Can Water Jump?

And the answer is "yes". (If you have a weak stomach, turn back now)

Yesterday morning I was preparing my usual bowl of oatmeal, heating up some water in the microwave. I plugged in the usual 2:30 minutes. However, the water didn't come to a boil. So I plugged in another 30 seconds and then 1 minute.....still, no boil. By this time, I thought for sure that the water would be hot enough, so I went to grab the measuring cup. Thankfully, I felt that it was too hot to grab with my hand and put on an oven mitt. As soon as I grabbed the cup and moved it slightly from the base plate in the microwave, ALL of the water JUMPED from the cup and onto my arm, causing a 2nd degree burn. I don't think I've felt anything more painful (and I did have to push for 4 hours to deliver Josiah). But I do praise God that I was wearing the oven mitt and a long sleeve shirt...the burn could have been sooo much worse.

The only explanation (*I* can think of anyway) for this occurence is that the pressure, which is normally released through bubbles, was not released and, therefore, when the cup was moved, the pressure "let loose" and the water "jumped".

Needless to say, the oatmeal went uneaten....and this morning, I preferred to use the stovetop to boil my water instead.

Here is a picture of the damage, literally, to my arm after Day 1.