One time, when I was living in New York, at 3 AM, after a night of dancing and revelry, I, and fifty other people were waiting on the "A" train. it had been a solid half hour of frayed patience. And no train had come along. We had all been holding in silence or hushed tones so everyone was annoyed but calm. When suddenly two people who seemed a little mentally "off-kilter" began to joust. At first it was just alarming, but subtle, then one pushed the other to the tracks. Everyone screamed. I fainted, because I'm useless in an emergency. Everyone lived, but I still have nightmares as that is one of my biggest fears.
Redditor u/instantaniouspickle wanted to see who needed to discuss the things their eyes can't unsee by asking... What is something you witnessed that you will never forget?It's inevitable. In life, we are all going to see things that will leave an impression on us; good and bad. We will see these images in our sleep, in our waking moments, and in our imagination. We can't run from them, we have to learn to adjust and live with them. But that doesn't mean we can't wish we could undo having to have seen them. The people who responded to this thread understand.
the 360...
total eclipse GIF by HuffPostGiphyPositive note: I watched the solar eclipse from a mountaintop with a 360 degree view. pictures don't do it justice.
I saw the shadow coming over the ridges towards me for a moment, incredibly fast, blacking them out. Then the light just goes out and the temperature instantly drops. You look around and you can see the sunlight, in the distance in every direction, but not on you. And you actually understand fully that you're standing in the shadow of the moon, pure white sunlight shining around it. Then it's over, and you see the light disappearing over the ridges again.
Guilty
I saw someone try to rob a Blockbuster Video and the guy behind the counter beat him unconscious with a metal little league bat.
The Place I Live
I was a born and bred city kid who got the idea one summer that it would be great to move into the forest and be a trail worker. This went about as you'd expect, but it was definitely full of eye-opening experiences.
One night, the crew decided to hike (after a full day of work) up a local mountain to have dinner on the top, for "fun."
As we were up there, night fell, and we laid on our backs to look at the clear sky. For the first time, I saw the Milky Way, so many stars, and the actual dome of the sky. I was so shocked I interjected, "it looks just like the planetarium!" It was a long time before I lived that one down, but it was a genuine thrill of my life.
Spread the Gloss
While people watching, saw a guy casually apply chapstick to his lips, then his eyebrows.
Under the Sea
the little mermaid sebastian GIF by DisneyGiphyHere's a non-traumatic one! It was the first time I went snorkeling!
It was a little gloomy out, the sun was shining through some clouds a little bit, but the surface of the water was like a dull dark blue and so I wasn't expecting anything great, but when I put my head under the water, I was instantly hit with the most magical experience of my life. Hundreds and hundreds of fish swimming at me, the sparkle of the mica in the water, the rays of light shining through the water, the deep deep ocean below me, even the forests of kelp looked so beautiful.
At the same time there was a light twinkling sound, it may have been the sound of chains underwater, but it made it feel extra magical. I've seen some stuff in my life, but I remember thinking in that moment, everything that I've ever been through has been worth it up to this point. It sounds super corny, but there's just so much beauty in this world.
Can you imagine having to live through half of that? Now there are plenty of extraordinary things to witness in life, but they always seem to be far and few in between. It feels like the darkest things always resonate longer. I have a friend who has witnessed both of his children's births and as much as he relives them, he is more haunted by the murder of his mother, by his father. Both extraordinary, but one leaves a deeper mark.
The Center Line
I was nine. My dad was driving me to karate and we were following a drunk driver. He was about to call 911 from his car phone (yes mid to late nineties) when this person crossed the center line, hit a car that went down an embankment and the drunk driver flew out of the passenger window. I still remember the sound of the impact and the guy flying out of the window. The car he hit was my friend's mom and she died.
Disaster
Air show disaster at the Ramstein airforce base in '88. Hard to forget being knocked to the ground by a severed human foot. Was a lot for my young brain to process.
The Screams
My ex husband and I were on vacation and saw a huge 18-wheeler plow into the SUV in front of them at a red light.
We were right across the road, but stopped at the light and we were the second car. We saw the whole thing. Then all traffic was at a standstill. No one could go anywhere.
The woman was screaming and screaming as they worked to get her out of the SUV. All four of her young children died, as well as her husband. She was fully aware that her entire family was gone. She kept screaming their names. :-(
That still haunts me to this day. It happened back in the mid 90's.
Silence
The complete, eerie quiet of NYC on September 12th, 2001.
The weather was perfect, about 70ºF and clear skies with lots of sun. Stores were closed, people weren't working, there were no airplanes, very little subway service (if any), very little traffic, many peoples' cell phones didn't work and we were told not to use them anyway. The hum of transportation, cell phone chatter, and commerce was gone.
It was just a lot of people walking outside, especially in the parks, making eye-contact and nodding to each other with a sad smile as we passed.
Trauma
This is a pretty traumatic one, but I witnessed my mother's murder. I will never forget the dark silhouette of a man and the bright flashes of each gunshot that hit me. One of the bullets shattered my elbow and I vividly remember my arm swung the wrong way.
I have more details I remember but I think I've shared enough graphic detail from that night.
Life is always going to throw hardship at us with both barrels. That's all part of the "living with it" truth. Living with it can be cumbersome. So share, share what you've got, the good, the bad, the indifferent. You'll never be able to not see it, so it's better to make peace with being a witness.
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We've all had a conversation with someone where they say something where they've said something incorrect or inaccurate.
Sometimes, our gut reaction is just to laugh, as it was an honest mistake, such as mixing up a pair of celebrities or misusing or mispronouncing a word.
Other times, we might feel the need to put them in their place and not only correct them but educate them.
Then there are the times when we have just heard something so shockingly inane that we are left completely and utterly speechless.
Redditor Moo1124 was eager to hear all the dumb things the Reddit community heard which left them dumbfounded, leading them to ask:
"What's the stupidest thing you've ever heard anyone say?"
Before You Denounce Something, Make Sure You Know What It Is
"'I don't believe in astronomy'."
"We asked her if she meant astrology, and she asked, 'which is the one where like, you can tell what stars are made of?''
"We confirmed that was astronomy'."
"'Yeah, I don't believe in that'."- octohog
That Explains All The Traffic Jams?
"That when you press on the horn of your car, it lowers the amount of air in your front right tire due to it helping make that horn sound."- Boomstick123456
Oh, Dear...
"I was walking around the ruins of the ancient cliff dwellings at Mesa Verde just outside of Mancos, Colorado, (where the Ancient Puebloans lived from approximately 550 A.D. to 1300 A.D.) when a visitor asked the tour guide:"
"'Why did they build their homes so far from the highway?'"- badwolf1013
driving los angeles GIF by HOLLYWOOD LOVE STORYGiphyRibbet...
“'I can shoot with my left hand, I can shoot with my right hand, I'm amphibious'."- Master_Grape5931
Racist No Matter What...
"Apparently when my daughter was first born she looked vaguely East Asian."
"Enough, at least, for the nurses to ask if I was sure it was my baby."
"Now that was an incredibly weird thing to say to a new dad meeting his daughter for the first time, but it wasn't the stupidest thing someone said about this situation."
"That happened when I was retelling the above story to a client in a meeting."
"He asked to see a photo of my kid as a newborn, remarked how she really did 'look Asian', and then proceeded to ask if I thought my child might end up having an Asian accent when she got older."- JoeyCalamaro
Cbs No GIF by HULUWhen Life Gives You Lemons
"Asked someone if they drove a stick."
"They responded, 'no, I drive a car'."
"Now I have a dad joke I’ll remember forever."- 99problemsbut
ID Please...
"I once found a big bulldog in my back yard."
"I don't own a bulldog."
"He was a big friendly, but slow witted guy."
"He look healthy and had a collar but no tags so I knew he was a local."
"I made sure he had water and went to the front yard to start knocking on doors."
"As soon as I stepped outside I saw the family three houses down all gathered in their front yard."
"So another case closed for our young detective."
"I walked over to them and said, 'You guys missing a bulldog?'"
"The mother looked at me and said, 'Is his name Tyson?'"
"The question took me aback."
"I mean, he didn't have tags."
"They knew he didn't have tags."
"So all I could think to say was, 'He didn't say'."
"'But I'm pretty sure he's yours'."
"To this day I wonder if that woman knew how dumb that question was."- Spodson
looks stupid english bulldog GIFGiphyUnder The Influence
"Stoned friend ."
"What year is February in?'"- IHave47Teeth
Woof Woof...
"My teacher told a class of 16-17 year olds about that super loyal dog in Japan who walked to the train station daily for nine years to wait for his owner, who died at work."
"After hearing that story, a girl raised her hand and asked 'Why didn't somebody just tell the dog?'"- Senator_Ruth_Martin
That's Why The FDA Warns Against It...
"When I was 12 years old a friend told me 'smoking is good for you because the smoke makes a shield around your heart when you breathe it in'."
"He argued that the smoke could prevent you from being stabbed or shot."
"Even at 12 I knew he was a moron."- ipondy
There's Denying Global Warming, And Then...
"Solar panels will cause a global ice age, because the law of thermodynamics states energy cannot be created or destroyed, so obviously they must be removing heat from the air."
"With no sense of irony of the scale nor efficiency (or lack thereof) of solar panels and their capacity to cool."- peptobiscuit
In Debt, Maybe...
"I knew a Finance major in college who thought he was worth $20k because he had two credit cards with $10k limit each."- alano134
No one loves a know-it-all.
Especially when they don't actually know anything at all...
Shoplifting is a prevalent issue, but why do people do it?
Some reasons can be as banal as boredom, but other are far more intruiging.
Redditor WineOhCanada wanted to understand why people steal, so they asked:
"People who shoplift on the regular: why do you do it?"
I loved shoplifting.
Until I was caught, that is. I was a price tag switcher.
I apologize.
So Excited
Happy Thomas Lennon GIF by ABC NetworkGiphy"It makes me feel alive. Jk I don't any more but as a kid, it was for sure a thrill thing."
silly-billy-goat
The Need
"I’m going to give an actual honest answer as someone who has not done this in many years… it becomes addicting."
anewchapteroflife
"Came here to say this. Back in my high school days, I would do it all the time. It's like a rush. Now my shoplifting days are when I forgot the can of soup on the bottom of the grocery cart and don't realize til I'm loading it in the car."
TheRumpleForesk1n
"I used to work in loss prevention. A lot of times we would let you go; especially teenagers. We knew you would be back and have pictures on the wall of you. We focused on shoplifting rings with a higher dollar amount and employees. Employees rob you blind."
taco_cop
The Hit
"I was greedy and had poor impulse control. While shoplifting was terrifying... having the shiny new thing after gave me a dopamine hit. I got caught three or four times and I thank Christ I was under 18 each and every time."
happyele
"It was less about greed for me I think, I've never been addicted to any drugs, whenever I got caught I would always test negative for anything, the custody sergeant who would take my fingerprints/DNA/drug swab would say 'Sean you're the only one that comes in regular that's not on any drugs, what's going on?' I explained that I was homeless, lost my job because the company I worked for folded, and life just kicked me in the butt."
"Flirty Chez I called her, and she would always give me extra food whenever I was brought in, I just thought that was how she was, then one day she said I need a girlfriend and I shot her down, no more flirty Chez. She was shooting her shot and I rejected her without even knowing it."
hardcoresean84
Exchanges
"Much to my mom’s embarrassment, I was a serial shoplifter as a baby. At least I had the presence of mind to take off my socks and shoes and leave them scattered around the store in exchange."
UsualFrogFriendship
"I was once on a camping trip with my parents. We left the campsite for a day and when we got back our soap had been stolen from the tent. Just our soap, nothing else was taken, but we did find the shoes of the perpetrator!"
"This kid left them right at the entrance of our tent, so it was not difficult to find out who did it. When we went to get the soap back and give him back his shoes, sadly the kid threw it over a fence, so we never got it back."
ptbroeke
Influences
Breaking Bad Crying GIFGiphy"My easily influenced mind was corrupted by TV. If it's good enough for Marie Schrader then it's good enough for me."
DavosLostFingers
TV rots your brains and decision making capabilities.
Do the opposite of your favorite characters.
End of Times
Nbc Shoplifting GIF by SuperstoreGiphy"When I was bedridden due to Covid, I had a friend who shoplifted a whole damn box worth of medicine from different drugstores."
"I was very impressed and confused, as I didn't ask for it. Great friend though!"
pepper-blu
Criminals
"As a former loss prevention officer, most of the people I stopped were stealing to resell the items. Many people were clearly drug addicts and many people I stopped had meth and other drugs on them. Not every shoplifter is stealing to buy drugs, but a ton of them are."
"A lot of other people just stole items they wanted, and some people just have a stealing problem and would take whatever random BS they came across and thought would be easy to steal. If I ever saw someone stealing food I'd usually look the other way, but that was pretty rare to see someone taking food, it was usually clothes, electronics, makeup, or tools."
BigBudZombie
The Rush
"Addiction. And that's addiction to shoplifting, not drugs. It's a rush. Confidence grows with each success. It becomes an obsession. It brings an amount of power when stealing from giant corporations. For me, this question is similar to asking an addict why they are addicted to drugs or alcohol."
"I haven't shoplifted in three years. I attended Shoplifters Anonymous and continue to go to therapy which are both very helpful. I'm very lucky I didn't lose everything."
tacoterrarium
Self-Control
"In high school, I dated this guy who would shoplift and I got influenced to start doing it. After we broke up I kept doing it all throughout college since I was a broke college student who had no self-control. I only shoplifted from big retail stores and told myself it was 'okay.' Post college I stopped because the possible consequences as an adult and to my career were not worth it."
isatacobelle
There was no good in it
"I used to do it as a means to support my drug habit. I wouldn't call what I was doing shoplifting though. I moved the volume and high-end merchandise. Honda generators from Home Depot or Lowe's. Shopping carts full of Tide pods, and Similac baby formula. I'd hit Nordstrom during the holidays for their perfumes and colognes. COACH, Burberry for purses."
"I made a good chunk of change from it, yet I was still homeless. Most of my money went to drugs, and hotel rooms at shi**y hotels. I'm no longer like this. I reached out and went to rehab this past July. I now have 132 days clean and sober, and work an honest job. My life's boring as hell now and I love it. Even though people on the street complimented and applauded my skills."
"I was never proud of myself for any of the stealing I was doing. There was no good in it. Now I feel good about myself and can be proud of what I do. It's a nice feeling to go into a store and not have to be aware of my surroundings and not tighten up when the greeters ask for a receipt. Because now, I can happily show them one. Lol."
Crotch-Monster
Think First
Steve Austin Wrestling GIF by WWEGiphy"I work for a 3-letter retail store in NV and we have a ton of theft. I see a lot of random products for sale on the FB marketplace. If it adds up to over $1,200 it’s grand larceny and you get arrested."
"Walmart also allows up to a certain amount to be returned with no receipt and you get cash back."
samisalwaysmad
What have we learned kids?
Theft never really pays.
Do you have any experiences? Let us know in the comments below.