March 4, 2013
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The Sinkhole
Every now and then there are certain news stories that I become completely and utterly fascinated with. Since Thursday I have been following the story of the sinkhole that killed a 37 year old Florida man. In case you haven’t heard about the story, the guy was in bed when all of a sudden his entire bedroom was engulfed by a 30 feet wide and 60 feet deep sinkhole and he was literally never seen again. He screamed for help and his brother tried in vain to rescue him but it was of no use. His brother later gave a sad and tear-filled interview discussing how the whole thing went down.
The story is tragic but part of what makes it so fascinating is the fact that it only engulfed the one room; fortunately the rest of the people in the house were okay. I spent the better part of a few days wondering how such a thing happens and then tonight on CNN I watched a report about the whole thing and they actually went inside an actual sinkhole. I was totally blown away by the size and scope of these things. And it appears the water level is almost in a constant state of flux. And what was even more scary is that much of Florida is believed to be over various, random sinkholes. In fact not far from where this sinkhole opened another one has opened between the yards of two houses. Talk about fucking disheartening I mean could you imagine living in one of those houses knowing what happened to that other guy and you wake up and find a sinkhole in your yard?
Of course I had to stop and think if this sort of thing could happen to me. I’d like to think that up here in Illinois the ground is a little more stable but honestly, I haven’t got the first damn clue as to if it is. All I know is that the thought of being buried alive while you sleep has got to be one of the most frightening thoughts one could have as they lay in bed at night. Oh fuck me, why am I so damn neurotic at times?
Comments (3)
Interesting! Ever notice how much your own thinking can often interfere with your awareness? I have.
By all means we need listen to our fears so as to learn from them. And to have respect for that which can harm you. Yet do not spend your life running from it or fighting against it.
Nuerotic? Not necessarily as there is a time for thinking, for questioning and judgment, for analyzing and strategizing, and there is also a time to give your life’s energy not to fear, but to your highest hopes, desires, dreams and positive possibilities.
I live in Florida, so I ended up hearing all about this, and I actually live just a few towns over from where it happened. It’s absolutely crazy and my heart breaks for that whole family. Makes me wonder if there were any warning signs or if the hole just opened up at random. I can’t even imagine what they’re going through.
@Love_in_102 - yeah I was wondering the same thing about the warning signs. I’d like to think they at least had some sort of idea that there were sinkholes in the area but maybe they had no clue. I mean I would have no clue if my town had sinkholes