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People Describe The Things Their Parents Did That They Won't Repeat With Their Own Children

We're just past Father's Day at time of writing, and hopefully people took to social media or visited with social distancing involved to show how much they appreciate their dad. Unfortunately, not everyone had a solid male, or female, role-model in their life, someone to watch over and help guide them through childhood in a positive way. Thankfully, some people learn from their parents' mistakes and can become better from it.


Reddit user, u/sidarth23, wanted to hear about:

[Serious]What are the things your parents have done to you which you wouldn't do to your child?

Don't Slam

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We've never taken the doors off of our kids rooms (old house, old doors, a big pain in the neck) but every time they slammed their door, I calmly walked back to their room, stood inside their room with them, and had them close it softly 5 times. I would say 'It's OK to be angry but it's not OK to have a fit. Slamming the door is having a fit." And then I would leave the room so they could calm down.

It didn't take very long for them to learn. When they got angry, they would stomp and huff and puff back to their rooms and then... softly close the door.

themamajo

No Excuses

My father always compared me to my siblings and made me feel like sh!t, and when I didn't do well he would hit me and punish me but he never put in the effort to find the problem or help me. It was only when I went abroad for a year in high school that I found out I have learning disabilities and that I could get help and improve! I felt like he didn't care (which in retrospect was probably accurate) and that he only paid attention so he would have an excuse to hurt me.

Savannah_P_Frost

Thankfully he's an Ex

My ex step dad had no issues punishing me and my brother in questionable ways. I have a scar on my back from when he took a branch that was on fire from our fire pit and would whack the hell outta me with it. One time he also pinned me down and would let my sister repeatedly punch me in the nose because I apparently had upset her. I remember one time our deep freeze got left open and all the meat dethawed and he would whip me and my brother until one of us confessed. Turns out it was him after all during a drunk night and he wanted something to eat.

Jaymzz2

I'm not having kids

Hmm let's see

-neglected me in a crib for days in the hot sun to the point where I had maggots in my diapers

-sent me to school with scratches and bruises

-hit me directly in the head with things

-threaten to kill me

-treat me like a complete failure in my teen years without questioning WHY

Oh and when I got taken away and put in a foster home?

I'm not having kids. But that's because I'm unstable and tend to isolate.

ToothShavings

Gossip Gal

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I hate when my mom gossips about my private life to literally everyone. And then she gets upset when I wont tell her things, like bawling extremely heartbroken kind of upset. She can act pretty entitled to my emotions and information about me with out actually earning it. It's so draining.

OopsDroppedMyWeasel

The Basics

Not explaining to my 12 yo daughter about woman period.

f011593

My mom gave me an American Girl book about puberty and left the rest of my education about women's health to the school system. I only recently learned discharge is normal and your body cleaning itself. Health class is a joke.

hiphillbert

be better

Physical abuse, mental and verbal abuse. My mother and step father commented on my body a lot.

I am better now! It took a lot of years of healing and therapy, but I've accepted it as part of my past. Thank you for asking. (:

Faeriefarts

~my awful awful parents~  

Refusing to accept that my child has feelings, every damn time I'm criticized for playing games and enjoying my time. My parents seem to enjoy pulling similar stunts, whenever I lash out because I'm mad it's always, "must be those damn games you play"

~my awful awful parents~

Sparkzdontfly

$$$$ Issues

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Ask for Money, especially now knowing how much my mother spends on pointless things and then wonders why they don't ever have money. Just annoying and I don't feel bad any more. My father bust his @ss to make money and she just blows it all.

BigMouthBillyBass07

Be There For Me

Chose drugs over me, left me with a babysitter that abused me for years, choke slammed me to the ground, dropped a knee in my chest fracturing my sternum, tried to fight me for my smart mouth. Those are just a few gems of my wonderful childhood. Oh yes and now I am the perfect picture of mental health.

obscenobite

My dad was not a good dad

Stop talking to them over a woman (twice), and let them forget I'm here for them and I love them.

My dad was not a good dad.

I remember when I was little after my parents got divorced, I would sit on our front steps with my little suitcase waiting for my dad because he'd tell me he was coming to get me. My mom would get a call from my dad making some excuse as to why he couldn't come get me. She told me she would break down and cry because she was the one that had to tell me he wasn't coming, and she knew I'd be upset and likely cry. This happened a lot.

I also remember when they made us start dialing area codes. I was probably 7. I didn't know, so I'd dial the 7 digit number and it just gave me a busy signal. I tried to call him for months. I would sit there and cry because I wanted my dad to just be my dad and I didn't know if he was even alive. Turns out he was alive, he just didn't care to give his son a call.

Growing up without a dad sucks. My son will never experience that. I hug him, and kiss him, and tell him I love him all the time. Maybe too much, but I don't care. He's 5 and he'll be pushing me off him before long. I'd rather him be spoiled than go through what I went through.

ElGuapoBurro

the hard way

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Teach them that the only acceptable way to live is the way they do. Grew up with some serious judgmental thoughts about people different from me that are still hard to drive out.

purplety9

Get Up

Moms an absolute psycho so basically everything different. If I didn't wake up for school at a specific time, she would beat me up and throw me out the house with no lunch.

So yeah, childhood at home was no fun. TuggeTargaryen

"ok you've cried enough now stop."

My mom never allowed me to express my emotions in a healthy way. Whenever I would cry, there would be a time limit like "ok you've cried enough now stop." Same thing with every other emotion as well, especially negative ones.

My dad was the "fun" parent to me until I grew up and realized he emotional and mentally abused my brother and my mom. I never got the brunt of any of it because I was his favorite

I was the favorite for everyone and always needed to be a mediator because no one could communicate properly. You shouldn't force a 15 year old to be a messenger

In the end my mom realized that she needed to stop hindering my emotionally maturity but still slips into really bad habits of "ok that's enough here is advice."

My dad is still a piece of crap. He stopped the abuse mostly but even so he's the type that has given up on himself and won't try to get better than he was. He's disappointed me too many times

I won't tell my kids it's not bad to cry. I won't hold grudges against them. I won't play favorites. Both me and my husband had bad parents and I know I'll be doing mistakes too but I'll own up to it and do my best to learn.

Izuku_Urameshi

Who's There?

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KNOCK. Please always knock. Also don't just knock while you're in the midst of opening the door, that doesn't count. Knock, wait for a response, then come in. Not only for when you're doing things you don't want your parents to do, but also just allows the kid to feel a lot more private in their room, knowing you respect that boundary.

fireiidrag

Restrictions

Severely restrict video games.

My parents didn't grow up with them, so they viewed video games as dumb, or at worst, bad for you. Why they'd be worse than watching TV, I don't know.

It just killed me to not be able to even use my own money to buy an NES. Still stings today
when I think about that. My kids & I have a blast today.

Pac_Eddy

early zzzz's.....

Make me go to bed every single day at 7:30pm. Well, I'm 16 (almost 17) right now and my bedtime is 9:15 (even in the weekends/vacation, which is still ridiculous IMO), but I take my phone with me and go to sleep at around 10:30 which is more reasonable to me. :)

Mr_BananaPants

forever mine

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My parents disowned me, 7 and a half years ago. I WOULD NEVER EVER DISOWN MY 2 BOYS!!!!!!!!!!!

aneela30

so not beautiful... inside

Make my daughter feel insecure about her looks or feel that her entire worth is tied to her looks. My mom's an attractive woman. I took a lot of my looks from my dad's side of the family and she made it no secret that she felt they weren't attractive people. She would compare my looks to other girls. I was an awkward teen. She didn't like how my hair is more Afro textured, or how I put on make up. It took my husband to help me to realize that I didn't need make up to be pretty. Girls go enough insecurity about their looks. I won't be the one to make it worse.

OctoberBlue89

Running to College

Threaten to put your kid in an insane asylum for just crying a lot. Tell your teenage daughter she should dress up like this more often so she can get a boy to like her. Tell your suffering kid who is crying from pain that they will be homeless if they can't clean up their act. Tell your kid they are broken. Tell your kid to suck it up. Scold your kid for getting a 'C' and a threatening look at a 'B' with a comment of "you really should try harder" despite all other grades being an 'A' Call your kid a drama queen. Make your kid cry so much they start keeping track.

All things told or done by my father who I call Scrap, as recently he showed he cares more about getting his donuts than a human life. I can't wait to leave for college again.

ABlindArtist

none of your business

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Stay out of my kid's business. My parents weren't controlling at all, but they were nosey and I've always been a very private person. I felt like I couldn't live any kind of life when I lived with them, because they'd pry and ask me questions. If my kids don't feel like sharing some detail of their life with me, in not going to pry unless I think it's hurting them in some way.

Digibollocks

boomer mentality

They would never and still never apologize. Even if they did something wrong. They are always right and will argue tooth and nail. The sky is not blue it's green, so stop arguing with me right now.

Boomer mentality that you can't appear weak and being or admitting you're wrong makes you weak.

lil_adk_bird

Awkward

When I was a kid I rarely was allowed to see friends outside of school. Could be part of the reason I'm socially awkward sometimes now. If it's someone I've known for awhile I don't have a problem holding conversation but first dates are a little rough sometimes.

teven_with_an_S

I Can Hear You

They put hidden microphones all over my room, basement and probably some other places too. I discovered them when my mom kept on calling me when I used the family computer. probably suspecting me of watching inappropriate stuff. She also searches my phone every night when she thinks I am sleeping. I don't have kids yet but when I do I would never do that and teach my kids to respect their kid's privacy too. and If you are wondering I am 15 only a few more years until I move out. Other than this my mom is pretty nice so yeah she just needs to respect my privacy.

MrBigfoot9537

How 'Lady Bird' of Me

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Fight in front of them.

My parents fought a lot around me and I hated it growing and do not want to subject my kids to that. Like sure it's important show them how to handle disagreement, but not get into screaming matches like my parents.

I remember one time when I was about 8 years old, I was in the car with my parents. They were arguing like always, but being trapped in that metal box with both of them screaming back and forth became too much. We stopped at a red light and I unbuckled my seatbelt and got out of the car and started running. My mom, who was in the passenger's seat ran out after me and after he pulled over the car my dad did as well. They caught up to me and their attitudes completely changed.

They promised me they wouldn't fight in front of me again, a promise they broke time and time again until their divorce. I'm hoping I can do a better job of keeping my promise.

-eDgAR-

avoiding life

Socially isolate them or avoid family get togethers. I wouldn't tell them not to do something or to do something without explaining to them why, I wouldn't scream or shout at them over the pettiest of things.

Auserna

Out of the Bubble

They didn't give us the freedom to develop our own thoughts. I think my mom thought of us as little human molds to form into her worldview and beliefs, instead of letting us have the freedom to figure it out on our own.

I didn't learn it until years later. To this day I still feel pretty isolated from my parents. I can't have open discussions with them because of the bubble they're in. I get jealous of my friends who can have really engaging adult talks with their parents.

I want to teach my kids how to critically think and not what to think. Ask them what their opinion is on different topics. I never had those kinds of thought provoking discussion.

VincentStonecliff

"too old"

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Not having kids, but tell them it's bad to like the same gender or tell them they have to grow up and stop watching cartoons/playing with toys.

Forget you both, I live with my boyfriend and all the toys I missed out on because I was "too old."

CabbageGolem

minimal guidance

Only giving minimal guidance on adult skills & major life choices - budgeting, taxes, college applications, how to buy a car, etc.

I don't regret how my life has turned out so far, but I got so little help that I ended high school with no financial intelligence, got myself started on the wrong foot, & am only just now able to consider going to college.

If my folks had taken a couple weekends to sit down and go "let's figure out FAFSA and student loans together" or "now that you're paying for things, do you want us to help you build a budget", my life might have turned out very differently.

(To be fair, I'm also stubborn when it comes to asking for help, so I don't blame them or think they did it "wrong", I just wish they'd done it differently.)

MeesterPepper

I'm sorry... I'm Broken

I wish I could say I did not repeat any of the horrible stuff my "care givers" did to me. My son was taken away from me by the state, with just cause, and raised in foster care. What I did not do was gaslight him or blame the victim. I let him know what I did was very wrong and he did nothing to cause being treated that way. I told him that telling his teacher was a good, healthy thing and I was proud of him for doing it. I let him know that I did love him very much but I was broken in a way that means I can not be the very good mommy he deserves. That was the very least I owed him, to not play with his mind and make him think it was his fault.

rozina076

Once they're 18

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When I was in college, I stayed out late with some friends. We were at my friend's place and a storm hit. We chose to wait it out before going home.

Mom was mad and took my car away for a week or two. The problem is, it was my car purchased entirely with my own money. I felt she didn't have the right to take it, especially since I was over 18.

I did still live at home, and I don't care that she was mad I stayed out late. I just felt that taking my car was wrong. I would not do that to my own kid in the same situation.

Marise20

I'm Just Me.. not Lisa

Compare me to my sister. We were and are vastly different through every stage of life. Just because you preferred her way of life growing up (she was a straight A, smart, mostly obedient child. I was a go fast, impulsive, later pot head). I don't know, being compared rather than loving me for who I was hurt. My mom later apologized for doing this after we got older, but I won't forget feeling like "oh.. she doesn't like me, but would if I was like *Lisa".

Never tell your children "why can't you be more like your sister/brother?"

yeticonfette

Unnecessary Viewing

My parents thought that all cartoons were for kids. They rented some studio Ghibli (moving castle and spirited away) films for me once and I had nightmares for days. They also let me watch YouTube religiously which didn't help either. I had gotten so deep into ghost and celebrity clones celebrities I was even afraid of flushing the toilet at one point. I used to sleep with a nightlight until I was like 11 or 12. At least the good thing that came out of this is that they didn't have any problems with me watching South park.

AutisticDalekOnSpeed

They Were Learning

My parents are really great, but they took many wrong cues from their old school parents :

  1. Beating us to discipline. They would hit us for any little infraction, from things like spilling food, getting homework questions wrong, etc.
  2. Yelling and screaming. Instead of getting to the root of the problem, my parents would constantly yell at us if we misbehaved. I lived with constant anxiety that I would be yelled at. When I became an adult, I vowed never to raise my voice at any child and approach with patience and understanding.
  3. Sending us to catholic school. Enough said.
  4. Not taking us seriously. My parents never believed we were sick or in pain or had mental health issues.
  5. Not understanding that my life is different than theirs.

Edit: I want to reiterate that my parents are great people. They were always supportive and they're good people. The point of my comment was to express that their child rearing practices were outdated and I don't agree with them. I was never abused and my parents never hit us or yelled out of anger or for no reason. They just believed firmly in discipline and I don't think they realized that their approach wasn't the best. smoothjazz1

Anger Issues

I live in India and we are made to strictly follow the course of school ...... So I was a seventh grader arrogant and ignorant and I don't complete my notes got a small fall in my grades and my teachers call my mom.

My mom is a hot headed single mother and basically has anger issues as well which I as well inherited.

So back to the flow she got to know and I get beaten by a badminton racquet If that wasn't enough I was made to stand naked on my front door and people saw me ..... A lot of them I wouldn't let my anger issues ruin my kid and give them insecurities like this.

aReYoUfOrReAl-_-

"We never said that."

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Gaslighting. All the other bull that happened aside, the blatant gaslighting. "We never said that." "We don't know what you're talking about." "Sorry, don't remember that." It lingers and builds resentment and kills any respect that's left. I hate to say it, because I honestly hate gaslighting, but once in a while I will do it back to them if and when we talk and I feel no remorse.

rebelwithoutaloo

'my baby'

Ooh, off the top of my head:

- tell my child they are poison and will amount to nothing for not putting clothes in the laundry basket
- fake an overdose on a family holiday to teach children a lesson
- play favorites and pick the pathological liar because he's 'my baby'
- split my daughter's lip and later insist this is a false memory
- blame therapy for dredging up the past

(Writing this list I was actually questioning myself, but these are the things that have affected me the most).

PassOnTheCallaLily

Everything is not ok

In case anyone is scrolling through the comments and reevaluating the impact their childhood had/continues to have: r/CPTSD

Sometimes a person's sense of normal can be very, very skewed due to outright physical abuse or less visible emotional neglect. Suddenly realizing everything wasn't as hunky-dory as you thought can be tough. The CPTSD community can help you through it.

thunderbundtcake

One too Many

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Have too many kids and expect the older kids to take care of the younger kids instead of being able to have an actual childhood.

vinnymcapplesauce

Promises. Promises.

My mother did two things that bother me. First, she'd become irrational if she got angry and cannot to this day admit when she's wrong. Second, she'd do things like tell me not to lie... and then I'd catch her in a lie. So she did not practice what she preached.

Promised myself I'd never do either of those if I had a kid.

Promise kept.

CrazyOkie

It's Literally All Around Us

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Mine is pretty mild.

My mom used to severely limit my media intake. I get where she was coming from, trying to protect me from sexual ideas and violence when I was young. The problem was that it limited my knowledge of literally everything. I had a hard time fitting in because of it. I remember leaving my friend's birthday sleep over because going to see the Titanic was part of the party (I still have never watched it).

Being raised vegetarian certainly didn't help. I was always invited to my friends houses for cookouts and always had explain that my mom won't let me eat anything. One time she grounded me for eating grapes at a friends house, claiming it would spoil my dinner when in reality I was really just trying to be polite to the woman who was trying extra hard to accommodate a snack for me.I feel like my life could have gone in a completely different direction if I had been able to explore ideas more. To consider different lifestyles and be inspired from conflicts. Idk.

LumpySh-tstring

Dance For Us, Monkey

Make fun of me in front of company. It wasn't malicious just thoughtless. Now my mom always complains that I don't tell her anything. I literally told her once "this is why I don't tell you things" and it was like she'd never considered that I might not want everyone and their brother to know my personal business.

corinini

It's Becoming An Outdated Mode Of Discipline

Spank me with a wooden spoon until I'd give in to whatever they were asking. Never will I ever.

TheKappaChrist

Spanking never once made me reconsider or regret my behavior. It just made me more careful to hide it in the future, and eventually made me great at fake-crying and lying to my parents in general. And since it was the go-to punishment for everything, the punishment was never proportionate to the misdeed. All indiscretions were punished the same so they all seemed equally bad, which is a sh-t lesson to teach.

It's 100% just adults relieving their anger in a physical manner, but instead of punching a pillow or going for a jog, they hit the thing that they think is causing the anger. No better than kicking a dog.

Much_Difference

Act Like You're Always Open

If my dad found out I had a crush on a girl, he'd tease me and make me feel embarrassed about it. Made me feel like I could never go to him for advice on girls.

ladies-pmme-nudespls

Every Child Is Unique And Different

Comparing my grades/successes with my sibling's, I feel like it can be really disheartening and discouraging for the one that doesn't perform as well

xanderay

Listen To Your Kids

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My dad yelled at me for complaining about my broken arm. I didn't know it was broken at the time, and he just screamed at me to stop whining about the pain(i was 10 at the time).

Still mad about that, i would never be so short tempered with my kids, and actually listen to them when they say something is wrong.

Zombiehacker595

My whole life I've heard "there's nothing wrong with you!" Whenever I hurt. Broke my finger? There's nothing wrong with you. I even got into trouble for that one. So now I'm 34 and lived with acute pancreatitis for a year (unbearable pain) because I was afraid the the doctor would say the same thing my parents always did. I could have died.

AutomaticCable7

Act Like An Adult

My parents couldn't talk to each other after they got divorced so they used me as a message board.

"Tell you mother...."

"You tell your father...."

F-cking grow up and talk to each other

MarkF6

You'll Actually Get Some Privacy

When I was three I slammed my door. They took the door off the hinges and refused to ever put it back. We had to move to a different house before I got a door, over a decade later, and I had to move out before I had a door with a lock.

I would never destroy my kids's privacy like that.

ManCalledTrue

Give Them Some Space

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Control everything. I don't necessarily have a helicopter mom, but she's definitely controlling. I'm 20 years old and she CRIED and told me I was being selfish when I told her I wanted my SSC and my birth certificate when I moved a few states away. I don't know how to file my own taxes. I never did anything.

I would have preferred her tell me more things and help me do things rather than do it all herself and keep me out of the loop.

goofyghoul111

Wow...

My mom faked cancer for two years when I was in high school. Even shaved her head and everything. Haven't spoke to her in 12 years. She disgusts me.

Theoreticalmass1983

Just A Whole List Of Awful

Tell them to come/stay into the living room (even late in the evening) and argue in front of them to have them as "witnesses".

Have them stand and face the wall of my bedroom for 40 minutes while I lie in bed and watch some things on my laptop.

Drive dangerously in my car (sudden full stops on the highway, aggressively speeding and changing the gear aggressively) when the children are arguing in the backseat (to scare them? Idk really why my father did this.)


Stop allowing contact with my brother/brother-in-law because he's gay, and alienating the entire family with this; ensuring that my child has no family except parents and sibling.

Edit: Sorry I worded this weirdly, I tried to write it from the perspective of my parents I guess. My father forbid my mother contact with her brother because he's gay.

Locking them in a dark bathroom for at least 20 minutes.

Force my religion/belief on them.

nattuggla2608

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Infamous Internet Rumors That Ended Up Being True

Reddit user strakerak asked: 'What started out as an internet rumor that ended up being infamously true?'

boy playing at laptop inside room
Photo by Ludovic Toinel on Unsplash

In 2017, I returned to my office after my lunch break to hear my supervisors discussing Tom Petty. This seemed like a random topic to me until one of my supervisors told me Tom Petty had passed away. He was a huge fan of Petty and spent the next hour or so combing through the internet to get more information.

He came back into the room my other supervisor and I were working in and announced that Tom Petty wasn't dead after all. News outlets had jumped the gun to announce his death, but he was actually still alive.

The next day, I came in to find out that Tom Petty was dead; the news may have been premature, but true.

This is a classic example of the rumor being started on the internet. Sometimes, like with the news of Tom Petty's death, the rumor can run wild and appear everywhere. Other times, the rumor can be seen by just a few people and dismissed. However, a lot of times, these rumors turn out to be true.

Redditors know a lot of internet rumors that turned out to be true, and are eager to share.

It all started when Redditor strakerak asked:

"What started out as an internet rumor that ended up being infamously true?"

The King Of Pop

"Michael Jackson writing the music for Sonic 3."

"He actually did, but was never credited on the game because it would breach his contract with his record label."

– -WigglyLine-

"He did the same when he appeared on The Simpsons. He appeared under a pseudonym, and the Producers said it was an impersonator."

"Only years later they confirmed it really was Michael."

"His singing voice was actually done by an impersonator, though."

– given2fly_

The Truth Comes Out

"In 1998, US Men’s National Team captain John Harkes was shockingly cut from the team right before the World Cup. The coach claimed it was because Harkes wouldn’t fit into his new preferred formation, but rumors flew on the early internet that it was actually because he had slept with his teammate Eric Wynalda’s wife. The rumor was so well-known in soccer circles that Harkes expressly denied it in his autobiography the next year."

"Fast forward 12 years to 2010 and Wynalda admits it’s true. The coach then came out and admitted it was why he dropped Harkes, but that he’d planned to keep the secret as long as Wynalda did."

– guyfromsoccer

Video Evidence

"The Tim Burton Hansel and Gretel that aired once on halloween in the 80's."

"I heard for years that it was fake but I knew it was real because my dad recorded everything in the 80s and he recorded that. We let a good friend of ours borrow it and switch it over from VHS to DVD and soon after that it made its way on to the internet , and there it is now. I know it's our copy because the tracking in the beginning is screwed up. Still have the VHS."

– Frozenthickness

"There was a similar story with a Nickelodeon movie called Cry Baby Lane. It was supposed to be so scary that Nickelodeon got complaints and denied its existence for years. Someone uploaded a taped copy to youtube about a decade ago."

– PattiAllen

The Movie Business

"That North Korea hacked Sony Pictures because of The Interview movie."

"I worked in the movie business at the time and the account managers at Sony all basically needed to get new identities as all of their personal information got leaked online."

OldMastodon5363

"My partner worked on that movie and the production bought all the crew 1 year of an identity theft tracking service."

CMV_Viremia

Keep Away From The Ears Of Kids

"Some banned episodes or scenes of cartoons."

"For example, I remember there was a Dexter’s Lab cartoon where he clones evil versions of DeDe and himself and they swear like every other word (censored of course), and people debated whether it even existed cause they only aired it like once. Now it’s pretty accessible online."

– Spledidlife

Yes, It's True

"Echelon, a massive electronic espionage system by the US and allies to intercept all electronic messages, especially emails."

"In the mid-nineties it was a topic on conspiracy BBS boards. A lot of people in my bubble at the time (mainly uni students in Europe) were including fake threats to the US in the their email signatures as a way to "protest" and "fill the system with false alarms" (obviously useless)."

"Then, in 1999-2000 came out to be true and a lot of security service agencies from UK and other US allies started to admit they were part of the espionage network."

– latflickr

How The Mighty Fell

"John Edward’s love child."

– ACam574

"A reminder that he was cheating on his wife while she was hospitalized for cancer treatment."

– Fanclock314

Ugh...

"Carrie Fisher's heart attack. Some a**hole who was on the same flight was livetweeting the whole medical emergency and justified it by insisting she was just making sure the family was informed."

– everylastlight

It Actually Happened

"Every year around her birthday there was a rumor that Betty White died. When I heard she died, I scoffed, saying that dumb rumor is back.... then saw it on the news. I was in shock."

– Known-Committee8679

"The fact that Betty died literally right before she turned 100 is such a Betty White way to go out."

– Paganigsegg

Big Actor, Small Roles

"I distinctly remember some rumors about the reason why Bruce Willis was taking so many roles in sh*tty movies before it was announced he has dementia."

– KampferMann

"RedLetterMedia did a deep dive on his recent movie activity to try and work out why exactly he was taking part in basically scam-movies. They noticed he had an earpiece in one of the scenes and joked that the director was feeding him lines. I remember they even disclaimed over the rumours at the time, and possible made a follow-up vid when it was revealed to the public."

– CardinalCreepia

What To Do Next?

"That the writer of LOST were making it up as they went."

"Turned out to be absolutely true."

– homarjr

That last one was kind of obvious!

Do you have any to add? Let us know in the comment below.

Person holding large stack of books
Photo by Jay Lamm on Unsplash

Whether you're naturally interested in fun facts and trivia or not, it's always nice to know a few that you can pull out of your pocket at a moment's notice as a nice conversation starter.

But there are some fun facts out there that are so weird, people become more preoccupied with how the teller found out that information rather than the information itself.

Redditor Dry_Bus_935 asked:

"What is your 'don't ask me how I know' random fact?"

Nuclear Fail Safe

"You have quite a lot of time, certainly more than ten seconds, to turn back on the main pumps of a nuclear reactor once you have accidentally turned them off."

- egorf

"I'm not surprised. The amount of fail safes, redundancies, and emergency scenario planning for nuclear power plants is insane."

"I toured a nuclear plant and wrote my high school senior thesis on the plans put in place to ensure the Fukushima disaster would not happen at that plant."

"I'm sure the secondary pumps are plenty capable of handling the reactor until the main pumps are repaired or just turned back on."

- Borderlandsman

Happy Cat

"If your cat chews on fresh eucalyptus, they might start hallucinating and fall over repeatedly, leading to a $400 emergency vet bill just to be told she’s just kinda high."

- oddidealstronghold

"And, that's part of why koalas love it. Little stoners."

- littlebluefoxy

Archaeology: Do Not Lick

"Old human bones are very porous, so if you lick them, they’ll stick to your tongue."

- clanculcarius

Sharing is Caring

"A pigeon will only eat a Starburst if you chew it up a little bit first. Just to clarify: chew the Starburst, not the pigeon."

- OhTheHueManatee

"Instructions unclear. Pigeon unhappy."

- Wild-Lychee-3312

Intriguing Anatomy

"Everyone is here with the creepy crime stuff, and I'm just like, 'A soft fur rat has 22 nipples.'"

- horroscoblue

"Okay, so either they have really small nipples, their nipples overlap, or they have nipples in places where there shouldn't be nipples."

"(I've never written the word 'nipples' so many times in a singular sentence before.)"

- GdeGraaf

'Don't Ask Me,' Indeed!

"Turmeric can be used as clothes dye. It is capable of permanently dyeing cotton cloth even after it has passed through the digestive tract of an adult male."

- SlefeMcDichael

"You s**t your pants, didn't you?"

- PMmecrossstitch

"I'd prefer not to answer that question."

- SlefeMcDichael

High-Risk Survival Skills

"If you ever trying to survive in the Arctic, don’t eat polar bear liver. It is so high in vitamin A, it will kill you."

- WrongWayCorrigan-361

"It's also surrounded by a lethal amount of angry polar bear."

- horanc2

Real-Life Spies

"TV shows and movies go out of their way to make military/intelligence officers look bada**."

"But real-life 'spies,' by design and training, are boring. They have regular houses and standard second-hand cars, they dress down, and they have vague, boring job titles (accounts receivable) as cover, and they do not draw attention to themselves. Most come from specialized academia."

- Ok_Worth_1093

Haunting Reality

"Your muscles can keep twitching for several hours after you die."

- JustDave62

"Also, beards can appear to grow. This is however not because the beard itself grows but because the skin shrinks."

- RRautamaa

"I worked at a morgue for over eight years. If you grasp the hand of a dead body to move the arm, the hand will grasp back, but that's just muscles and tendons reacting to the tension."

- goneferalinid

The Sneakiness of Drowning

"When a drowning victim is revived, get them to a hospital as soon as possible. Drowning is the leading cause of death of kids from the age of one to seven and is ruled as accidental drowning when it comes to secondary drowning or dry drowning."

"Basically, your lungs are full of water despite being revived. Your lungs will absorb the liquid, but not before your body acidifies from high levels of carbon dioxide. The only chance to survive is to have the lungs pumped with oxygen via CPAP machine and time."

"Also, drowning is extremely quiet. You don’t hear the victim go under. And if you see flailing, do not attempt to save the victim otherwise you’ll become another drowning victim. Throw them a lifeline and hope their amygdala realizes that a rope or something is floating near them and grabs on it."

- Dfiggsmeister

Not Everyone's Favorite Chocolate

"Hershey’s chocolate has the strong smell of vomit or feces to some people (me), and that’s because they use butyric acid as a preservative. Butyric acid is the compound that makes vomit smell so bad."

"Edit: Digging further into it, there are some claims that they may not be “adding” the butyric acid, but rather it is occurring from essentially spoiling the milk in their milk chocolate. Either way, the butyric acid and putrid smell remains a part of their product."

- hefewiseman1

"That explains the weird aftertaste I always get! I don’t smell it but their chocolate always has this super unpleasant sharp/acidic aftertaste that I find repulsive. I assume this is why!!"

- PomegranateNo975

Do Not Lick the Asbestos

"Asbestos tastes like chalk. And if you lick it, it has the texture of extremely gritty sandpaper. Which is actually the feeling of microscopic asbestos needles piercing your flesh!"

- TooYoungToBeThisOld1

Mapping Out the War

"Beginning in 1911 in anticipation of the outbreak of WW1 in 1914, two statesmen, one from England and one from France, began visiting locations in France that they believed would be the settings for a number of major battles that would occur during the great war."

"Long bike rides through these future battle zones in the countryside and weeks spent building a foundation for a French-Anglo codebook that would later prove important in helping win the war."

- fjordperfect123

Avoiding Lawsuits > Protecting Patients

"Doctors, or surgeons more specifically, that make too many mistakes during surgery, ie, leaving instruments in patients, frequently gets ‘quietly traded’ to other hospitals where they continue their path of destruction with the patients not being aware of their past record. Hospitals tend to keep quiet about the matter to avoid lawsuits."

- Kittytigris

Bonus Points: Do This While Having Lunch in Your Car

"If you overfill a fast food gravy cup and then put a lid on, it will create a pressurized gravy stream that sprays all over your face and uniform while your coworker looks on in horror."

- thechaosjester776

This subReddit thread was so a roller-coaster of random facts, we've surely all walked away learning something.

But the biggest takeaway might just be: Maybe don't lick so many things.

Shocked woman covering her mouth
vaitheeswaran Nataraj/Unsplash

When we're intoxicated, or even the slightest bit tipsy from having a little too much to drink, our immediate perspective on things is hazy.

But there's nothing like a bit of alarming news or a jarring incident to snap us out of the fog and focus on the moment.

Sometimes alcohol isn't always to blame for our impairment.

It can be a state of mind, like a perpetual numbness from being complacent in life, and all it takes is one shocking moment to rattle us back to our senses.

Curious to hear from strangers online about this type of scenario, Redditor Known_Challenge_7150 asked:

"What’s one thing that sobered you up real quick?"

These individuals were witness to shocking events that sobered them up right quick.

Bleeding Out

"Got out of a taxi and found a naked man profusely bleeding from his head crawling up the driveway in my condo. Called him an ambulance completely forgot I was absolutely wasted until 45 minutes later when I'd helped him translate and in to an amublance and stepped in my front door."

"Later a few days later learned he'd slipped in the tub and literally crawled out for help. Poor dude. He was fine but I genuinely thought he was going to die there."

– DongLaiCha

Tragic News

"At a bachelor party and we got a phone call that the groom’s father had suddenly passed."

– accountnameredacted

Bottom Of The Barrel

"I went to visit my parents back in July. I was homeless and deep into fentanyl addiction so I lost a lot of weight. My folks could see it. They knew something was up. Anyway, I spent the night and I was getting ready to leave in the morning and I looked at myself in the mirror for a good long time. I finally had enough and told them everything. They took me to detox, from there I went to rehab. Graduated in August and been living with them ever since then. I have 160 days clean and sober."

– Crotch-Monster

A reality check can be enough for some people to snap out of it.

Like Father, Like Son

"Was driving a drunk friend home, he had been on a bender again and was smart enough to call me for a lift rather than try and drive. As I helped in to his house his mother came down the stairs and said 'your as drunk as your father' and went back upstairs. I haven't seen him drunk since then, he still drinks but the thought of turning into his dad scared him out of hard drinking."

– psycospaz

Busted

"Flashing blue lights."

– FiddleOfGold

"This sobered me up just thinking about it."

– redmaple_syrup

Losing Sight

"Woke up to no sight in one eye. I had cataract surgery so just thought one of the lenses had slipped and it was an easy fix. Eye doc says nope, you had a stroke. I loved soy sauce, teriyaki sauce and salty food, which caused high blood pressure, which caused retina damage. Over six months was able to get most of my eyesight back with medication, and all back within a year. Trying to navigate life with one eye was very sobering. Started taking HBP much more seriously."

– MissHibernia

Quitting The Bottle

"Looked up someone I went to highschool with who was an awesome guy. Found out he had been dead for 3 years from alcoholism, at age 33. I made an overnight change. I hadn't started drinking that night yet, 10 months ago. Haven't touched it again since."

– omgtater

These disturbing moments were enough for Redditors to immediately come to their senses.

Unplanned House Guests

"Me and a buddy Woke up in someone’s living room, realized neither one of us knew the people, they were just nice and let 2 drunk guys sleep on their living room floor. We didn’t even say goodbye."

– Oneinsevenbillion75

Serious Health Warning

"Elevated liver enzymes."

"And the knowledge that this sh** was gonna kill me and I just couldn't orphan my family over it."

"So I opted for recovery, instead."

"Clean and sober since June 5, 2009."

– Far_Meal8674

The Joyride

"Grew up in a rural area. The little town hosted dances at the hockey arena, everyone (adults and kids) went and they overserved everyone, regardless of age. I was maybe 16 or 17 and was absolutely sh*tfaced, and jumped in the back of someone's truck with about 8 other people to go back to someone's cottage for after dance drinking. The driver (still don't know who it was) started racing one of his buddies and we whipped around small dirt roads, flying around blind corners on the wrong side of the road, going god knows how fast. It was basically a disaster waiting to happen. It was crazy scary and I was sober and thankful to be alive when we finally arrived."

– foxfood9116

The human psyche is a fascinating thing, isn't it?

How we can automatically focus on something urgent at a crucial time, even after getting buzzed from drinking too much alcohol.

But as we're in the thick of the holidays, it's a good reminder to drink responsibly and stay off the roads if you drive to your celebratory destination.

Cheers. Stay safe. And happy holidays.

Woman holding multiple shopping bags
Photo by freestocks on Unsplash

We've all complained or vented about something in our lives which, in the grand scheme of things, wasn't exactly a problem, or is very easily solved.

Then there are those who complain about things that others almost hope will happen to them at some point in their lives.

These are known as "first world problems", as they are problems that pretty much only the world's one percent faces.

From having to fly business class instead of first class, or being served Roederer instead of Dom Pérignon, these complaints are often met with amusement, bewilderment, or even anger.

Redditor jennimackenzie was curious to hear the most absurd "first world problems" anyone ever complained about, leading them to ask:

"What’s the most ridiculous 'first world problem' you’ve seen people get worked up over?"

"Tale As Old As Time..."

"I once knew a mom who was legitimately devastated, to the point of tears/grief, because a doctor predicted her 8 year old daughter's final height to be around 5'2","

"Which wasn't tall enough to get cast as Belle at Disney World."

"That was the child's (and her mother's) only dream in life, apparently."

"Didn't appreciate my suggestion that she could be Minnie or Mickey."

"Lol!"

"Only a face character would do!"- TravelLovingMom

"Must Be Funny, In A Rich Man's World..."

"My boss from about a decade ago was this insanely rich dude who always went to the bank to get fresh and crisp currency."

"He'd call the bank in advance to make sure they had some on hand."

"I think he was a germaphobe."

"He had a trash can that he'd throw $1 and $5 bills in that he thought was 'dirty' and regularly just donated it vs spending it."

"I asked him why he did this and he said it was too much trouble and asked if I wanted it."

"I said f*ck yeah dumped it into my bag and when I got home it was close to $400 in singles and fives.

"Another time, he wanted to upgrade all the computers in his studio, so we went to a store and bought 10 PCs."

"They all had $150 mail in rebates and he wasn't bothered to go through the trouble of mailing them in."

"3 weeks later I received $1500 after spending a whole afternoon filling out all those goddamn forms."- azninvasion2000

Money Burn GIF by nog Giphy

Who Wore It Better?

"When I was about 19 years old, I was at my boyfriends family BBQ."

"I was wearing this pretty floral sundress."

"His cousins girlfriend showed up in the same dress and she was SO mad that she went and changed."

"I will never understand being upset when someone is wearing the same thing as you.'

"Did you really think that your shirt you bought off the rack is going to be unique to you?"

"No."- mertsey627

Seeing Red! Or Blue In This Case...

"The blue of the balloons wasn't quite the same as the bridesmaid's sashes."

"Years ago my wife and I attended a wedding."

"It was very low key."

"The dinner was in the dining hall at the university where the couple met, cinder block walls and all."

"It was a Baptist wedding - no booze and very serious."

"The dark blue balloons attempting to liven up the hall were a slightly darker shade of blue than the sashes on the bridesmaid's dresses."

"The bride lost here sh*t and absolutely raved for nearly an hour."

"I can't remember how they finally managed to talk her down."- mechant_papa

south park wedding GIF Giphy

See You In Court!

"Rich neighbors who end up in expensive court battles because they disagree about where a tree can be planted or whether the color of a fence fits in with the street’s 'amenity'."

'These disputes get really heated and rack up huge lawyers’ bills."

"The most pathetic part is after the judgement when they are arguing about who should pay the other party’s costs."

"Lots of affidavits filed citing the 'emotional distress' they had to endure, or painting themselves as brave warriors who were forced to take a stand to fight for 'justice'."

"Also lots of pompous litigants insisting that the judge refer to them by their 'Dr' title."

"An absolutely insane dumpster fire of entitled rich people problems."- ElectrocRaisin

It's Always People With Money Who Don't Want To Pay!

"I work in a public library."

"People will get so so mad if they have to be put on a wait list for a book."

"A popular book that just came out."

"Ok our services are not only free but so are the books."

"You’re welcome, a**holes."- Switchbladekitten

A Warm Butt Is A Happy Butt!

"My own."

"We have a bidet toilet seat (Fabulous! Everyone should have one!) and not only does it wash your bum and blow dry it, but the seat's heated!"

"It's shocking how much a heated toilet seat makes the whole process more agreeable."

"Except: We had a power outage and I went to use the toilet and the seat was cold!"

"Unacceptable!"

"This shall not stand!"

"I was really upset because it didn't feel good."

"Then I stopped and thought: This is the most first-world problem anyone's ever had."

"I was really pissed because my heiny was tepid."

"I got over it."- DeathGrover

homer simpson episode 23 GIF Giphy

Holy Matrimony!

"Weddings are a gold mine for this question."

"People get so hyped up over their 'most important day of their life'."

"They'll destroy friendships, go into debt, and have crazy expectations."

"It's not always the couple who go crazy, either."

"Sometimes, it's the parents or another family member who feels entitled to control the wedding."

"It's just a party."

"Be considerate of guests, have plenty of food and drinks, and enjoy it."- magicrowantree

When Fast Food Isn't Fast Enough...

"Having to pull off to the side to wait for a drive-thru order to be brought out to you because your food isn't ready and there's a line building up behind you."- demanbmore

In Case You Don't Think Customer Service Employees Are Undervalued...

"I was working the return desk at a Target next to a military base so I have so many stories."

"One of my favorites was a lady who had her baby shower before revealing the gender and was livid that she had received floral newborn diapers when she’s having a boy."

"It was a huge box of super expensive, all organic diapers, that we didn’t carry and therefore could not return."

"I cannot accurately express her fury and disgust."

"How dare either suggest her boy could wear feminine diapers."

"I suggested she donate them if she didn’t want to use them and she instead threw away the entire box."

"When she left we pulled it out and threw it in our donate bin."

"There have also been multiple times where mom’s order massive toys and when we bring them out to the car they get furious that they aren’t wrapped."

"We don’t offer wrapping services."

"Here’s the thing, if you don’t want your kids to see the toys you got them for Christmas or their bit to day DON'T BRING THE CHILD WHEN YOU PICK IT UP."

'I’ve had multiple women scream and curse me out that I had ruined their kids Christmas by bringing the toys they ordered out to the car like they requested."- clever-mermaid-mae

Customer Service Waiting GIF by Juno Calypso Giphy

Happiest Place On Earth!

"I used to work for Disney."

"That in itself should tell you everything."

"However for fun I'll give you two specific stories one form our tech department and one from my wife who worked bookings."

"I specifically worked for their call center to help with technical issues with magic band and the website."

"Suddenly got worse huh?"

"A right of passage call everyone has at least one story of is the 'Dome call'."

"Basically there is a subset of Disney Guest (TM) that believes if it rains at Walt Disney world there is someone that will push a button to encapsulate the whole of Disney property in a dome to keep out the rain."

"I'm not kidding."

"If this button is not pushed they call our tech department to angrily ask why."

"My wife worked booking."

"Pretty much everything including Bibbidi Bobbidi boutique and Pirate's league."

"These two things did roughly the same thing difference being price and theme."

"BBB was expensive did more and was focused on princesses, pirates league did a bit less and focused on mermaids and pirates."

"Lady called up my wife, and got pissed about BBB being booked up (It goes FAAAAST)."

"Karen: 'Im going to give the phone to my daughter and I want you to tell her how you are ruining her vacation by not letting her do BBB'."

"Wife proceeds to explain how pirate's league is so much cooler and how she can be a mermaid or pirate and basically gets the kid to start demanding to their parents about how they want to be a mermaid instead of a princess."- trollsong

Disney World GIF Giphy

The horror!

Being booked into a junior suite at Disney World instead of an executive suite!

It's almost as bad as having no money for groceries, or no food to feed you children...

Said absolutely no one.