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The All-Time Scariest True Stories People Have Ever Heard

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People's Weirdest Experiences They Can't Logically Explain

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The All-Time Creepiest Unsolved Mysteries

People Share The Best Historical Facts They Know

People Share The Best Historical Facts They Know

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Historical Events So Ridiculous They Sound Made Up

People Who Take Late Night Walks Describe The Scariest Thing They've Ever Seen

People Who Take Late Night Walks Describe The Scariest Thing They've Ever Seen

People Share Their All-Time Favorite Mysteries That Were Actually Solved

People Share Their All-Time Favorite Mysteries That Were Actually Solved
Photo by Blake Lisk on Unsplash

The world is full of mysteries. Why are we here? What's at the bottom of the ocean? Is there other intelligent life in the universe?

Humans are naturally curious creatures, so we find mysteries in every corner of our universe. And when we can finally solve those mysteries, it's so satisfying for our little squirrelly brans.

Luckily, there are an abundance of mysteries we have solved in our time on earth.

u/Vrothgar asked:

What is your favorite SOLVED mystery?

Here were some of those answers.

Beautiful Trenches

That one where the rocks moved in the dessert leaving an eerie trail.

Some guy put a camera on the area for like two years and discovered that when there is a thin layer of water with ice on it, the wind will move the ice as it starts to melt and so moving the rocks.

Death Valley.

DaveSpeaks

Underwater Bloop

"The Bloop". For years science was baffled, not having a good explanation. Some supposed it may be an as of yet undiscovered creature, but the magnitude of the sound itself was such that if it were produced by an animal, it would be larger than even a blue whale, by a wide margin.

A few years back we recorded the sound again, along with solid seismological data. Turns out the famous "bloop" was the sound of a large piece of the Antarctic ice shelf cracking and falling into the ocean.

tiram001

The Hump

For years it was speculated about King Richard III's appearance. Due to many different historical perspectives on him as a King some believed he had a hump back of sorts and others believed this stuff was added when the historical rhetoric was added as he became less favourable.

A few years ago they discovered his skeleton buried under a carpark in Leicester. They determined they he actually probably had scoliosis and likely did have a hump of sorts.

My favourite part about the discovery was the presence of a woman who was part of some Richard III group that adamantly denied the appearance he was described who then realises the truth and is very disappointed.

L__McL

Running Away

Lori Erica Ruff. This guy in Texas married a woman he met in bible study, had a child with her, and then she started showing signs of mental illness. They divorce and she commits suicide in 2010. She left a suicide note that was incomprehensible and full of random phrases and references.

When her ex was going through her stuff, he found a birth certificate with the name Becky Sue Turner on it, who was a 2 year old girl who died in a house fire in WA in the 70s. Lori had stolen Becky's identity and used it to get her name changed to Lori Erica Kennedy. There were no clues whatsoever as to who she was before she acquired the false identity and her backstory remained a mystery for years.

A few years later she was identified by matching her daughter's DNA to a distant relative in Pennsylvania. It turns out Lori's real name was Kimberly McLean, and she'd left her home in PA in 1986 as she didn't get along with her mom and stepdad.

I was really fascinated with this one when it was still unsolved, and I found the actual answer a bit anticlimactic. It was clear from everything she'd left that something was wrong with her, and it really gave me the creeps.

BEEmmeupscotty69

Birdies

Those flying "rods" in the background of cave diving videos.

People in the 80s and 90s would go cave diving or sky diving and film it, and in the background would be all these foot-long, flappy, rod-shaped creatures that no one would see until they were caught on film. People thought they were inter-dimensional creatures that would slip into our dimension occasionally. Some studied the shape of these things in wind turbines to understand how they fly. I think there was even a hieroglyph found of the creature from ancient Egypt.

It turns out the frame rate of the poor handheld cameras from that day made birds and bugs get caught in multiple frames at the same time, and so they looked like long rods with wings.

BecauseEricHasOne

A Whole Lotta Nothin

Al Capone's vault is the most hilarious solved mystery. A renovation team found the vault and some underground tunnels under his hotel over 50 years after his arrest. Geraldo Rivera hosted a huge 2-hour live grand reveal of the opening of the vault which they hope would contain a huge fortune. 30 million people watched the live spectacle. The vault was finally opened and..........there was nothing there.

https://youtu.be/pgx7--A_NCU?t=806

Here's the whole special starting when they brought down the vault wall.

xigua22

A Tragic End

The case of Jacob Wetterling.

He was and 11 year old boy abducted near his home in 1989. Him and his friends had gone to a local video store and were on their way home when a man stopped them and forced Jacob to leave with him at gunpoint. He forced the others to turn and run and threatened them that they would be shot if they didn't.

For almost 30 years the case went unsolved. His friends and his brother grew up feeling the guilt of not being able to stop the abductor. His parents and family had no closure as they had no idea where he was taken, or who had taken him. But they held out hope for all those years that maybe he was still alive. A local man had even been falsely accused of abducting him.

Sadly, his remains were found in 2016. About 30 miles from where he was abducted. Investigators were able to find the man responsible, and he confessed to the crime. He had assaulted Jacob and killed him on the same night he was abducted.

It's a tragic story and there are a lot more details. Thankfully detectives never gave up on this case and they were able to solve it after all those years.

llyons31

An Out Of Place Burger

The mysterious In-N-Out burger found on the street in New York City, apparently still warm (In-N-Out is a hamburger chain only found on the west coast).

The person who bought this cheeseburger responded to the post with the explanation: they had bought lots of cheeseburgers prior to boarding their San Diego to NYC flight and lost one after their arrival while boarding a bus.

Source: https://ny.eater.com/platform/amp/2019/7/24/20726407/in-n-out-nyc-burger-mystery-2019-solved

supervisord

Polar Bears From The Void

The voyage of HMS Terror and HMS Erebus, who in 1845 embarked on a journey around Canada to locate the Northwest Passage with the backing of the royal navy. The voyage was expected to take 2 years, but by 1850 it was suspected something had gone very wrong, as the last sighting of the ships had been as they entered baffin bay 5 years earlier, and all the search parties could find were some lonely graves, and a cairn with a scrawled message. It was only with analysis from the graves, some old testimonies about contact with local Inuit groups, and the discovery of the remains of the crew in the 1990s and the wrecks in 2016, that the full story could be pieced together.


Essentially the ships' arctic modifications and stocks had been ill thought out for the voyage, and the cheap canned food the crew relied on had led them to contract lead poisoning and scurvy, but with no alternatives and being locked in ice for months at a time, they had no escape. The illnesses were compounded by the lack of alternative food sources in the harsh environment and diseases which crippled the already weakened crews. The poisoning (and associated hallucinations) combined with the deteriorating mental health of the crew created a living nightmare. After the officer in charge died, the surviving crews abandoned ship and tried to cross the barren Arctic towards a known settlement in Canada, with everyone involved falling and dying en route. The bodies that were found were very well preserved, and contemporary Inuit testimonies corroborated the story. It made for a good horror series, even if there weren't any supernatural polar bears involved in reality.

greg_mca

Haunted By The Spirit Of Electricity

In a Chinese science discovery type show, they went to investigate reports of a old haunted house where an alleged murder happened year ago. People say the light in the house would flicker on and off, no animals can be found near it, and any dogs/cats brought over would run away, very agitated.

Turns out the electrical cable connected to the house was damaged, so the light flickers. And the ground near the house became electrified, mildly shocking animals coming close. The people had shoes on so they never noticed.

PegasusSeiya

From Your Site Articles
mystery

People Who Shoplift Regularly Explain Why They Do It

"Reddit user WineOhCanada asked: 'People who shoplift on the regular: why do you do it?'"

A man with an ostentatious watch rifles through a wardrobe
Photo by charlesdeluvio

Shoplifting is a prevalent issue, but why do people do it?

Some reasons can be as banal as boredom, but other are far more intruiging.

Redditor WineOhCanada wanted to understand why people steal, so they asked:

"People who shoplift on the regular: why do you do it?"

I loved shoplifting.

Until I was caught, that is. I was a price tag switcher.

I apologize.

So Excited

Happy Thomas Lennon GIF by ABC NetworkGiphy

"It makes me feel alive. Jk I don't any more but as a kid, it was for sure a thrill thing."

silly-billy-goat

The Need

"I’m going to give an actual honest answer as someone who has not done this in many years… it becomes addicting."

anewchapteroflife

"Came here to say this. Back in my high school days, I would do it all the time. It's like a rush. Now my shoplifting days are when I forgot the can of soup on the bottom of the grocery cart and don't realize til I'm loading it in the car."

TheRumpleForesk1n

"I used to work in loss prevention. A lot of times we would let you go; especially teenagers. We knew you would be back and have pictures on the wall of you. We focused on shoplifting rings with a higher dollar amount and employees. Employees rob you blind."

taco_cop

The Hit

"I was greedy and had poor impulse control. While shoplifting was terrifying... having the shiny new thing after gave me a dopamine hit. I got caught three or four times and I thank Christ I was under 18 each and every time."

happyele

"It was less about greed for me I think, I've never been addicted to any drugs, whenever I got caught I would always test negative for anything, the custody sergeant who would take my fingerprints/DNA/drug swab would say 'Sean you're the only one that comes in regular that's not on any drugs, what's going on?' I explained that I was homeless, lost my job because the company I worked for folded, and life just kicked me in the butt."

"Flirty Chez I called her, and she would always give me extra food whenever I was brought in, I just thought that was how she was, then one day she said I need a girlfriend and I shot her down, no more flirty Chez. She was shooting her shot and I rejected her without even knowing it."

hardcoresean84

Exchanges

"Much to my mom’s embarrassment, I was a serial shoplifter as a baby. At least I had the presence of mind to take off my socks and shoes and leave them scattered around the store in exchange."

UsualFrogFriendship

"I was once on a camping trip with my parents. We left the campsite for a day and when we got back our soap had been stolen from the tent. Just our soap, nothing else was taken, but we did find the shoes of the perpetrator!"

"This kid left them right at the entrance of our tent, so it was not difficult to find out who did it. When we went to get the soap back and give him back his shoes, sadly the kid threw it over a fence, so we never got it back."

ptbroeke

Influences

Breaking Bad Crying GIFGiphy

"My easily influenced mind was corrupted by TV. If it's good enough for Marie Schrader then it's good enough for me."

DavosLostFingers

TV rots your brains and decision making capabilities.

Do the opposite of your favorite characters.

End of Times

Nbc Shoplifting GIF by SuperstoreGiphy

"When I was bedridden due to Covid, I had a friend who shoplifted a whole damn box worth of medicine from different drugstores."

"I was very impressed and confused, as I didn't ask for it. Great friend though!"

pepper-blu

Criminals

"As a former loss prevention officer, most of the people I stopped were stealing to resell the items. Many people were clearly drug addicts and many people I stopped had meth and other drugs on them. Not every shoplifter is stealing to buy drugs, but a ton of them are."

"A lot of other people just stole items they wanted, and some people just have a stealing problem and would take whatever random BS they came across and thought would be easy to steal. If I ever saw someone stealing food I'd usually look the other way, but that was pretty rare to see someone taking food, it was usually clothes, electronics, makeup, or tools."

BigBudZombie

The Rush

"Addiction. And that's addiction to shoplifting, not drugs. It's a rush. Confidence grows with each success. It becomes an obsession. It brings an amount of power when stealing from giant corporations. For me, this question is similar to asking an addict why they are addicted to drugs or alcohol."

"I haven't shoplifted in three years. I attended Shoplifters Anonymous and continue to go to therapy which are both very helpful. I'm very lucky I didn't lose everything."

tacoterrarium

Self-Control

"In high school, I dated this guy who would shoplift and I got influenced to start doing it. After we broke up I kept doing it all throughout college since I was a broke college student who had no self-control. I only shoplifted from big retail stores and told myself it was 'okay.' Post college I stopped because the possible consequences as an adult and to my career were not worth it."

isatacobelle

There was no good in it

"I used to do it as a means to support my drug habit. I wouldn't call what I was doing shoplifting though. I moved the volume and high-end merchandise. Honda generators from Home Depot or Lowe's. Shopping carts full of Tide pods, and Similac baby formula. I'd hit Nordstrom during the holidays for their perfumes and colognes. COACH, Burberry for purses."

"I made a good chunk of change from it, yet I was still homeless. Most of my money went to drugs, and hotel rooms at shi**y hotels. I'm no longer like this. I reached out and went to rehab this past July. I now have 132 days clean and sober, and work an honest job. My life's boring as hell now and I love it. Even though people on the street complimented and applauded my skills."

"I was never proud of myself for any of the stealing I was doing. There was no good in it. Now I feel good about myself and can be proud of what I do. It's a nice feeling to go into a store and not have to be aware of my surroundings and not tighten up when the greeters ask for a receipt. Because now, I can happily show them one. Lol."

Crotch-Monster

Think First

Steve Austin Wrestling GIF by WWEGiphy

"I work for a 3-letter retail store in NV and we have a ton of theft. I see a lot of random products for sale on the FB marketplace. If it adds up to over $1,200 it’s grand larceny and you get arrested."

"Walmart also allows up to a certain amount to be returned with no receipt and you get cash back."

samisalwaysmad

What have we learned kids?

Theft never really pays.

Do you have any experiences? Let us know in the comments below.

shoplift

The Absolute Weirdest Questions People Have Been Asked In A Job Interview

job interview
Van Tay Media on Unsplash

I once burst out laughing during a job interview.

It was for an internal position so I knew all of the interviewers well, but even if I hadn't I doubt I could have kept a straight face.

What cracked me up?

This interview question:

"If I attended a backyard BBQ with your last boss, what do you think they'd say about you?"

After I stopped laughing,

I told the interviewer—who happened to be my then boss' boss:

"I'm sorry, but that sounds like a question from the Miss America Pageant."

The interview panel got a laugh out of that. And yes, I did answer the question.

So what odd, absurd or just plain strange interview questions have people gotten?

Keep reading...Show less
work

Gifts People Really Want For Christmas But Know No One Is Going To Get Them

Christmas stockings
Photo by Donna Spearman on Unsplash

The holiday season is lovely, but it's full of pressure to travel, plan, host, and of course, get gifts for a lot of people.

But the thing we don't really talk about is how common it is to want something specific and to not have someone in our life who tries to seek out what that thing is.

Unless we get it for ourselves, it's common that we won't get what we actually want.

Redditor GeneralSpectatorTots asked:

"What do you want for Christmas that you know you aren't going to get?"

​Sobriety 

"My brother to be sober and happy."

- whatwhatwhat82

"I’m also trying to get sober. I wish your brother well. Keep being a support to him."

- Keri2816

A New Home

"A house deposit."

- WolfGirl_4

"A house deposit? Just gift you a house!"

- Grenflik

A Financial Advantage

"A winning lottery ticket."

- Krem541

"Every year I ask Santa. Every f**king year."

- kuchikopi626

Grandma's Homecooked Meals

"One last meal from my grandma. She made the best food, and of course, you don't know the last time is going to be the last time until it's too late."

- fakefishy

Family Love

"Love from my parents."

- bub_501

"This mom is sending you a long hug."

- hippocampus237

A Professional Massage

"A gift certificate for a professional massage. I can't bring myself to spend the money on myself. I need to just bite the bullet and do it."

"I have asked for one every year for years. Sometimes it's the only thing I ask for from my parents and my partner (when they ask what I want)."

"I always get wonderful gifts that I love, use, and/or needed but I REALLY WANT A F**KING MASSAGE."

- agbmom

The Best Neighbor

"A card from my twin brother saying, 'Just kidding, I’m not moving to Washington, I actually found a place in your neighborhood!'"

- insertcaffeine

Very Important Things

"Free Healthcare and a good used car for my husband."

- Sufficient_Letter883

The End to Ableism

"Independence and not being infantilized because I’m a 37-year-old disabled woman and no one in my family understands (extended family who all live within 10 mins of me)."

- Keri2816

World Travel

"Guilt-free travel! It's like asking for a never-ending vacation. How I wish I could just hop around the world without worrying about a thing!"

- KayleNewirk

Sounds Like Paradise

"A pretty, and big apartment for me and my cat."

- cats-autumn

"For my cat to let me sleep through the night."

- Cheese_BasedLifeform

Moving Solutions

"A stress-free move, with eight days between closings of two houses four states apart, and four pets to manage in temporary housing. Help me, Santa, I’ve been a good girl."

- Kind-Dust7441

Ready To Be Done!

"For my doctoral capstone paper to finally be approved so I can be done with school! Please, please, Santa, I’m on rewrite 19!"

- TomatilloNo4213

Two Front Teeth

"My two front teeth... My two front teeth."

"But seriously, teeth."

"Mine are all falling out due to an autoimmune disease, and I need implants."

- donkeybrainz13

The Perfect Partner

"A partner to go on adventures with… have singalongs with… and who adores and truly sees me."

- miaoouu

While we may have been expecting some silly responses, or even for someone to finally buy the right brand of a favorite candle or lotion or makeup, these responses were a great reminder of what's really important.

And unfortunately, many of the most important things can't be replaced or fit into a Christmas stocking.

christmas

People Imagine How They'd React If Their Ex Showed Up At Their Door

Person holding bouquet of flowers
Carrie Beth Williams/Unsplash

Breaking up is hard to do no matter who initiated it.

But once time has passed and exes have moved on, the healing process can be jarred by a surprise.

A regretfilled person may try and make contact with the one they broke up with and ask for forgiveness, or the person who had their heart broken could also reappear and plead for a fresh new start.

The outcome depends on how much, or how little, the spark of love remains.

Curious to hear more of this scenario from strangers online, Redditor XenaVonKeksdose asked:

"What would you say to your ex if they suddenly showed up at your door?"

For these Redditors, it wouldn't be a happy reunion.

Either, Or

"It ranges from 'come on in and make yourself comfortable' to 'get the f'k out of here' , depending on which one shows up."

– Lone_Buck

"Odds of it being the one who got away: low."

"Odds of it being the one who took 5 years to understand what 'f'k off' meant: pretty high."

– liquid_acid-OG

It's A Nightmare

"Screaming. They've passed."

– BigGrayBeast

"Similar situation here. I did have a dream that my late wife showed up at my door. She said, 'There was a mix up at the coroner, you wouldn’t believe what I’ve been through.”'

"Still in the dream we talked for a bit about nothing. Then I said, 'Wait, what about the life insurance, do we have to pay it back?' And just after that I woke up."

– AnonEMoussie

No Thanks

"Nah"

"Slowly closes the door while maintaining eye contact."

"Also aggressively locks the door."

– SnooCats7666

"raises drawbridge."

– lunalives

Some would show traces of resentment.

Unwelcome

"The f'k do you want? And how did you get this address?"

– s73v3m4nn

"wtf ffs"

– zxr7

Too Little Too Late

"You couldn't put in effort in messaging me, but you have effort now to see me months after we break up‽"

– ShyTerraWolf

"Wait, if you’re here who’s running hell?”

– So__bored

"Who’s guarding HADES."

– Boostio_TV

Hit 'Em Where It Hurts

"I lost weight... You seem to have found it."

– elmo-1959

"now get the f'k off my lawn."

– starkresilient

"Savage."

– 20190229

Others shared less bitter responses.

Coming Clean

"Honestly, I apologize. I know dealing with my prior alcoholism must have been a nightmare. I regret causing you and anyone else pain and hope you are happy. I am a year into sobriety and can understand why it ended. I wish you well."

"Edit: Since this is getting so much traction, I just want to say thanks for all the support. This could honestly be directed at a few of my exes. I am happily married now to someone that also got a taste of my drinking. We stuck it out while I got sober and I have to credit her with being an amazing support system. I also need to shout out r/stopdrinking for providing reinforcement on a daily basis. It is a great community. Naltrexone was also a major part of it. I can't change the past but I think I have a much better hold on the future."

– vivazeta

Someone That I Used To Know

"I've been married for almost 25 years, I don't know if I would even recognize any exes."

– 4a4a

"Yep. That person went from 'ex' to 'someone I once dated' years ago."

– ktwhite42

Expressing Regrets

"I'm sorry for the way I treated you."

– warlordwinters

"Good on you for growing."

– Zealousideal_Ad_7465

Catching Up

"I’d say hello! What are you doing here? It has been a long time."

– ExaminationLucky6082

Wish You Well

"A lot of snarky or comical answers in here, but I'll try to be as sincere as I can."

"My first major ex, first time I got my heart broken: I would sincerely hope that she's doing well. She broke my heart, but it was for the best and it made me into the man I am today. I don't want to think of how much worse I would be if she hadn't given me a reality check wake-up-call. So really just 'Hey, how have you been? I hope the years have been kind to you.'"

"My most recent ex, the first and only time I've had to break someone's heart: I honestly just hope that she can forgive me for having to make taking care of myself and my needs the priority in my life. She's an amazing woman, kindergarten school teacher, unanimously adored by everyone that meets her. But we met via travels, and lived in two different states. Circumstances shifted and seeing each other became much less frequent. Neither of us wanted to quit our jobs and chuck a grenade into our lives and careers. Eventually, for my own mental and emotional health, I had to call it. I truly hope she finds someone amazing, she deserves it. So I would just sincerely hope that she understands, and has moved on."

– obaterista93

I once showed up at an exes door after I broke up with him about a month prior.

I genuinely loved and missed him after making the very difficult decision to end things due to conflicting circumstances that kept us from maintaining a healthy relationship.

But I quickly learned that if you did the breaking up, you should respect the other person's space for a respectable amount of time.

I went to visit him at the apartment where we lived together and a new lover answered the door for him after there was a long period of giggles and lots of feet shuffling from behind the door.

Clearly, he was doing just fine.

Of course, I wasn't welcomed in and was asked what I wanted, to which I had no answer but, "do you have any mail for me?"

dating