We've all had those situations where things seemed like a great idea - until we actually do them and then realize it's a total disaster. (For a lot of us, that idea was a relationship, don't even lie.)
Seemingly bright ideas gone wrong are pretty much the premise for some of the most popular clip shows, and every sitcom episode ever.
Reddit user MercyMeOhMy asked:
What was your "it seemed like a good idea at the time" story?
Yeah ... half of these stories would be perfect in an episode of your favorite TV shows; but you know what they say - you can't write this stuff. Real life is far more ridiculous than anything fiction writers can come up with.
Bustin' Through
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In high school, my friend discovered that he was particularly agile at running toward a wall and kicking off of it into a backflip. He would do this all day, every day, before school, at lunch, etc.
One day we were inside a classroom and the teacher had stepped out for a moment. Of course he took this opportunity to try his little trick. He didn't, however, take into account the fact that drywall might not support his weight as well as the brick and concrete walls he'd tried before.
His leg ended up busting straight through the wall to the other side, into a classroom full of students taking an exam. So I wasn't actually in the class taking the exam, but to this day, I still imagine how strange and hilarious it would be to be sitting in that class then suddenly see a leg burst through the wall. Makes me smile just thinking about it.
Roommates
Being roommates with someone I had a huge crush on. It didn't end well.
That person turned out to be an abusive manipulator who had complete disregard for my feelings, well being, and possessions. I thought they were my best friend, and I eventually figured out the hard way they were not. It wasn't just me - this individual pretty much used people as playthings and disposed of them when they weren't getting any more entertainment or validation from them. They were super toxic. It took me a long time to heal from what I went through. In the end though, I'm grateful for the lessons I learned.
Sled Dog
Playing "Sled Dog" with my newly rescued husky and a long board on the hilly streets near my house in college. Snapped my right forearm in half and had to walk a mile back home to get a ride to the hospital. The dog was fine. I let go of her leash and when I cracked my arm she freaked out and chaperoned me back to the house. She could tell I was in a lot of pain.
Fun With Fire 1
So back in the day my brothers and I were shooting a bow and arrow behind our house.
We had a proper backstop and a nice target on a bale of hay. After about an hour we were getting bored and one of my brothers had a stroke of genius.
So there we are wiring rags to arrows and soaking them in gas and shooting stuff. Didn't take long and half the yard was on fire. We'd shot pretty much every flammable thing we could burn in the yard.
Since we were running short on stuff to shoot my brother decided to launch one in a 45° arc over the woods behind the house. We all watched soar laughing and giggling.
When it hit the apex was when it dawned on us that this was in fact a really stupid fucking idea.
All 6 of us sprinted off into the woods in the direction it'd been shot. Wasn't hard to find it'd lite an entire little meadow on fire. So we ran around stomping out fires for an hour. When we finally got the fire put out we were sitting by the crick and my oldest brother looks at us all and says,"Dad never hears a word about this."
Fun With Fire 2
A kid I knew growing up was hanging out with his friends at his dad's hunting camp (they were around 17/18 at the time) and they were playing around with fire like this.
Ended up setting fire to the woods surrounding the camp, burning it and many acres surrounding it to the ground.
His dad was, less than pleased. He took money from the kid's college fund to pay the fines from the fire department and pay to rebuild the hunting camp lodge and there was practically nothing left after that.
Last I heard he had to live at home for a handful of years after highschool to save money for post-secondary while his friends all went off and got degrees and stuff.
Severely impacted his life, all from a bit of "fun" with fire.
Holding Mom At Gunpoint
When I was 15 (so in the late 90's) my best friend and I just got new bb pistols. They we're the Walther CP99. Looked identical to the real Walther CP9 with a removable magazine and no orange tip. We were playing with them in the back seat of his moms car. They weren't loaded, we were just excited and wanted to take them out of the box. She knew we had them out and didn't think anything of it. Before going back to his house she went thru the drive thru at Burger King. You know where this is going. She's ordering food with 2 large 15-year-olds holding guns and pointing them at everything.
Fast forward 30 minutes, we are pulling into there driveway and his dad comes running out of the house yelling historically. One of his friends just called and said he heard on the police scanner that they were looking for his vehicle with 2 white males holding a female hostage at gunpoint. Few minutes later several police cars pull in the driveway, jump out with guns out making everyone get on the ground. It took some explaining on his dads part about us being a bunch of dumb asses. 15 year old me couldn't figure out what all the fuss was about but 34 year old me looks back and realises that might be the dumbest thing I have ever done.
- DCxMiLK
Wheee! Thud.
In fifth grade I invented a game, where you get the swing as high and fast as you can, then at the bottom you run off it really fast.
Miss-timed it, landed on my head on asphalt, got a serious concussion.
Here's a carefully-drawn and highly realistic depiction of what happened.
Ugandan Mud Wasps
So I was in Uganda with my family, and we see a large (about 5ft tall), curled up leaf hanging about 8ft off the ground. We're told that these leaves curl up and fall out the trees, and they're pretty heavy, so it can be dangerous to have it fall on you. My dad and I think 'wont it be helpful of us to get this thing down'.
So, we're there whacking it with sticks, trying to get it down, to no avail, when my dad says "Hey, climb up on that wall there, son, and jump! Grab it and then pull it down!"
Well, that sounds like a swell idea, dad! So I do just that... I don't manage to get it all the way down, but as soon as I hit the ground, I get this burning sensation in my elbow. Turns out there's a hive of Ugandan Mud Wasps living in this specific leaf, and they do not take kindly to young men trying to tug their home down.
So I'm just sprinting back to the office where the rest of my family is sheltered from the sun, and I practically have two elbows on one arm at this point while, as my dad described it later 'an army of large, black blots' give chase. I make it back inside and my arm is numb, except for the searing pain in my elbow. Thankfully, there was no further reaction, the pain lasted only around 3 hours and the swelling was down by the end of the day. That being said, it was the worst pain I've ever felt... Even worse than the time I broke my arm into three pieces while arm wrestling...
- sgste
The Bender
Going on a 4 day bender with no sleep. Ended up getting the crap kicked out of me and required 7 stitches in the back of my head. I also ended up spending 2 months wages, losing my brand new £1000 phone and pissing off numerous ex girlfriends by declaring my love for them. Oh and I was hungover for about a week.
Haven't had a drink for 3 months now because of my stupidity!
Hitchhiker
On a rainy day, I saw a hitchhiker near the university asking for a ride.
He "looked the part" of a student. Although I never pick up hitchhikers, I felt sorry for him standing in the rain and gave him a lift - it felt like the right thing to do at the time.
He told me where he was headed, so I went out of my way to drive him there. The guy just kept staring at me and said very little. When we arrived at his destination, he wouldn't get out of my car, no matter what.
Finally, when a police officer came along, I told him to hop out or I'd call the cop over for help. That ended it. (But if the officer hadn't come by, I have no idea what might have happened.)
"You Can't See Me, I'm Hiding"
Many years ago, I became absolutely smitten with a young woman. She was friendly, intelligent, funny, and almost painfully attractive, with a list of interests and hobbies that seemed like they were a near-perfect match to my own. Within hours of our first conversation, I had decided that the two of us belonged together... and as a result of that decision, I launched myself into a series of increasingly stupid attempts at seduction.
There are any number of idiotic misadventures that I could describe here, but perhaps the most ridiculous of them happened on the evening before Valentine's Day. I had purchased my would-be paramour a small potted plant – something which I'd been told she'd appreciate more than flowers or chocolate – and I was intent on leaving it somewhere for her to discover (rather than handing it to her in person). While any sane person would have just placed the gift on her welcome mat, I opted for a much less wise approach, convincing the girl's flatmate to give me access to their kitchen. My hope was that I could position the present in such a way that it would remain unnoticed until the next morning, at which point it would seem to magically appear in the morning light.
Now, lest you think that I was a complete moron, I should mention that the young woman in question was supposed to be out of the house while I was making my clandestine delivery. Unfortunately for me, she had changed her schedule at the last minute, arriving back at home almost immediately after I had been let in. Her roommate and I exchanged hurried whispers as we discussed a place for me to hide, but since there were only a few seconds to spare, I had to settle for ducking down behind the counter that separated the kitchen from the living room.
Had this been a scene in a romantic comedy, a slapstick series of mad dashes and near-misses would have ensued. Sadly, real life doesn't work like that, and I was found almost immediately: The girl walked into the living room, asked her roommate who she had been talking to, then made a move to approach the kitchen (which I assumed based on what I could hear). Knowing that I was about to be caught, I huddled as far back into a corner as I could, then held the potted plant up in front of my face.
"Uh... hi, Max," I heard the young woman say.
"You can't see me," I replied. "I'm hiding."
The good news is that my efforts – despite having thoroughly failed – were more or less appreciated. I semi-sheepishly presented the girl with her gift, wished her a happy Valentine's Day, then explained why I had been sneaking around in her apartment. She graciously accepted, but (quite reasonably) asked why I had tried such a convoluted way of giving her a present.
All I could say was that it seemed like a good idea at the time.
3DS
My 3ds had trouble reading the cartridges, so I put water in the game slot.
I no longer have a 3ds.
Eastern European Yoga Psychopath
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Decided to get high and go to a yoga class because i thought i would get a better mind muscle connection. Turns out the class i decided to go to was being taught by a eastern European yoga psychopath and had me bending my body in ways i have never done before. Never again.
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
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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
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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
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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
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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
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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.