TIFU by setting myself on fire before my daughter’s birthday sleepover

Last night was my daughter’s 17th birthday. We started with dinner, cake, a few rounds of The Great Dalmuti, and then settled in to watch Dead Poets Society while sipping hot cocoa. Around 9 PM, my wife (44F), daughter, and her friends (a mix of boys and girls, 15-19) headed out for karaoke. I stayed behind to get the house ready for the girls’ sleepover after the boys left.

While I (46M) was cleaning the kitchen, I decided to unwind with a cigar. My son (21M) had brought over a box recently, and it seemed like a good time to try one out. Somehow, a spark or ember caught my shirt, and I was engulfed in flames. I started swatting myself with pots and pans. I managed to extinguish the flames without too much damage to myself or the house.

By the time my wife, daughter, and the girls arrived home around 11 PM, I was shirtless. Explaining that I accidentally set myself on fire with a cigar wasn’t exactly the welcome home I’d envisioned.

TL;DR: Stayed home to prep for my daughter’s birthday sleepover, decided to smoke a cigar, accidentally set my shirt on fire, and then my wife and daughter walked in to find me shirtless and confused.