People Share Their Best 'You Know What, Just To Be Safe' Moments That Saved Them

When it comes to safety, some people are very "Better Safe Than Sorry" and others are entirely "Safety Third." Almost all of us, though, have had that moment where we did something we normally may not do just to be on the safe side.
A little extra precaution never hurt anyone, in fact, it can be the thing that saves our collective rumps. Need proof?
Reddit user OvertOperation asked:
What "you know what, just to be safe..." thing you did ended up saving your butt later?
The responses vary from little things to major game changers, but they've all got one thing in common. Sometimes "just to be safe" does exactly what it's supposed to. Check out these replies:
Because Hers Was Crappy
About 10 years ago when I was married, my wife's best friend kept on flirting with me. One time when she was being super aggressive, I recorded it on my cell phone. A few months later, she accused me of saying to her the very things that she said to me. One listen from my wife to my phone completely exonerated me and shut her down completely. She was trying to ruin my marriage because hers was crappy.
Yup, Australia
Flipped over my shoe and shook it just to make sure, cause I had found a spider in it the night before.
There was another spider in there. And yes, I'm in Australia.
That European Bonus
I was offered a job in Europe, where I was promised a bonus that was x% of my salary, paid twice a year. When the offer was sent, there was no mention of the bonus and when I questioned why, I was told, "don't worry, it's in this email with my official company signature." I put that one into the saved folder, "just to be safe."
Fast forward to moving, on the first payout period I was told I needed to be with the company for 90 days first before a bonus would be paid. Ok, I was annoyed, but I guess that makes sense.
On the second bonus payment, they mentioned that the company hadn't had a great year and nobody would be getting bonuses. More annoyed, but if the company isn't doing great, what are you going to do? I should add this was in 2008.
The following year rolls around and the company announces that things have really taken off and they will pay out the previous bonus period, in addition to the current bonus period. Only problem is, I literally handed in my resignation that day. I inquire to find out if I'll be receiving my bonus from the previous bonus period, and they say "are you kidding? You just quit."
I call a lawyer. I dig up the email from the start of this post, hand that over, and the lawyer says it's a slam dunk case. She goes after both bonus payments from the first year, and both bonus payments from the current year, even though one of them hasn't happened yet. Company HQ calls me and tries to get me to drop it, and I refer them to my lawyer.
A week later, at my new job, the lawyer informs me that they've paid all 4 bonus payments, and she also went after her own fees, so it cost me nothing.
Glad I saved that email. Cover yourself, and do not let others push you around.
Spidey Senses
4 students of mine won the 1st prize for a project they did and we all got a free trip to London.
We had spent the day sightseeing and were exhausted, so we got an ice-cream and sat on a bench in a park to relax. A couple of minutes later I notice this couple walk by slowly, staring at us. My spidey-senses go mental. I do not like these people for some reason. She walks by and sits on the bench next to ours and he sits on the bench across from hers. They aren't talking, just looking at each other.
And that is when I notice her reaching into her pockets.
I jump up, grab my students and run out of the park. My poor students are confused and wondering what on earth is wrong with me, when all of a sudden we hear screaming. Turns out she stabbed a couple walking through the park, trying to rob them.
It scares the ever-loving crap out of me knowing that had I not gotten my students out of there, we would have been stabbed and robbed. For all those will try to turn this into a racial issue, everyone involved in this incident was white.
- Penya23
That Shady Fire
Was remodeling my house, took out a loan and had to get the house appraised to get the loan. Found that my house was worth 100k more than i had it insured for.
Raised my limits on the home insurance. To 50k more than the appraised value in anticipation of completing renovations.
2 weeks later house burned to the ground due to a faulty bathroom fan that i did not touch.
City, insurance company and loan company all sent separate investigators due to how shady it looked.
The Moose Test
I took one of those extra driving classes you always hear about to get the discount on your car insurance. I was in college and my premium was killing me. The one I signed up for was an 8 hour course that I knocked out in one day. The focus was maintaining control of your vehicle in bad weather. I took it over spring break which is still a pretty snowy/icy time of year around here.
The big test at the end to determine if you got the certificate was to pass the "moose test" though some places call it the elk test or the deer test. Either way, to pass the course you had to successfully swerve around some cones on an icy road and regain control of the car on the other side of the cones.
So my first day back at school from spring break, I'm driving myself and my roommate from the liquor store back to our dorm in some bad weather conditions. I try to turn left into our parking lot and my car just slides straight past it, and down a hill. I try to turn the wheel right to get into a different parking lot and get closer, but not quite where I need it to be. I'm heading straight for a telephone pole.
My roommate is panicking but I looked at it and I realized this is just the moose test. I managed to swerve around the pole, narrowly missing a wall of parked cars next to it, and regained control on the other side, finally bringing my car to a stop in an empty section of the parking lot. Then we walked back to the dorm and drank our faces off.
So the moral of the story is, those extra driving classes you might take for the insurance discount may just save your life.
A Deadly Dipstick
I was undergoing pilot training and was pretty new to the whole thing feeling the pressure to perform, etc.. I walked out to preflight a plane for a solo flight (you do this completely alone... instructor was back at flying school doing something else).
After doing my walk around it's time to check the oil. Cessna 172's have a dipstick that is attached to a cap that screws into the engine. You unscrew cap and remove dipstick along with it and check the oil. Except, after I unscrew the cap there doesn't seem to be a dipstick attached to it.
I have this thought: "Well, the engine is still warm from the dudes who just flew before me so ... they flew it like this.... maybe they had a separate dipstick? They must have checked the oil then some other way ....". Then I have the "well, to be safe, I should actually pack this up and go ask someone at the flight school exactly how to check the oil in this case". Note: This takes quite a chunk of time out of my supposed flight and will cut my "lesson" for the day short by quite a margin, but I do it anyway.
Long story short (info gleaned from subsequent investigations): The dipstick had broken off during the previous flight, that had landed just minutes before, and had slid straight into the engine, where the crank-case had been chomping away metal from the tip, that metal now circulating in the engine. The aircraft was grounded, it was extremely dangerous to fly, and at massive cost had to be stripped down, the entire engine disassembled, and they actually had to find every bit of metal missing from the dipstick and "re-assemble" the dipstick before plane could be re-assembled and made flight worthy again.
If, in a moment of stupidity, I'd taken off in that plane I'd probably be dead.
Thanks, Ghost Grandpa
I was 19 and home for the summer from college. I had a contraband bottle of Bacardi stashed in my bedroom under a pile of clothes and other stuff between my bed and the window. My grandfather appears in a dream and sits me down with this bottle to chew me out...not for having booze as a kid/teen, but for hiding it so poorly.
I wake up, a bit disturbed by this dream and throw the bottle of Bacardi in a duffel bag and toss that in the trunk of my car as I leave for work. Get home that evening, and the pile it had been stashed under was moved as my mom had set up a table with a fan by the window to get air moving (grew up in northern WI without AC). Wouldn't have been a fun rest of the summer had I been busted with that.
Wild Nights With Wild Turkey
Very minor, but once I was going out drinking in San Francisco with some friends. We loved going to this kinda dive bar in the tenderloin (rough neighborhood). Anyway, I had just bought a new car and was worried about parking it in the Tenderloin, all my friends assured me it'd probably be fine.
As we parked on the street about two blocks from the bar, a homeless guy came up to me and said "Man, you don't wanna park that new car here! Somebody gonna smash them windows and steal your stereo! Your sunglasses!"
On a whim I just said "Yeah, but we're kinda late. Wanna keep an eye on it for me?"
He pauses for a sec and goes "Like a security guard? Yeah, man. I'll watch your car. You got $10?"
My friends, confused, started mumbling about just walking on, but I thought it couldn't hurt much, so I gave the guy $10.
"Here's your $10, keep an eye on it, man. If it's still in good shape when I get back I'll give you another $10."
"Damn! $20? All I gotta do is sit here?"
"And make sure nobody smashes my window. There isn't anything inside anyway it's new."
"I got you, man. I got you!" He took a huge swig off this bottle of wild turkey.
Anyway, the night progresses, we drink and have a good time, and now we're all proper drunk except for my friend Mary who was our DD. I gave her my keys and we start walking down the block. One by one we notice almost every parking spot has shattered glass next to it. Somebody went through the area and smashed each window to get into the cars. I get this sinking feeling in my stomach. I'm already mentally prepared to have to shell out a few hundred bucks to replace the window of a car that wasn't even mine a week ago.
But lo and behold, we get to the spot and my car is fine - and the homeless guy is bundled up in a sleeping bag and he sees me and goes "HEEEEYYYYY! You back! You won't believe what I did for you! Check THIS out!" and he shows me this huge bruise on his face and pulls off his gloves and shows me his knuckles, which are scraped to hell.
"What happened?" I said.
"Some motherf-, some tweaker cracker mother, he come around here smashing windows and grabbing stuff He gets to your car and I'm like 'Yo, pass that one. That's MY RESPONSIBILITY' and he turned around pulled back on this big ol' brick he's got in his hand, and I JUMPED HIM from behind and he hit me in the head with his damn brick but I knocked him good, man, I changed his MIND man. He was all strung out and he run off down the block!"
My friends and I are staring at this guy incredulously. My car is fine, spotless. I reach into my pocket for $10 but I realize I don't have cash. "Dude, thanks so much! Give me a second I gotta get your cash." I say as I walk into the liquor store on the corner to use the ATM. As I'm checking out I realize they've got 750's of Wild Turkey in there for like $10. I buy one for him. I give him the $10 and the bottle. "Thanks for keeping an eye on the car for me."
You would have thought this dude just won the lottery.
"OOOHHHH SHOOT!" he kept screaming. Then he kicked the pile of blankets on the side and I realized he had a girl there sleeping and he goes "WAKE UP LOOK WHAT I GOT!" and she rubs her eyes and looks confused at us, then at him, then at the bottle, then at us.
Wordlessly she reaches for the bottle. He hands it to her. He's still screaming and hollering like it's the best day of his life.
- gaqua
Opted For Mom
I was at a party when I was 16. It was in a small farm town about 20-25 minutes from my actual town and everyone was out partying in somebodies parents barn and having a real good time.
I didn't realize that our DD had been drinking all night. When it was time to go, I couldn't even tell she was tipsy. But something wasn't right so I didn't want to drive back with them. For whatever reason I decided to get the verbal tongue-lashing from my mom when she came to pick me up.
Well, my friends in the first car were apparently veering across the road. Got picked up by the cops and all of them got to spend the night in jail.
Glad I opted for my mom.
Leopard Spots
I was at collage and was having a bad time. I had started a new anti depressant a week or so before, but was also using sleep aids because without them I had not been sleeping at all.
So one night I'm laying in my dorm room after having taken my sleep aid, and sleepy me notices that I have oddly shaped spots on my arm.
and my legs.
and my belly.
"What the - why am I a leopard?" sleepy me thinks. I want to roll over and lay down, but for some reason the fact that I looked leopardy bothered me.
Just to be safe I stumbled out of bed to talk to the RA. I remember very little of that part.
Anyway. She took me to the hospital and it turns out I am DEATHLY allergic to one of the ingredients in that new drug I was taking. It just took a few days to build up in my system. By the time we got to the hospital my throat was closing and I could hardly breathe - but because of the sleep aid this seemed like no big deal to me.
I remember like 5 doctors/nurses around me. They had oxygen on my face, were rubbing my chest trying to help me breathe. I got like 7 shots in the hip.
Eventually they let me rest.
When I woke up they made it very clear that had I gone to sleep in my dorm I would not have woken up.
Washing Machine Bat
Was about to put a new load of laundry into my washing machine in the dark, saw what looked to be a large sock still in the washing machine. Put my hand halfway into the washing machine then pulled my hand back up and thought huh, I usually don't leave things in my washing machine. Turned on the light, and it was a bat sitting in there...
I put him in some Tupperware and brought him outside. Left the container open and left him a bag of Doritos; he was gone in the morning.
The Chicken Truck
when I was about 15 I was visiting my dad way out in the country, and we went to my aunt's ranch to help with baling hay or something. My dad lived right down the road from my aunt (literally, she owns over a thousand acres of land and had let my dad have a patch of it in exchange for help with basic upkeep on the fences) so it was just a couple of minutes' drive up the gravel road to get to her place. Once we got there, I realized I'd forgotten something at Dad's, but he was already busy and didn't have either the time or the desire to take me back to get it. So I borrowed a 4-wheeler from my aunt and headed back down the gravel road.
Now, if I had gone the other direction along that road, further away from the main highway, there was a big commercial chicken farm, and it wasn't uncommon to see 18-wheelers barreling at very unsafe speeds up and down that gravel road, collecting chickens for slaughter and/or eggs for transport to grocery stores.
As I was nearing Dad's, I randomly thought of the chicken trucks and imagined how awful it would be if one came around the blind corner up ahead just as I reached it. I briefly considered moving as far over to my right as I could, to give any potential truck as wide a berth as possible, but dismissed the idea because both sides of the gravel road were lined with bigger, bulky rocks that had been kicked off to the side by tires over the years, and I wanted to stay in the center of the road where it was smoother instead of bouncing all over those chunky rocks. Anyway, I reasoned that the odds of a chicken truck coming around that blind corner just as I reached it were pretty low. But as I got closer, I got more and more uncomfortable.
I knew I wouldn't even be able to hear one coming over the noise of the 4-wheeler, and at almost the last possible moment, decided to get over to the right as far as I could, just in case. No sooner had I done this than a huge 18-wheeler zooms around the corner at terrifying speed, partly crossing into my "lane," and misses me by about 18 inches. If I'd waited literally another 2 seconds, I would have been killed instantly.
The reality of how close I'd just come to death didn't really set in until I got to Dad's and collected whatever I had forgotten. Then I remember standing there in his kitchen, shaking, staring out of the window at the blue skies and sunshine, and thinking in awe "I almost missed all this. I almost never saw anything ever again. I almost DIED!" That was a pretty terrifying realization.
Wikipedia
Saved the "group" project a couple hours before my moron partner decided to make some "beneficial" changes. One of those changes was, and I quote, "You forgot to cite Wikipedia."
Citing Wikipedia was an immediate ZERO, which was underlined, bolded, italicized, and UPPER CASED on the rubric.
Stubbed Toe
A few weeks ago I stubbed my toe on the coffee table on my way to bed. Instantly I had a feeling that something was wrong as the pain was much more substantial than a normal stubbed toe. I was fairly sure that it was broken, which seemed odd as I hadn't hit the toe particularly hard (I'm somewhat clumsy and hit my limbs on furniture regularly). As I was laying in bed googling broken toes I confirmed my suspicion that there was really little a doctor could do for a broken toe in most cases. I drifted to sleep secretly hoping that I was wrong and that it would feel better in the morning.
It did not. For whatever reason, I decided to go to the hospital for an x-ray even though I was fairly certain it was broken and that the doctor wouldn't be able to anything to speed the healing.
The x-ray and subsequent conversation confirmed all of my suspicions, but also found something else: a bone tumor which had weakened the bone of that toe. I am waiting for more testing to determine whether or not it is benign. Regardless, if it wasn't for the broken toe and my decision to get an x-ray, they would likely have never found it so early.
- LiamFilm
The New Kid
New kid in school offered to take me to San Francisco to hang out with him and his friend on Saturday. Thing is, he gave off a weird vibe especially since it was like his third day; so I politely declined.
Well on Monday I find out he and his friend ended up going to a small town near ours, stealing a gang members car, and joy riding. They didn't leave that area and the person whose car they stole got fellow gang members and went looking for them. The gang member found them, shot and killed the new kid ,and shot one of his friends in the butt.
Disappearing Posts
This isn't really a story I'm comfortable telling in real life, so I'll vent it here, in the company of strangers. I found a high school friend on some random social media site. We'd share dumb memes and chat from time to time. One day I was mindlessly browsing at midnight when noticed something strange; her posts seemed to be disappearing...I'd try to look at a picture or something she shared, and when I clicked it didn't exist anymore. In fact, nothing on her page existed anymore.
Something about the situation felt really off to me, so I messaged her and asked why all of her posts were gone, if she was quitting the site, etc. She just responded that she was cleaning stuff up, and that she wasn't going anywhere, so I shouldn't worry. We chatted for a while well into the night, but at some point she stopped responding.
The next day, I got a text from her. Being a salty kid at the time, I didn't like being ignored, so I just ignored her back. Then she told me that last night she swallowed a bunch of sleeping pills. She was set on killing herself that night, but after chatting about fun times in middle school and other stuff she didn't really feel like dying anymore, so she went to the ER.
I don't think anything's changed my worldview as much as talking to her. The idea that the difference between life and death was some random, seemingly innocuous sign. I try my best to remember that anyone I meet could very well be having the worst day of their lives. Just try to be kind to others.
If you or someone you know is struggling, you can contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255).
To find help outside the United States, the International Association for Suicide Prevention has resources available at https://www.iasp.info/resources/Crisis_Centres/
The Annoying Thump
Heard a thumping noise in my dryer. Sometimes my dryer thumps when it has a large load and is thrown off balance, so I let it go for a few seconds. Then I figured I might as well adjust it rather than deal with the slightly annoying sound.
Yeah you know where this is going. It was my cat. Little dunce had climbed inside in the few seconds it took for me to empty it out and walk the dry clothes to the living room. I then loaded the front facing dryer with wet clothes. She made not a sound. Then closed the door and ran the tumble dryer for about 30 seconds.
I sobbed uncontrollably as I clutched my uninjured cat. And then sobbed again every time I looked at her for the rest of the night. I'm obsessive now about checking the washer and dryer for her stupid behind.
The Winter Kit
Had a bad snowstorm a few years ago. My husband always laughed at my winter trunk kit because it reads like a preppers stash. Til we (myself, 9yr old and the newborn) got stuck in a sudden white out for 6 hours and had to be rescued by national guard. We were fine. They were shocked we weren't panicking. Why should we??? We had clean hot water for tea and cocoa, food, blankets, extra battery packs for my phone, a jumper for the car and my diaper bag with diapers and wipes.
He doesn't laugh at it anymore.
Airport Bathroom
Was at an airport. Went to the toilet to pee. Finished up, went out. "You know what, I'll go back in to see if I can poop too in case I won't be able to on the plane".
Had left my ticket on the sink.
- Gerf93
Landscaping
Working landscape with my dad. Pulling dead leaves from a plant pretty much blindly and quickly to get it over with (also no gloves on since my dumb self never used to use gloves) and I realize At some point I should probably stop and check just in case there's a spider since they love hiding in plants. Voila! I find a rattlesnake coiled up right next to where my hand was pulling dead leaves from. Was pretty lucky that day.
Prepping For The Street Cleaner
3 years ago I lived in Brooklyn. If anyone here is from New York then you know there's street cleaning on almost every street in which the drivers need to move their vehicles before a set time. I needed to move my truck before 8am.
I walk to my truck and before I enter to start it I decided to do a walk around and make sure everything is fine (no scratches, flats, etc) Under my truck directly behind the rear tires I see a guy sleeping. He is literally pressed right against the tires!
I tried waking him up but he reeked of alcohol and had most likely passed out. I called 911 and they handled it from there. I can't imagine what it would've been like if I drove over the poor guy.
Fireworks
I was at a church function about 12 years ago. It was the 4th of July and they were shooting fireworks off. They had been very careful in choosing these fireworks and closely inspected them beforehand as well. Anyway, my step-cousin asked me to hold her 3 year-old while she went to the bathroom. I took her spot close to the fireworks because the baby actually was enjoying them. I started feeling too nervous where I was standing since I was holding someone's child. So I decided to pick up her chair and move back at least 20 feet.
Right after I got re-situated, one of the fireworks exploded and started shooting out of the sides. I ducked, protecting the baby, and took off running as far away and as fast as I could go. Once everything calmed down and my cousin returned, I went to go look at the damage done. There was shrapnel and a small fire right where her chair was. Her bag of food she brought caught fire as well. If I hadn't decided to step back, we would probably both be dead.
Finger Guillotine
When I was twelve I was really into magic tricks. One was a finger guillotine. The plastic blade would bend around your finger and pop out the bottom, making it look like it went through your finger if you pushed really fast. Done slow and one could see the gimmick.
ANYWAY one day we were at a family friend's house. And, lo-and-behold, the dad happened to have one over by his bar! Except, since he was an adult, this one was much fancier. And in fact the blade even looked real!
I stuck my finger in and brought the blade to my finger and pushed lightly.
"Hrm," I thought. "The blade doesn't look like it's giving at all..."
I figured this one might had a special switch to activate the trick blade that I didn't know about, so I decided it was best to leave it alone.
It was a cigar cutter.
Still gives me chills.
The Balkan Train
Went on a road trip with the ol' girlfriend through all of the Balkan countries. We sometimes stayed in ho(s)tels but mostly wild camping.
So we're in rural Romania and it's getting dark so we leave the highway, leave the main roads and search for a small farm road. Driving in the dark through acres of corn we pass a really old train track with the lights and signs all overgrown and rusted.
There was a nice flat grassy field there so we set up camp. As I'm about to enter the tent I notice the car is partially on the track but it's obviously out of use. But just to be safe I move it a few meters.
Guess what came barreling down the track at 3 AM, a few meters from our tent.
We witness things on the daily that follow us.
Some linger in our minds and haunt us.
Others shake us to the core.
It's inevitable that each of us may have a strange experience to regale a party of people with.
The more we discuss, the more repressed emotion we release.
Being haunted forever isn't fun.
Especially because another creepy event or moment lies around the next corner.
Redditor H5N1BirdFlu wanted to discuss the moments in life that left us haunted and shook, so they asked:
"What is the creepiest or most unexplained event that you have ever experienced?"
I've seen so much creepiness I wouldn't know where to begin.
Deal
"One car from one direction, and another car from the other direction stopped in front of my house. Both drivers got out and one gave the other a briefcase. Now that I am older I am guessing it was some kind of drug deal or something but at the time I found it very weird."
yapastaocho
'The Entertainer'
"We had a little copper music box that would start playing on its own. It was a man sitting at a player-piano and it would play 'The Entertainer' song. Now, I know that music boxes and such can spring (for lack of a better word) forward and play a few notes, but this thing would act like someone had wound it up and would play for a minute or two completely at random."
MercuryCrest
He?
"Me and and someone I used to know in high school way back when met to catch up. We were talking about our views on religion at some park. When we were walking back to our cars some guy said he had overheard us. We interacted a little and then went to our cars. I told her how awkward I felt knowing he overheard everything. She looked at me and said, 'He?'”
"After some comparing notes we realized we’d seen and heard entirely different people. She’d seen an elderly woman. I’d seen a middle aged man. Only problem is we only talked to the one person."
AccomplishedAuthor53
Overnight
"I usually go hiking and stay in the forest overnight, sleeping in a bivy and sometimes under a tarp. Now it's important to say I'm based in Europe. So no wild animals to be afraid of because usually they just boot it as soon as they notice you."
"So one winter night I'm sleeping under my tarp which connects to the ground on one side. It's in an area where there were fierce battles in the forrest on the border between Germany and Belgium in WWII."
"I hear something walking in the leaves, which is normal. There are always deer and ferral pigs on and about. But this time it comes closer and closer until I hear it right on the other side of my tarp and it starts growling. Its a noise I gad never heard and for a moment I was frozen trying to figure out what it might be and what to do."
"But I just decided to yell back and that did the trick. The animal walked a few steps and then turned back to growl once more before finally retreating."
"Let's put it this way, I didn't sleep for a while after that. I looked up the noise and think it was a badger."
Forest_Walkin
Devoured
"My family used to raise cattle. One morning I came out to check on them and I found one of the heifers had been more or less completely devoured."
"This same cow was perfectly fine the day before. There was nothing left but some hide, bones, and intestines. Thing is none of the predators that are in my area would be able to kill and eat an entire cow within the course of one night. Much less leave so little behind."
Aussieshepman
Poor cows. They live a rough life.
The Night Before
"When I was a kid, we lived in a kinda rural area. One night we came home late from an Uncle's house and there was a car parked up the road from our house with the headlights on."
"My mom suggested to my dad that we go see if they need help, he said no, so we went inside. Next morning police knocked on the door, a cyclist had spotted a body in the ditch exactly where the car was parked the night before."
Tpeest
Documents
"I have had a strange thing happen recently. I was waiting for my tax documents to come in so I could do my taxes. I had three documents that I put on my bedside table until I had the time."
"I decided to do it the other day and I couldn't find one of them. I tore the house apart, quizzed my husband (who swore he never touched it), checked the garbage, etc. I had resigned myself to the fact I would have to request another one, when it arrived in the mail."
"It was the same one, exact same information. I was really confused but grateful. I checked into it, it was not sent twice as far as the office could tell me."
"I don't know what to think. I KNOW I had that document because I had done some calculations with it. It's been itching at me like crazy."
monitormonkey
About 30 Feet
"A few months ago I was sitting in my living room on the couch, watching tv with a family member late at night. We have a high ceiling with a couple of rectangular windows at the very top of the wall just under where it meets the ceiling. The windows are so high (about 30 feet) we really only have them for natural lighting."
"So on the night in question, a green laser beam suddenly shown down through one of the windows, seemingly scanned the entire living room before stopping and pointing the beam right next to my family member for about 10 seconds and then disappearing entirely. It had to be either a drone or from some sort of flying aircraft. I live in a relatively secluded place which made the situation all the more unsettling."
0friday
Find Her
"Pretty sure I witnessed a kidnapping once and it still lives rent free in my head (the woman lost her slipper when she was trying to get away and i took a picture of it that i still have for some reason). I did indeed report it to police right after I saw it occur but they were pretty blasé about it and I never ended up being able to determine what they did to investigate."
ergaster8213
From Behind
"I was in Jr High and had really long hair. I got up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom, and almost tripped on a shoe on the floor. I bent down to move it and it felt like someone grabbed my entire pony tail and yanked it. I also could not sleep facing the wall for the longest time because it always felt like someone or something was right there behind me."
cheeseburgerphone182
Never face the wall. Life lesson.
These were some harrowing experiences, and we're glad these Redditors made it out to tell the story.
Do you have any similar experiences? Let us know in the comments below.
People Reveal The Turnoffs That Make Them Not Want To Have Sex With Their Significant Other
Sex and relationships can be very dramatic.
It's not always fun and sweat. More often than not, it turns into wine and snores.
The truth is, it's not difficult to turn someone off.
One minute you're a hot dish. The next, you're stale meatloaf.
The question is, who is responsible?
Or is this relationship dead?
Redditor NeedSomeSparkInLife wanted to know who would be willing to share, so they asked:
"What makes you not want to be intimate with your SO?"
I'm an easily turned off person.
So it doesn't take much.
Desire
"Taking a moment to realize I'm the only one that makes sexual advances in the relationship. Makes me not want it. People think men only want sex for face value but a lot of men actually want the feeling of being desired more so."
Relative-Hour-9359
Anger Issues
"I've always heard of fighting then having sex after. Fighting has always made me not want it. The last thing I want to do when someone pisses me off is have sex with them. What made it worse is she always wanted to when we were arguing which made the argument worse when I refused."
DaMoonRulez_1
"I think you're supposed to resolve your fight, realize that you care for each other a lot, move past it, then have the passion because of that. Not fight right into sex."
Ksp-or-GTFO
Take a Shower
"My ex and I were together for nearly 7 years, but his hygiene never improved, so we stopped being intimate like, 3 years before I finally broke up with him. He showered only once a week, but he worked in kitchens, so he was sweaty and greasy all the time."
"He had an infected tooth, so he constantly had bad breath, but he refused to visit a dentist, even when he had the money to afford dental work. He stopped working out within the first year of us being together, which sucked because he would get jealous if I went to the gym by myself or with my girlfriends, but he refused to come with me."
GreenChorizo
Sober Time
"Personally, the only issue I have is my SO's drinking. He just becomes an unattractive person when he's drunk. It's one thing if we're both out socializing and drinking together occasionally, but he drinks almost every day, sitting on the couch in front of the TV and to the point of sloppy drunkenness way too often. His face changes, his posture changes, his personality changes... I just get so turned off."
WeptSiren3113
Hang Up
"When they are glued to their phones non stop! Put that s**t down and look at me before we go to bed!"
Palmwine
"I really dislike this too. Makes me feel alone in the relationship."
RealBrownPerson
No phones in bed. Hard rule for many of us to follow.
Step Back
"When I make a move, and then get the feeling she's not really in the mood/would only do it to please me. I want us both to have a good time, not only me. So when she seems not into it, I take a step back."
Level-Plate8372
Calm Down
"To be brutally honest, her anxiety and insecurity makes sex such a hassle. She doesn’t believe anything I say about wanting her, she can almost never relax during sex, she doesn’t take time to enjoy it, and if God forbid I have any trouble finishing, she takes it more personally than anything, which of course puts more pressure on me to finish, which then makes it almost impossible."
Ben_Franklinstein
When at Wal-Mart
"When they’ve done something really nasty/unkind that day. Cruelty is the most ugly thing a person can show, in my eyes. I had a boyfriend that I went to Wal-Mart with and he ended up flipping off and storming right past the sweet little old man that checks the receipts at the door."
"It was partially about how I used to check receipts and I remembered how I felt when people treated me like that- but I also remember the look on the little old man’s face and just how disgusted I was with my partner being so nasty about it."
"I couldn’t touch him after that and I got grossed out when he touched me. And then I started to notice how he was nasty to other people as well. It eventually led to our break up."
spxdergirl
33 Years In
"My husband used to dislike his job - he’d come home and do nothing but bi**h. After awhile, I just gave up trying to cheer him up with sex - you can only try so long. So, we had a long dry spell - like, whatever you think a dry spell would be, it’s longer. When someone is constantly annoyed, well, it’s hard to feel amorous."
"Anyway, he early retired (54) like a month before Covid kicked in and by autumn that year, well, let’s just say we’re back to what we were like when we first met. He’s not pissed off all the time. (I’m retired as well, and let’s just say, afternoon nookie is such a perk, as is morning nookie and 3am nookie because you can sleep in!) I’m glad we stayed together. Going on 33 years and we’re just so happy."
NicInNS
Rage
"Feeling angry. I hate feeling angry. I don't like being around other people when angry. So I'll go for a walk, a drive etc, and just clear my head."
jackfaire
It seems like "dead bed," as some folks call it, can stem from many things, from mood, attraction, hygiene, and more.
Do you have anything to add to this list? Let us know in the comments.
People Who Have Accidentally Sent A Nude Photo To The Wrong Person Describe The Fallout
Whether everyone would actually admit it or not, most people live on their phones.
They can take care of last-minute work tasks on the go, confirm plans with friends via text, and entertain themselves while scrolling through multiple social media pages.
However, one must be super cautious and focused when juggling between all those open apps.
Because being a multi-tasker comes with a risk that involves mixing private and public lives with unintended, and very embarrassing, effects.
Curious to hear from strangers about a more NSFW faux pas, Redditor sollyman7999 asked:
"Ever sent a nude to the wrong person? what happened, how did they respond?"
Families can be close-knit but even they can have their hard limits.
WhatsApp, Doc?
"Sent a d*ck pic to my family whatsapp group instead of my girlfriend, who requested it. I got a lot of laughs from my sisters, a well done from my father, and not a single word from my mother, who to this day denies it happened. It was a horrible experience."
– Loud_Essay_7286
Sis Came To The Rescue
"I was meaning to text my boyfriend the picture, but must have still been in the iMessage chat to my dad at the time, and sent it without checking. Seeing that the nude had been texted to my dad, I immediately called him — I was going to ask him to delete the pictures, and that they were inappropriate and were supposed to go to my boyfriend. That way he wouldn’t see the images themselves; he would just know I had taken nudes. Somehow, by the grace of God, my SISTER answered his phone, as she was living at home at the time. I begged her for help, and she was able to delete the images off his phone. My dad never knew the incident ever occurred. I asked my sister how I could repay her, and she asked me to never ever bring it up again. I owe her one, eternally!"
– sjohns90
Sorry, Bro
"I was 26 at the time. Just shaved my junk. It was looking mighty presentable, so I decided the GF needed to see. I mistakenly sent it to my older brother. He replied with, 'I don't think that was meant for me.' I died a little inside. It was never spoken of again."
– ianj2807
Mother Approves
"Not me but my wife. She has sent a very explicit nude of hers to her mother instead of me."
"End result; 'Masallah, you're beautiful' as response from my mother-in-law, then similar responses from her sisters and sisters-in-law because yeah, her mother forwarded it."
– zztri
Leaders got more than they ever expected.
The Boss Gets A Surprise Message
"I accidentally sexted my Boss thinking I was talking to my Husband. He send back 'I don’t think this was meant for me' I sent him the biggest apology ever and we never spoke about it ever."
– Livinginthemiddle
At Attention
"I did the same thing with my platoon sergeant. D*ck pic with the caption 'love you' that was supposed to go to my ex. He just replied 'I like you, but this isn't love.'"
"Kill me."
– Reddit
Pay attention to which social media app you're using.
"Cute Lil Boobies"
"I have one like this that haunts me. When Instagram FIRST came out, like before I had ever even heard anyone talking about it, I thought it was a new photo editing app that let you put cool filters on your phone pictures and kept a little album for you, like any normal photo editing app would do. Keep in mind back then there wasn't really social media centered around pictures so I had no concept of that. I took some nudes on there and put lil filters on them and stuff and sent them to a boyfriend, then didn't think of it again"
"MONTHS later I get a text from a (very kind) ex saying 'did you know your cute lil boobies are on Instagram and everyone can see them?' I was mortifiedddd lol. Apparently he could find my profile because it recommended it via contacts or something, which I also had no concept of at that time, not many socials did that back then. So I have no idea how many people saw those pictures. Oops."
"To add insult to injury I wasn't signed into the account anymore so I was DESPERATELY trying to remember what email and password would get me in."
– Zenki_s14
For All To See
"Sent to the wrong person? No"
"Posted to my facebook feed? Yes"
"Few family members unfriended me, got a few DMs asking did I realize what I did, two DMs asking if I had more (not family - before you ask)"
– Craigothy-YeOldeLord
Nude Co-Worker
"I did once some years back. I (f) sent a snap to (f co-worker). I had absolutely no idea until I got a snap from her telling me I looked nice and asked if she was supposed to return the favor. Told her it was completely up to her but it was an accident! She sent me one back anyways. We left it at that and we would bring it up every once in a while and just giggle about it. Haven't seen her since I left that job but this question definitely brought this memory back lol."
"EDIT: I made this comment, went to bed, and didn't think about it this morning until I opened reddit not long ago. I was reading the comments and yall were making me laugh! It's so weird to have the most upvoted comment be me about sending a nude to a co-worker lol"
– MistressManor
And for others, it's all intentional.
Just Playing With The Homies
"The homies and I used to just randomly send each other photos of our family jewels and then make fun of them for looking. I miss it more and more every day."
– 28756
No recipient was harmed during this incident. I have multiple text threads, and it's very confusing to respond to one in which certain friends are also on other message threads.
One time I responded to a group thread explaining to them that I was going to come up with an excuse to back out of another invite mentioned on a different thread.
I guess I should have double-checked which thread I was sending it to because I informed the wrong thread of my plan.
At least there weren't nude photos involved.
My heart goes out to those who've shared their embarrassing stories here.
Let them serve as reminders to confirm your messages before tapping "send."
When people talk about living life to the fullest and having independent, solo experiences, they often reference the importance of traveling internationally to experience more of the world.
But in the midst of describing the wonders of traveling in another country, they fail to detail the things that could go wrong, or how a local might try to scam an unknowing and unprepared tourist.
Curious specifically about this phenomenon in Europe, Redditor subuubalaa asked:
"What should people avoid while traveling to Europe?"
The Fines Can Be Incredibly Steep
"Another thing which primarily applies to Giethoorn, but also any place in general."
"STAY OUT OF PEOPLE'S YARDS."
"For those who don't know, Giethoorn is a small village where instead of streets there are canals. It is quite a tourist attraction where they can rent boats to travel through the canals. However, some people fail to comprehend that it's still an actual village and people live in the houses."
"It has occurred on multiple instances that tourists walked into the gardens of residents to take pictures."
- ThePotatoSauce
The Menu Should Speak For Itself
"Avoid any restaurant that tries to strong-arm you into entering."
- Kanguin
Who Knew?
"Watch out for pickpockets in Western Europe. There is a stigma that Eastern Europe like Romania and Bulgaria is dangerous but pickpocketing happens more in Paris, Amsterdam, Barcelona, etc."
- trustabro
Just Keep Walking
"Street scammers in Paris, anywhere really, I just mostly see it in Paris."
- missingtoothtyler
Keep an Eye on Your Stuff
"I hung my purse over the back of my chair at a restaurant on my first day in Bangkok."
"We were eating dinner and my tour guide came over to where I was sitting, and he was holding my purse. He asked if it was mine, and I said yes. Then he told me that he saw some guy take it but he was able to get it back before they left the restaurant with it."
"Turns out my guide was the 'guy' who took it to teach me a lesson. He did this to a couple of other people in our group to encourage us to be careful with our stuff. I spent the rest of the trip white-knuckling my purse so it worked for me!"
- starrfast
Your Future Looks Expensive
"In Sevilla, they hang around the cathedral. A woman will walk up and hand you a flower, then insist on telling your fortune. Just drop it and walk away."
- blitzen13
Seriously, Protect Your Belongings
"Do not put your bag/purse/backpack on the back of your chair when you sit down to eat, especially outside."
"Thieves look for this, in groups of three or four. One of them will come from one side of you as a snatcher, and the rest will stand in a group very close to you taking or smoking, etc., pretending that they don't know the snatcher."
"Then the one guy will snatch your item, and run right through the group, in case someone is quick enough to chase. They will 'accidentally' be in your way."
"Happened in Rome, but locals recognized it and broke it up."
- nctkcmo71
Instant Retaliation
"A guy tried to do the bracelet trick to me, but I knew it and told him no before he tried anything. He jabbed me in the side as I walked passed. I was so p**sed."
- Tortuga917
No Directions Needed
"Also: DO NOT STOP to 'help' people asking for directions. You're a tourist, you look like a tourist, and you're the last person someone would legitimately ask for directions."
"They're trying to get you to stop so they can pickpocket you. It's usually a woman, too, looking 'helpless.' Just keep moving."
- ThaneOfCawdorrr
Fake Disabilities
"Be careful if you encounter the fake disabled people in Venice. My dad fell into that trap. A guy pretending to have a limp and speaking disability came up to us and asked for money. I switched to Dutch and told my dad not to give him any. My dad gave him a 20 euro banknote."
"The guy walked away without a limp and started talking without issues a few meters away."
- DoctorWhoTheF**k
Try to Blend In
"Avoid letting the taxi know you don't know where you are or where you are going, the bad ones will drive you in circles and run the tab up."
"Also, one thing that opened Germany up for me while stationed there was one interaction. I would ask in German, 'Sprechen sie englisch,' do you speak English, followed by 'Mine Deutsch ist schei**e,' my German is s**t."
"Everyone from women at the bar to elderly people would laugh hysterically and then immediately switch to English in good spirits. They just like to see you try, and then they are more than happy to help you out."
"So my advice would be to learn a quick-fire phrase that you can pop off too quickly to avoid fumbling and starting the interaction on a bad foot."
- Spirited-Tadpole-508
Scamming the Scammers
"I managed to find one of the bracelets they peddle on the ground midway through my trip. Threw it on every day when I was out in public and didn’t get hounded at all after that."
"I assume they probably thought I was a fool already caught in the trap, but man, the peace of mind was great!"
- brounchman
Please Be Polite
"Don't assume that everything will be open during the hours you'd expect in your home country. This is true no matter where you're going. It varies by country and region, but in my experience, grocery stores, banks, post offices, etc., had much more restricted hours than they do in the US."
"In the US, it's rare for a grocery store to close before 9 PM, if it's not open 24 hours. In Europe, it's normal for grocery stores to close quite early, and for things to be closed on weekends, though this varies by country."
"Also, mind your manners. In America, you can often skip over the formalities without being seen as rude. In Europe, this is much harder. Be more direct about what you want, and more polite about requesting it."
"Part of what perpetuates the unfortunate 'rude American' stereotype is that Americans tend to find European manners blunt, and Europeans tend to find American manners invasive."
- frisky_husky
Stuff Can Be Taken from Anywhere
"Don't leave stuff lying around anywhere. Don't put your stuff next to you on the table if you're sitting outside at a restaurant. Someone can just run up to you from behind, grab the phone/wallet and run away."
"Don't leave stuff in a rental car."
"Don't even put stuff in the trunk of the rental car after you park it. I've heard that in some touristy places, thieves will employ local kids to sit at the parking lots and see who puts their camera, laptop, or purse in the trunk of the car before walking away."
- TheChoonk
It's All About Playing It Smart
"I've seen it in Paris, France, Barcelona, Florence... any popular tourist destination is going to have pickpockets."
"These scams vary, and you should read about them before you go so you're aware. Some of the ones I've seen:"
"1. People in costumes (mostly Roman centurions) will accost you for pictures with them, and demand an absurd amount of money for the pictures."
"2. People will shove an object or a flower into your hands and then demand money. You may have to very aggressively say 'no.'"
"3. Someone will approach you with a map and ask for directions (their accomplice is behind you while you're distracted, and helping themselves to your stuff)."
"4. Someone will lay out paintings on the ground near monuments like cathedrals, and when you inevitably step on one (because you're looking up at the Duomo, not at the ground) they'll demand an absurd amount of money for the painting you just stepped on."
"Basically, you just have to understand that if you're a tourist in a city, no one is going to have a good reason to talk to you. No one needs directions from you, no one needs a petition signature from you, and anyone trying to stop and talk to you in a major tourist destination is likely a scam."
"If you do get into a situation where someone is demanding money from you (maybe you stepped on a painting or took that ill-advised picture with the Centurion) just say, 'Okay, let's go find a police officer, and I will pay you in front of the police officer.' That usually gets them to back down quickly."
"You may have to be aggressive about not letting people touch you or put something on you. My husband had to yank his arm away from someone trying to tie a bracelet on him outside of Castel Sant'Angelo. I had to quickly move away from someone shoving a rose in my lap on the Spanish Steps."
"And also, watch your stuff. Don't absentmindedly sling your purse over the back of a chair. Don't leave your phone on the ground next to you while you have a picnic on the Seine."
"I have a black purse by PacSafe that has some anti-theft features, like a lock so I can lock it to a chair at a cafe and a lock on the zipper so it can't be easily zipped open. Sure, a determined person could break into the purse, but it's all about not being an easy target. It's enough of a deterrent that if someone does try to help themselves to the contents of my purse, it'll be too much trouble and they'll go pick someone else."
"That being said, don't let the fear of being pickpocketed deter you from traveling! Rick Steves has a story about a family that had their passports and thousands of dollars stolen from them immediately upon arrival in Amsterdam, and they still had an amazing trip. Just be aware and have a plan in case the worst happens."
- evilcaribou
A lot can happen while you're traveling, and while being stolen from or scammed could easily happen in your hometown, there's something about suddenly being without your possessions or having to pay a hefty sum of money when you're in new territory.
But as the very last Redditor in this thread pointed out, this shouldn't stop you from traveling the world! As long as you are well-prepared and stay alert, you should be able to have a wonderful journey.