Police Officers Reveal Who They Wish They Could Let Go Free... But Couldn't

Police Officers Reveal Who They Wish They Could Let Go Free... But Couldn't
[rebelmouse-image 18358686 is_animated_gif=Cops are bound by the law, but sometimes, even they know the law can be ridiculous. Cops shared their stories of instances where they would have rather let someone go, but couldn't.
Submissions have been edited for clarity, context, and profanity.
Punishing poor kids is really cruel.
[rebelmouse-image 18358687 is_animated_gif=An old roommate was a police officer and once she had a shopkeeper detain a shoplifter.
When she got there it was a young kid, 11 or 12, stealing a carton of eggs and a couple boxes of cereal.
He looked totally malnourished and unwashed. She eventually got it out of him that he didn't have food at home.
She called social services, of course, but she asked the shopkeeper to just let the kid go so he could deal with CPS without this added stress or a spot on an otherwise clean record.
The shopkeeper insisted. Wouldn't let up. She didn't know what happened to the kid after that but didn't think it could be anything good.
Sounds like Sarge was on a power trip.
[rebelmouse-image 18358688 is_animated_gif=Found a couple homeless teenagers in a park after dark (which is illegal in my area). They had bicycles and a trailer with them. One of them lied about his name because he had a warrant and I arrested him when I figured out who he was. The second was chill the whole time. Didn't lie and wasn't a problem. I was going to cut him loose.
My Sergeant shows up and notices that the park has some graffiti on the tables and accuses the chill kid of doing it. The graffiti wasn't wet. The kid said he didn't do it but he still had art materials in his bag. Some markers and a sketchbook. The Sergeant made me take the markers and book as "evidence." The kid says, "Dude!! That is my only art outlet and the only thing that makes me happy right now!" The sergeant didn't care. I had to follow orders. Sometimes the job just sucks.
This sucks, for everyone involved.
[rebelmouse-image 18344885 is_animated_gif=I got a call once to a Burger King and it was an anonymous tip that someone there had a warrant. Ran the info given by the caller and confirmed the warrant. Arrived at the Burger King and found the guy. Talked to him and asked if he knew he had a warrant. She said he didn't think he did. Normally I'd be like "yeah sure ok dude" but this guy was super nice and literally only been at Burger King for like 5 minutes on his lunch break. The warrant wound up being l 3 or 4-year-old probation warrant but because it was still active I had to take him to jail. I felt really bad about doing it to him since he was genuinely taking steps in the right direction to turn his life around and STILL wound up going to jail.
Tragic, but there is no excuse to drive drunk. Ever.
[rebelmouse-image 18358689 is_animated_gif=LE here. One time I arrested a girl for DUI around 8 or 9 in the morning, she put her car into a ditch. After I placed her under arrest, I found out that the reason she decided to drive drunk was to get away from a house party where she may have been sexually assaulted/raped. Why she didn't call someone to pick her up, I don't know. Maybe she felt like had to leave right away. I processed her for DUI and released her to her mother. I encouraged the mother to take her to the hospital and file a report with the sheriff's office (happened in the county). Not sure what legally happened to her. It would have been up to the prosecutor to reduce/drop charges for the DUI.
Have you ever been so high that you... busted yourself?
[rebelmouse-image 18358690 is_animated_gif=My uncle is a university campus cop. Super friendly, goofy, funny guy. When I think of him I think of rambunctious card games, cliff jumping, and him pinning me down to fart on me. As such, he got the nickname, Officer Friendly.
One time he caught a student smoking a joint on campus and as per his job asked him to hand it over.
He expected the guy to hand over the joint, but the guy just started walking. My uncle followed the guy not knowing what was up. The guy kept walking to the university residence, inside, and up to his room.
He handed over two ounces of weed.
Here, an ounce or more is considered trafficking.
My uncle wasn't even planning to write this kid up, just wanted him to stop smoking obviously in the middle of campus, but at that about had to bust him for a trafficking level amount.
This blows.
[rebelmouse-image 18358691 is_animated_gif=Was assigned to the ship's security force while stationed on an aircraft carrier 8-9 years ago. Was on the night shift, alongside my assigned partner, conductive a usual rove through our patrol zone of the ship.
When we heard a noise coming from one of the weather decks, we went to go investigate and I found one of the guys I knew from my division, standing with his head sort of leaned back. Seeing the beam from my flashlight, he looked up suddenly with an "Oh s*" look on his face, a split second before a woman's head raised into view.
The Captain had a standing rule of no sexual activity onboard the ship, which I never agreed with, so any time I caught people getting frisky, I would just tell them to finish up and not get caught again.
That night wasn't going to be an exception, however, the person I was partnered up with that night was a guy I never really liked, that also had a major hardon for the rules. So, it was either take them both down and get their statements or have my partner rat me out for letting them slide on disobeying a standing order.
They both ended up getting sent to the Captain for non judicial punishment, resulting in the both of them being put on restriction, along with him getting busted down two pay grades (he had put on Petty Officer Second Class recently, but was not yet given the actual pay grade: we call this frocking) and since he was married; the Captain made him call his wife to tell her why he was getting busted down.
I didn't know he was married, and finding that out alleviated the negative feeling I had about having to take him in for it. I did find it kind of s*ty that the woman, while she also went on restriction, got to keep her rank.
What is this, amateur hour?
[rebelmouse-image 18358692 is_animated_gif=I had pulled a man over for speeding, nothing major just about 9 over. He was super cool, very apologetic, just a nice guy in general. However, as I was writing his warning, I spotted a small baggy laying on the passenger side floorboard with what appeared to be cocaine in it. Can't let that one go. Sorry man, wish you could've hidden it a little better.
EDIT: I didn't mention this fact, I had a body cam on, pretty critical to the story.
A downside to body cameras - you're less likely to catch a break.
[rebelmouse-image 18358694 is_animated_gif=Body cameras have changed how we operate, big time. I LOVE them and record far more than policy dictates but they do diminish our ability to make decisions based on circumstances. For instance, a couple weeks ago I handled a simple shoplifter. He was homeless and genuinely seemed like a decent guy stealing things he needed to survive. However, the entire encounter was on body camera. How can I justify not taking one shoplifter to jail, then turning around and taking the next? How do I know their personal circumstances?
Make no mistake that attorneys are requesting our body camera footage for everything we do. The fear of finding discrepancies in how we handle situations is real. There are less "breaks" given now and if you give one, it better be consistent to everyone who violates the same law.
In the end, I still prefer to record everything and will take that loss of discretion in getting sued.
Edit - thank you all for the kind words and excellent discussion! Also for the gold! I just started my 12-hour shift so I'm having trouble keeping up with comments. Trying to do so between calls!
A positive outcome to an otherwise very sad story.
[rebelmouse-image 18358696 is_animated_gif=This thread is already so old and I know this is going to get buried but I have to share this story anyways. Years ago I took a law enforcement class and was told this story by the officer it took place too.
Around 2 in the morning or whatever, right before this Officer was supposed to get off of his shift he pulls this lady over, obvious DUI. OBVIOUS. He grabs her license and stuff and she literally lives like a block over. It's late, he doesn't really want to deal with the paperwork and says "Look, I will just give you a ticket if you can get someone to take you and your car home." Lady was not having it, she said she had no one, there was no one who could take her.
He continued asking, pleading almost. Feeling almost bad for this poor woman who he described as an emotional wreck but she didn't budge. She said she was divorced, knew none of her neighbors and her 18-year-old son had literally DIED the night before and that's why she was drinking herself into oblivion.
The officer was stumped. He had no idea what to do, he couldn't book this lady. He told her one moment and started heading back to his car, he looked behind him to see her pull something from her bag. He ran back to her as she SLIT HER THROAT with a little knife she had in her bag.
He said luckily it wasn't a bad cut and he was able to stop the bleeding while he waited for the ambulance to arrive. Apparently, that lady called him a few weeks later and had apologized, and said she could never repay him for saving her life that night.???????
Run from the cops, you'll have a bad time.
[rebelmouse-image 18345155 is_animated_gif=I'm not a police officer, but I was an Urban Park Ranger in NYC for 5 years. Most of our job was environmental education but we did some law enforcement, mostly at the end of the fiscal year when the parks department would hand out overtime to run out the budget.
So anyways we were kicking kids out of the park at night. They were getting drunk and acting up so we were trying to end the problems before they got bigger. So there was this goofy kid that we saw hide something in a planting. I got out of the truck to approach him and he took off. I chased him, caught him, and handcuffed him. We put him in the back of the truck while my partner looked for what we thought was a bag of weed.
For the record, had he not run from me we probably would have just sent him home, but we were out there to do a job and we needed to show results.
So I'm in the truck with this jerk-off and he starts losing it, telling me there's nothing to find and he didn't hide anything. Meanwhile, my partner can't find anything. I can see that this kid wasn't one of the cool kids (because I was never one of the cool kids) and he's been acting like an idiot to fit in. But I have to do my job here. So I start trying to calm him down, asking him a bunch of dumb questions, which he fumbles through.
Finally, I ask him "is my Sergeant at least looking under the right tree?"
"No, it's the other tree"
"So what's he looking for?"
There's a blank stare on his face...."f_ck"
So I tell my partner to check under the other tree. He finds...
A single bottle of Twisted Tea.
I uncuffed the kid. "Get the fuck out of my truck and go home, you f_cking jerk-off"
When mental illness is treated as a crime...
[rebelmouse-image 18358698 is_animated_gif=Obligatory, not a cop comment (I'm sorry), but I am a criminal defense attorney. And I have to be vague about this, because of privilege.
I had a client who charged with public intox, but this person was not drunk, just off their meds and manic. I watched all the body cam footage. Five cops responded, and all but one wanted to book my client in on more serious charges. The one who didn't straight up said "I am not comfortable taking this person to jail. They need to go to the hospital." A supervisor was called in and overruled him, telling all the cops there to book client in on 3 serious charges, one of which was a felony.
The one cop recognized the situation for what it was, and literally took my client out of another cop's car, and booked them into jail like he was told, but booked them in on public intox because he knew it was the most minor offense he possibly could. And his report made it very clear what he thought about the whole thing, which made my end and dealing with the DA wayyyy easier. I respect the hell out of him.
No good deed goes unpunished.
[rebelmouse-image 18358699 is_animated_gif=Guy was brought into the station by the German police in handcuffs. I was told to fill out the paperwork and advise the guy of his rights. He'd been busted for DUI.
It was New Year's Eve and his neighborhood was having a party. He witnessed a female at the party being harassed and verbally abused by her husband. He tried to intervene but the husband wouldn't back off. All the MPs were tied up. He tried calling a cab and no one was available. And everyone at the party was blitzed. So despite having had a few drinks, he took it upon himself to just drive the woman back to her home, on the other side of the neighborhood.
In that very short distance, he got pulled over by the Polizei and arrested. Essentially it was all just a good deed gone wrong.
I had to read him his rights, but I also strongly hinted that he waive them and write a statement about the events. He ended up not getting into too much trouble military-wise but still had the DUI on his record. I definitely felt bad for the guy
Edit: That's what I get for writing this then going to bed.
Sometimes getting arrested is actually good for you.
[rebelmouse-image 18358700 is_animated_gif=Same thing as a few of the above. We were getting tons of calls about an individual that had run into a bunch of cars, drove up on the sidewalk etc. It wasn't just one call, and there were multiple accidents caused by this guy.
Well, it turns out he was a Gunny Sgt in the Marine Corps, having just gotten back from combat.
I knew he was struggling and could see the pain in his eyes. All I wanted to do was let him go, and drive him somewhere. The problem is, he had been in multiple accidents, ran over property and everyone in the world was calling.
It was not possible for me to let him go.
Unfortunately, a few weeks later, I checked in on his info and found he had just done the same thing..... again. M
EDIT TO CLARIFY Some people assume I just wanted to "let him go" in the sense that nothing happen to him. That's ridiculous. I myself have been through several Critical Incidents on this job that have about destroyed me. They have changed my life and my families forever.
As I understand some of the trauma he was probably feeling, it would have been so much better had I been able NOT TO ARREST HIM, and take him to a facility to get help with his trauma.
The taboo problem that I'm working to change in Military and Law Enforcement is the following. We don't know how to ask for help because the public and the media make it taboo to ask for help when we go through these traumatic experiences.
Reminder: The TSA cares about weapons and bombs, not weed. Best not push your luck, though.
[rebelmouse-image 18358701 is_animated_gif=Former TSA here:
Every checkpoint I ever worked did NOT want to find your pot. Pot was a ton of paperwork, and we were not authorized to arrest, detain, or get credit for finding pot. We had to call airport police, who then came and took credit for all the work we'd done finding your poorly hidden pot. All TSA cares about is blades and bombs. I had to rerun a bag 6 times to get all 13 lighters out of it, but my supervisor didn't want to know about any plant matter in ziplocks. Exception: we did stop the passenger with a syringe inside her teddy bear because it was creepy.
Sometimes a polite apology can be a saving grace.
[rebelmouse-image 18358702 is_animated_gif=My dad used to tell us that if he ever pulled someone over and they said "what can I say? You got me" he'd let them go (this was probably also depending on the offense, I assume) Nobody ever said it.
He'd tell stories of people who'd say "what can I say?" And he'd be waiting for the next part but it never came, so he didn't let them go because they didn't say it fully.
Edit: I've had a few people ask if this is a reference to anything. As far as I'm aware, it's not. I asked his best mate just now, who knew his obscure references. It was just his own little thing, not a reference.
Edit 2: More people have suggested Breaking Bad. Dad never watched it and he'd resigned from the job in 1999, long before the show came out
Word to the wise: don't be a jerk.
[rebelmouse-image 18358703 is_animated_gif=When I was an officer, I pretty much just gave tickets for serious offenses. Like doing 50 in a 25 zone or running red lights. But if someone was just an a**wipe? they got a ticket regardless of if I was originally letting them go on a warning. I never gave citations for crap offenses like jaywalking and noise violations, just warnings.
EDIT 1- about getting off with a warning? There is a lot that goes into this one. When you get pulled over, the officer is going to get a copy of your driving record. If you have previous violations? Your kind of up a creek unless you can talk your way out of it. If your record shows that you are not learning safety and the rules of the road? Then the way most people look at it is that hopefully one day you will. So they don't feel sorry for you. But, If he pulls up your record and you haven't had a ticket in a long time or never? then he doesn't want to be the one to mark you.
Believe it or not, most cops think arresting people for small amounts of weed is ridiculous.
[rebelmouse-image 18358704 is_animated_gif=First, some information: In Texas, any "usable" amount of marihuana under 2oz is a Class B misdemeanor. The Code of Criminal Procedure allows police to issue citations (in lieu of arrest) for both Class B and Class A amounts of marihuana if the person resides in the county of the offense. However, my DA's office is stuck in the 70s so they don't allow this.
Personally, as long as you're not driving under the influence, I don't care. So if I eyeball it and it appears to be around 3 grams or less, I'll take it and any paraphernalia you have and simply write a Class C paraphernalia ticket and cut you loose. However, one of my former supervisors has a f_cking hard-on for busting people for weed. So any time he happened to roll by during one of those stops where I found my 'paraphernalia' amount, he would make me arrest instead.
It's not breaking any laws or unethical (because in Texas it is illegal to possess), but I really hated the few times I had to do that. And now with body cameras and our policy being, they have to stay on, there's no more "stomp that out" or "throw it away."
Edit: For those wondering why I spell it "marihuana", it's because that's how our Health and Safety Code spells it (http://codes.findlaw.com/tx/health-and-safety-code/health-safety-sect-481-121.html).
When your hands are tied, but you do the right thing.
[rebelmouse-image 18358705 is_animated_gif=I worked 3rd shift for a City police dept, Had turned around at the city limits when I clocked a vehicle traveling 80+ mph coming towards me. I hit the lights and turned on it. Since I was leaving the city to catch him, and actually figured this was going to be a pursuit, it was policy to advise dispatch what was going on.
So grab the mic, "(badge number) Dispatch I just turned on a vehicle traveling 85 Eastbound out of the city"..... Stop the car, and it's a soldier, still in BDU's that had just got back from Iraq or Afghanistan ( i can't remember) THAT day and was headed home to see his family.
Did not want to write that ticket, told him I didn't want to write that ticket..... since I'd said that on the radio though, I had to write it. Told him to come to court, and I'd do what I could to get it dismissed. Talked to the judge, and at traffic court Judge dismissed his ticket and thanked him for his service.
Felt about 3 inches tall writing that dang ticket.
That's one way to get him out of the house...
[rebelmouse-image 18358706 is_animated_gif=Domestic incident.... husband and husband argue, one husband grabbed the other husband by the balls for whatever reason. Husband who did the grabbing admitted it. Husband who was assaulted wanted the other husband to leave the house for a few hours. Welp..... couldn't by law I had to make an arrest
Among the many reasons people watch, and rewatch, sitcoms is to imagine your life was more like the one you were watching.
Being able to afford a two-bedroom apartment in Greenwich Village on a line cook's salary, somehow always having the comfortable sofa available at your favorite coffee shop whenever you pop in, or having your best friends always available at your beck and call whenever you need them.
For the romantics, however, it's wishing you could have a romance like you've seen on television.
True not all sitcom romances are exactly the sort that makes you go all aflutter (Were Ross and Rachel actually on a break? And don't even get me started about Ted and Robin.)
Other sitcom couples are so captivating, though, that we would have given anything to be at their wedding... or at the very least go to their home for dinner every Friday.
And this includes plutonic couples, as there is nothing more heartwarming than a lasting friendship.
"What is the best couple in sitcom history?"
Creating An Even More Welcoming Community
"Troy and Abed. A couple of friends."- aghzombies
"They did grace the cover of Best Friends Weekly."- DwightsEgo
Sorry Amy...
"Peralta and Doug Judy."- DavosLostFingers
"Reunited and it feels so good 🎶."- Ghostenx
"PSYCH"!... No, Seriously...
"Shawn Spencer and Burton Guster."- dazedcap
"'I'm Black, he's Tan'."- CrueGuyRob
"Snap, Snap."
"The correct answer is Gomez and Morticia Addams."- Reddit
"They loved each other dearly. "
"They were completely enamored with each other, spent time with their kids, their family."
"Accepted everyone as they were."
"It wasn't til I was an adult That I realized married couples weren't meant to hate each other."
"My mother had many partners in my childhood, she's toxic and things were always chaotic."
"And watching 90s sitcoms, I thought married people were meant to hate each other, and I always wondered what the point was."- MissMurder8666
Overshadowed By Their Middle Child...
"Hal and Lois."- MrRocketman999
"As a husband, I don't think I can live up to Hal."
"He sort of sets a really high standard lol."
"He loves her like they are still in the honeymoon phase."
"So infatuated with her lol."- treathugger
A Better Couple? Many Would Say, "Knope"...
"Ben and Leslie."
"I' love you and I like you.'"
"Simple line, yet so powerful."- Radkeyoo
"Gruesome", But Adorable
"Frank and Charlie from Always Sunny in Philadelphia."
"The gruesome twosome."- Herr_Poopypants
The Parents Everyone Wished Were Theirs...
"Bob and Linda from 'Bobs burgers'."- shashybaws
"All of the Belchers have such great relationships with each other. "
"They're wholly accepting and supportive (even if they disagree)."
"They really love each other, and it shows."- SummerOfMayhem
UK Version Only, Of Course...
"Moss and Roy (The IT Crowd)."- pentapotamia
"'I'm your wife, Roy!'"- Summerof5ft6andahalf
"'If anything, I’m the husband!'"- pentapotamia
Afterlife Be Damned... Or not, Actually...
"Eleanor and Chidi from 'The Good Place.'"
"How can you beat two deeply flawed people who together make each other better over and over again?"- hotbimess
Ruining All Food For Viewers, One Food Group At A Time...
"The only correct answer is - Scully and Hitchcock."- Prestigious-Net-2236
"Back off! It's our microwave! Ours! GRRRRRRR!"- Lvcivs2311
Nostalgic And Wonderful
"Kitty and Red from That 70s/90s Show."- saginator5000
"I like how Red on the surface seems like a mean parent who doesn’t let his kids have fun."
"But he’s watching out for his kids."
"And he’s a good man."
"He has a hard and stressful time supporting his family and he is grumpy sometimes but he would do anything for his family and he really loves them."
"What he does for Hyde is amazing."
"He just doesn’t put up with BS."- themanfromvulcan
It Seems Everyone Is Better With Turk At Their Side
"Turk and Carla."
"Or Turk and JD. (Scrubs)."- JCBAwesomist
"Turk and JD all the way."- nunyabidnez76
Can't We Get Back What We Once Had?...
"Homer and Marge had a lot of beautiful moments back in the older seasons."
"Sadly, seasonal rot has ruined a lot of that."
"I miss a lot of how the characters used to be."
"Like, Homer was an oaf and a brute, but he loved his family immensely and deeply and would (and DID) do any and everything for them."
"He'd catch details like in that episode about the streetcar play that you wouldn't think he would."
"He gave up beer for a month for Marge and we got to see that, for him, it wasn't just a minor thing."
'Lisa might have been intelligent but she not only had ample 'dumb/shallow' moments, she also was very close to Bart and, likewise, Bart was close to her."
"He might struggle in school but he also showed he wasn't dumb either."- Snowtwo
Be they married in the first episode or on and off again for an insufferable amount of time (looking at you, Jeanine and Gregory in Abbott Elementry!), sitcom couples give us people to root for and fill our own hearts with hope.
So much so that we don't mind following the arc of their love stories over and over again.
And yes, the episode where David meets Patrick's parents remains a tearjerker, no matter how many times you watch it.
As an editor, I am not just in charge of proofreading and correcting style and format. I am also in charge of making sure all the contact information provided, such as phone numbers and emails, work.
After working for 10 hours straight a few months ago, I forgot to check the phone numbers and let a brochure go to publication with a phone number that did not work.
Luckily, a similar mistake had actually happened before with another editor for another client a year prior, so contact info on print materials like this brochure were checked by every department rather than just editorial, and the mistake was caught.
Since I didn't know this, when I heard the phone number was wrong, my heart dropped to my stomach and I thought I was sure fired. Luckily, I was just told to make sure this never happens again. I was relived that there was no fallout, but when I first heard what happened, my only thought was. 'I totally f**ked up!'
Redditors are no strangers to this feeling, as they've made egregious mistakes themselves. They are only too eager to share their experiences.
It all started when Redditor Puzzled_Assistant_ asked:
"What was your "I f**ked up" moment?"
Wires Crossed
"I managed to destroy a $4k piece of test equipment by connecting the wrong leads. For the briefest of moments the screen showed an overvoltage warning... That's when I knew."
– frank-sarno
Let's Write It Off
"If it makes you feel better my husband bought a bit of software to test and forgot to cancel it. A year later and 70k he had to fess up to his boss. Luckily his boss said don't worry I'll spin it as efficiency savings..."
"He is usually a massive d*ck so I can only presume it saved his a*se too. There was a lot of anxiety in my house when my husband realises so very grateful for how it turned out."
– ernieb33
Dumpster Diving
"I threw away a cashier's check for $50,000. I didn't think it would be a big deal, didn't understand the difference between a cashier's check and a regular check. We had thrown the trash in the dumpster at work, so my dad and I went down around midnight and tore open all the garbage bags in the dumpster before we found it."
– LordBaranof
Five Second Rule?
"I worked in a commercial kitchen. I had just finished making and plating hundreds of deviled eggs. As I moved them into the walk -in, the cart wheels caught on the lip and sent ALL OF THEM straight on the floor."
"Edit. Forgot to mention, this was the first day with the new head chef"
– Calligaster
"I was carrying a huge tray of Mac and cheese for dinner for 62 people (besides some salad the only dinner) and spilled all of it on the floor with everyone waiting in line watching me, plates in their hand waiting for food to arrive."
– fdedfgfdgfe
Ouch, Ouch, Ouch!
"Used to downhill skate pretty regularly, took my time and had some safe spots away from traffic. Took a tumble once and popped up on my feet but my right leg crumbled. Looked down and my right foot was doinked 90⁰ to the left. "I done f**ked up" was running through my head 100x every second for weeks"
– dglaw
"Almost happened to me, no helmet and smacked the pavement. Broke my skull but miraculously survived, 4 days bleeding out my ear in the hospital, 6 weeks of triple vision, years of recovery but I have very few ongoing issues. That was my “I f**ked up” moment, boy did I get lucky"
"Edit: since I’ve had several questions about the triple vision I’ll elaborate. I don’t understand why or how it worked but I was seeing 3 of everything. Neurologists told me my eyesight could go back to normal in a couple weeks, months, or maybe even a year. They said after a year if it hadn’t gone back to normal then it would most likely be permanent. It was lucky this happened when I was 19 because my brain was still developing so it was able to create new connections. If it had happened 10 years later then the damage certainly would have been permanent"
– bridoogle
Cut Off
"My first marriage. First day of the honeymoon. We are at a nice sightseeing spot. I take a photo of him in front of a memorial. After taking the photo, I say: “Oh, I think I cut of your feet in that shot.” He throws a total fit about it. That’s when I realized, I f**ked up marrying him."
"I stuck it out eight years with him. I don’t take my promises lightly, so I tried to make things work one way or another. Eventually, I realized that ‘till death do us part’ could be some fifty or sixty years more of this and I filed for divorce. One of the better decisions in my life."
– Tempus-dissipans
Take As Instructed
"I was a lead in a play for a theatre company, came down with an intense cough, decided to see a doctor, they prescribed me a cough suppressant, I figured if the recommended dose worked then more than the recommended dose would work even better. Drank half a bottle of DXM syrup two hours before going on stage and accidentally had an out of body experience in front of a full house. I was young, naive and very high. Director wasn’t too happy about it."
– WooWooInsaneCatPosse
Follow The Recipe
"Let's go back to my first kitchen job. I was a prep cook for a bakery / coffee shop. One morning, I was making cinnamon rolls and following the recipe, or so I thought."
"I pull my first batch of 30 out of the oven, and the owner comes by for a taste. She takes one bite, spits it out? And asks me what my process was. I told her I doubled the recipe as she requested, so you know 14 TBSP of cinnamon. Problem!!!! That number I thought was a 7, was in fact a 1."
"Ooooops."
– _Tranquil_Dude
"This is only tangentially similar but when I was in like 8th grade I tried to treat my parents by making meatloaf. We were eating and they said it tasted weird and asked what I put in it. I listed off the ingredients including garlic, and they asked where I got the garlic. Well, from the shelf at the bottom of the pantry of course!"
"It was not garlic. It was tulip bulbs."
"That was the day I learned tulip bulbs can be poisonous if consumed 😀 we were all okay tho. Just me being a silly goose."
– Jessie-yessie
Time To Get Rid Of It
"I decided to scrape out old, stale brownies that had hardened to the pan with a knife."
"The thought flicked through my mind a fraction of a second before the knife slipped out of the pan and plunged into the center of my palm."
"Side note: after that, the knife was always darker where it had been inside my hand. Anyone know why?"
"Another side note: 5 years later, guy broke in my house and tried to kill me with that very same knife!"
– Mellopiex
"This was quite the rollercoaster read"
– SourTaco
"This is like final destination! Get rid of that knife!!!"
– BabyStace
"He escaped with it, so it’s no longer my burden to bear."
– Mellopiex
Yikes!
"I f**ked up. I locked myself in an empty jail."
"I was reviewing a jobsite at 5pm on a Friday, and I was the last guy there. My cell phone had just ran out of battery. It was a new county courthouse in the USA and it was nearly complete. I was checking door functionality, mechanical function only. The whole building had electric security on each door but it was turned off. I had a master keycard and an actual door key to override the door locks, just incase. At one point I mindlessly walked into a side chamber of the main courtroom. I realize it’s the detainee lobby. As I turn back I hear the door click shut. I tried the electric keycard that I had. It didn’t work because no electric 😤. I tried the regular key that I had, and the lock didn’t work properly. I tried again. Nothing. And again, nothing. And again a few more times. It still doesn’t work."
"I bang on the door and shout for help for a few minutes. It’s useless, no one’s there. I try the door lock a few more times. It doesn’t work. There is approximately 62 hours until anyone was supposed to be at the jobsite again."
"I f**ked up."
"I didn’t want to but I ended up kicking the door and after a few minutes it broke. It broke around the lock with the lock staying connected to the frame, 😆. Everyone laughed at me on Monday."
"Edit: the door between the detainee lobby and the courtroom was a heavy solid wood door and not as secure as the detainee cell doors. That’s because the policy was always to have a sheriff with the detainee when in that room."
– Willbily
Ugh.
"Step 1: go make lemonade in the 5 liter tank, it was summer and there were 6 of us in the house so we needed it"
"Step 2: the sugar and the salt are in two identical containers"
"Step 3: regret existing"
– Zaln_The_HUN
Such a simple (and rather common) mistake, but still one the most horrible!
With the world's finances the way they are, it's a miracle if people can save their spare change.
Inflation has a stronghold on too many people.
Sometimes it feels like just breathing can cost you money.
It's hard to make and absurdly easy to lose.
So be vigilant with your wallet.
And try to spend on certain things in moderation.
Going out for meals three times a day adds up.
Even with Wendy's value menu.
Redditor gejiw94601 wanted to compare notes on how money can slip away so easily, so they asked:
"What's the biggest waste of money?"
Money is so easy to lose.
Just ask my best friend... vodka.
WHY?!
"Donating to rich Twitch streamers. I’ll probably never understand why people do it."
dring157
"I remember watching one guy drop $60k to Ninja. I was making 30k a year at the time, this guy drop double my salary in one stream."
IanFPS
Adulting
"Credit Card interest."
DweeblesX
"When I first go a credit card I used it only when I was short on cash, but it ended up me throwing money at stupid things because I knew I had a credit card to fall back on if I needed it."
"Now I use my card for the points, and I pay it off about every two weeks. While I'm still not great at adulting, at least I figured out this part."
boardmonkey
What about Florida?
"The $50 scratch-off lottery tickets you can buy in Iowa."
notthesedays
"I used to work for the VA lottery. I got to see the numbers, the payout was only about 20% (if that) of profit for scratch-offs. Slightly higher for the draw games. But print-n-play was almost 1-1 for payout vs profit. Don't know how it is now or how other state's payout margins are, but print-n-play is where it's at if you're gonna play anything."
DarthWeabu
Always Upgrade
"Buying cheap crap you have to replace."
coinkeeper8
"My dad once told me to not spend excessive money on tools at first. Buy them for dirt cheap, and learn which tools you really need. And when they break: replace them with quality ones. Buying pro-grade stuff you don't need is wasted money."
.HarlequinSyndrom
Spending a little extra can go a long way.
Cheap doesn't often equal quality.
Flex
"Buying ridiculously expensive clothes to flex."
PinkLemon4
"Clothes are a two-way issue. Good clothes last a long time and the price is worth it for the comfort on top of that. But some clothes are 100x the price and 1/10th the quality. So there is a fine line here."
Wdrussell1
Pay to Lose
"Pay to win games."
testthrowawayzz
"I played a lot of mobile games with in-game currencies. I have never spent a cent on these games. Why would I spend hundreds of dollars if I can enjoy the game and learn how to play even if it's slow? And many items don't even help you at the game. It's just skins or titles that only show other players how stupid you were to pay for a free app."
Pintermarc
And Silver?
"Gold Food, or more accurately food that is covered in something called gold leaf. In my eyes, food is worth buying if they provide a great amount of nutrition for considerably good prices. After all, you probably avoid paying 50 million dollars just to buy a few molecules that are useless to your health and needs."
"And then there's gold leaf food, sure the food looks fancy but at the cost of a ludicrous amount of money! And with the gold having no usable nutrients at all, it is just not worth it to buy such expensive food for a relatively small amount of nutrients."
"For instance, Industry Kitchen (hopefully that's the name of the place) in NYC serves a pizza with a gold leaf covering for a whopping price of $2000. While at my home country which is Indonesia, Domino's serves an American Classic Cheeseburger Pizza (IDK that's a thing) which is the most expensive pizza I could find on the website costs around $7 which is just baffling to me."
ScopeRicrit
Pretty Boom
"Fireworks, I love them, but it's like $50 per second for the good ones."
endisnigh-ish
"Yeah, I end up spending probably $300 each summer buying fountains and batteries and helicopters and cardboard tanks and sh*t--none of the big professional skyrockets. It's absurd, I'll be the first to admit."
"But it's fun!"
-RadarRanger-
Just Elope
"Weddings."
"Crazy expensive day. Guaranteed at least one relative will kick up a stink. Massive pressure to be The Happiest Day of Your Life. Everything doubles in cost if you say it's for a wedding (dress, suit, cake, venue) Just do the quick registry office paperwork, have a surprise party, and run away for a long honeymoon with the money you saved."
PinchAssault52
Roll of the Dice
"Gambling for sure."
snazyfragz
"I live in a small town where a casino is the big attraction They've had numerous people crap and pee themselves because they didn't wanna get up from the slots because 'it's just about to pay out.'"
11BREWER
Gambling is the greatest way to lose money.
Addiction will take everything if you let it.
We all have strong opinions about something, but when we think of opinions, we often think of hot button topics like political subjects.
But as it turns out, sometimes we can have just as strong of opinions of our preferred types of pasta.
Redditor PeeB4uGoToBed asked:
"What's the best pasta shape and why?"
The Right Answer
"I prefer my pasta, like my nuggets, to be dinosaur-shaped."
- bearstrugglethunder
"This is my true answer, but if I have to pretend to be an adult, I always say Cavatappi."
- YourGlacier
Radiatori
"Radiatori. Thick and perfect for pasta sauces."
- AuthenticVanillaOwl
"They're so fun. They're my favorite, ahead of rotini. I just like ridges, I guess."
- arcosapphire
Cavatappi
"Cavatappi!!!!"
- floatingvibes
"Best for mac and cheese."
- pacheckyourself
"My first time having cavatappi mac and cheese changed my life."
- Salt_Blackberry_1903
"Cavatappi gang, RISE UP."
- Sharp_Easy
Cavatelli
"I see your cavatappi and raise you cavatelli."
- dumbf**k
"Cavatelli is the bee's knees, man."
- elhooper
Conchiglie
"Conchiglie (shells)."
"The shell shape stores cheese and sauces, so with each bite, you get tons of flavor."
- WingerRules
"Yes! Mac n cheese always tastes amazing with Conchiglie, I don't make the rules."
- Inconvenient-Pebble9
Rigatoni
"Rigatoni. My favorite dish is baked rigatoni with bolognese. I love the texture of the ridges and the larger hollow part scoops up the sauce very well as compared to ziti or penne."
- AllDressedJalapenos
Cascatelli
"Cascatelli. Some crazy f**k got obsessed with answering the OP's question and invented this."
- PhantomMenaceWasOK
Vesuvio
"Cascatelli is great, but his second round of shapes, specifically vesuvio, might be better."
- mriners
"Agreed. Vesuvio is peak."
- jll3523
Quattrotini
"I prefer quattrotini. I find it has better forkability and toothsinkability."
- banjo215
Fusilli
"Fusilli because it's silly."
- HorrorxHeart
Bucatini
"Bucatini is the best of all worlds. You have everything that's great about the long noodles and it's hollow! It absorbs sauce and oil on the inside."
- winterORgethen
"I hate bucatini! You can't suck a protruding part into your mouth because of the hole in the middle. You can't pick it up with a fork, because it's too slippery with sauce."
- CalTechie-55
Penne
"Penne... because the sauce is in AND on it, lol (laughing out loud)."
- secretxamy
Orecchiette
"Orecchiette."
- Realistic_Try_6738
"The pasta that would literally drive me insane if I tried to make it from scratch."
- BullsOnParadeFloats
Farfalle
"Farfalle."
- Preference-Best
"I came to say this. Just something about it. Amazing mouth feel. Great texture. Good with light and heavy, meaty sauces."
- Fracture_98
"This one. There’s something so nostalgic about it for me. And I feel like it does well with most sauces. A very versatile shape for a variety of pasta dishes."
- BlueHeelerChemist
Linguine
"Linguine: the spaghetti that went to private school."
- feeflet
"I am totally on board with linguine. Flat to catch the sauce and thin enough to cook evenly for the perfect consistency! Pairs with many sauces too!"
- Odd_Calligrapher_407
Pappardelle
"Pappardelle."
"Flat pasta is better than round pasta (like spaghetti) for sauces and flavors being absorbed. It's long enough to give the lady and the tramp vibes and not feel like you're a kid eating some superhero shapes out of a bowl like Fusilli and Farfalle can give off."
"It's thicker than tagliatelle to give it enough girth to feel like more of a main event than just being the bed your sauce and toppings sit on."
"Overall, it's just the best all-rounder in my book."
- bawjaws2000
This conversation just goes to show how many pasta options there actually are in the world, some that we may have not even heard of yet, because of them being invented in 2020!
But it also goes to show that we all have our favorites, and we can have very strong opinions about them.