the next night. Residents were told "she’d decided on a career change."