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Sailors Share The Strangest Things They've Ever Seen On The Open Ocean

Being out on the open ocean is not something many people get to experience, but if you do it tends to be one of those things that changes the way you view the world.


The rules of "normal" kind of go out the window. It's not an environment humans are accustomed to, and so even the most mundane things can seem entirely surreal.

One reddit user asked:

Mariners of Reddit, what's the strangest thing you've seen out on the open ocean?

and ok ... maybe surreal was an understatement. Some of these sound outright unnerving. Except the last one. We're pretty sure that last story is about interrupting God's fishing trip and God just trying to play it cool after getting busted.

Edgy

I have only spent about 2 months on the water, with about 2 weeks on the Great Lakes. But even just a couple miles off shore in the Atlantic when it's a foggy and calm night I totally get what sailors talk about when they say "sailing off the edge" sometimes it looks like the water just stops and there's nothing after it.

- NBAhungboi

Who?

An Owl. 300 miles offshore. I hoped it would stay with us or get close enough to catch, but it flew off into open water. Lots of land birds get stuck at sea, sometimes they accidentally fall asleep on a ship and wake up in the middle of the ocean and try to find land again. Some get blown out from storms. They eventually drink too much salt water and die. The smaller ones get eaten by seagulls. It's sad.

- SparkleFishy

Praying

Giphy

We were at least 5 days away from land and our ship was covered bow to stern in praying mantis. Not truly the weirdest thing ever, but after not seeing much life for a few weeks it was an experience for sure.

- ObamasCoffeeCup

Lightning Strikes Twice

One time on the coast I saw a massive storm stretching as far as you could see, which is of course very far when you have nothing obstructing your view.

There was lightning everywhere I cant put it into words, every city was probably getting a lightning strike per minute, but from my point of view with this massive panoramic view, there must have been 10 bolts of lightning per second, sustained over at least an hour, absolutely mesmerizing

Like any good mariner, I grabbed my cigarettes, and did the ol' one foot on the railing and watched.

- The_VanBuren_Boys

Ballet In The Bay

Whales doing ballet in the bay. Hilarious to watch such a massive and heavy beast come flying out of the water over and over again like it's just playing, meanwhile it's big enough to just crush me instantly.

- 73Scamper

Every Other Human In History

Giphy

Father used to sail yachts for rich bastards across the Atlantic so they could have it in their Mediterranean and Florida houses depending on the time of year. His first time he got to truly see an open, starry night, and says he was appalled that it was so unusual to him, and because we're all living in cities everyone's missing out on that kind of natural beauty that almost every other human in history would've had access to.

- STVnotFPTP

Baldius Manius

In Slovenia, whilst on our research vessel, we saw a pale and bald thing almost emerge from the sea, it looked incredibly humanoid (as in its head was poking above sea level, with a thin layer of water over its head).

It was there for a split second, and we assumed it was a diver trying to scare us. Lo and behold, we carried out a biodiversity assessment in that very area and found nothing apart from some smaller fish. But no man. There was nobody there.

To this day, me and my marine biology professors have no idea what it was, or how it got there (I was majoring in marine biology at the time).

Our first assumption was a juvenile whale. However we were in relatively shallow waters, where these species tend not to congregate. Furthermore, if it was a calf, there should have been a much larger mother (which none of us ever saw).

We named this species as baldusmanius.

- Tom5pense

An Orange Flower

I was on the helms of a ship in the South China sea in late 2018. It was just before dark when one of the stars expanded from a dot to a flower shaped orange thing that rotated very slowly. That thing was there for the whole night.

Everybody the on the bridge was wondering what the heck it was. It was not larger than the size of my thumbnail with my arm stretched out, but it was so distinct and eye catching.

Probably an astronomical or meteorological phenomenon.

- DeciduousDentition

The Void

Solo night watch on a sailboat delivery. New moon (when the moon can't be seen) with overcast skies that covered the stars.

The strangeness wasn't what I could see but rather what I couldn't.

Total silence on a broad reach, surfing down long unbroken swells. No light in the sky, almost no perceived movement, just 4 hours of nothingness. Occasionally a wavelet would crest and reflect the light of the navigation light and cast a pale green flash that was the only reminder that I was on the ocean and not cast into an endless void. It was the most unsettling experience I've ever had.

- FatBeardedSeal

A Man With No Boat

Was motoring through hurricane Irene (captaining a 32' charter catamaran) between Anegada and Jost Van Dyke in open water many miles from any coast/harbor....and stumbled upon a local man with NO BOAT doing "deep sea spear fishing."

Dude had a 4x1.5 foot Rubbermaid container attached to 2 bouys filled to the brim with ice and fish. Probably at least 300 lbs of deep sea catches (before gutting). And all he had was a rudimentary, blacksmithed, iron spear rigged with silicone tubing on a stick for the propulsion.

We were probably 13-15 nautical miles off any shore/harbor...winds were insane, at least 45-50 mph...waves were between 15'-17' in the open sea, prob 20'-25' on shore...dude didn't seem to have any sort of boat/canoe.....looked to us like he swam out with a few bouys and nets and just got to fishin and didn't notice the hurricane lol.

He had obviously been spear fishing these waters his whole life, I mean the amount of fish this guy had speared was unimaginable... literally a massive pile of fish. It was impressive.

Why the F are you spear fishing in the open ocean during a hurricane, and how the F did you spear all those you wizard?!?!?!

We scooped him up, gave him a ride, and then enjoyed an enormous bounty of fresh deep sea fish with the fellow. He must have given us 20-25 lbs of his catch when we scooped him and gave him a ride to Jost Van Dyke.

He looked pretty normal for a BVI native besides his mohawk hairstyle. Kinda skinny, in his 20s, super fit, of west African complexion, and spoke the local language as well as English with a thick islander accent. He was a very respectful and cool dude, helped us a lot.


Saw the dude later on, getting off his dingy at Pusser's bar with plenty of fresh catches for the tourists. He loaded us up with fish and drank with us that night...let us in on a few "secret local diving/fishing spots." Dude was chill, poured us some of his homebrew rum and open fire grilled us some local chicken.

Asked us to cover his bar tab at the bar as "payment" and went on his way.

We ended up scoring some good footage and fish on his recommendations. Ended up giving a lot of our catch away or trading for other goods cuz there was just too much for our freezer.

Was a great trip all in all. Never did learn his name.

- Jsmoke91

Products That Failed Because They Were Way Ahead Of Their Time

Reddit user kingpin000 asked: 'What failed when it was initially released, but turned out to be ahead of its time years later?'

It is not uncommon in this world for people to be underappreciated or even ridiculed for their work because they were ahead of their time. Nicolaus Copernicus was mocked for his theory that the universe was heliocentric. Jackson Polluck's art was only revered posthumously.

This is true for many things, including inventions, movies, video games, and even restaurants.

Redditors know this all too well. They have identified what things failed when they were initially released but turned out to be ahead of its time, and are eager to share.

It all started when Redditor kingpin000 asked:

"What failed when it was initially released, but turned out to be ahead of its time years later?"

Dual Uses

"Viagra. Fascinating history. It was developed as a blood pressure medicine in the 80s. The bonerific side effect was “embarrassing” and “unwanted” in the 80s, but desired a decade or so later when sex became less taboo."

"So, it failed as a mainstream blood pressure pill, but succeeded as a boner pill."

– Myzyri

"It's actually used as a blood pressure medication still, but it's for the more rare Pulmonary Hypertension."

– Blueshark25

That's Why They're Called Sticky Notes

"The glue that became part of Post-Its. The guy who invented them was trying to create a stronger glue for the aerospace industry, but the adhesive he created was a weak adhesive. Years later one of his colleagues used that adhesive to create a bookmark that didn't fall out of the book he was reading. Eventually, that idea became Post-Its."

– mom_with_an_attitude

"If I recall the story correctly, it was a hymn book which had delicate pages."

"The Post-Its adhesive worked great on it by not ripping or ruining the pages."

– teems

Pre-Spotify

"I always feel like the Zune and their music model was ahead of its time. 10 dollars month for unlimited downloads while at the time you were paying 1 dollar per single. Now everyone just uses Spotify for the same thing."

– sausagepizza

"You also got to keep 10 of the songs you downloaded at the end of each month. It was essentially paying for 10 songs with as free streaming on top."

– evanzknigh39

If Only They Waited

"Touch screens."

"Yes they are everywhere now but the Buicks 1986 model had one, and most cars today have it."

"Hell, the concept was developed in 1965!!!"

– BotherDesperate7169

"Microsoft pushed a tablet computer about 5 years or so before the iPad got released. It failed miserably and they quickly gave up on the idea."

– saugoof

Almost, But Not Quite

"Vine. They were almost TikTok, but weren’t."

– Gauzey

"I don’t understand why Vine died and Tik Tok lives?"

– kapt_so_krunchy

"Because Vine was ahead of its time."

– MrBoomf

The Big Screen

"The movie Blade Runner."

– Agreeable_Pizza93

"Shawshank flopped in the theaters. It's a classic because TNT began airing it because it was cheap. Boys grew up watching Shawshank. Now it's one of IMDb ten greatest films."

"We can also look at It's a Wonderful Life."

– Econoj

"I've said it on here before somewhere. But The Thing went from being an absolute critical bomb at the time... to being one of the most lauded (and rightfully so) horror sci films ever created now. Specific tastes aside, anyone who enjoys horror probably has The Thing in their top 10."

– 10019245

Can't Believe This Flopped

"Bluetooth was released with a huge fanfare and then fizzled for a few years before it really took off."

– FearlessTomatillo911

"This should be a huge one! It flopped on the market for a long time before someone figured out how to use it correctly and now it’s a staple for electronics."

– ballnout

Just When He Got Rid Of It...

"Debit cards. My dad got one in the 70’s when they were a new idea and nobody seemed to understand them and didn’t take them. He finally got rid of his. Now……"

– sas5814

My Favorite Childhood Toy

"Slime (silly putty). originally, it was an attempt to replace rubber during WW2."

– pupunhaLover

Vroom, Vroom

"Electric car."

"German engineer Andreas Flocken built the first real electric car in 1888. The first electric car in the United States was developed in 1890–91 by William Morrison of Des Moines, Iowa; the vehicle was a six-passenger wagon capable of reaching a speed of 23 km/h (14 mph)."

– george_sg

What Might've Been

"Google Glass the biggest argument against it was ppl being so angry about the wearers filming them. Here we are 10+ years later and everyone films everything everywhere they go. And we have ppl wearing GoPros and other klunky cameras all the time."

"The Google Glass offered AR, filming, assistant functionally, map and web access all in an easy to wear and use piece of tech that was also super cool and futuristic. I think if it had taken off we would have even more advanced models now. It was just WAY too ahead of it's time for widespread adoption. I think it would be wildly popular now."

– JubalHarshawII

For Man's Best Friend

"Pets.com. Everyone laughed at the idea after the tech bubble burst. Chewy.com is worth $10B today."

– Bishop_Pickerling

"If there’s anything I’ve learned, it’s that animal lovers will drop some serious cash."

– FunAdministration334

Shut Up And Drive

"The Sinclair C5 electric vehicle. Complete flop in 1985, but now a thriving hobby as many people are upgrading them with modern batteries, motors, disc brakes, etc. So much fun to drive."

– TheKingOfDub

"Sinclair C5."

"Can't help but feel had it been succesful, the following iterations would be superior to the e-bikes we have now."

– SmeeegHeead

Eye Of The Beholder

"Van Gogh's paintings. Amy Pond from Doctor Who knew how good he was, but none of Vincent's contemporaries did, and he eventually died by his own hand."

– tunghoy

Poor Van Gogh. He's my favorite artist!

I'm glad he's appreciated now, even if he wasn't in his own time.

(And this is exactly why Doctor Who's Amy Pond was my favorite companion!)

A well dressed man screams into a phone
Icons8 Team/Unsplash

Life can be destroyed in an instant.

Every single moment of every single day we make choices that can further our existence or ruin it.

Sadly, it often feels like a majority of us choose the latter option.

We only get one life.

Why is it so hard to make the most of it?

We're all guilty of poor decision-making.

That's okay, as long as we learn from it.

It feels like there is always time to right wrongs.

The truth is, there's not.

That clock eventually runs out.

Redditor metalnxrd wanted to hear about the people who have brought personal wreckage to themselves, so they asked:

"Who are some people you know personally, or otherwise, who ruined their own lives, and how?"

I've watched too many people self-destruct.

It all starts in the mirror.

Don't be afraid to look.

All-In

Season 17 What GIF by America's Got TalentGiphy

"Took out a mortgage on his house and leveraged all his other assets to go all-in on Luna coin. It worked beautifully until it didn't."

Particular-Natural12

Bad Ideas

"Had a buddy who got scouted by professional baseball when we were in high school. They wanted him in the farm system, his mom wanted him in college. So the team allowed it."

"Dude found meth before leaving for college. He never made it there."

"He's now homeless and on his last legs."

BosskHogg

Receipts, please...

"Family member addicted to shopping. She & her husband made really good money and could have had a very comfortable life. Every single year she decided she didn’t like their house, sold at a loss, and then renovated and bought all new designer furniture for every new house. On top of that, she constantly bought multiple pieces of the same designer clothes and jewelry (why?), art, cosmetic procedures etc."

"Eventually they couldn’t even get a mortgage anymore and were in an insane amount of debt, lost their cars and everything else they owned. She ended up stealing her mother’s credit card to use for restaurants and attempted to make a bunch of frivolous lawsuits which just resulted in more legal debt."

Guineacabra

Out of Recovery

"I helped an old friend of my mother-in-law for some time, she was in recovery for some years. She had drunk so heavily for so long that she developed a neurological disorder that left her debilitated. She gradually lost her balance, her motor skills and coordination, and is now hospitalized and unable to care for herself."

"She is almost a decade younger than me and her life of independence is over. She will remain bedridden and rely on others for her most basic needs for the remaining years of her life. This is neither far-fetched nor the worst-case scenario, people die from addiction every day."

Optimal-Scientist233

Move On

"Staying in bad relationships, doubling down and marrying and having children. Now they have the same relationship problems that they had ten years ago but with children involved."

pitathegreat

Being alone by yourself is better than being alone in a relationship.

If you need a reminder please listen to Ms. Whitney Houston's "It's Not Right, But It's Okay!" on repeat daily.

Tainted Love

Shaking Head Reaction GIF by GIPHY NewsGiphy

"SIL is a trainwreck. Ruined her marriage, ruined her relationship with her kids, lost her house and car, all to be with some abusive piece of crap."

ThePelky

Weekly Drama

"A friend from HS won a thousand a week for life. Never went to college. Never held down a long-term job. Always worried some lady was trying to take his money by getting pregnant or or stealing it through marriage. Has had a very mediocre life without much progression or new relationships."

"The rest of the friend group used to think he was the luckiest guy alive. Now we all just try to keep his spirits up when we get together and keep our advice to ourselves. He is aware of the solutions to his problems at a 10-mile view but the $1000/week has sapped his will to execute any self-improvement plan."

TheUnblinkingEye1001

Dead Dreams

"Midlife Crisis... Came to a realization they didn't have something they really wanted in their life. Abandoned everything they already had (job, family, friends) to chase that dream. Finally forced to realize what they were chasing was an unobtainable illusion but the damage was already done."

varthalon

Ruined

"Someone in our friend group keeps having kids with people and then leaving, screwing him financially because of child support. He can't hold any jobs and has stolen from friends. Right now he's crashing on one of my friend's couches. I dunno why they are allowing him to stay there."

dinoaids

Make better choices.

Please.

Do you have any similar stories? Let us know in the comments.

As much as we might like to be, we can't be good at literally everything.

But when we struggle with something that everyone else seems to naturally "get," that can be a hard thing to accept.

Redditor B**IZDeepInUrMom asked:

"What are you below average at?"

Legible Handwriting

"My handwriting is nuts one person described it as looking like a serial killer's mad scribbles."

- Hopper-1986

"A nurse once told me I sign with doctor scribbles."

- tonytonyrigatony

Carrying a Tune

"Singing. I’m very bad. I only sing in the car and I still fear I may one day be cautioned by police for being so terrible."

- 24-Hour-Hate

"Do you know why I pulled you over? That B was way off-pitch, sir (or ma'am)!! I'm arresting you for murdering that song!"

- Abbadon0666

"One of my biggest fears is pocket-dialing someone while I’m singing in the car."

- hockeybag2

The Quiet Ones

"Words spoken per day."

- CrediblyHandsome

"Why say many word, when few word do trick?"

- TitanBrews

"Yessss, someone who gets it. I use like four words every day at school."

- harryyougoboom

"I go through more, but it's mostly 'Excuse me' and 'Thank you' and other s**t I'm required to say 1,000 times per day to not be thought a sociopath."

- RichardBottom

Listening Skills

"Listening. I'm trying, but it's tough to change a lifetime habit."

- Actual_Green_7433

"I'm sorry?"

- keeeeener

"Did you say something?"

- BigTenBiden

Basic Social Interactions

"Social interactions."

- DxNxWx

"I SUCK at social interactions."

"'Nice weather today.'"

"'Thanks.'"

"A new cringe core memory unlocked."

- antoine-sama

No Flirting Game

"I'm not good at noticing when someone flirts with me. I'm not even very good at knowing the difference between an extrovert being friendly and them hitting on me."

- Not_Jim3

"My current girlfriend and I met at a club. I was crossing the dance floor; she got in my way, and we had an awkward encounter. Happened a couple more times before I got the clue: 'Oooh, I think she wants us to meet...'"

"Other than my girlfriend, I maintain I have never been flirted with or hit on once."

"Not. Once."

- clever_username_eh

Vertically Challenged

"Height. I'm only five feet tall."

- Damseldoll

"Same."

- FlyingFox32

Elusive Math Skills

"I've always been the kind of guy who 'seems smart' because I'm good with English and communication, and I'm good enough at the kind of 'real world' math like percentages, multiplication, addition and subtraction, etc."

"Then it gets to sh*t like algebra word problems, trig, calculus and I'm suddenly the dumbest person alive and the world thinks I deserve to die alone in poverty. Go figure, eh?"

- amadeus2490

Poor Sleeping Habits

"Sleeping. As of writing this, I have been struggling to catch up on sleep for about a month and I have been awake for about 16 hours and it is 7:42 AM. I’m so tired."

- HeatoStrike

In Need of Driver's Ed.

"Driving. Watch out for me in the streets!"

- Jiggy_Turner

"Parallel parking. I’ve been driving for two years now and I’m utter garbage at it. I refuse to parallel park even if there’s no angle parking available."

- n123breaker2

Mind Reading

"My wife claims I’m a pretty lousy mind reader, and I’d have to agree with her."

- imacmadman22

Negative Self-Talk

"Probably the ability to feel good about myself."

"Like, why do I think I'm ugly, or why do I think I'm a good person or why the f**k do I think I am Autistic? Probably because I'm dumb as soup."

- Jerney_to_Nirvana

"Or you just don't trust your capacity to see yourself more. I struggle with that s**t."

- dustinAlt

Investing

"Investing. I have no clue what to do."

- cadcamm99

"No one does. It's either people who were rich from the beginning or some random guy who tries to sell you stuff."

- RichieiRocket

Beauty is in the Eye of...

"Convincing my wife she's beautiful."

"The good fight continues."

- toolatealreadyfapped

Clean and Tidy

"Cleaning. I’m slowly getting better but I’m definitely below average."

- SnooGoats7133

"Bro, same, I don’t try to be a slob but everything ends up a mess because I get distracted."

- N3rdy_Cat

"Yeah! And if you’re like me you will not notice until it’s BAD."

- SnooGoats7133

If this was not one of the most relatable threads we've read to date, then we don't know what would be.

The funny thing is that, many of these struggles are struggles we all have or at least think that we have. Perhaps that means that we're really not doing as badly as we think we are, and really we just need to show ourselves some grace.

Closeup of two coffee-filled mugs held by a dating couple.
Jonathan J. Castellon/Unsplash

Finally going out on a date with the person you've been chatting with online is a very exciting yet nerve-wracking first step.

But when you finally meet the person with whom you've developed romantic chemistry online, one of two things can happen–Fireworks or bombs.

In other words, being face-to-face with a prospective love interest for the first time can either confirm your hopes or suspicions about the person whom you know very little about online.

Curious to hear nightmare stories about dating life, Redditor sweet_chick283 asked:

"What's the worst date you've ever been on?"

People and their obsession with their electronic devices is getting out of hand.

Mr. Invisible

"Sat for 15 minutes to hear him talk about himself, work and his future plans, and then as he asked me 'what about you?" his hand went to reach his phone and he starts scrolling. I can't stress this enough, his hand reaches his phone at the same time those words left his mouth. It felt to me like he already decided whatever I am going to say was going to be boring so might as well multitask as I talk."

– dracarysthemdown

Self-Incriminating Date

"Went on a date with a chick that took my phone and put a picture of her on my Snapchat, I got 20 messages almost instantly from chicks that knew her and told me to stay away. She was 2 months pregnant, didn’t tell me till my friends did. That was a wild date for sure. She was very upset."

– ThatBrenon131

The Salesperson

"Tinder date. She pulled out her Ipad and started introducing me various insurance plans she is selling."

– IndigoldWeM

"Oooooh god that's almost as bad as trying to recruit a first date into your MLM line..."

– OP

"I had a date that tried to sell me whole life insurance. She told me before the date to meet her at her office. It was downtown so I thought nothing of it. Then she walks me to her desk and tells me to sign some papers."

– Pissedtuna

Sometimes, dates turn out to be disastrous through no fault of participants.

Things Went Downhill

"I thought I would be a little more adventurous and suggest that we go skiing for a first date. At the time, I lived in the south where the closest ski mountain was 2.5 hours away and it was opening day. It became clear that we probably didn’t click on the drive up, but I figured we’d still have a fun day of skiing. On the first run, maybe 100 yards in, she falls hard and tears her acl, lcl, and mcl. It was a very long and awkward car ride back, and I ended up staying with her for several days after to help care for her since she lived alone and was new to the area. She was a very nice woman, but that was just a lot for a first date."

– houston_g

People were forced to make a run for it.

The Great Escape

"So many bad dates over the years. One of the worst was this guy I met on a dating site. We agreed to go to dinner at a nearby restaurant. Turned out his profile picture really was of himself but it was just a 'few' years old. BS! In person, he straight up looked like Santa Claus on vacation complete with the Hawaiian shirt. I was a little unhappy about that but it wasn’t the end of the world. I thought well maybe he is jolly and fun. That turned out to be a big NO."

"So we ordered dinner and he started talking about ex wife #1. She was a b*tch and crazy. Ex wife #2 was also a b*tch and crazy. Ex wife #3 was a psycho crazy b*tch from hell. He told me ex #3 hit him in the face with a frying pan. He seemed to enjoy my horrified reaction. That was, until I asked what he did he do to her to make her smack him upside the head with said frying pan. Personally, I thought it was an awful date and I couldn’t wait to go home. He ordered dessert. :/"

"mentioned getting home soon and he said We can discuss that later as he was paying for my meal and we were going to enjoy our time together. I waited for a few minutes and politely excused myself to the ladies room. He stood up and watched me go in and was watching me when I came back to the table. It was as if he knew I wanted to bolt out the door. I got my chance when he finally went to the men’s room. I handed the waitress money for my food plus tip and told her I was on a very bad date. I left the restaurant just before he came back from the men’s room. He saw me through the front windows and started screaming like a lunatic. I don’t know what he was saying but I ran to my car!"

– SassyDiva13

Tasks First, Eat Later

"Went out with a guy from POF who lived an hour away from me. (I live in the sticks so this is normal.) I texted him to let him know I was on my way and this dipsh*t proceeded to text me every few minutes to ask me if I was still coming. So much so that I finally had to call him and tell him to stop because I can't text and drive at the same time. In hindsight, I should have turned around and went home right then."

"Finally I get to the place we were meeting. It was a store parking lot. Since we were meeting there and going somewhere else right away, I texted him and said I was there, where are you and he replies insisting I come into the store. He absolutely would NOT come outside to meet me. So I had to spend the first hour of this date following him around an auto parts store while he pawed through every display and bin, not talking to me very much at all."

"Finally he was ready to leave the store and I thought we were going to eat, as we had originally planned. I was starving but he said no, I gotta go return my work uniforms to my old job first. Uhh, okay I guess."

"So we drove in his car to this factory where he parks and says hop out so I can lock my car up. It was cold and rainy so of course he expected me to stand out in it? After like 15 minutes I was like f'k this and I went in the lobby of this place to get out of the rain. For some reason it took this guy 45 more minutes to return his uniforms so I was glad I went into the building to get warm. But apparently this was a huge no-no to him because when he came back out from wherever he went to return this stuff he glared at me like I just dropped trou and took a sh*t in his lap and asked me why I didn't just wait outside. In the cold rain. For almost an hour."

"At last he decided it was time to go to the restaurant. I sat there trying to keep a poker face while he talked to the waitress like he was addressing a toddler, messily stuffed his face and chewed with his mouth open wide and kept glancing around every 30 seconds like he was scared someone was going to see him out with a woman in public."

"Plus he kept asking me invasive and crude sex questions the whole time too. Lovely."

"I quickly inhaled a salad and managed to pay for it at the front without him seeing me, I told him I needed to go to the little girl's room and bounced. Luckily this restaurant was across the highway from the store where I had left my car so I crossed it real quick and blocked him everywhere before I even got the car warmed up."

"I'll betcha a million bucks and a house salad that a**hole was married."

– produkt921

It's unfortunate that people on dating apps aren't always forthright about themselves.

Older Woman

"I wouldn’t say it was the worst but it was the most interesting. Met a lady on a dating app. A Beautiful woman who claimed to be 38 which is my age. I suspected through the pictures she might be in her early 40s. Her profile said she had 3 kids. We talked and she seemed cool. We then met for dinner a week into talking. I could tell she was older but looked younger than she should because of Botox. Within 15 minutes she said she had to tell me the truth because she really likes me. She does not have 3 kids but 6! She is not 38 but 48!"

– bobismymother

The Date That Wasn't A Date But Actually Was A Date

"I didn't even know it was a date."

"Girl I worked with was talking up a breakfast place in a nearby town, and I was like 'that sounds great, let's go this weekend!'"

"We went, I had a great time, the pancakes were amazing, and I had fun hanging out with a work friend outside of work. I thought she had a good time too, she was laughing and fully engaged with the conversation just like normal."

"Like three weeks later, I was talking to another coworker when it all came out that she'd been telling people we went on a terrible date, how I didn't even make a move or flirt or do anything that guys she goes on dates with normally do, and how I even talked about a date with another girl at one point."

"I was flabbergasted, my fat a** genuinely thought we were just a couple of friends getting pancakes."

– SadlyReturndRS

If you're no longer in the dating pool because you found your person, congrats.

There's no doubt you have kissed some frogs along the way to finding true love.

Because if it weren't for all those "horrible dates," you might not be able to appreciate what you've got when the right person comes along.