The night holds so many secrets. And the darkness can be scary. But boy if I don't live for it. I have been a night person for decades. And the things I have seen would leave every person I know shooketh. And I know I'm not alone. So many people who dwell in the wee hours have all seen things that can be unable to explain. Let's start a group chat.
Redditor u/af**knugget wanted all of us who are awake at all hours of the darkness to unite and discuss by asking... [Serious] Night owls of Reddit, what was the creepiest/most terrifying thing you've experienced staying up late at night?I have been scared, and left breathless more times than I can count after sundown. I love the moon but sometimes the witching hours can be nerve-wracking. That's why all the serial killer movies have them killing at night under the darkness. So how can we trust the night?
I Hate Gordon
I left my laptop on and went into my bedroom to try and sleep. About 2 hours later I started hearing someone talking in the living room (next to my bedroom) and started freaking the hell out thinking someone broke in and was going to murder me.
Creeped out of my room to realize the video I had been watching unpaused itself and was playing again. It wasn't an intruder, just Gordon Ramsay screaming at someone on Hell's Kitchen.
Stay Hidden
When I was little, we used to go to the countryside where my great-grandma lived. She was 101 years old and survived two Balkan wars and two world wars, her husband was in captivity in WWI and fighting for Tito's partisans in WWII, along with my grandpa. Her other son ended up in Mauthausen concentration camp.
So, the house was old and cheeky. The only room that was heated in winter was the one my great-grandma was in, so my parents would made me sleep in the same room with her, while they were sleeping in the freezer of a bedroom.
It wasn't the squealing of the house, or the strange rhythm of an old clock, or the trains that passed by, or wild animals that talked throughout the night that kept me awake, but my great-grandma sleepwalking and talking through the night. She would sit up in her bad and have full conversations with long-lost friends. She would call for them or asked them for the directions, or tell them she missed them so much. But the worst was wailing for killed or mutilated ones. She would say things like "oh, look what they did to your beautiful eyes" or "why didn't you stay hidden? Where could I find a doctor to stitch your stomach up?"
I should have been more vocal about my great-grandma and claw my way in that cold room, in hindsight.
When I was Homeless...
One of the first nights I was homeless, I walked a distance along the bike trail that circles the lake in Madison Wisconsin to sleep. Woke up for no immediately obvious reason at what must have been a very late hour, as the sleep began to dissipate I realized I was lying down looking at a sideways view of someone crouched motionless on approach about eight feet away.
I kept from opening my eyes completely and tried to seem to be still sleeping. The stranger began to slowly take another step toward me. I made a deliberate cough/might-be-waking-up noise and they retreated quickly. Carried a knife for several years after this.
@ 3Am
I was up into the wee hours, trying to get past a level in Dishonored without being seen by any bad guys. Suddenly there is a flash of light across my screen and then a lot of noise at the front door. It's 3 AM. I go stock-still for about 2 minutes, trying to remember where the bat is, and if I locked the door.
I creep slowly to the bat, and then to the door. Check the peep hole, but I see nothing.
Look out for a few minutes, then I get the courage up to open the door and turn on the light (bat still in hand.) There is a dark spot on the porch. And that was the night I learned the the milk is delivered at 3 AM, with a bunch of ice to keep is fresh, and by a dude wearing a headlamp. The last part I learned when I remembered that we have a blink camera covering the front door.
Silent Hill
Staying up late playing Silent Hill: The Room. I was in the hospital part which is pretty tense by itself, its close to midnight and out of the corner of my eye I see a woman in a flowing white gown crossing the yard.
I just about crapped myself.
It was my neighbor going home after visiting my landlord. But good lord did I almost crap myself.
See, now I'm reaching for a Bible to pray. And a phone to call my therapist and some vodka. Those are moments I'd be writing about as well. Try to sleep before 3AM...
The Orbs
Two glowing orbs floating at the edge of the woods. Nothing was holding them up. They were legit just floating in mid-air. No idea what it was, didn't stick around to find out.
Edit: some are saying that it was an animal, but think of it more like a light bulb. It gave enough light that I could see in a 2 foot radius in all directions. I could see the ground behind it.
Edit edit: being that it was near kind of a marshy area, I think it might have actually been a Will o the wisp light. Still freaky tho.
The Shakes...
I was up at like 1 am, and I was on my phone. All of a sudden I hear this sudden boom from outside. It wasn't like explosive loud, but loud enough to be heard by those with good hearing. Afterwards, I could hear this very quiet rumble, like something was coming. In my mind I was going "That's an earthquake". Sure enough, two seconds later, the rumble got louder and everything started to shake. Instinct came in, and I ran downstairs.
On my phone, everyone was writing "Did you guys feel the earthquake?"
We had another earthquake happen a few weeks later, but I had just fallen asleep, but I had woken up right when it was happening. My instinct kicked in, and I just darted outside my bedroom and ran down like 8 flights of stairs. My house is built like a tower, and I live at the top of it. In my mind, my instinct told me "Get to more stable ground. Run downstairs".
The Chills
This was several years back when I lived out in the country. It was maybe 3am and out of nowhere I had this urge to look out the front bay window onto the porch. Sitting there was a coyote already looking into the window as if it knew I was going to look out. It locked eyes with me for a couple of seconds and then bolted into the woods. I still get chills thinking about it.
Under the Bed
So, I was about to go to bed. I think it was around 2:00 AM. I was all in my covers, and I had just put my phone on my nightstand after watching some YouTube. I laid awake for maybe 10 minutes, in the dark. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw something move in my room, and dart under my bed. Whatever it was, it was small.
I know it went under my bed because as it did, I felt a kick of sorts from under me. Some kind of force came from under the bed, strong enough to feel it through a mattress and various other layers. It was so bizarre. I couldn't sleep for an hour after that.
"you, are not, alone"
Once in my teens, i had a dozen tabs open on my laptop and just chilling around 2 am in the dark in the living room. Suddenly i hear a low, raspy, electronic voice repeating: "you, are not, alone". Honestly almost had a heart attack until i realized, after a moment of freaked out searching, that i had my headphones on and a YouTube video i had in another tab had ended and in it, the new Superman trailer was playing.
I wish I could fall asleep in daylight. I can't. It would be so peaceful, I assume. I wish I could erase some of the jump in the night moments of my life but, alas. We should all get together and make "In the Night" anthology horror stories. Paging Ryan Murphy...
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Dating and the search for love and companionship... What a nightmare.
This journey plays out nothing like in the movies.
Every Prince or Princess (or everything in BTW) seems to have a touch of the psycho.
The things people say during what should be simple dinner conversation can leave a dining partner aghast.
Like... do you hear you?
Redditor detroit_michigldan wanted to discuss all the best ways to crash and burn when trying to make a romantic connection. They asked:
"You're on a date and it's going really great. What can another person say to ruin it completely?"
I once had a guy ask me if I was willing to follow him into the woods, depending on the price of the meal.
Yeah. No steak is worth that.
Plans After...
"Thanks for the ride but I have a date with someone else, I figured you wouldn't drive me if you knew I was going on a date with someone else and I really needed a ride."
"Online dating, talked to her for a while, finally got the courage to ask her out and then she said that as we got there."
iareyours
Mirror Image
“'You look just like my wife!'”
catalinachild
"I did have a guy tell me I reminded him of his son. I don’t believe English has a word to adequately describe my feelings at that time."
UnicornMagicRainbow
"That would definitely do it."
chaotica78
Third Wheel
"'Hope you don't mind if my mother joins us.'"
ofsquire
"Actually had a girl do this on a first date because she had anxiety issues. Honestly wasn’t bad except that 90% of the time she was silent and her mom talked over her."
"I didn’t mind that much and wouldn’t have minded trying again when she was more comfortable except that she was let go at the company we worked at and she deleted her social media profiles and she never responded on her number. Ah well."
Seightx
Liar
"'Hey bro aren't you gay? I made out with you last night.'"
"Random dude I've never seen before in front of my (f) date."
JHXC16
Was he lying though?
Filter Issues
"'You looked better on Tinder.'"
waqasnaseem07
"Isn’t it basic knowledge that everybody looks slightly worse than the worst picture you can find?"
no_user_ID_found
The Past
"'My ex used to do that too.'"
xxIvyOF
"Yep. I’ve definitely had two otherwise-decent-guy date-situations sour because the ex-comparisons just would not stop flowing. No woman wants to be seen as interchangeable—I’m not here to perfectly fill that ex-sized hole in your life. Focusing on the present moment and a future we could build together is a courtesy we need to grant each other in earliest dates of dating."
LarkScarlett
Powerless
"'I'm an alpha, you cant handle my top energy.'"
Midnightgay28
"I actually left a dude in the middle of dinner, in part, for saying this. I ordered an Uber under the table while pretending to listen to him. Went to the bathroom, and never came back. That was when I was young. Now I’d just say, 'How about we enjoy this meal in silence, before we head our separate ways.'”
UnicornMagicRainbow
Mommy...
"'Mother says I should be back by 9.'"
"Saying 'mother says' just feels weird."
bunnyrut
"That gives me Norman Bates vibes."
Werewolf_lover20
"'Mother says alligators are aggressive because they have an overabundance of teeth, but lack a toothbrush.'"
sodaextraiceplease
Obvs...
"'If you were going to be murdered, what method would you prefer. Purely hypothetical. Obvs.'"
Specific_Tap7296
If it looks anything like a Dateline NBC episode... RUN!
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Despite the advancement of technology rendering people left to their own devices–literally–to entertain them, there are some leisurely activities that will never go out of style.
Or so you would think.
Do people still knit to pass the time? Are people actively collecting stamps?
It depends on who's asking.
Curious to hear about hobby trends, Redditor gizehgizeh asked:
"What are once popular hobbies that are slowly dying these days?"

Before we've become conditioned to living on our phones, these activities used to keep people occupied.
Before Texting, There Was This
"Letter writing."
– littlekingMT
Literal And Tangible Joy
"Well the internet killed pen pals for sure. I do remember I had a Japanese girl for a penpal maybe back in 2007 or so. I honestly don't remember how it started, pretty sure some website, but that was a fun experience. But now I can just straight up talk to foreign people real time, lol. But yea getting a physical letter that someone took the time to write and mail still is hard to beat feelings wise."
– skyburnsred
Model Trains
"When I was growing up, every town had a model train store in it. Now I have one in region and everything else has to be bought online."
– Hairy_Effective1172
Pretty Rocks
"Don’t see anyone playing marbles anymore, I had an awesome collection in school."
– sheeple85
"I had some marbles as a kid in the 90s. My grandma got them for me and I had no idea what I was supposed to do with them. I always imagined them as a thing kids in the 40s played with."
– Ryoukugan
People Were Moving Canvases
"Paintball has been dying a slow death since 2006. Sad, really."
– hobo_recycler
Before the general population began hating clutter, collecting was once a "thing."
Precious Coins
"Coin collecting... I'm a silver/gold nut and I'm always hunting for precious metal coins. whenever I go into a shop they get all excited because 'no one under 70 collects coins anymore.'"
– ThatFishySmell99
Post It
"Stamp collecting."
– spooky_scully_mulder
"Collecting in general, really. Of course there are still prominent collectors but it's slipped more into enthusiast and niche territory than being a popular hobby that you might expect anyone to have."
– iuytrefdgh436yujhe2
What A Gem
"Rockhounding was immensely popular back in the 1950's and 1960's. Personally, I think it's a fascinating and fulfilling hobby, but when I go to a meeting at a rock and gem club, I'm usually the youngest one in the room by several decades."
– filthy_lucre
People once enjoyed making things.
Admiring The View
"Stained glass. I learned how to make it from my old man, and my junior high art class teacher also taught it. Very few artisans are still around."
– brobeanzhitler
Metal Vocation
"Black smithing."
– kenworth117
"I bought a forge to try. It’s insanely hard work, and crazy expensive. I still haven’t finished a piece."
– DSentvalue
Scrapbooking
"Yeah. I'm watching the arts and crafts stores around me completely uninstalling their racks for specialty paper. Now the only thing they have is mega packs of repeating colors/images. To boot all the inclusions like papercraft/die-cut things, washi tape, scissors, stickers, etc have gotten so expensive I would rather go buy $5 bags at value village to get an assortment of things versus buying anything new. I really, really miss yard sales for the same reasons."
– Phantasmai
I envy people who have jobs that are basically their hobbies.
Not everyone gets paid doing what they actually enjoy and have a profound level of passion for.
If they do, kudos to them.
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When we first meet someone–whether through mutual friends, at school, or in a new work setting–we generally feel people out to determine if they're worth getting to know.
While the process could take time, some people make our jobs much easier after spotting instant red flags.
Curious to hear about our general radar of people, Redditor xxFluffie asked:
"What is something that makes you immediately dislike someone?"

Some people just think they are absolutely hilarious and never realize they're the only ones laughing.
Next In Line
"They laugh about having screwed someone else over. If you think you're not next, well, you'll learn."
– whiznat
Unfunny
"when you mention you don't like a thing and they immediately do that thing 'as a joke.'"
– wayfinder
Playing Devil's Advocate
"Kneejerk contrarians. People who, no matter what you say you like or believe, just have to dismiss it and say they like or think the opposite."
– BubbhaJebus
People who put others down get slammed here.
Bad Parents
"When they treat their kids sh**ty in public. I don't mean handling tantrums, setting a rule, having to hurry to the train etc. I mean perfectly normal-behaved kids getting in trouble for trailing along peacefully, looking at things, asking questions etc."
"If you don't like tiny humans who learn the world, why have them??"
– raxeira-etterath
Public Humiliation
"Treating people sh**ty in public for laughs. Like being rude to service workers because they think it’s funny. Big red flag."
– Ok_Personality_1080
Simply Uncalled For
"Someone who is a d*ck to other people or animals for no reason."
– xebt1000
Those with ulterior motives rubs people the wrong way.
The Scheme
"If they try to get me to join their MLM scheme."
– spazmcgee1
Hard Sell
"A guy I used to be friends with in high school reached out a couple of years after graduating about a business opportunity he wanted my opinion on because 'you've always been smart', then he set up a Skype call and brought some other dude into the call and they started trying to sell me on what was clearly an MLM scheme. The guy went from friend to 'I'm never talking to you again' in a matter of 10 minutes."
– Mental-Afternoon-164
A Timeline
"Good gawd, this! I've had more than one exposure to this abject bullsh**tery..."
- Back in the late 80's/early 90's I was invited to a meeting of literally the OG "Pyramid" where you're recruited to pay in, and then you go out and recruit others to pay in, and the last in line got f'kall.
- In 1995 I had a coworker try to reel me into Amway, which was a hard no.
- In 2000 it was Pampered Chef, though to be fair they did have useful products.
- In 2009 a coworker tried to get me into some stupid video calling service that was obviously stupid from the description. He even got offended when I called bullsh*t.
– Mystical_Cat
Too much ego is a no-go.
I Can Do Better
"Being a b*tch just to stroke their own ego."
"We get it, you can lift 5lbs more than the 12 year old, you don't have to rub it in their face just because you're slightly better"
– Livia_Pivia
Can't Top This
"Oh, you did <story that's been told>? That's nothing! I did <implausible story>.
"I get the whole empathy through relating common experience, and I'm someone who does that (which drives some people crazy on its own), but there's a big different by empathising through common experience, and one-upmanship."
– Tisarwat
Lacking Conversational Etiquette
"Starting to talk over me when I was already talking."
"Stop it you rude, arrogant jerk."
– R33Gtst
If one or more of these traits sound familiar to you, you're not alone.
We don't have time for braggadocios, pyramid-schemers, and conversation interrupters.
And that's just for starters.
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Children tend to believe just about anything they hear.
That there are monsters under your bed, watching too much TV will make your head explode, and silly faces will be permanent if you make them too often.
The sky is truly the limit when it comes to silly things that children will believe.
Some call it naivitée, other's youthful innocence.
But it's hard not to look back with embarrassment on certain things we believed as a child, that today might simply seem dumb.
Redditor Disastrous_Toe_6548 was curious to learn the multitude of silly things people believed when they were children, leading them to ask:
"What's the dumbest thing you believed as a kid?"
Pleading to deaf ears...
"My dad told me he had hearing loss and couldn't hear me if I whined because my pitch would get too high."
"Would completely ignore me until I asked him questions in a normal voice."
"Trusted him implicitly until I was 12 and he yelled at my younger brother for whining."- Tyrion_Stark.
Get it while you can.
"That they took everything off the shelves when the supermarket closed."- fgyfddg.
Silly superstitions.
"My grandfather used to tell me that if I played with the fire, I'd pee the bed."
"I believed him for a while, until I got older."
"I think he was just trying to protect me from the fire."- teddypa1981.
"Rain, rain go away..."
"That if it was raining where I was, it was raining everywhere in the world."- morningshartz.
Age is just a number.
"My parents used to seem really old to me, so much so I believed they grew up like cave people as children, wearing giant leaves for clothes and what not."- Laleena_.
So that's how they're made!
"That smokestacks from the power plant created clouds."- Scaniarix.
An instant cure.
"The sun gives you sunburns, therefore, moonlight should heal them."- velocipeter.
Better safe than sorry.
"Don't drink and drive meant all drinks."
"My dad was super confused when I told him he wasn't allowed to have any soda until we got home."- hulagirlslovetoparty.
Don't believe everything you see on TV.
"There was an episode of Mickey Mouse where Mickey couldn’t reach something at first, so he tried again and somehow his arm was long enough to reach it."
"As a small kid I believed that if I couldn’t reach something, I should just try reaching for it again and my arm would then somehow be long enough to reach it."- That-Dutch-Person.
The miracle of childbirth.
"That babies are pooped out."
"When I was like 7 I was listening to my aunt as she explained that childbirth was pretty intense and painful for her, and I was all solemnly like, 'yeah, sometimes just my poops are painful, I don’t think I could get a baby out' and she went 'um, WHAT?' and her reaction made me realize real quick that I had f*cked up somewhere and I tried to change the subject while my mind was just reeling lol."- thesoundingfurrows.
Oh to be a child again.
And to believe literally everything you're told.
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