"What is a strange, but harmless rule your family has?" –– This was today's burning question from Redditor Gilbraith, and the online community was only too happy to oblige.
Whether you were only allowed to eat certain foods on certain days of the week or tell off one dog but not the other (yes, you read that correctly), you're bound to find kindred spirits who also come from kooky families after reading some of these.
"My family..."
My family always has two dogs, you may insult the younger dog as much as you want, but you must never insult the elder dog.
"Overall..."
We're all incredibly sarcastic and kinda rude to each other. It's how we show love but to avoid any actual hurt feelings if anyone ever says the exact phrase 'stop teasing' it's over and everyone apologieses. Grew up with this rule and trust me kindergarten was a rough awakening when bullies don't bend over backwards at my magic phrase.
Overall good way to grow up goofing around and joking with family but make sure no one is actually offended when you roast them nonstop over something stupid.
"The last slice..."
The last slice of birthday cake belongs to the person whose birthday it was made to celebrate. Not strange in and of itself, strange in that my family had to actively spell it out.
"Most of the shows we watch..."
Most of the shows we watch are recorded live, and then watched later in the week.
Mother cannot control the remote, as she will skip the commercials and go 5 minutes further, then spend just as long getting back to the correct stop as it would have been to watch the commercials in the first place.
"No one tells mom..."
GiphyNo one tells mom that my sister and I didn't buy our graduation photos and just framed the sample photo with the huge watermark. Been four years and she hasn't noticed
"I was a stay at home dad..."
Don't bother dad while he's eating.
I was a stay at home dad and did most of the cooking. After dishing up and serving everyone, I'd plate my food just in time for everyone to come back for seconds, which i would dish up for them. After a couple years of eating lukewarm food (and the kids were big enough to dish up their seconds) I made the rule so I could actually have a hot meal. I still enforce this rule.
The Best 'Actually, You're Speaking To The Boss' Experience | George Takei’s Oh Myyy
"If ever giving someone a ride home..."
If ever giving someone a ride home, wait for them to get the door to their house open before leaving. This may have been more important when I was growing up before everyone had a cellphone. My parents did a lot with our church youth group so there were a lot of events or times after get togethers where some of them would need rides, and this was to make sure they were home safely and not locked out or anything.
"My grandpa received the frame..."
There is a framed photo of the girl which came with the frame among our other family photos on the cabinet.
My grandpa received the frame and he died before he'd exchanged the photo so we're just keeping it like that.
"And in case you're curious..."
My rule for walks: Every duck you see must be confronted about their various love affairs. A lone male duck? "Sir??? Sir are you aware of where your wife is???" I have gotten every person I've walked with in on this joke/rule.
And in case you're curious, ducks are all having affairs, squirrels you can only get for tax evasion, and geese are always up for a turf war.
"When there are multiple dessert options..."
When there are multiple dessert options after a large family meal, the lime jelly must be included in the options offered to everyone, but nobody may accept the lime jelly. Only my stepdad may have the lime jelly.
The strange thing is that this was never a conscious decision we made, and it was never really noticed until I was seventeen. It was the first time my now partner was invited to a big family meal. After the meal, my grandma told us the dessert options as usual, then looked to my partner first as he was a guest. He politely asked for lime jelly.
For the awkward silence that followed, he might as well have asked if he could eat the cat. Then there was this weird awkward conversation where we had to explain the lime jelly rule which we'd never consciously thought about before. It ended with my stepdad, for the first time in the four years he'd lived with us, deciding to have a different dessert so my partner could have the lime jelly.
And the opportunity for strangers online to unburden themselves arose when Redditor _Lord_Infamous asked:
"What is a scary, unsettling fact about you?"
Certain facts about these Redditors are perplexing.
Blank Space
"I do not actually remember a decent chunk of my life, whenever I talk about most of my childhood I use words that leave room for mistakes and am generally using memories and ideas I've compiled from hearing other people say things about me."
"There is actually a large chunks of facts about myself that I only think I know, and don't have personal confirmation of."
– Cendruex
Dead Or Alive
"I’m convinced with no evidence that my father is still alive and that my whole family is lying to me. I logically know he is not. But every knock on the door I open half expecting my father. Could be something to work through … but it’s not really affecting me day to day. My grandfather died and I thought I would feel the same way. Nope. He is dead and I miss him but he is dead."
– rkspm
Warning: Self-Harm Trigger
"Growing up I had a recurring nightmare set in my grandparents backyard looking at the back of their house. There was just something 'off' about the house. Something mildly sinister. I dreamt this over and over, many times over the years."
"In 2018, my dad (who now owned the house) went into the backyard to that spot and killed himself."
"I haven’t had the backyard dream since."
– OSUJillyBean
Nightmares Come True
"I had a recurring super vivid intense dream at like 4.... my uncle was chasing us around a labyrinth with a large knife... trying to kill me and my grandmother. 25 or so years later the same uncle (complete paranoid delusional schizophrenic) murders my grandmother at her condo... with the very nice chef knife I bought her for Christmas the year before..."
– Serotu
Severe Trauma
"Less scary and more shocking, but when I was 9 years old I survived a home invasion where I was shot 6 times. I played dead on the floor until the man left and called 911 and in my adrenaline rush I thought they couldn't find my house so I crawled with my left are swinging the wrong way and my right leg limp from nerve damage, all the way to the front door when he broke in from the back of the house."
"I lived with only my mother who unfortunately didn't survive. I vividly remember picking out the guy in a photo line up while recovering in the ICU."
"I am very lucky to have kept my left arm, I have 32 pins and screws to make up for my shattered elbow. My left leg has permanent nerve damage and I now have 'drop foot'. Despite my physical injuries and PTSD, I am doing very well."
– skullexis
We are not all born the same.
Complete Immunity
"I'm one of the lucky few with the CCR5-delta-32 mutation. Why is that relevant? It makes me immune to HIV and a handful of other pathogens, most notably the Bubonic Plague."
– SursumCorda-NJ
Sharper Image
"I have 2 lenses in my right eye, so it focuses like binoculars. My doctor wrote a paper about it. Mostly blinded as a baby in my left eye. Dr suspected my right lense split then healed as 2 distinct lenses. Better than 20/20 in my right eye."
– The_Smoot
Prematurely Slim
"When I was born, I was so premature that my dad, who had quite dainty piano fingers, could slide his wedding ring up my arm to my shoulder. (I weighed 2 lbs, born at 27 weeks)."
– cyanomys
Losing Digits
"I had 6 toes on each foot at birth and got them cut off you can see the place they cut them at."
– HearingAccurate8616
People live with the unfortunate risk that their lives can be cut short at any given moment.
Ticking Time Bomb
"I have an enlarged aortic root. It's very unlikely, but it could spontaneously rupture leading to the medical term adjusts glasses... 'instantaneous death'. I would pass out, bleed to death, and then fall over. Dead before hitting the ground. And it could happen at any time. My wife is very uncomfortable thinking about it lol."
– ignisnex
For The Sake Of Survival
"my immune system backfired and tried to murder me and almost succeeded. I now have to take multiple injections every single day all day or i'll die a painful death within a week."
"Just trying to write diabetes in the most bad-a** way."
– monstrinhotron
A friend of mine once told me that the name I've known him by was not his real name.
He had gone by an alias, which everyone at work assumed was his actual name, to protect himself and his identity after he had been violently hunted down, stalked and threatened for his life for witnessing a murder.
The suspects involved were eventually caught and locked away for good.
I don't remember all the other details about the traumatizing incident because I was completely stupefied.
If you or someone you know is struggling, you can contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255).
To find help outside the United States, the International Association for Suicide Prevention has resources available at https://www.iasp.info/resources/Crisis_Centres/
"What is your "WTF did I just watch?" movie?"
Disturbingly Real
"Kids."- jn-indianwood
Dystopian Doesn't Even Begin To Describe It
"'The Lobster'."
"You have a certain time to become married and if you fail to find a spouse you get sent to an asylum where you must find a spouse from among the other singles."
"If you again fail to find a partner, you must choose which animal you want to be turned into, and then they turn you into that animal."- Leemage
A Podcaster's Worst Nightmare
"Tusk."- wdeallan
With A Title Like That...
"Martyrs."- Patient_Homework9730
Willem Dafoe Smile GIFOnly 67 Minutes... But Plenty Of Gore
"Tetsuo the Ironman (would very strongly not recommend for people with weak stomachs)."- PeruvianPolarbear14
A Homicidal Car Tire... Yes You Read That Correctly...
"Rubber."- Askfreud
Glad It Didn't Disappoint... I Guess?
"Salo, or 120 days of Sodom."
"Granted, I had a phase where I was purposely looking for disturbing movies and this one sure didn't disappoint."- Reddit
Was The Title An Actual Apology?
"Sorry to bother you."- kappaidan
Darren Aronofsky At His Strangest...
"Mother."- dank-yharnam-nugs
jennifer lawrence mother movie GIF by mother!GiphyMeet The Parents gone wrong...
"I'm Thinking of Ending Things."- Vandalatwork
Charlie Kaufman Strikes Again!
"Being John Malkovich."- getlough
Happy Dance GIF by benjamin lemoineOne thing that can be said about all these movies, those who see them will never forget them.
Which may or may not be a good thing...
Now, which film should we add to this list?
