There are hidden dangers in a lot of activities we consider pretty harmless…but are they really? Painting is a relaxing past time but it can become dangerous for the uninformed. When using oil paints turpentine is a must... also a must when using turpentine, excellent ventilation. It can be extremely hazardous if used improperly.
The same goes for cadmium paints. Those beautiful reds and yellows that come out so vibrant come at a cost. Cadmium is poisonous so if you have young ones or pets that could get into your paints or wet canvas you're going to have something much more serious on your hands than a simple mess. This goes for many different supplies. So don't go jumping in to become the next Bob Ross yet until you do your research or those trees won't be happy for long
Wanting to know more examples Redditor TheBaileyCaine asked:
"What is something that sounds safe but actually isn't?"
The answers gave us things to be scared of we never thought of before and now we have to share.
Farming isn’t all quaint countryside…
“Farming- everyone thinks about bucolic pastures, pretty red barns and cute little critters running around , but farming is the sixth most dangerous occupation in the United States, higher than law enforcement, firefighters, powerline workers and ironworkers."
“Most of farming deaths involve accidents with machinery, but grain storage deaths are high as well, if a farmer falls into a bin of canola he sinks to the bottom and suffocates fairly quickly as well as the unfortunate ones that fall into pig manure pits and drown in liquid sh*t."
“ Farm animals also kill a lot of farmers too because a 180lb man doesn't have good odds going up against a 1200 lb cow. Plus the fact that no one talks about is the mental health-related deaths farming is incredibly stressful and suicide deaths in the farming community are rising steadily." Tanglrfoot
“You are one awkward landing from lots of potentially life changing injuries.”
“Well, I don't know if this actually sounds safe, but trampolines! People think by putting the netting around them, etc that you won't get hurt. Think again. You are one awkward landing from lots of potentially life changing injuries. I have personally gotten to view the inside of an adult foot/ankle because of a trampoline.” Juniper-Sand
They aren’t floofy cows…
“Bison. Like the wild big cow looking animals. I grew up around them and I see too many tourists in Yellowstone going to take a selfie with one. Those kill you without batting an eye" root-rot-racoon
“Yeah and the thing is that there's no stopping it short of climbing a tree or shooting it in the head with a shotgun or large caliber rifle because unlike a predator that's just hungry and is trying to eat you, the herbivore isn't gonna stop to consider whether or not you are worth the trouble of killing because quite frankly you've pissed it off and it wants you dead." bacontime2
angry yellowstone national park GIF
Giphy
"Internal decapitation.”
“Going in a car without a headrest on your seat. It's not just a pillow for comfort.” Schoollow48
“Internal decapitation. When the car gets hit your body starts moving immediately because the back of the seat pushes you forward. If there isn't anything pushing the back of your head it lags behind until your body pulls it forward. It separates the base of your skull from your spinal column, the only reason your head stays on is because of how elastic skin is.” passwordsarehard_3
Just leave the dangerous challenges alone…
“Everybody should rightfully know that tidepod challenges were unsafe, but the more innocent one was the cinnamon challenge. Cinnamon powder does not mix with water, so the instant reflex from the body was to cough to get rid of this unknown substance, but the inhale of air to cough with could cause you to inhale the cinnamon into your lungs. And that could cause serious harm or even death if severe enough.” GoabNZ
Parents Explain Which Things Surprised Them Most When Their Child Moved Out | George Takei’s Oh Myyy
It’s like being in limbo…
“Anesthesia. I don't feel like people have enough respect for how complicated and dangerous it is to put people to sleep. I have patients all the time ask me to put them under for routine procedures that don't require sedation and I always think to myself that you wouldn't be asking that if you knew how much training and monitoring and intensive effort it takes to keep someone asleep safely without them stopping breathing” OneMDformeplease
Silos…
“Grain Silos. People die every year because they explode with static electricity.” Time_Capt
“For sure. We had a very large explosion in my home state. I remember my chemistry teacher explaining to us how it happened. During his demonstration he managed to create a small explosion and also catch his podium on fire. We were all sworn to secrecy and I have never spoken of it until now. (Approximately 23 years later.) Mr. May, I hope you've retired by now and I don't get you fired!” GrinAndBearIt_1981
Carnival carnage…
“If I'm honest fair rides, you'd think it'd be safe, it's surrounded by a lot of people, so if anything were to happen help would be there straight away, and there's all these safety precautions , but the amount of things that have gone wrong way too often is scary." DevotionGoesBrrrrrr
“When I was a teenager, I got stuck on a Witches Wheel at a fair. It shorted out and got stuck in the ON position. It ran for about half an hour, maybe 45 minutes before they figured out what was wrong and got it to stop. It ran full tilt at a 45 degree angle for the entire time."
“I have never been sicker in my life. My friends took me home and I couldn't walk to my front door. I laid in the backyard puking. My mother yelled at me because she thought I was drunk, but my friends explained what happened. I will never ride another spinny ride again. Ever." BoredBSEE
“I went on a ride called the "fireball" goes around in a circle and it would stop upside down and go in reverse order. Well one time me and my cousin go on it, the seat belt came completely undone, I was feeling too much gravity until my cousin grabbed my shoulders before I flew towards the ground. Scary place to be and you won't catch me on any rides anymore.” Tongue-OSRS
Fun Catapult GIF by Bayerischer Rundfunk
Giphy
Good to know!
“Cleaning a cat's liter box with bleach. Don't mix ammonia and bleach. You'll be committing a war crime.” Kdog122025
“I was try to be helpful as a kid and clean the bathroom. I kept the door closed so the rest of the house wouldn't be hit with the fumes, but didn't think to open a window. Ended up mixing two cleaners that were primarily bleach an ammonia.”
“Ended up spending that evening and the next day in bed writhing around feeling like I was going to die. The next Monday at school we found out in science what common household chemicals can be mixed to create more dangerous chemicals.
I felt like a dumb a**.” Atypical_Mom
“Boating. I'm a boat mechanic, but I didn't have much boating experience before I started working on them and I was pretty caught off guard to discover how dangerous it can be. Everyone thinks of boating as this idyllic family activity, and it usually is, but a staggering amount of things can go wrong on the water and leave you stranded or worse."
“There are submerged objects like rock formations and logs that can cause you to get ejected and/or sink your boat. It's fairly easy to forget a plug and sink your boat; it happens frequently. Most boat owners have no idea how to operate a boat safely or even competently (it's trickier than you might think. It takes some experience and technique)."
“Alcohol abuse among boaters is rampant. People often don't secure their trailer correctly to the tow vehicle (not latched, wrong ball hitch size, unsecured/improperly secured safety chains, etc). People don't service their trailers. Wheels fall off from lack of grease."
Humans, really does sum it up…
“How has nobody said vehicles of any type yet. More people die in automotive accidents per year than any other death not related to medical issues. But in reality let's all just say it, this is the real truth...Humans... I don't think any other information is needed about that.” LAB_Spirit
There’s a reason for safety gear!
“Riding an ATV. It's ridiculously easy to flip one and be killed/paralysed from the neck down.” SickularPlunkett
Bro don’t do it…
“Telling my wife to calm down.” abajasiesu
Bbc America Television GIF by The Watch
Giphy
Safety glass?
“Safety glass. Sure, it doesn't shatter like regular glass, but those tiny pieces are like razor nuggets. And they get everywhere during an accident. You could even swallow/inhale a few pieces and that's very no bueno.” BlottomanTurk
Not everyone realizes that this interferes with it functioning properly.
“Letting your child wear their winter coat in the car seat.” jbea456
Pistachios???
“Transporting pistachios. Very high value to size ratio so they are sometimes targeted for heists. Even when they aren't being attacked by criminals they have a tendancy to spontaneously explode when being transported in large numbers.” PeirsPlay
“Writing this with blood on my face…”
“Riding lawnmowers. Writing this with blood on my face because while cutting my in laws grass I hit a bump which knocked the controls forward which sent me into a branch and knocked me off the lawnmower.” truck-nuts
An unlikely encounter however…
“Quicksand I know it's a weird one but people don't know how dangerous it really is and think that they can just walk out of it but you can't. Once you're in it, you're in it and you can't get out.” ghost_blanket
We’ve all had a fall or two…
“Stairs: they are the most dangerous mode of transportation (average vs how many trips)” IanHSC
"I'd conservatively estimate that 30% of trailer brakes don't work (% goes up logarithmically with age of the trailer)--give boat trailers a wide berth on the freeway. Often people don't follow basic safety like life jackets and kill lanyards. You can hit a big wake/wave and get knocked away from the controls and your boat is now a self-guided missile."
"If you're swimming behind a running boat you can pass out from the fumes and drown. You can get chopped to bits by the propeller. You can get hit by a boat being driven by a drunk, inexperienced, or incompetent person. A fuel leak can cause a buildup of fumes in the bilge that gets ignited by engine electronics. It goes on and on." F*ck_the_Bunk
Want to "know" more? Never miss another big, odd, funny, or heartbreaking moment again. Sign up for the Knowable newsletter here.
When we're intoxicated, or even the slightest bit tipsy from having a little too much to drink, our immediate perspective on things is hazy.
But there's nothing like a bit of alarming news or a jarring incident to snap us out of the fog and focus on the moment.
Sometimes alcohol isn't always to blame for our impairment.
It can be a state of mind, like a perpetual numbness from being complacent in life, and all it takes is one shocking moment to rattle us back to our senses.
Curious to hear from strangers online about this type of scenario, Redditor Known_Challenge_7150 asked:
"What’s one thing that sobered you up real quick?"
These individuals were witness to shocking events that sobered them up right quick.
Bleeding Out
"Got out of a taxi and found a naked man profusely bleeding from his head crawling up the driveway in my condo. Called him an ambulance completely forgot I was absolutely wasted until 45 minutes later when I'd helped him translate and in to an amublance and stepped in my front door."
"Later a few days later learned he'd slipped in the tub and literally crawled out for help. Poor dude. He was fine but I genuinely thought he was going to die there."
– DongLaiCha
Tragic News
"At a bachelor party and we got a phone call that the groom’s father had suddenly passed."
– accountnameredacted
Bottom Of The Barrel
"I went to visit my parents back in July. I was homeless and deep into fentanyl addiction so I lost a lot of weight. My folks could see it. They knew something was up. Anyway, I spent the night and I was getting ready to leave in the morning and I looked at myself in the mirror for a good long time. I finally had enough and told them everything. They took me to detox, from there I went to rehab. Graduated in August and been living with them ever since then. I have 160 days clean and sober."
– Crotch-Monster
A reality check can be enough for some people to snap out of it.
Like Father, Like Son
"Was driving a drunk friend home, he had been on a bender again and was smart enough to call me for a lift rather than try and drive. As I helped in to his house his mother came down the stairs and said 'your as drunk as your father' and went back upstairs. I haven't seen him drunk since then, he still drinks but the thought of turning into his dad scared him out of hard drinking."
– psycospaz
Busted
"Flashing blue lights."
– FiddleOfGold
"This sobered me up just thinking about it."
– redmaple_syrup
Losing Sight
"Woke up to no sight in one eye. I had cataract surgery so just thought one of the lenses had slipped and it was an easy fix. Eye doc says nope, you had a stroke. I loved soy sauce, teriyaki sauce and salty food, which caused high blood pressure, which caused retina damage. Over six months was able to get most of my eyesight back with medication, and all back within a year. Trying to navigate life with one eye was very sobering. Started taking HBP much more seriously."
– MissHibernia
Quitting The Bottle
"Looked up someone I went to highschool with who was an awesome guy. Found out he had been dead for 3 years from alcoholism, at age 33. I made an overnight change. I hadn't started drinking that night yet, 10 months ago. Haven't touched it again since."
– omgtater
These disturbing moments were enough for Redditors to immediately come to their senses.
Unplanned House Guests
"Me and a buddy Woke up in someone’s living room, realized neither one of us knew the people, they were just nice and let 2 drunk guys sleep on their living room floor. We didn’t even say goodbye."
– Oneinsevenbillion75
Serious Health Warning
"Elevated liver enzymes."
"And the knowledge that this sh** was gonna kill me and I just couldn't orphan my family over it."
"So I opted for recovery, instead."
"Clean and sober since June 5, 2009."
– Far_Meal8674
The Joyride
"Grew up in a rural area. The little town hosted dances at the hockey arena, everyone (adults and kids) went and they overserved everyone, regardless of age. I was maybe 16 or 17 and was absolutely sh*tfaced, and jumped in the back of someone's truck with about 8 other people to go back to someone's cottage for after dance drinking. The driver (still don't know who it was) started racing one of his buddies and we whipped around small dirt roads, flying around blind corners on the wrong side of the road, going god knows how fast. It was basically a disaster waiting to happen. It was crazy scary and I was sober and thankful to be alive when we finally arrived."
– foxfood9116
The human psyche is a fascinating thing, isn't it?
How we can automatically focus on something urgent at a crucial time, even after getting buzzed from drinking too much alcohol.
But as we're in the thick of the holidays, it's a good reminder to drink responsibly and stay off the roads if you drive to your celebratory destination.
Cheers. Stay safe. And happy holidays.
We've all complained or vented about something in our lives which, in the grand scheme of things, wasn't exactly a problem, or is very easily solved.
Then there are those who complain about things that others almost hope will happen to them at some point in their lives.
These are known as "first world problems", as they are problems that pretty much only the world's one percent faces.
From having to fly business class instead of first class, or being served Roederer instead of Dom Pérignon, these complaints are often met with amusement, bewilderment, or even anger.
Redditor jennimackenzie was curious to hear the most absurd "first world problems" anyone ever complained about, leading them to ask:
"What’s the most ridiculous 'first world problem' you’ve seen people get worked up over?"
"Tale As Old As Time..."
"I once knew a mom who was legitimately devastated, to the point of tears/grief, because a doctor predicted her 8 year old daughter's final height to be around 5'2","
"Which wasn't tall enough to get cast as Belle at Disney World."
"That was the child's (and her mother's) only dream in life, apparently."
"Didn't appreciate my suggestion that she could be Minnie or Mickey."
"Lol!"
"Only a face character would do!"- TravelLovingMom
"Must Be Funny, In A Rich Man's World..."
"My boss from about a decade ago was this insanely rich dude who always went to the bank to get fresh and crisp currency."
"He'd call the bank in advance to make sure they had some on hand."
"I think he was a germaphobe."
"He had a trash can that he'd throw $1 and $5 bills in that he thought was 'dirty' and regularly just donated it vs spending it."
"I asked him why he did this and he said it was too much trouble and asked if I wanted it."
"I said f*ck yeah dumped it into my bag and when I got home it was close to $400 in singles and fives.
"Another time, he wanted to upgrade all the computers in his studio, so we went to a store and bought 10 PCs."
"They all had $150 mail in rebates and he wasn't bothered to go through the trouble of mailing them in."
"3 weeks later I received $1500 after spending a whole afternoon filling out all those goddamn forms."- azninvasion2000
Money Burn GIF by nog
Giphy
Who Wore It Better?
"When I was about 19 years old, I was at my boyfriends family BBQ."
"I was wearing this pretty floral sundress."
"His cousins girlfriend showed up in the same dress and she was SO mad that she went and changed."
"I will never understand being upset when someone is wearing the same thing as you.'
"Did you really think that your shirt you bought off the rack is going to be unique to you?"
"No."- mertsey627
Seeing Red! Or Blue In This Case...
"The blue of the balloons wasn't quite the same as the bridesmaid's sashes."
"Years ago my wife and I attended a wedding."
"It was very low key."
"The dinner was in the dining hall at the university where the couple met, cinder block walls and all."
"It was a Baptist wedding - no booze and very serious."
"The dark blue balloons attempting to liven up the hall were a slightly darker shade of blue than the sashes on the bridesmaid's dresses."
"The bride lost here sh*t and absolutely raved for nearly an hour."
"I can't remember how they finally managed to talk her down."- mechant_papa
south park wedding GIF
Giphy
See You In Court!
"Rich neighbors who end up in expensive court battles because they disagree about where a tree can be planted or whether the color of a fence fits in with the street’s 'amenity'."
'These disputes get really heated and rack up huge lawyers’ bills."
"The most pathetic part is after the judgement when they are arguing about who should pay the other party’s costs."
"Lots of affidavits filed citing the 'emotional distress' they had to endure, or painting themselves as brave warriors who were forced to take a stand to fight for 'justice'."
"Also lots of pompous litigants insisting that the judge refer to them by their 'Dr' title."
"An absolutely insane dumpster fire of entitled rich people problems."- ElectrocRaisin
It's Always People With Money Who Don't Want To Pay!
"I work in a public library."
"People will get so so mad if they have to be put on a wait list for a book."
"A popular book that just came out."
"Ok our services are not only free but so are the books."
"You’re welcome, a**holes."- Switchbladekitten
A Warm Butt Is A Happy Butt!
"My own."
"We have a bidet toilet seat (Fabulous! Everyone should have one!) and not only does it wash your bum and blow dry it, but the seat's heated!"
"It's shocking how much a heated toilet seat makes the whole process more agreeable."
"Except: We had a power outage and I went to use the toilet and the seat was cold!"
"Unacceptable!"
"This shall not stand!"
"I was really upset because it didn't feel good."
"Then I stopped and thought: This is the most first-world problem anyone's ever had."
"I was really pissed because my heiny was tepid."
"I got over it."- DeathGrover
homer simpson episode 23 GIF
Giphy
Holy Matrimony!
"Weddings are a gold mine for this question."
"People get so hyped up over their 'most important day of their life'."
"They'll destroy friendships, go into debt, and have crazy expectations."
"It's not always the couple who go crazy, either."
"Sometimes, it's the parents or another family member who feels entitled to control the wedding."
"It's just a party."
"Be considerate of guests, have plenty of food and drinks, and enjoy it."- magicrowantree
When Fast Food Isn't Fast Enough...
"Having to pull off to the side to wait for a drive-thru order to be brought out to you because your food isn't ready and there's a line building up behind you."- demanbmore
In Case You Don't Think Customer Service Employees Are Undervalued...
"I was working the return desk at a Target next to a military base so I have so many stories."
"One of my favorites was a lady who had her baby shower before revealing the gender and was livid that she had received floral newborn diapers when she’s having a boy."
"It was a huge box of super expensive, all organic diapers, that we didn’t carry and therefore could not return."
"I cannot accurately express her fury and disgust."
"How dare either suggest her boy could wear feminine diapers."
"I suggested she donate them if she didn’t want to use them and she instead threw away the entire box."
"When she left we pulled it out and threw it in our donate bin."
"There have also been multiple times where mom’s order massive toys and when we bring them out to the car they get furious that they aren’t wrapped."
"We don’t offer wrapping services."
"Here’s the thing, if you don’t want your kids to see the toys you got them for Christmas or their bit to day DON'T BRING THE CHILD WHEN YOU PICK IT UP."
'I’ve had multiple women scream and curse me out that I had ruined their kids Christmas by bringing the toys they ordered out to the car like they requested."- clever-mermaid-mae
Customer Service Waiting GIF by Juno Calypso
Giphy
Happiest Place On Earth!
"I used to work for Disney."
"That in itself should tell you everything."
"However for fun I'll give you two specific stories one form our tech department and one from my wife who worked bookings."
"I specifically worked for their call center to help with technical issues with magic band and the website."
"Suddenly got worse huh?"
"A right of passage call everyone has at least one story of is the 'Dome call'."
"Basically there is a subset of Disney Guest (TM) that believes if it rains at Walt Disney world there is someone that will push a button to encapsulate the whole of Disney property in a dome to keep out the rain."
"I'm not kidding."
"If this button is not pushed they call our tech department to angrily ask why."
"My wife worked booking."
"Pretty much everything including Bibbidi Bobbidi boutique and Pirate's league."
"These two things did roughly the same thing difference being price and theme."
"BBB was expensive did more and was focused on princesses, pirates league did a bit less and focused on mermaids and pirates."
"Lady called up my wife, and got pissed about BBB being booked up (It goes FAAAAST)."
"Karen: 'Im going to give the phone to my daughter and I want you to tell her how you are ruining her vacation by not letting her do BBB'."
"Wife proceeds to explain how pirate's league is so much cooler and how she can be a mermaid or pirate and basically gets the kid to start demanding to their parents about how they want to be a mermaid instead of a princess."- trollsong
Disney World GIF
Giphy
The horror!
Being booked into a junior suite at Disney World instead of an executive suite!
It's almost as bad as having no money for groceries, or no food to feed you children...
Said absolutely no one.
For many childhood memories are overrun by living nightmares.
Yes, children are resilient, but that doesn't mean that the things we see as babes don't follow us forever.
The horrors of the world are no stranger to the young.
Redditor -2sweetcaramel- wanted to see who was willing to share about the worst things we've seen as kids, so they asked:
"What’s the creepiest thing you saw as a kid?"
Serious Danger
"Me and my best friend would explore the drainage tunnels under the Vegas area where we grew up. These were miles long and it was always really cool down there so it was a good way to escape the heat of our scorching hot summers. We went into this one that goes under the Fiesta casino and found a camp with a bunch of homeless people."
"Mind you we are like 11 years old lol. And we just kept going like it was nothing. It wasn’t scary then but when I look back at it we could have been in some serious danger. Our parents had no idea we did this or where we were and we had no cellphones. We could have been kidnapped and never have been found."
oofboof2020
Waiting for Food
"I was at a portillos once when I was 12 and I was waiting with my little brother at a booth while my parents got our food. This guy was standing with his tray kind of watching me then after a couple of minutes he started to walk over really fast not breaking eye contact with me."
"He was 2 feet from the table and my dad came out of nowhere and scared the s**t out of him. He looked so surprised and just said he wanted to see if I’d get scared or not. He left his tray full of food near the door and left. My folks reported him but we never went to that location again since we found a better one closer to home."
nowhereboy1964
Captain Hobo to the Rescue
"When I was a pretty young teen, my friends and I were horsing around in San Francisco and started hanging out to smoke with some homeless guys. Another homeless dude came up and began aggressively trying to shake us down for anything (money, smokes, a ride, drugs- all of it) and wouldn’t take no for an answer."
"We got in over our heads and could tell this guy was now riling the other 2 guys up and they were acting like they wanted to jump us. Some grandfather-looking old homeless man appeared out of nowhere and yelled at us to get the f**k out of here- nice kids like us don’t belong down here at this hour!!"
"Captain Hobo saved our lives that night. My parents sincerely thought we were at a mall all day lol."
FartAttack911
Survival
tsunami GIF
Giphy
"I was 7 and survived the 2004 tsunami in Thailand. Witnessed the wave rise way above the already massive palm trees (approx. 40ft?) and my family and I watched/heard the wave crash into the ground from a rooftop."
faithfulpoo
These Tsunami stories are just tragic.
On the Sand
Scared The Launch GIF by CTV
Giphy
"We were a group of kids who went to swim in a local lake. And there was a dead body on the beach with their hands raised and their legs bent unnaturally that local police just took out of the same lake. I've never put my foot in these waters again."
oyloff
Be Clever
"I was walking to school and I was about 5 or 6 years old and some guy pulled up beside me in his car and asked if I would get in. He also offered me sweets to do so. I said no. The creepy bit was when he calmly said ‘clever boy’ to me, then drove off. I’ve never even told my parents or anyone else about this as it would most likely freak them out."
OstneyPiz
Bad Jokes
"Dad's side of the family pranked me by burying a fake body on our back property and had me dig it up to find valuables. Was only allowed to use a lantern for light. They stuffed old clothes with chicken bones. Sheetrock mud where the head was... Random fake jewelry as the treasures... I was like maybe 10 or 11.. I remember digging up the boot first and started gagging because it became real at that point."
Alegan239
YOU
Who Are You Reaction GIF by MOODMAN
Giphy
"Woke up to find my little brother staring at me in the dark, asking, Are you really you?"
PrettyLola2004
Siblings can really be a bunch of creepers.
No one should talk to others in the dark though.