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Thanks, I thought there must be a phrase for that.

Inanimate objects have a life of their own in my stories sometimes, just to make them appear as if they're responsible for their actions, or lack of them..
I think I can understand the 2...

Okay, seems I've got very rusty on working out which aspect to use...
'Двери уже не пытались закрываться' does my use of 'уже' here contribute towards the idea that the doors tried to close but...

'Двери уж не пытались закрываться,...'
'Двери даже не попытались закрыться,...'
I had thought that when describing an action that didn't happen, it was usual to use the imperfective. On the basis...

"Смотреть на человека, смеясь (над ним)." Look at the person, while laughing (at him.)
"Смотреть на человека, смеющегося (над собой)." Look at the person (who is) laughing (at you, etc.)

I think...

I hadnt even thought that 'шанс' wouldnt also mean risk; рискнуть it is then.
Interesting that it's "на чердаке"; I had thought that entering the confined space of a loft would be "в чердаке",...

'воспользоваться шансом и на лифте доехать'
That's definitely close enough to the meaning I was looking for. Does Russian have an expression for 'take a chance on something', as we say in English,...

I know what you mean about trial and error. I'm really only writing this stuff to get the hang of the grammar, and trying to use sentences that are as complex as ones I'd naturally use in English. I...

Вместо того, чтобы подниматься вплоть до верх лестницы, я решил взять свои шансы и понадеяться на лифт дойти до помещения машинного лифта в чердаке. Знаете, лифты в этих зданных безопаснее, чем...