Pot holes have appeared by the score in our roads, following the big ice and snow storm. They were filling them yesterday, trying to bring them into a semi-normal state along Highway 8. I wonder what they'll be doing on the highway, as there are problems there, too.
Compare that to sinkholes. Look at the pictures of how wide and deep the sinkholes are in California and Florida. Sinkholes happen when underlying rock layers collapse or erode and the surface gives way. They become more common with extreme rainfall. A burst water main or with sewer systems collapsing can also bring about sinkholes.
Potholes on the roads are not covered in the Guinness Book of Records. Natural, glacial ones are. But the biggest natural formations of this type are sinkholes and they are in the Guinness Book of Records. The biggest is Xiaozhai Tiankeng in China and is 2,171 feet deep and 2,054 feet wide. Its nickname is The Heavenly Pit. The next is Sima Humboldt in Venezuela and it is 1,148 feet deep and 1,155 feet wide. This gives me a queasy sense.
There is a National Pothole Day. We've missed it - January 15th. Just as well. Who would want to raise awareness of the impact of potholes on motorists and advocate for better road conditions - considering everything that's happening in the world.
I was hoping for some pothole jokes. There are lots and lots - but they shouldn't be listed as jokes.
There is a consistent and persistent joke from the UK: In the UK we used to drive on the left of the roads. Now we drive on what's left of the roads.
Here's a summer's garden. It is only a week till March and a month till spring. There likely are a few potholes to arrive before then.
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