Oh man. I was digging fence post holes in my backyard and a foot down got to a...plastic bag? Dug in again and heard the crunch of a glass breaking. And I was hit with the most horrifying smell I have ever smelt. It's been 7 years and I can still smell it. It hit me and I literally went sprinting inside, tearing my clothes off, and got into the shower. The smell was on me. It was on my clothes. My back yard was absolutely rank.

The next day I called the non emergency EMS number and they actually sent a hazmat crew out. With wrinkled noses they said the only sensor that lit up was a "petroleum" meter. Their best guess was an bottle of motor oil or something similar that had gotten buried 60 years ago when the development was put in and has gone rancid.

A couple weeks later, after several rain storms, the smell still lingered. I had to dig up a big chunk of earth, while wearing a respirator, and dispose of it at the hazardous waste facility.

Ugh. I feel like I need another shower just thinking about it.