The police pull up and immediately people tense. They start trying to act "normal," as if what they were doing is somehow a crime.
The police must roll their eyes at us doing these "normal" tasks all the time. And they know full well it's because they're right there.
u/Snnackss asked:
Here were some of those answers.
Always A Bigger Fish
My dad and I both work for the same PD, this is his story not mine. The shift before he had a guy detained for misdemeanor warrants or something. Some junkie comes walking down the road, sees the flashing lights and a cop next to a open back door. He empties his pockets dumping a pipe, needles, and 5 grams of drugs on the hood of his patrol car. He then spreads his legs and puts his hands on the car. My dad was shocked, let the other guy in the back go and took in the guy who just handed over his drugs. Apparently not sleeping for 3 days makes you paranoid.
Broken Time
May be too late, but one day I was headed to my station at the end of shift (meaning I stare straight ahead and avoid getting any paperwork to make me stay late) I happened to be behind the same car for maybe 2 miles on the same road. We're sitting at a red light and out of nowhere this dude runs it.
Everyone at the intersection looks at me so of course I stop the dude. Make contact and he can barely hand me his license he's shaking so bad from being nervous. Ask why he's so scared and he says he saw me behind him and he's on diversion... For running a red light. Also ends up having weed in the car.
Siphoning Gas
Partner and I pull up at Taco Bell to grab lunch. Notice this dude near a work truck looking kinda shifty, but he's standing next to another dude and both are wearing the same company logo.
I pretty much ignore him, however I realized I left my wallet back in the car. When I turn around the dude is nowhere to be seen. He hasn't bolted, parking lot is too big and we would see him.
At this point it has piqued my interest and I walk towards the truck, all the while the other dude is just standing there shaking his head. Turns out this idiot is on his stomach trying to crawl under the truck because he thinks we are there for him.
Bewildered, we detain the dude for a moment. We quickly find out he has no outstanding warrants, but instead was guilty of something stupidly minor. He used some of the gas from one of the company cars for his personal vehicle and he thought his boss knew.
Dude ruined his work shirt, got called an idiot by his coworker, and didn't even get away- for no reason.
Flagrant Flatulence
Not a police officer but...
My dad was driving (with Me, my brother, my mum and the cat in the carrier) to our new house but he didn't put his seatbelt on because he was stressed or something. Then a police car drove over and asked dad 'guess why I pulled you over'. My dad was really nervous and farted loudly, turned around, and blamed it on the cat. The police officer was hysterical and told him to put his seatbelt on and laughed hysterically while driving off.
Drying My Hair
My neighbor's kid used to put on mirrored sunglasses, sit in the driver's seat of their parked SUV, and point a hair dryer out the window so he could keep score of how many speeders slammed on the brakes.
Drivers Ain't Got Nothing
Not a cop but I used to work as an EMT. Drivers who were speeding would sometimes slow down when they would see my ambulance like I could pull them over or something. Even with no lights or sirens on. I always thought that was hilarious.
Also, when running lights and sirens, instead of moving over and letting my ambulance pass, some idiots would slam on their brakes before moving to the side when I came up behind them, forcing me to slam on my brakes. Never do this.
Skiing Skills
One time my brother, my dad, and I tied a water skiing rope to the back of our car during some heavy snowfall. We then towed my brother behind the car through the neighborhood on his skis sometime around midnight (so there'd be no traffic, and what few people were out were laughing their butts off) with me in the back seat acting as spotter in case he fell down or stopped.
And one point while driving up a hill we see police lights up ahead, at which point my brother drops the rope and uses his remaining momentum to go down an alley that's going downhill. Thing is that alley was FILLED with crazy potholes, so there's my brother putting his ski racing skills to use avoiding potholes instead of gates.
Teenage Boy Stuff
Not a cop, but I like to go out at night and basically mess around and do stupid stuff like put on a light up helmet and have friends push me around in a shopping cart. Teenage boy stuff. I don't drink or smoke or vape or anything but I've always been worried that some cop is gonna see me doing this and test me for like drugs or alcohol or something and I'll come out clean. What would he even do then? Is there a protocol for clean, sober kid acting like a jerk in a CVS parking lot?
Psychological Coping
GiphyIn probation people would always answer the door with armloads of cleaning supplies or holding a broom or a mop or something when they very clearly had not been cleaning. I think its a sort of psychological coping mechanism for the embarrassment of having strangers show up with the authority to inspect your house if they desire.
Back To The Financial Future
GiphyDaughter of a cop: My dad pulled next to a DeLorean at a red light and started having a little chit chat. My dad, being the classic white guy punny dad, trying to be funny asked "So what happens when you reach 88 miles?" And with out hesitation what so ever, he responds "I get a ticket."
Redditor SpaceHubYT was eager to hear the most terrifying things people woke up to in the middle of the night, leading them to ask:
"What’s the scariest thing you’ve woken up to in the middle of the night?"
Keeping an extra close eye...hopefully?
"My grandmother just standing there in the dark by my bed, quietly wringing her hands and staring at me."- fryinpaskettimobster
Terrifying no matter when
"My mom saying I needed to get up and go with the cop."- abletable342
An experience no one deserves
"My mom screaming up the stairs 'get out of the house now!!!' and my brother swinging my door open to get us out."
"The house was on fire."- stoneytopaz
One hundred little fingers...
"Centipede crawling on my face."
"I still shiver thinking about when that happened."- Slight_Librarian_399
Bug Insect GIF by AquariumMeGiphyA lesson well learned?
"A cop walking into my Airbnb at 4am in Tennessee."
"Somehow he had the code and just.. walked in."
"I was sleeping on the couch right near the front door."
"He yelled at me and asked my name and what I was doing there."
"I was dazed and said 'ugh, I’m sleeping here man' and he’s like 'we were called about a B n E at this address'." - Reddit
"And I said 'I dunno man' and he was like 'well, sorry to disturb you'."
"And he walked out."
"Found out later that the call came In from a different address and the cop still had the door code from a previous call that was put in at this building before."
"This is where I learned if someone breaks in to where I’m sleeping In the middle of the night, I ain’t gonna do sh*t."
"My reaction time is about 5 minutes."- ReferHvacGuy
Sharing a midnight snack?
"Cat dropping a giant a** spider on my chest, then giant spider disappearing in my panic."- lady_of_the_lac
attack spider GIFGiphyOne can only imagine...
"My wife sitting straight up out of bed and screaming while pointing down the hallway."
"She talks in her sleep, usually it’s hilarious."
"That time it was not."- BrotherOfTheOrder
Nature's alarm clock
"8.8 Richter scale earthquake at 3am."- sparkdaniel
There's a first time for literally everything.
"Lived in an old building in NYC."
"Had a neighbor across the hall that would seldom have night terrors."
"1st time it happened, it was about 4am and I was pretty sure she was getting murdered from the piercing screaming and loud thumps from her flailing around and the sound of glass breaking."
"I grabbed a meat cleaver and went into the hallway in my underwear to see that everyone else in the building was also awake and poking their heads out into the hallway wondering what to do."
"Me and 2 other neighbors eventually knocked on her door and when she answered she looked pale like a ghost and was dripping in sweat."
"She didn't remember any of it, apologized and explained to us her condition."
"That was some blood curdling sh*t."
"She was very apologetic about it and bought us all six packs of beer for freaking us out."
"Me and the two neighbors that decided to take action were all 100% sure that she was getting murdered at that moment."
"I lived there for 2 years and I think she only had 2 episodes during that time."- azninvasion2000
Be it over nothing, or something incredibly serious, being woken up at all hours of the morning is never a pleasant experience.
As the place everyone should always feel safest of all, is in the comfort of their own bed.
Everyone always harps on the importance of first impressions.
But we also need to pay attention to all that follows.
I'm starting to believe a first impression can be a great fake-out.
People will allow their true colors to shine over time.
Redditor Xanax_Sprite wanted everyone to open up about what things people can do that immediately change one's opinion of a person's character, not for the better.
"What immediately makes you think less of someone?"
It's entirely too easy to turn me off. I admit, it's an issue. Maybe that's a thing people suddenly dislike about me.
Bad Behavior
rude bon qui qui GIFGiphy"Intentional embarrassment. When someone brings something up in front of a group to humiliate someone else."
mr_xen_
Man Up
"Not taking responsibility for their actions."
DragonVash
"Even worse. people who make excuses for their mistakes, no matter how bluntly you point it out to them that this is their shortcoming. Man up and admit you make a mistake. Stop telling me A happened then B happened so C happened. we are here to work, not tell each other make believe stories."
Chomusuke_99
Be Quiet
"Someone who interrupts a serious conversation to make it about them."
-Zuine-
"Being subject to that infuriating s**t was what eventually inspired me to listen to people more, especially regarding heavier topics. Sometimes people just need to be heard and held, and it isn't fair for them to expose their vulnerabilities only to have you dismiss them by trying to make their suffering about you."
I_Consume_Shampoo
Where are they?
"How they speak about a person who is not present in the conversation."
weirdlikenick
"One of the most important lessons my father taught me..."
"Don't speak about a person if they're not in the room."
"They don't have a representative in the room and especially if your words get back to them and they can't say 'I know, he already had that convo with me.' I've earned a rep for not speaking behind people's backs to the point where when someone claimed I did, that person called them a liar. Pops sucked but I thank him for that lesson."
thatswhatshesaidxx
Be Consistent
Jennifer Lawrence Reaction GIFGiphy"Hypocrites."
silentsurge95
"100. People can change their opinions, but not flip flop regularly."
0rd0abCha0
I can't with hypocrites. My life's biggest pet peeve.
Be clean
Season 4 Episode 22 GIF by The SimpsonsGiphy"Littering."
Miniturbo23
"Yep, had a coworker once who spit on the floor inside."
"It was a warehouse-type building, but still. This particular guy also left cigarette butts on the floor inside and dumped a dog on the business property. Needless to say, he didn't last long here. Some people are just really rude and stupid."
UnderstatedEssence
Say Sorry
"Had a friend who never, ever apologized for anything or really took any responsibility. Even in situations which were funny and non-serious, he’d always talk his a** out of it (in a jokey matter). But when some s**t hit the fan, that guy turned into one of the scariest, manipulative and aggressive people I’ve met that would rather die than take accountability for the things he’s done."
"And for which there were many witnesses and evidence against him. Moral of the story, if you know someone who won’t say sorry or admit they did something wrong for even the least serious things, run, because when they actually do something seriously bad it’s just gonna get real ugly."
confused-girly
Face 2 Face
"Lying to my face. There’s no going back in my eyes because I will never trust you. Secrets are fine and dandy. That’s not quite the same as straight up lying. A direct example is people lying about their family dying to get out of work or when this older woman in her 40’s tried to lie about cleaning up her work station when she left it for me to clean."
brazosandbosque
“as a joke”
"Being mean to animals."
Catatonia86
"Even when people joke about being mean to animals. I have a cat I love dearly and the number of comments I get about harming cats because people don’t like them 'as a joke' is infuriating and not funny, Ken."
indiscreetraven
"I include poorly training their pets in this. It’s neglect/negligence and it’s abuse."
baby_*itchface
Eyes Up
Call Me Lol GIF by Black PrezGiphy"When they’re looking at their phones, not paying any attention to you when you’re trying to have a conversation with them."
Beedalabupp
It doesn't take much to change an impression. Let's do better.