A Sheriff Department’s Attempt To Describe This Boulder Goes Delightfully Awry
It’s a large boulder that also happens to be a small one.
The San Miguel Sheriff’s Office in Colorado sent a tweet on Monday that was meant to alert motorists about a boulder in the road. But the message went viral far beyond the state because, well... just take a look at how the department described it:
Large boulder the size of a small boulder is completely blocking east-bound lane Highway 145 mm78 at Silverpick Rd. Please use caution and watch for emergency vehicles in the area. pic.twitter.com/EVMmDf0IJu
— San Miguel Sheriff (@SheriffAlert) January 27, 2020
Twitter users immediately began to question how the large boulder could be the size of a small one. The sheriff’s office never acknowledged the boulder brouhaha even though it tweeted about the massive stone twice more.
First, the agency noted that the boulder had been removed, which led to more pleas to clarify its size. Later on ― no doubt in response to a landslide of requests ― the description became more specific.
“The boulder that fell onto Highway 145 at Silverpick Rd outside Telluride was approximately 4ftx4ftx4ft (64 cubic ft) and weighed about 10,000lbs,” the agency wrote.
Alas, that still didn’t settle the question about whether it was, in fact, a large boulder or a small one. Rock fans demanded to know more about this large-small boulder. Or was it a small-large boulder?
Did ... did a self-conscious small boulder write this?
— Attorney@Law (@TheGlare_TM) January 27, 2020
I hate that I'll never come up with something as amazing as "large boulder the size of a small boulder". https://t.co/wnncUCAM2Z
— Jet「確かめなくても間違いないことは」「君に出逢えてホントにホントによかった」 (@Jet0o) January 27, 2020
What’s heavier a large boulder the size of a small boulder or a small boulder the size of a large boulder. Asking for a friend https://t.co/dA2Txyz9PY
— Alyssa Lang (@AlyssaLang) January 28, 2020
On an otherwise bleak day, this tweet is bringing me real joy. New phrase for every obstacle in my life: a large boulder the size of a small boulder. https://t.co/HSFychtMaD
— Kathryn Schulz (@kathrynschulz) January 27, 2020
Schrodinger's Boulder. Large and Small at the same time.
— Manuel Lopez del Rio (@mlopezdelrio) January 27, 2020
A unique way to write "medium boulder" https://t.co/g2Yl3FCrFi
— Melanie Schmitz (@MelsLien) January 27, 2020
Never seen such a tiny, huge boulder. https://t.co/m38WgZgAvm
— Ben Collins (@oneunderscore__) January 27, 2020
Don't bother me with large boulders the size of small boulders, my time is important. Call me when it's a large boulder the size of a large boulder. https://t.co/V1kbXcvEjA
— Adelaide Gardner (@ohadelaide) January 27, 2020
rt if you believe this boulder should just be called a large boulder, to boost this boulder's self esteem https://t.co/pDhlwYelg9
— jonny sun (@jonnysun) January 27, 2020
I'm gonna be saying "large boulder the size of a small boulder" in my head for months https://t.co/pNUzyQagCk
— Deigo (@YoDiegoYo) January 27, 2020
Dude you should’ve seen this boulder.
Was it large?
Hell yea it was large.
How big?
As Large as a small boulder.
A small boulder? Damn that’s a large boulder pic.twitter.com/VMwQihiIkw— matt (@MattsIdeaShop) January 27, 2020
I'm missing a boulder and I wonder what adjectives you might use to describe the boulder that was cleared, thanks in advance and also after the fact
— Mrs. WTF (@snurri) January 27, 2020
Would you rather get attacked by a large boulder the size of a small boulder or lots of small boulders the size of a big boulder? https://t.co/PsOSfppPBd
— David Clinch (@DavidClinchNews) January 28, 2020
But did you need a large plow, or did a small plow do the job?
— Dimitri (@DimitriWillert) January 28, 2020
Pretty sure they used a large plow the size of a small plow 💁🏻♀️
— Vania Veronica (@hellovaniidoll) January 28, 2020
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This article originally appeared on HuffPost.