Not so much cheered up, as amused.
A friend called 'round to drop some stuff off for me, had a coffee, and then tried to leave. He couldn't get out, as the Yale lock on the front door had completely jammed !
There are only small, opening windows, at the top of the main windows, on the ground floor, so no exit that way.
OK, go out the back door, around the side of the house, and out of the side gate (which is around 8 feet high), and try the keys from the outside, to see if that would release the lock.
Ah !
Ever since the burglary, back in December, the gate has been locked with a padlock, the keys for which are with my Landlord, who owns the kitchen studio adjoining my house. Can't climb over, as there are no hand or feet holds, and it's pitch black outside. Also, my friend has two holdalls containing delicate antiques he's just purchased, so even if he could safely scale the gate, if the bags were thrown over, the stuff would break !
OK, call the Landlord.
He's with a client, but will be back in about an hour.
So, meanwhile, unscrew the lock body, and get out that way.
Nope - with the screws removed, the body is still retained by the tumbler release bar. It could be removed, but with probable damage to the door and the door jam.
Landlord arrives, can't find the spare key, so my keys are passed through the letter box.
Nope, still won't open.
OK, give it a kick.
Rock solid, even with the lock body unscrewed !
An hour and a half has now passed, and this is getting silly.
B*llocks to it, rip the darned thing off, and secure the door overnight with the mortice lock and bolt..
Off comes the lock, door opens, and my mate is free at last. The lock will be replaced in the morning.
It could have been darned annoying, but the funny side soon became apparent, as we were both trained in MoE in the Army - two seasoned ex-soldiers, ****ing about with a lock, and can't get out of the house - but then, we might have been trained in Methods of Entry, but no one said anything about Methods of Exit on that course !
And of course, a little PE would have worked, but then I'd need a new door.
I'm still chuckling !!