Nostalgia City, of course - one of my fav distractions from any serious chem work. Loved. It.

Yup, grab the slab of Li (more $$) Na, K out of the kerosene with some tongs, snip off a piece. Decide on the er, rise-time of the effect (cut into small bits or teensy bits?) - put in container, rubber hose with funnel on other end.

Add water and ... split.
'Course choose a handy acid - and double your fun.
Put in hefty closed container \ufffd l\ufffd old soda/acid fire extinguishers of yore: see real Destruction.

No matches needed (though an igniter could enhance matters - setting off the released hydrogen+air too, for the pi\ufffdce de resist\ufffdnce. Toss in a little peroxide for overkill.)
Hey, it's just like cooking... - there's room for artistry in your choice of spice enhancements. Old chemists never die.. they just effloresce and sublime.

Pity that modrin kids would need a space suit + big insurance policy to be permitted near anything this much Fun. 'Twould be a good antidote to i-Pod-reduced consciousness, I wot. Add to list - what we've lost to the illusion of perpetual Security (even before the neofascisticon devolution grabbed the pewling Heartland right where their alleged balls were said to be.)


Hmmmmm, damn if I don't still have a glass ampoule of lovely silvery Rubidium, saved these several years! More than 2 grams IIRC; quite more than is in the small Rb lamp in one's time standard (Rb: the poor person's sub for a $$$ hP Cesium 'atomic clock' thingie.) Pity, no Cesium hereabouts :-/


... wtf, screw a pukka experiment for the Rb, I think for old times sake I'll just