
Sometimes, we ARE the school story.
New York University has a tale of a freshman college student who created something called "Narnia" in his room; where he cut out the back of his closet to give him, his friends, and his roommates somewhere to smoke in their dorm room. This story was so legendary that it made it through several generations of students, all of whom told the story more exorbitantly than the next.
The incident also made any modifications to one's room at NYU illegal and reason to be kicked out of housing. Yet if you met this person, you'd find he was just another student. That could have so easily been you.
And there are so many who are that student.
u/BlueRose104 asked:
What rule at your school or work was implemented because of something you did?
Here were some of those stories.
It Ain't No Jiffy Pop
A movie theater near my house in high school had a promotion that ran all spring and part of the summer. "Bring in any container, and we'll fill it with popcorn for the cost of a large". About 2 weeks before senior skip day, a local Kmart was having a closing sale. I realised they were selling EVERYTHING. I got a storage barrel, about waist high. Big enough for an adult to crouch down and hide in.
On senior skip day, me and 3 friends went to the movies. During the day, they sell tickets at the concession stand, so no one saw us bring in the barrel. Guy comes out and asks what we want, we get 4 drinks and i ask if they're still doing the popcorn promo. Guy says yes, and I ask him if it truly was for any container. Again he says yes. I pick up this huge barrel and say I want it filled please.
Guy laughs and gets his coworker. They both start filling it up while laughing. Ended up being 10 large popcorns worth of volume, cleared out alllll the popcorn they had premade. We watched our movie, then lugged the popcorn barrel to a nearby park and took it to the top of an overlook tower.
By the end of the day, we had only eaten like 10-20% of what was in there. Took the rest home and grazed on it for the next day or two. After that, I took the last half to the creek behind my house and dumped it all there. The squirrels ate like kings.
After my freshman year of college, i came home on spring break and went back to that movie theater. I asked if they were doing that bring your own container promo. They said no, some guy last year abused the system and the manger got pissed so they canceled it.
I asked about the incident, just to see what they'd say. She pulled a picture one of the guys had taken of the barrel full of popcorn behind the concession counter and said "well, the guy brought in a barrel. The manager figured that at most people would bring in their popcorn bowls from home. Once they realized that any container meant ANY container, they stopped the promo."
Oh Okay So I Guess Not ANYTHING
I worked at a really small family owned cafe and there was only ever one person on shift at a time.
My boss was chill with us doing whatever we wanted if there were no customers, so I would whip out my iPad and work on essays when the place was dead and I had nothing to do.
They had cameras, and after about a week we got an email that no electronics were allowed in the shop, including iPads.
Sry 2 B Trdy 2 Da Prty
It was after I left, but my high school had to change the entire way they issued tardies and absences because I abused the system. Used to go halfway late to class because then they couldn't call my parents because I wasn't technically absent.
People Explain The Worst Thing That's Ever Happened To Them On Their Birthday
We almost feel like heroes when we can claim credit for the way something shook out.
Employers Making Sure Sick People Don't Get Paid, As Usual
At work, I had saved all floating holidays, vacation weeks and sick days for years. Then I had a heart attack, and a bypass. Eight weeks off, and didn't miss a cent off my paycheck. The next year my appendix blew out, and another 9 weeks off, with not a cent missing from my paycheck.
The managers decided that from then on, you had to take your vacation, floating holidays and sick days in the year that you earned them. Not let them build up for a decade and a half!
Double Panting
You must wear the uniform pants OR skirt, not both. I found the fit on the uniform pants weird and it made me very self conscious, but I live in Canada and wearing an above-the-knee skirt in January was chilly.
Wore them together for most of the winter, and it caught on with a number of other girls too. The next year the uniform policy was changed.
We Love A Little Batman Villain
No running in the playground.
My school used to have a sort of gravelly concrete texture playground. It looked exactly like gravel that was all stuck down. The top had been smoothed down a lot, but if you fell it obviously stripped a lot of skin off.
One day, we were playing Stuck in the Mud (a chasing game). Anyway, I got caught and immediately stopped. The person following me didn't, so they ran into my back and bowled me over, us both going almost full pace. They landed on top of me, pinning my face to the ground as we skid along the ground for s few feet.
Honestly, it wasn't that bad in the grand scheme of things. It stripped off a few layer of skin, looked like a Batman villain, but nothing went deep enough to cause harm. I remember the look of horror on the faces of everyone else, and being escorted to the medical room with a gaggle of teachers in front of me covering all the mirrors and reflective surfaces!
But it scared the school into action, my mum was a governor and said this had always been a concern, but I really triggered it. In the immediate term, they banned running on that surface. Longer term, a couple of years, they installed a new rubberised AstroTurf surface. That surface was/is lovely. Us kids loved it, we could play so much more fully with slides and dives and all sorts because we didn't get flayed anymore! So I like to think my sacrifice was worth it.
4Square Is LIFE
Four square was life as a sixth grader. It took on its own culture with its own laws. I happened to dominate at four square. So much so that the vice principal intervened to change the rules that neither I nor any mortal made.
Even with these unjust usurpations, I managed to prevail time and again. And that's when they implemented a rule that said if the vice principal thought you played enough, you had to go to the back of the line. Like a peasant.
And if someone else you know ever happens to pass through that school or place of work, you totally have bragging rights.
Are These Still A Thing
Local paper delivery boy when I was 10 or 11.
I had about 60 houses and the paper cost $2/month for a weekly paper. On the 4th week of each month, it would be our job to go and collect door-to-door the $2.
Our pay was based on a % of collected doors. If you collected < 50% of your houses, you got 33% of whatever you collected. If you collected > 50% of your houses, you got 50% of whatever you collected.
I soon learned that I had a few homes that were subscribed to the route but who never paid. I stopped delivering to them and my boss informed me that the payment for the paper was actually optional, therefore I need to still put a paper on their doorstep.
For the next several months, I collected from my usual houses but I didn't turn in any money - feigning that all of my houses chose not to pay. Since their payment was optional, my young mind decided that submission of their payment should be optional too.
A few months later, they mandated payment from customers along with a new receipt policy for proof of payment. I was fired that same month.
The Max Lotto
My high school tried to encourage people to read by making a drawing for a Barnes and Noble gift card where you could add your name for each book you checked out.
What they didn't expect was I was an absolute book nerd and a fast reader so I would check out the max amount of books each day only to turn them in the next morning and rinse and repeat. I only checked out books I've read before so if they quizzed me I could say I read every book I checked out. I won about 50$ worth of Barnes and Noble gift cards before they decided to put a max on drawings per person.
Just Going Too Far On Purpose
Our school banned waterbottles because of me.
For some reason an extreme health/water drinking fad started among our school's girl students and they would come to school with their mineral water valpre bottles, constantly sipping.
Eventually the guys also picked up this fad. So I decided to turn this into a joke and began bringing to school and lugging around a massive 10L plastic jug of water - those that go on top of water coolers in offices. Eventually, lots of other kids also started doing this and began bringing larger and larger bottles to school. Everywhere you would see girls with 5L jugs and guys with 10L drums of water.
Not wanting the spotlight taken from me, I then upped the ante by bringing a mini wheelbarrow to school with THREE of those 10L bottles on it.
After a while it all did start to kinda look ridiculous and my school was posh and image-conscious with very elegant uniforms.
So then one day the principal had enough.
He completely banned all water bottles and said that we must drink water from the taps in the bathrooms and the other faucets all over the school grounds (our city has very clean tap water so it is safe).
While we may have gotten in trouble in the moment, these stories were totally worth it to become absolute legends to all who came after us.
And though nobody may repeat exactly what we did, may future legends take our spots with new and exciting ideas.
Sometimes you only need to experience something once, to know it's a never again situation.
I always say, try everything once.
Well, now that I'm older, a caveat to that is... try it all within reason.
How many things have we all walked away from saying the one time experience will suffice?
In fact, knowing when to say no is one of life's wisest choices.
Redditor Croakied wanted to discuss the times we've all said... "once was enough!" They asked:
"What is one thing that you will NEVER do again?"
Love. Did it. A few times. Moving on.
Stay Still
"Jump off a moving train."
DenseDriver6477
"My dad used to jump on a train when he was little to go to school. He broke his nose like twice doing it. He also would not recommend."
Darphon
“vaportini”
"Smoke alcohol. Me and my friends bought something called a 'vaportini' in college where you could pour alcohol into a bulb and after low heat separated the alcohol from the liquid, you could inhale it thru the glass straw you inserted into the bulb. Basically you got drunk directly into your bloodstream/brain and it never hit your stomach."
"If you did too much, your body wouldn’t make you vomit or something, there wouldn’t be a simple self regulation/safety measure. You’d just get alcohol poisoning. Felt very dangerous, the drunk wasn’t a regular drunk feeling. We used it once and were like okay, never again. I’d be surprised if you could still buy it, although it would be incredibly easy to replicate at home."
michelangelho
It’s heartbreaking...
"Fall in love with a drug addict."
Rains_Lee
"Good call, don’t do it. The drugs will always come first. Can’t go out unless their 'ok' with how much drugs they have and money left over if any, cant make love unless they have their fix for the night and even still it never feels normal, can’t trust them after the lies to get drugs and the manipulation they put you through, and you can’t change them no matter how much you try and wish they would. It’s heartbreaking."
Cvilla411
More me time...
"Give up my life for work. F**k going the extra mile for a place that doesn't value you and pays you crap even though you go the extra mile for them. You have 1 life with only so much precious time to enjoy it and slaving away at some job is not worth it. Do what you can to reduce your workload and find better employment, or hell try to change the working conditions at your current job to improve things for everyone if you can."
Mrhappytrigers
Well Obvi...
"Donate a kidney."
ToffieMonster
"Well, you could donate the remaining one. You just won’t be around to say anything about it."
shavemejesus
This is definitely list I can relate to. No thank you on a lot of this!
I Quit
"Smoke cigarettes, it's been two years since I quit."
SuvenPan
Forget It
"Climb mount Kilimanjaro. Toughest thing I've done and it's not worth it. I'm all about tough treks and camping but to put yourself under tough conditions and suspectable to altitude sickness only to get to the top for 10 minutes for a picture. No thank you."
Monks_
"I agree, it was memorable. Once was enough for my husband and I. Thankfully we stayed at American style hotel run by the US Navy with a hot tub and bar. Alcohol was definitely needed after all that."
Whatsherface112
I'm living alone!
"Sign a lease with a stranger without hanging out with them a few times beforehand. My past roommate experiences in college were terrible. Roommates either ignored me, hosted parties til 3 AM on weeknights, made the house the hangout and drug-den for them and their buddies. Meet up once and they'll put on an act for you. If you can, try to see how they act drunk or frustrated."
"Try to hang out with their buddies too so you can see the type of people who could be coming into your future place of residence. As soon as I can afford it, I'm living alone! Now, I investigate a potential roommate's social media and hang out at least twice before signing a lease with them."
fleursdefer
Stay Away
"Take back a cheater. Know your worth my brothers and sisters."
santichrist
"Ughhhhh going back and forth on this one. My boyfriend of 5 years has cheated on me. Several times, actually but says he’s really changed and is ready to settle down and wants me to move in with him. I’m on the fence. So they never change???"
madlecroy
Sleeptime
"Take a laxative and sleeping pill at the same time."
karmaredemption
Once, twice, three times... I'm out. Bye.
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People Imagine How They'd React If Their Significant Other Wanted To Sleep With Other People
There is an age old question that has been getting more traction surrounding sex for partners the last decade or so.
And that is... "is just one enough?"
Were we really meant to only be with one person forever?
There are so many flavors to taste.
What if your partner wants more cookie dough with your strawberry?
Redditor Pineapple-Status wanted to hear everyone's thoughts on opening the bedroom to others. They asked:
"What would you do if your long term SO suddenly wants to have sex with other people?"
I say I'd be ok with it, but I'm remembering my last relationship and I feel like I'm not a "put my $ where my mouth is type" on this issue.
Bye
"Wish her well and spend the next 2 years getting myself back to a place where I am ready to get hurt again."
wickedblight
It's Time to Roll On...
"Personally I would leave them."
"I think they're the ones leaving you. I don't think the relationship changes at that point; I think it ends. If you have a monogamous relationship, they are telling you they want to end that. They might be suggesting starting a new, non-monogamous relationship, but that is a separate thing. The original relationship is over."
octopoddle
ethical non-monogamy...
"OP, it's no different than anything else they want: you either agree and stay together, disagree but stay together, disagree and break up, or even agree and break up. What you're talking about is called 'ethical non-monogamy.'" The seminal book to read is called The Ethical Sl*t."
"It basically boils down to be whatever you want, just don't lie about it. The tricky thing is that this is something that was not present before, but is present now. So it's a potential fork in your road. If you're against it, it's up to your SO to decide if sex with other people is more important to them than a life with you."
Tokugawa
a different story...
"I think it depends too how intently they're interested. If it's a thing they bring up because they're curious but it's not a dealbreaker for them, I'm fine with that even if I don't want to proceed. A solid relationship involves open communication, and it'd make me happy if my partner trusted us and our bond enough to voice that curiosity with me."
"If it's something their heart's absolutely set on, then it's a different story. Either way, it's kind of strange to me how these posts always assume simply asking your partner how they feel about opening the relationship means they're now wholey invested in the poly lifestyle and they'll resent you or cheat if you say no."
donkeynique
Others
"Happy that we have common interest, sad that it's different 'other people."
i_lick_icicles
Sex is always an issue. Remember when it was just fun?
Mine
"Leave her. I’m far too possessive and jealous to be able to mentally accept polyamory. If she has a desire to be with other people I’m not going to stand in her way but I’m not going to be there when she gets home either."
Thiek
Not Me...
"Break up. My parents were poly and it's just not for me. I've been honest with every relationship I've been in that I'm not interested in any type of open relationship. If they want to be with someone else that's fine but we'll be over. My husband is aware of this and on board (and has been for over twenty years!). So if he came to me with this yes I would be heartbroken but I'm not willing to budge on this and it would be the end of our relationship."
GoldDustWitchQueen
Let's Talk
"Counseling time! We're married. I'm chronically ill (stage 4 breast cancer) and have no libido. We try to make intimacy work, and obviously in that case it wouldn't be working. So. Time for a pro to sort out the marriage, and possibly a sex therapist for me."
insertcaffeine
Awkward Positions
"I’ll put myself hypothetically in this position. My partner and I only want each other. We’ve made this abundantly clear to each other. However, if she came to me with desire to open our bedroom and she wanted to sleep with people outside our marriage."
"I would simply express how I vehemently do not an open bedroom and that it would kill any desire I have to want her, be with her, love her, etc. Our couple dynamic has been working well through our ups and downs. Involving some stranger in the ONE thing I find most sacred with my partner is the best way for me to lose any interest or passion for the relationship."
RedFlaim
Farewell
"Break it off, because they definitely already have someone in mind and you telling them no won't change the fact that they were only one step away from following through with it."
Caressticles
Well it feels like a lot of people still believe in one partner, happily ever after. Good for y'all. But big props to these couples who have open and honest conversations about their wants and needs.
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Many of us sometimes fantasize about what we would do to our worst enemies, especially in the moments when they're actively making our lives worse.
While most of us would never actually do any of the things that we contemplate instead of screaming at that super annoying person at the office, we do get pretty creative with the ideas.
Redditor take_me_there_ asked:
"What WOULD you wish on your worst enemy?"
This One Would Hurt
"A conscience. Let her realize the horrific things she’s done."
- Jenny010137
"Seriously. Introspection, self awareness, and empathy are traits that would improve a lot of sh*tty people."
- el_muerte17
"Oh I wish I had thought of this one. If my enemy had a conscience, wow life would be much different."
- Shelbysouth43
No Pearly Whites For You
"I’d like all their teeth to turn really yellow and stay yellow no matter what they do."
- toothfixingfiend
"What did I ever do to you?"
- Spideredd
"I don't even know you! Give me back my enamel!"
- AngryMustache9
Everything You Own Is Orange Now
"Permanent Cheeto fingers. Just orange cheese dust getting on everything."
- cocoapuff1721
"This has to be one of the most evil things I ever heard, yet absolutely hilarious."
-Merk0411
"The Midas Touch: Snack Edition"
- MaryVenetia
Ouch, But Forever
"Stubbing and breaking their toe and right as it’s about to be done healing it happens again over and over for the rest of their pitiful time on this hell we call earth."
- No-Bee-2971
"Sisyphoot"
- Alpha_6
"More of a Toemetheus imo"
- PykeTheDrowned
Self Reflection
"For them to realize how big of an a-hole they are."
- mayhemanaged
"Same for me. The trouble is mine probably knows what a tremendous a-hole he is, and just doesn't care (it's what defines him, is his outlook more than likely), so, give mine a conscience as well, he undeniably lacks one."
- RhoadsOfRock
"a crushing moment of self realization is something that can destroy you mentally. I wish that on them."
- chancetodream
Bury Them Under A Mountain Of Minor Inconveniences
"Always being hungry two hours after eating no matter how large the meal. Slow internet. Traffic jams no matter the location. Self doubt. Allergies. Favorite shows spoiled."
"Nothing major enough to be life altering but constant, low grade inconveniences that wear on your soul every day."
- I_Love_Small_Br**sts
"Every bite of food they eat/drink they drink being slightly the wrong temperature."
"Coffee? Warm but not hot. Cola? Cool, but not cold. Muffin? Ever so slightly frozen."
"Not enough to ruin their life, but just enough to not quite have full enjoyment of anything.."
- HappiHappiHappi
They'll Never Be Able To Use Their Computer Again
"Quick scan with McAfee on their computer."
- halflife_3
"You f**king monster."
- Orion_2kTC
"The constant pop-ups from McAfee is too far."
- _Land_Rover_Series_3
That's A New Level Of Evil
"Bed bugs."
- thrawn1825
"Currently dealing with bed bugs, and I can absolutely confirm this is the kind of thing I would wish upon my worst enemy. It is miserable and painful, and I've tried everything to get rid of them at this point."
"I would easily wish this upon my worst enemy, x10."
- ArbitrarilyStagnant
"Oh hell no, you went there... Hopefully they aren't living in an apartment complex or you've cursed everyone in the building."
- expect_less
Well of course I know him. He’s me.
"$100,000. I sure could use it."
- Sparklesperson
"'It’s no surprise to me I am my own worst enemy'"
- FishyVonFishenHymer
"Lol I thought this was that deep sh*t like 'pray for those you resent to have all the things you want in life….' Then I realized."
- No-Chipmunk9527
Forever Constipated
"That they can never have a satisfying poop. They always feel like they have to go to the bathroom and when they do nothing comes."
- [User Deleted]
"Wow. That's evil. Always feeling the need to pee would be good (as in horrific) too."
- ipakookapi
We definitely don't recommend implementing any of these plans (not that most would actually be possible), but here's some new ideas for the next time you're stuck in a meeting with your most annoying coworker and need a little fantastical escape.
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I grew up poor, and I remember the little things that made me smile when we just happened to have enough that week.
The little things that a truly rich person would not think twice about.
Ah, the luxury of it.
What spells luxury for you?
Redditor ConAir161057 wanted to compare notes about the things in life that feel like items only money can buy. They asked:
"For people who grew up with little money, what always felt like a luxury?"
New clothes. I had so many hand me downs and thrift store clothes... new seemed like a dream.
Anxiety
"After growing up in a home where every unexpected problem was a financial emergency, my idea of wealthy became 'I just want enough money that if something breaks I don't get anxiety about how to deal with it.'"
Obiwan_ca_bl**me
Literature
"Getting to buy something from the scholastic book fair."
Rich*itch3232
"My school, at the end of it a bunch of books were 'donated' and then spread out on a table in the library. We all got to go pick one book. So even if kids didn’t get to purchase a book, in the end they had a chance to still get a book. It’s actually how I got my first Harry Potter book. Was a cool idea for any school staff or parents active in their kids’ schools."
glass_pillow
Christmas
"Getting new clothes at Christmas from relatives. I don't know if that is exactly a luxury or the kind of answer you are looking for, but we never had a lot of money when I was in middle school. I went an entire year wearing the same pants everyday. The funny thing was my parents didn't even buy them for me."
"I got them for Christmas from my Grandparents. All the kids use to give me so much sh*t for wearing the same pants everyday. I always told them that I had 5 of the same pair which made me feel good inside and kind of made them ease off even though I know they didn't believe me."
"I remember I fell on the school bus one day and the jagged floor cut a hole right in the knee cap and the panic that went over me was just insane. It was one of the worst feelings of my whole life because I knew that I didn't have any other pants to wear and that now all of the kids in my school were going to know that I only had 1 pair. Needless to say I could not wait for the last month of school to end."
themagicman_1231
I'm Away
"Summer camp, or basically any school trips that had to be paid for. At my school the kids who couldn't afford to go on trips that happened during school hours still had to come to the school, we just sat in a room and did extra work like it was detention."
Helpful_Yams
"I was lucky. If you taught at the day camp your kid could go for free. That was just day camp though not sleepaway camp. My mom found a camp teacher who had no kids of his own and he signed me up as his kid so I could get free day camp. Did that all through elementary school."
randtcouple
Big Deals
"Going out for pizza was a big deal. Those free mini pizzas for reading books were huge."
Shroom4Yoshi
Food is always an issue when you're broke.
Damage
"Being able to turn on the heat in the cold and pay a professional to fix damaged appliances, plumbing, and other issues."
Liggettef
Spoiled
"When my grandma would come pick me up and spoil me. My parents didn't have much money and were addicts so when my grandma would come get me I would come back with new clothes, video games, toys, etc. I used to think my grandma was rich but she actually just had a stable income."
nawlepen
"I was in this position when I was younger. I always thought my grandma had SO much money… but all she did was go to work everyday. Always made sure I had clothes and all my school supplies. I miss her pretty bad."
Keywork29
Water
"I am from a small island in the Pacific. While I mostly still take cold showers, I have always felt that a hot shower is the finest luxury one can experience. I had my first hot shower when I was 22 years old and I can never forget it."
FSMPIO
"This is the kind of luxury I think people take for granted, I always avoided showers in the winter as a kid since most of the time they where cold showers and the temperature here was around 12c° during those times."
PowerfullDio
Showerware
"Towels. Honestly, I was almost 10 When I realized people didn’t just put back on their dirty clothes after a shower because my family was so large (12 kids total including myself) and extremely poor. I thought towels were just for hotels or were maybe a prop on television. I went to a friends house and she asked for my help folding her towels. I remember laughing and thinking she must be rich."
"Long story short, I wasn’t sure which way to fold the towels, and begged my mom to buy them after I revealed that my friend, Simone, had them. She bought a box of used ones from a local auction and I walked around with them on my head feeling like a frigging empress after that, even though—-let’s be clear… these were second hand towels!"
shakezula1025
Or BK...
"Grew up poor and when I was a kid I used to think you were rich if you had a dishwasher and a millionaire if you had one of those refrigerators that have a button for ice. McDonalds was also a luxury, a couple times a year on our birthdays."
chinderellab*tch
Everyone should have access to all of these things. Why is life unfair?
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