
Horror comes in many forms.
Sometimes the scary moments we encounter draw their horror from the eerie unknown in the same way horror films spook us.
Other times, terror comes in a very real-world, pragmatic form--sudden and grave danger of complete vulnerability.
However it comes, it's a whole lot better to read about it on the internet than experience it first hand.
Redditor aggressivepicklenato asked:
"What is the scariest thing that's happened to you?"
Of course, driving an automobile is one of the scariest, most dangerous things we can do. We often forget that, until one moment reminds us.
Out of Control
"Heart attack while I was driving. Pulled over and went into cardiac arrest." -- Big-Craft-72
"So you got arrested while driving." -- Quirinus84
Instincts
"I was driving home late one night when I saw a girl on the side of the road, asking for help. I distinctly remember every nerve in my body suddenly going on edge, and I locked the doors as I drove past (old car had manual locks)."
"But something was telling me that no matter what, I shouldn't stop and help this girl. As I went by her I remember her yelling 'Fu** you!' "
"I felt guilty for not doing anything about it, so next morning I looked up reports in the area to see if I could find information on her. Turns out a guy got car jacked in the exact same area trying to help a girl in distress."
"He pulled over, and a group of people beat him and left him on the side of the road while they took his car. The girl in the report perfectly matched the description of the girl I saw."
-- dibaw39699
Everything Stopped for a Second
"Truck swerved into my lane going highway speeds this last winter and smoked us. My wife, 3 kids and dog were in the car."
"The scariest part wasn't the impact, or the realization that we were about to get fu**ed. It was the brief moment of stunned silence after, the moment I turned around to see if everyone in my family was ok."
"Thankfully, my kids escaped with no injury, my wife had to undergo surgery for internal bleeding (but ultimately recovered and is great today) and my sweet, lucky old dog. Somehow, he survived getting tossed around in the trunk."
-- iD-Remus
When You Realize How Fast You Were Going
"I had a tire blow out while I was on the highway. I felt the wheel start to vibrate and my heart just dropped. Cars were flying by at least 70 mph as I'm trying to merge onto the shoulder."
"I have had anxiety about driving on the highway since then"
Others traced their horror back to the unbelievable power of the natural world.
At the Whims of Giant Plates
"I live in San Francisco, in 1989 we had an earthquake. It was so intense, it moved my refrigerator to the other side of the room."
"I've never felt that adrenaline fright as much as that day."
-- Sfswine
Never Underestimate
"Nearly getting swept out to sea while swimming alone in the ocean and barely making it back to shore."
Pinned...Forever?
"This would be super scary now, but for 6 year old me this was TERRIFYING. I was out hiking with my cub scouts group, and I was trailing behind."
"I fell, slipped a couple feet down a hill, and got my leg caught under a log. It was only the start of the hike and it was pretty long, so I was terrified that I'd be stuck there for almost 2 hours. This is canada, during bear season."
"They came back after about 5 minutes. Present me would've know that probably would've happened, but that was terrifying for 6 y/o me."
-- QweqDuck
These Are The Worst Job Interviews Ever | George Takei’s Oh Myyy
And others recalled the times they were sure violence--and even death--were coming straight for them.
A Surge of Violence
"My ex is an angry drunk.. one night we got drunk for our mutual friends birthday. The birthday girl and her bf started getting in a big fight so we separated them. While doing that we got separated and couldn't find each other. I found him after about an hour."
"He was pi**ed I took birthday girl home and didn't care about him being at the bar alone with her bf. So he punches my car windshield out and chases me into the house. He catches up to me and pulls me by my head down to the floor. Proceeds to put one hand over my mouth and one hand around my neck."
"I remember nothing but begging for him to let go. Every second felt like a lifetime without air. On top of him sitting on top of me and the crying I was doing. I never thought I'd ever beg for my life like that. I was literally saying sh** like 'please just take your hand off my mouth, I'll do anything, please, I can't breathe!' "
"Eventually he just snapped out of it and let go in self pity 'omg what am I doing' and I ran upstairs to my roommates as he chased me again to try to not let them know what happened. Luckily I got to them in time and they called the police."
-- Drugsbunny23
Lock Up Your Guns!!
"I was 13 and baby sitting two 7 year old boys. One of the boys found his dad's gun. They proceeded to point it at me and threaten to shoot me, because they found it funny."
"I still don't know how I talked them into putting the gun away. I had been baby sitting them for a year on Wednesdays. That was the last night I did though."
-- KoebGaza
Smooth Talker
"Found myself behind my high school with a bunch of kids who didn't know who I was. They threatened me and pulled knives."
"I still don't know how I managed to talk my way out of it but I got out of there as quick as I could"
When I was 12
"My step dad was angry in general and even angrier drunk, which he typically was. One day he decided to scream at me for some reason or another while I'm minding my own business, and he told me he was going to get his shotgun from his mom so he could shoot me. I was 12."
"I called the police, and he started to backtrack and beg me not to call on him. I told the officer to please take me to a friend's house. On the way, the officer was telling me that my stepdad was just drunk and didn't mean any of it. This was a small town where everyone knew each other."
- labbykun
Psychosis...
"I suffer from psychosis and I would have to say hallucinations."
"Psychosis was def the scariest thing I've ever been through in my life, and I'm sorry you struggle with it consistently. I went through it three separate times, some lasting days last summer. It was like waking sleep paralysis. At one point I thought I was bleeding out into my carpet, hallucinating the blood and having tactile hallucinations I was wet and sticky and my blood pressure dropped so low I had to be brought to the hospital. I hope you're in a better place. Take your meds, that's what made my hallucinations stop and I eventually began to be able to function."
In the blink of an eye
"10 months ago when I heard a crash in the bathroom my husband was in and he didn't answer me when I called out asking if he was ok. Called 911 as I struggled to get the door open. Got in. Found him facedown. I rolled him over, and he exhaled for the last time in my arms. I tried to breathe for him, compress his chest."
"But I already knew he was gone. And in that moment, it was like a bomb exploded in the middle of my life. It's scary when you've lost your person, your love, the most important thing in the world to you. When your life changes in an instant. I went from being a happy wife to a 31-year-old widow with an uncertain future. In the blink of an eye."
A Trip to Florida...
"Wend for a scuba dive trip down in Florida. On the second day we were just finishing the dive in the Spiegel grove when out of the blue I see a panicked diver heading towards me. He shows me his digital console and there is a big fat 0 there. Gave him my spare second stage."
"The current was very strong and we still had to either descend another 15' or so to the main deck holding on to the railings to reach the boat line which was tied to one of the cranes , or gun against the current directly to the line. I chose the second. By the time we barely made to the line, i started to feel a little water in my regulator. That is a sign my air was depleting. The panicked guy was breathing like a bull. I switched him to my buddy's air and signaled to continue the ascension."
"Luckily as the pressure decreases, air expands a little in the system so o could still breathe up to 15'. I left the two of them there to do a safety stop and surfaced. With them surfacing 3 minutes later. Long story short, he lost visual contact with his buddies during the dive, panicked and used all of his air looking for them. Not following your training can get you killed."
- ElCaipi
Testing for Weakness
"Woke up around 3am one night to loud tapping outside my bedroom window (my bedroom was in the basement of our house). I assumed it was raccoons or something trying to get into our neighbour's shed. After listening for a while longer I managed to fall back asleep. In the morning I brought up the noise to my mom who said she had heard a similar noise coming from that same side of the house, only she got out of bed and went to the front living room window to investigate."
"What she saw was a man emerge from between our house and our neighbour's place. He stopped in front of our home, took a long look before removing a pair of latex gloves and then proceeded to walk down our street. I assume he was testing for weak spots or something and luckily didn't manage to make it inside that night."
- TEreAnah
Bad Night
"Mugged and beat up at 1AM behind a dumpster in Denver when I was 19."
"I went to middle and high school in Denver. It's a bad place to be after dark. Not a great city anymore anyways. It's gotten pretty spooky during day too. Hope you weren't hurt too badly, friendo."
- Artholos
Spinning out...
"Spinning out on a highway due to hydroplaning. Ended up barely tapping another car, but I thought I was done for."
"Sorry to make it about me but you just reminded me of my first "accident" a few years ago. It had rained the week prior so the ground was very mushy. First snow of the year and it had snowed a good 3-4in (and it was the nasty lake effect snow all Michiganders know)."
"I'm in the left lane, there's a smallish SUV ahead of me and a semi next to them. Then a pickup truck was trying to merge on to the highway. I think what he did was to try to beat the semi truck by speeding the heck up instead of being smart and just entering the highway like a normal person. This fool literally spun out a MINIMUM of 6 times."
"I tried following the path of the little SUV in front of me (in a company Nissan Sentra) which included slightly going off the road. I would have been fine until the pickup barely clipped my car and sent me into the median. And since it had been raining the week before, I was completely unable to get traction to get out. The pickup? Never stopped. By the time I realized he wasn't going to stop, it was too far away to read the license plate. A**hole."
At Night
"Also, sleepwalking. Holy crap, is it scary and disorienting to go to sleep in your bed and wake up mid stride through the living room, bruised and bleeding from bumping into things. Night terrors and sleep paralysis are also quite awful. I've experienced all of the above more times than I care to remember."
Dad, what are you doing?
"Fell asleep in the living room watching TV. Wake up around midnight to my Dad walking pass me. He heads to the side door, unlocks it and starts walking to the chicken coop. By the time he's outside I'm up and following after him; calling out in a whisper "Dad, what are you doing?" - no response, I think maybe he can't hear me despite being only a few steps behind him."
"Dad walks in to the chicken coop and I lose sight of him for about two seconds - I walk in to chicken coop and... it's empty. I'm very confused now. There is only one door for the coop and I'm standing in it. Suddenly, there's a hand on my shoulder. Almost jump out of my skin and whirl around - it's my Dad. He heard me walking outside, had followed after me trying to call out my name but for some reason I hadn't heard him."
Surely you have your own example of the most horrifying moment of your life. Here's hoping the scars haven't lasted too long or burrowed too deep.
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People have different levels of tolerance when it comes to profanity.
And some people can't stand the sound of rude or vulgar language so much that they can't bring themselves to say these naughty words themselves.
But when anyone reaches a high level of anger or frustration, they still might need a verbal outlet.
And instead find themselves coming up with an alternative word, which helps them release their anger, but won't offend any nearby ears.
Redditor No-Citron5628 was curious to hear people's favorite alternatives to curse words, leading them to ask:
"What is your best swear word alternative?"
Intergalactic profanity!
"Oh neptune."- StrappinYoungZiltoid
The last thing you want to find in your bed!
"Crumbs."- ThatsHisEagerFace44
Instead of rude, be educational!
“'Safety Hazard!'”
"I said this instead of… other words once when I tripped and accidentally taught this to my nephew."
"Now my sister sends me videos of my nephew saying it when things don’t go his way."- YellowForest4
Think of the children!
"Not sure of an actual word, but my bf and I have been trying to limit cursing since my toddler is becoming very verbal."
"He’s resorted to making very angry yelling caveman sounds when he wants to curse someone out rather than using the actual words."- Present-Lime-1244
With gravy?
"Biscuits!"- blargney
We can always learn a thing or two from the kids...
"A child in my class tries to swear but unintentionally says foot instead of f*ck."
"It's probably my favorite alternative."
"Wow, didn't expect this to get so much attention."
"Thank you for the award! "
"For those asking, he is a very tiny child with a deep yorkshire accent who actually picked up the word from another child but hasn't noticed he doesn't have the pronunciation quite right yet."
"Context wise though he's bang on which makes it even funnier."- sophishx
Just one word won't do!
"DO YOU SEE WHAT YOU GET, LARRY?!"
"DO YOU SEE WHAT YOU GET WHEN YOU FIND A STRANGER IN THE ALPS?!"- KevinBillyStinkwater
Be mindful, it could backfire
"When my son was little he started saying bastard so I kept saying custard."
"Until the day he complained that we were having bananas and bastard again."- CheeryShortarse
Mother knows best.
"My mother always said, 'Curses!'"
"We, the kids, laugh about it all the time."- tenzip10-0
If you feel like you've sufficiently got your anger or frustration out of your system, your choice of words served their purpose.
Whether or not they would have to be bleeped out on network TV.
When we think of iconic movie quotes, there are several which come instantly to mind.
"Here's looking at you, kid."
"Love is never having to say you're sorry."
"I'm gonna make you an offer you can't refuse."
Appropriately, the ones that might haunt us the most, are those delivered by villains, who linger in our memories not only by their creepy attire and presence but by their devious choice of words.
Frightening us long after the credits stop rolling.
Redditor N_the_character was eager to hear what the Reddit community considered the best quotes from both Hollywood's legendary villains, as well as some lesser-known antagonists from film, TV, and video games, leading them to ask:
"What's the most bada** villain quote?"
Benedict from Last Action Hero
"Benedict to youg Danny in 'Last Action Hero':"
"I should tell you that I have killed people smarter and younger than you."- S-Markt
Donquixote Doflamingo
"Pirates are evil?"
"The Marines are righteous?"
"These terms have always changed throughout the course of history!"
"Kids who have never seen peace and kids who have never seen war have different values!"
"Those who stand at the top determine what's wrong and what's right!"
"This very place is neutral ground!"
"Justice will prevail, you say?"
"But of course it will!"
"Whoever wins this war becomes justice!"- TimeisaLie
The Man with the Midas Touch...
"Goldfinger after Bond says 'Do you expect me to talk?'
"'No, Mr. Bond, I expect you to die'."- Hunk_Studly
The Last Airbender's Azula
"Dai Li: 'You've beaten me at my own game'."
"Azula: 'Don't flatter yourself. You were never even a player'."- herculesmeowlligan
Inigo Montoya, watch out!
"'Good Heavens, are you still trying to win?'"
"-the six fingered man."
Video game villains shouldn't be forgotten, ask Ghaul
“'You are not brave, you’ve merely forgotten the fear of death'."
"'Allow me to reacquaint you'.”- KentuckyBourbon94
The Good, the Bad, and the one-liners
"'When you have to shoot, shoot'."
"'Don't talk'."
"Tuco, 'The Good, The Bad and The Ugly'."- jpablo680
Whiterose of Mr. Robot
“'Because Phillip, I had to ask you twice'.”- Lontano64
The final frontier indeed...
"'A true victory is to make your enemy see they were wrong to oppose you in the first place'."
"'To force them to acknowledge your greatness'."
"Gul Dukat, Deep Space Nine."- hamdingers
A true villain will have you quaking in your boots with just one look.
But it's with their words that they really get you.
And how they instantly go from being merely villains, to legends.
Why can't people ask before they send graphic images?
And for the people who just send them willy-nilly...
Grow up.
Keep it decent, kids.
Redditor OhmMeGag wanted to hear about everyone's reactions to these types of photos. They asked:
"What's the best response to an unwanted d**k pic?"
Why are y'all STILL sending d**k pics in 2022? Like... decent.
Back at You...
"I read, I believe it was here on Reddit. This girl got an unsolicited d**k pic. So for her revenge, she sent penis pics back constantly. Big, small, anything she could find. This guy was telling her to stop, lol. She asked if he liked it."
IzzyCleo
WTF
“'Why does it look like that?' And answer none of their following texts."
Hugh_manateerian
"If you feel the need to respond, 'I'll ask my aunt, she's a nurse.'"
the_ricktacular_mort
Are you Ok?
"When I was a teenager I had just gotten my first boyfriend, and back then nobody sent photos over text because camera phones weren't a common thing yet. Also texting cost a few cents per text. God, I feel old typing that out.
"I had never seen one before, so I panicked and said, 'Oh my god are you okay??' and he just like... got really sad because he thought I thought there was something wrong with the way it looked."
ArcticFox46
Send it Back
"What I used to do was take their profile picture and photoshop their face onto the head of their d**k and send it back. I never got a second d**k pic doing that lol."
Sammie2Dope
"What she should do instead is make a public directory of unsolicited d**k pic offenders. Get the victim to edit their head on top, and then post it there with their number. Girls can then search their number to see if they've been a repeat offender in the past. Call the website the D**k Head."
FunnyPhrases
I am loving the revenge response.
Yuck
"Google 'genital warts' and send them back any of those images that come up."
stoic_and_tired
Freshman Year
"When I was a freshman in college I was home for Christmas break and the guy across the street, who was 4 years older than me and had recently moved back home, sent me one with the message that his family would be out of the house for a few hours if I wanted to come over."
"I knew him, we had lived on the same street for years, but it was completely out of the blue. I'm not even sure how he got my number. I had babysat his younger brother a few times however, which is why I had his mother's number. I took a screen shot of the message & pic and forwarded it to his mom, asking if she could please get Eric to stop sending me nudes."
sophie_steele
Wrinkled
"Why are you sending me a picture of your thumb?"
Chief_B33f
"So an old friend took a picture of his nuts**k and sent it to my husband as a joke. My husband genuinely responded 'Why did you send me a close up picture of your couch?' They had an old gray leather couch that had wrinkled over time."
SpiffyPaige143
Spot On
"I know this sounds crazy, but I am a doctor and this might be cancer."
Sakurashi2001
"Because I know they know I’m not a doctor- I say 'that spot looked weird so I sent it to my dad (he’s a doctor) and he said you should definitely go get check out' then don’t respond to any other messages."
"Note- my dad is in fact, not a doctor, and of course don’t forward my father d**k picks. But I very much enjoy the panic from an a** that 1) I sent his penis pic to my dad and 2) that there’s something wrong with his junk."
TakeOutForOne
Stop sending these types of pics unsolicited. It's gross. The end.
People say the darndest and nastiest things pretty often.
I feel like I would prefer someone who doesn't realize it because the alternative is evil.
Saying inappropriate things on purpose involves malicious intent.
No matter... wrong is wrong.
Watch your mouth.
Redditor Ok_Context_7495 wanted to know what sort of nonsense has fallen out of other people's mouths, that left us shook. They asked:
"What’s the most messed up/inappropriate thing that someone’s casually said to you?"
I have been left, fainted on the floor with some of the things I've head people say. It can be funny, but still cruel.
Ouch
"Your brother is only nice to you because he's not threatened by you or your partner. If you were successful and she were pretty, he wouldn't be nice to either of you. - Mom"
quietguy_6565
Death
"My mom died of cancer when I was 2. When I was roughly 6, my older siblings told me that my mom and I were playing in the front yard and I kicked a ball into the road and when she went to get it she got hit by a garbage truck and that’s how she died. I didn’t find out the truth til a few years later. Odd that I have 0 relationship with my family now."
mattburkephoto
“absorbed”
"I had a miscarriage where the baby was 'absorbed' and all that was left in the uterus was the gestational sac. I got pregnant again and when I told my neighbor she said, 'So are you actually pregnant this time?' Yes, a**hole. I am pregnant this time and I was actually pregnant last time. Unfortunately I just said yes and went in the house."
ohyesiam1234
Bad Parents
"It hurt a lot when my mom would get drunk and cry to me that she wishes I had passed away instead of my father. It hurt a lot more when she said it offhandedly and sober though. I'm okay now, but I was only seven. I didn't deserve that crap."
berripluscream
"You didn't deserve it. I'm sorry you had to live through this. Parents are supported to protect you, but they can also hurt you the most. Wish you all the best!"
Ancient_Bear_8069
Lucky You
“'People don’t take me seriously because I’m pretty. You’re so lucky not to have that problem.'"
DJFlorez
Some people need a punch in the face.
Deep Hate
"My ex-wife, 'Everyone hates you, they can't stand being around you.' Never could figure out why she said that. 30 years later, I'm still friends with the people that supposedly hated me."
donhouseright
"You look like a fat leek"
"My nan's sister, at our first meeting, said to 14 year old me: 'You look like a fat leek' (but in Dutch). I was flabbergasted. Fun fact. When she died a couple of years ago, during the funeral, her daughter gave a speech and told a LOT of secrets about how her mum was a total b**ch and narcissist , abused her and made her life a living hell. The whole church was in shock and they sort of canceled the funeral due to all the consternation."
Dondersteen
See the Art
“'I can’t wait for you to be blind, your art gets better and better.'”
"I am SEVERELY visually impaired, losing my vision to a degenerative disease. I am an artist. I paint and create work with themes sometimes relevant to my vision loss. Someone I knew said this to me, in front of a group of people at dinner 2 years ago. I was 32 at the time."
whatdoyoumeanitsfake
I think I was 11?
"I had a dentist say that I 'needed to work on that for when I had a boyfriend' when I was gagging during whatever the hell he was doing. I think I was 11? I did not understand it at all until I was much older and saw like the second episode of Glee where a gag reflex comment is made, I asked my mum about it and she explained and I was like 'ohhh... Ohhh is that why (dentist) said this?' She was not thrilled that I'd waited so long to tell her."
CopperTodd17
Damn Girl
"Middle of a grocery store. I’m 18 or 19. A man 50+ years old walks up to me, puts his arm around my shoulders, stares down at my breasts, and says, 'Damn, girl, can you see your feet?'"
Aruaz821
Some people really need an electric shock collar as a sensor.