It's not the stagnant part (actually, the water isn't stagnant - hasn't been sitting long enough). It's the human fecal matter, with the bacteria that goes with it.
Oh, and good warning - I fear it's too late for miss K, who is having D&V today. When we went out to deal with the garage, I don't think she was careful.
no wonder I was sick alot as a kid...ldykatrinaApril 16 2007, 20:30:09 UTC
I would go play in the water on the street during / after rain storms. floating popcycle stick boats and stuff. the field down the road and kind of near the back yard would flood and I would be playing in it.
I did the same thing out in the country and was not particularly sick. I also spent a fair amount of time in creeks, and while I didn't drink out of creeks, I often sucked on icicles formed by local springs and waterfalls in the winter. I also ran around barefoot in the barnyard and didn't get tetanus or worms. :)
But that doesn't mean it's a good idea. In addition to these, I teased copperhead nests with sticks, rode my bike down hillsides far too steep for a bike to actually roll, climbed spiny trees, went almost exclusively barefoot, even around stock, rode other people's ponies without permission, ate fruit from other people's orchards without permission, and did my business in the woods if no bathroom presented itself. Many of these activities I would not recommend to others.
Oh, it was. The outside parts of my childhood were awesome, and I wouldn't trade them. :)
You might add to your post that standing near large pools of backed up floodwater is also dangerous. In cities, the proliferation of underground drainage waterways, lengthy narrow culverts, etc, form the urban equivalent of riptides, and a small surge upstream can easily become a sudden wave that knocks the incautious onlooker off his or her feet and sucks them into a culvert. If you are lucky, they are completely unrecognizable when they come out the other side. If you are unlucky, they are only mostly unrecognizable. :(
This happens every few years in KC, thanks to the early city planners' hard-on for straightening natural waterways, putting them underground, and then feeding them storm runoff. Last time it was a small child.
The sad part is that so many people dont know this stuff. Basic common sense, most of it. Thank you for reminding, Hon. I hope to see you this weekend at Balfars. Can I bring down anything for anyone? Other than antibiotics. *grin*
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Well no not really
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Oh, and good warning - I fear it's too late for miss K, who is having D&V today. When we went out to deal with the garage, I don't think she was careful.
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floating popcycle stick boats and stuff.
the field down the road and kind of near the back yard would flood and I would be playing in it.
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But that doesn't mean it's a good idea. In addition to these, I teased copperhead nests with sticks, rode my bike down hillsides far too steep for a bike to actually roll, climbed spiny trees, went almost exclusively barefoot, even around stock, rode other people's ponies without permission, ate fruit from other people's orchards without permission, and did my business in the woods if no bathroom presented itself. Many of these activities I would not recommend to others.
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risk aside, it sounds like it was great fun
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You might add to your post that standing near large pools of backed up floodwater is also dangerous. In cities, the proliferation of underground drainage waterways, lengthy narrow culverts, etc, form the urban equivalent of riptides, and a small surge upstream can easily become a sudden wave that knocks the incautious onlooker off his or her feet and sucks them into a culvert. If you are lucky, they are completely unrecognizable when they come out the other side. If you are unlucky, they are only mostly unrecognizable. :(
This happens every few years in KC, thanks to the early city planners' hard-on for straightening natural waterways, putting them underground, and then feeding them storm runoff. Last time it was a small child.
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