Redditor throwaway2356765 wanted to know your best excuses in the worst moments of intimacy.
"How do you apologize to your girlfriend after accidentally calling her by your ex’s name during sex?"
Sex makes our minds crazy. I say all sorts of nonsense.
Extremes
Run Away Nuclear Bomb GIF by IdentityGiphy"Burn the house down. Fake your death. Move to Peru. There's no recovery."
Yaboijustlikesgoats
Consequences...
"You're gonna have to run out the clock on that one. Just say you're sorry and take the consequences."
AngryBuddha01
"Yup. Persistence is key. Apologize a thousand times until she forgives you. Cook her favorite meals a thousand times until she forgives you. Massage her back a thousand times until she forgives you."
PoissonsRevenge
Trust
"'I'm so sorry [Ex's Name].' Trust me it'll work."
malmode
"Unironically maybe if you can convince her you have early onset dementia."
throwwwawayy191999
NO!
"Call out a guy's name next time and really throw her for a loop."
SelectAd1942
"Call out your own name."
MesWantooth
"Or her father's name."
DZLars
Press Conference Kermit GIFSex makes us all crazy.
Sorry
Sad Cry GIF by TheFactory.videoGiphy"Oh man, trust me as someone who calls everyone by another person's name... there is no amount of apologies to make up for that in this case. Just hope she cares enough to forgive - she won't forget though and may bring it up many times."
minjitsu1
Woof
"Not sure, but if it helps to know, I accidentally called my wife our dog’s name during an argument."
"Update: It totally killed the tension, and we laughed about it. I am safe."
Terrible-Quote-3561
"I just had a baby and now no one’s name is sacred in my house. Every cat’s, dog’s, or human’s name is Interchangeable with the others."
tsunami141
Chaos
"Tell her you called her name while having sex with your ex and you're just trying to even everything out."
SuperSpeersBros
"Chaotic evil."
Evo_Shiv
"Perfectly balanced, as all things should be."
Serious-Bug4748
Be Sensible
"Just say you're sorry and you didn't mean it, but don't expect that she will get over it easily."'
cinderelliot
"This seems like the most sensible answer. My answer was basically grovelling, grovel and grovel some more and hope she can forgive you but don't expect that to happen right away but definitely expect to hear it in every argument for a few years to come as well."
bendme84
#1 Answer
Louis Litt Genius GIF by SuitsGiphy"The only way to salvage this is at the time by adding ' ...was never this good!'"
EdMarloFan
Be better y'all. It's an intimate moment and your partner deserves the basest level of respect that come with knowing their name.
Do you have other ideas to share in the unfortunate event of this happening? Let us know in the comments below.
Elevators. Stairwells. Planes. You name it. I've shamed it. No Deets...
don't worry I wasn't naked...
"I was watching adult videos in the middle of the night. After I did my deed I felt a slight pain in my balls, like someone flicked their finger on them. The pain increased to the point that I had to walk it out. After some minutes I began screaming from the pain when my parents came to my room (don't worry I wasn't naked) seeing me in pain on the floor."
"At that moment I thought I did something wrong but was to ashamed to tell them.My dad rushed me to the emergency room where I was rushed in and my pants were removed. Laying there they gave me a nose spray which halted some of the pain. The doctor then started fondling my family jewels while the nurse stood next to me reminding me to breath because the nose spray stopped the automatic breathing if that makes sense."
"All the time my dad is standing there looking and the only thing I could thing at that moment was oh no do they think my unit is small. After that the doctors brought me to another room while my dad was in another room. While going trough the halls I told the doctor I probably know the cause and explained that I was pleasuring myself"
"I don't remember the doctors response but I felt truly ashamed like I was the only person doing such a thing. Later the doctor told me I had testicular Torsion which is caused by the balls not being attached to the sack so I'm living in fear of it happening again to this day."
Sick-Man_NL
"WHAT ARE YOU WATCHING??"
"In the 90's/early 2000's we bought a pub and moved into it. It had a big screen downstairs and we lived above, but Sky Sports was so expensive for the business account we basically hooked the giant screen to our box upstairs so whenever the sport was on it would show on the screen downstairs."
"So we couldn't watch TV upstairs except what was being shown on the big screen when this was happening. Anyway one Sunday evening around 10pm after the sport (bearing in mind the sport finished at 6pm) I was freely browsing through channels because the giant screen has been wound up into the ceiling and my 14 year old self came across some softcore adult videos"
"Curious, I started watching it. Suddenly there was a big buzz from the phone that connected to downstairs, I answer it. It's my mum with laughing in the background. "WHAT ARE YOU WATCHING??" I was like "errr.. I was just flicking through channels.." "Well you've stayed on that one for a while haven't you?"
"I forgot about the small TV in the bar area. It was still on and was showing the entire pub what my horny self was watching. I was mortified. Luckily my mum never brought it up again and neither did any of the customers thankfully."
Parish87
I Gotta Go
"When i was 12 my younger sister walked in on me playing fondle the dongle. I told her I couldn't pee and was trying to force/pump it out. She told my mom out of worry. Said I needed a doctor to help me pee. When Mom confronted me about what my sister was saying i then had to explain it to her."
itisbaileyikilledyou
Decades ago...
"My mom walked in on me. The look on her face went from incomprehension to shock to utter disgust over the span of a second or two. She stayed calm and explained how it wasn't appropriate, but I just remember how unsmiling and tense she was, totally unlike I'd ever seen her. Decades ago but still cringe so much recalling it."
A_Dazzling_Method
Oh. My. God. Y'all are animals. And I'm LIIIIVVVING for it!
“underwear”
surprise disrobing GIFGiphy"My dad caught me editing the game files of The Sims to replace the female underwear textures with 'underwear' that just makes them look nude. Looked up reference material and edited them in photoshop. That a lot of effort to put into something so depraved."
IrrelevantPuppy
Mistakes
"When i was about 10, my parents were out so I looked up some adult videos on the family computer (mistake number 1), then I kept hearing noises and thought someone was in the house so i ran to my room and called my dad, leaving to computer on (mistake number 2)."
"My dad rushed home and went around the house looking for an intruder, no one was there, it was just my next door neighbors (we have a semi-detached house) then obviously saw what i was looking at on the computer and asked me about it… i told him the intruder must of broken in and searched it up :( "
Educational_Top122
Library Time
"In middle school, my friend got her boobs and she wanted me to touch them. We probably spent 30 minutes everyday before school until the librarian caught us and we were suspended."
Shef43
I wonder if she knew...
"My HS gf and I were having sex in the sideways laying down cuddling position. Mom walked in to show me a new Christmas decoration. To her it looked like we were just cuddling but she sat on the bed inches away from me and proceeded to talk about the decoration for like 10 minutes. I wonder if she knew. They never cared much about that stuff so I think she was just oblivious."
MyPupWrigley
I'm Dead
"I was violently ill. In my fiancé’s house where we were living. While he was at work, his dad was working from home. I needed my mom to take me to the hospital. I screamed for my father in laws help, who entered the bathroom to my nude body, puking at t in his bathtub. He called my mom for me, and we never spoke about it."
hammybachy
OMG!
"When I was around 10/11 years old, my dad got my brother and I a computer to use. He set it up in the den and pretty much allowed us free unsupervised access to it. He had gone out with his friends one night, and my brother, one of his friends, and myself were on the internet just typing in random things and adding .com to it."
"Now back in the early 2000's it didn't take long for us to stumble upon porn. Which led us to clicking on more and more porn links because we were all like, holy shit there's naked women on here. Eventually we bricked the computer and it blue screened on us. Instead of turning it off/unplugging the computer/turning off the monitor, we just left it and went to bed."
"My dad got home and saw the blue screen. Did the ol' Ctrl, alt, delete trick to pull up the task manager. Saw that we had porn pulled up on the web browser. At this point he makes us all come out into the den. Sits us on the couch and tries to make us confess to why the computer was blue screened."
"We of course shrugged and acted like we had no clue. He then turned the monitor on and went through the internet history. We all had to sit there while my dad clicked through some of the most heinous debased shit I've ever seen in my life. The whole time he was just reading out the history and then he'd say something like "Jesus freaking C*rist, what the hell is wrong with you all". Yeah that computer did not last very long."
JudgementalChair
a thousand deaths...
Hide Reaction GIF by florGiphy"When I was with my ex, we did some long distance for a while. While I am not about sending nudes, after not seeing each other for a long time you kinda get an urge to see the other person naked. So, nudes were exchanged. She was mostly interested in close ups of my erect penis so I send those."
"Upon returning home I discovered that she had set a picture of my erect penis as my profile picture in her phone. Meaning that if I'd call her, my penis would be presented on the screen in all its glory. I told her this was a very stupid idea, what if I'd call and her phone was laying around somewhere? She said she never had her phone laying around so no one would see. I didn't think much of it."
"Few weeks later we were having dinner with her parents and she was talking about getting a new phone. Her father, with a straight face and in between two bites of his food, remarked 'Gee, if you get this new phone, does that mean you'll install a different picture for when he calls you?' I died a thousand deaths."
Alwin_
When in Hollywood
"I was once extremely drunk and staying in a very expensive hotel in Hollywood. I went to bed, as I should. I woke up in the middle of the night and had to pee. I walked through the bathroom door and closed it behind me. I then realized that that wasn't the bathroom door, but rather the room door. I was locked out of my room in a fancy hotel, drunk off my a**, wearing only my underwear. I went to the elevator lobby where there was a phone and called the front desk and explained my situation."
"They said they would send someone up. I realized I couldn't wait and continued searching for a place to pee and found a janitor closet with a rolling mop bucket in it. I took a giant pee in the mop bucket and then walked back to my room door, where a bellhop who really didn't want to look me in the eye let me back into my room. I'm very sorry, Mondrian hotel."
91901bbaa13d40128f7d
Dear God!
"I thought God would kill me for masturbating when I was little so I barely ever did it, but the house would know when I was doing it because I'd yell 'I'm sorry God!' My family wasn't even religious, I didn't even know where I got that Idea from."
G4rg0yle_Art1st
Sorry Sir
"Shagging with my wife (then girlfriend) in the back of my car when a bright light shines in the window. Cop asks 'What’s going on here.' I calmly respond 'Just having sex sir.' He was nice. Told us it was technically public nudity and it would be best if we just high tailed it out of the parking lot."
DDsLaboratory
Smiles
Miley Cyrus Smile GIFGiphy"I grew up in an incredibly rural area with dialup internet. I was only able to load nude images from the top down. I finished before it loaded past the neck. My fetish is a pretty face and a beautiful happy smile. I wish it was a joke. Some men are butt men some like breasts. I love a beautiful smile"
Swarlolz
Hello Mom
"My High School boyfriend and I were having sex in his attic bedroom, both of us completely naked. I was bouncing and moaning and making a lot of noise with the headboard because we were home alone. Well, his mom came home early and we had no idea until she was at the top of the stairs calling his name and walked in on me, totally naked and with her son."
"She took a breath, calmly told us to get dressed and come downstairs. When we did, she told us she was disappointed and asked him to walk me home. He very quietly told her we had planned to go to church youth group afterwards. She let us leave after she picked her jaw up off the floor. That was the first time I’d met his mom."
Significant_Drag_465
"Hu" What?
"I used to read some weird erotica when I was younger as I hated all porn in video form. I distinctly remember reading one a that had women in stalls like cows. They kept using this term 'hucow' which at the time I didn’t realize was obviously a mash up of the word human and cow."
"I didn't think much of it but one time I was talking to a friend and I was trying to remember the term for a female cow. My brain thought 'hucow' and I almost said it before catching myself. I know they probably wouldn't have caught on, but it killed me inside that I almost said something from some pretty weird porn."
throwawayalientk
Well I need a cold shower and more vodka.
Small doesn't necessarily mean cheap. A small experience can be just as expensive as a rave blowout. So let's discuss ideas...
Save the Pennies...
Season 1 Wedding GIF by NBCGiphy"Absolutely no regrets. You always have the option to do the party/celebration for your anniversary/vows renewal etc down the line. We never felt the need though. Spend your money on something else forget the pomp of a big wedding. It's a disgusting industry in my opinion. My pair of pennies anyway."
- ed1099
To Be Happy...
"We paid about 2 grand total for our wedding, we married in a tiny little registry office which was nice and clean and the lady who married us was lovely, it wasn't a big venue but it was big enough for our close family and friends. We rented the suits and that was the most expensive item, we got the bridesmaids dresses online for cheap, they all looked really nice and my wife looked lovely, her dress was second hand from eBay."
"We found a bus museum and hired an old London bus for an hour to drive the people from the wedding to the party. We didn't have a reception and a sit down meal, instead we booked a local club that had a nice big room, we got a family friend to do a buffet for all the guests."
"It was a really great day, the wedding was nice, my wife was happy, lots of our friends and family attended, there was plenty of food and the drinks were cheap at the bar in the club we picked, I couldn't have been happier with how it turned out."
No Need for 1K!
"I told my husband when we were getting married. His mom told him my ring needed to be no less than like 2 karats or something insane. I told him when we went ring shopping, "you can spent $1k. If I even THINK you spent over that. I'll say no." Money can go to rent, a nice dinner out, be saved, etc. The wedding and everything related to it, I told him, do we really NEED that? I was from a poor family, he was from a much more wealthy family. It was a VERY hard adjustment for both of us."
- drosey22
The BBQ
"Not what you asked but, I wanted a small wedding. Just immediate family and a couple friends at my parents' home with a BBQ and water fun after. My mother insisted on the big deal. I hated it. The day was a torture for me. I regret giving in every time I think about it. The only part I am glad for is that I got married. I don't have any wonderful memories of the day itself. I let my daughter have my wedding dress for a costume. It brought me more joy at Halloween than it did on my wedding day."
Covid...
Television Fighting GIF by WE tvGiphy"Waited over a decade to get married. Covid let us get married over zoom without dealing with the messy logistics of an in person wedding. Also a lot cheaper. Covid is a great excuse for people that want small or non existent reception."
Awww... that all sounds lovely. I still want big, big. big. But that is me. Covid did teach us all a lot about small and intimate being enough. Love doesn't need a crowd.
It's Monday...
tim curry no GIFGiphy"My wife and I got married on a Monday night, at a church, with a handful of people there. We then had the "formal" (tuxedos, wedding dress, groomsmen and brides maids) church wedding and reception about 5 months later."
"We had to do this because we were living together and Rev. Killjoy didn't approve of that. He made us get married immediately or he wouldn't marry us on the date my wife wanted. We've been married 32 years and we both agree that neither wedding was necessary. An elopement with a small get together later with those most important to us would have been preferable for us."
- bigotis
"big party"
"This question really interests me because me and my fiancé are getting married next February and we've actually gone from "big party" to "small gathering of intimate people" since we first started planning it. Mostly because neither of us is exactly "social". He's an introvert and the idea of a big party with people who we rarely see slowly became nauseating to us. I mean."
"The wedding is supposed to be a celebration of love with the people who actually know and cherish the couple. Not a "show off" event. I come from a deeply traditional family with big weddings and this has been a topic of "discussion" lately. So knowing how you guys feel after is actually helping. Thank you! :) Edited to correct spelling."
The Best Questions To Ask During A Job Interview | George Takei’s Oh Myyy
All Included...
"My wife and I went on a trip and got married at a resort destination just me and her. We both didn't want the huge formality of a wedding day and the cost as well. Not to say we didn't have gatherings. We had a big party at our place prior to the trip."
"Then we hired out a few tables and a side room at a fav local restaurant and had a big dinner with my extended family. Finally as part of the trip we went back to visit her family and relatives overseas and had a similar dinner/gathering. We did a rough calculation and the cost of a big wedding was more expensive as the big trip and the x3 dinners."
"Ppl from both sides of the family seemed happy as they didn't have to spend a whole evening at a reception and/or attend an afternoon ceremony. A lot of our friends seemed happy either way, appreciated the casual party at our place and didn't feel the need to get all dressed up. Also the trip was basically our honeymoon."
- Colotech
"Friend of a friend"
"I think my husband and I had around 15 people at our ceremony, afterwards we got to have a NICE sit down 3 course meal with everyone in a private dining room of a fancy hotel. THAT was beautiful, and it was just. everything we needed. THEN we came home and had a reception and it was the biggest waste of $ and time. I wish we had saved the money and just had another intimate sit down catered dinner with family and CLOSE friends."
"None of this "acquaintanced" "Friend of a friend" etc. Granted everyone else said the reception was "so much fun", but both SO and I wanted to leave before it even started. OR I wish we had just saved the money from that and gone on a hot vacation, just the two of us."
Perfect...
british news GIFGiphy"My wife and I are so glad that we had a small wedding (cost us about $700 total) and it was perfect."
"My brother's brother-in-law paid $30,000 for his own wedding and she left him in less than year (and they had been together a really long time before that). The only people who really benefit from large weddings are the people making money off of them. Keep it small."
No Regrets
"We spent our days with our loved ones. Immediate family for the wedding. Small parties of family/friends in our respective home cities to minimize travel for people, and we honestly got to see more people who we wanted to spend quality time with in a more intimate sense."
"Then, we spent our money for ourselves. Took a trip and stayed in a cabin in the mountains of Tennessee. Then went to Thailand and China and had a wonderful trip. We got married for us, and had our celebrations for us. The wedding industry is such a predatory and money pit of an industry."
"No disrespect for people who do it for work, but when you get married it should be about how you all want to celebrate your love and lives together. If it's a big wedding, have the best big wedding and the best day. That wasn't us and we don't regret our choices one bit."
Let's just do it...
"We went to Vegas for another friend's wedding and snuck off and did ours on the low low, best thing we ever did. We'd arranged it with her parents, as she was an only child there was no way I was not letting them know. It was so cool we did a whole road trip from Vegas to San Francisco, and didn't tell our friends until about half way through the trip. So our wedding was an overseas trip we had budgeted for previously already plus the cost of licence etc 7/5 thoroughly recommended."
- Efffro
The Jaded
"It's not even about the money. It's the time, energy, aggravation, and general PITA of organizing a wedding. Her family lives here on an island in the Atlantic, my family is far away, what time of year are we going to do this, what venue, who likes eating what, can't do it on that day cause Aunt F**k Face is busy, can't have it here because Uncle Dirt Bag doesn't like to travel, what will you mom thing if he doesn't show, who gets to sit here, did you find someone to make a cake, what about all those looser relatives that you only met once in your life, what kind of religious bull do you want."
"Blah blah blah blah, all stuff I don't give a crap about. I've got better things to do with my time than to show off, be nice to, impress, and worry about others. $75 and married with two witness in front of a Justice of the Peace. To be fair to everyone no one was allowed to attend."
"What did we do with all the money we saved? Well, we travelled to some interesting countries, down payment on a house, and I didn't have to sell my nice car. After telling people of what they did they usually say, 'that makes total sense, I wish I had done that'. 0 regrets. But maybe I am jaded in life."
Gretna
wedding crashers comedy GIFGiphy"Me and the wife eloped to Gretna, just the two of us on a two day stay, came home and arranged the party two weeks later. Unfortunately it was the day before the first lockdown and only 45 folk turned up, we had a ball."
- wisbit
When We Were Young
"We were kids (18 & 21) so we had no money to throw a big party even if we wanted to but we loved our wedding. We invited people that are still in our lives and got to spend quality time with every single one of them during the party. No drama, no drunk uncles, 5 years later everybody still laughs and reminisces."
"Really no hate or judgement towards people who had/are having a bigger event. My brother had a big wedding and we had so much fun! Just stay true to yourselves - it's a day that you - and not cranky aunt Hilda - will remember for the rest of your lives!"
All Included
"Wife and I spent less than a thousand all in (her dress, the rings, dinner for the immediate family, favorite aunt married us on the beach for free at sunset) and bought a small house instead of having a large service and reception that neither of us wanted. Had a lot more fun doing that than attending any of my cousins (or siblings) fancy wedding extravaganzas that dumped them or their parents into a massive amount of debt."
- bbpr120
good for them...
"I've been with my wife for 21 years and we've been married 14. We had a Courthouse wedding with her mom and my dad. After the ceremony we went to lunch at my wife's favorite restaurant and then went back home to our apartment. All together the whole thing cost maybe $200 with license and judge. And nobody in either family (she's an immigrant so her family here is fairly small) really cared. I hadn't really seen any of my extended family in years prior so I really had no idea how to contact them about a wedding anyway."
"After all this time together me and the wife never once regretted not going through the hassle and expense of a big wedding. We both see it sort of pointless but not necessarily bad. If someone wants a big wedding then good for them. If someone doesn't the same sentiment exists: good for them."
Worker's Thoughts
"As a consistent guest to weddings, I can happily say that the best and most memorable weddings for me are the smaller affairs. While I get the reasoning behind larger weddings, they seem to be more narcissistic affairs that either pay little heed to the celebration that involves the union of two people, or are affairs that have been pressured by other, narcissistic, members of the family."
"Smaller affairs on the other hand, celebrate the family and friends you have chosen. "The blood of the covenant is thicker than the water of the womb" if you will. I have always felt happier, and in response more loved, when invited to a smaller wedding. Plus the parties (and food) tend to be better due to the lack of gravitational entropic personalities!"
Beauty
Sunset Beach Wedding GIF by Tayla McGrath ProjectsGiphy"Wife and I got married on the beach at sunset with about 20 people there. No regrets at all. Pictures are beautiful."
All by 10
"My wife and I got married in the town we lived in when while she was in school. We didn't have much money and did everything for less than $5k. Because of the distance only a handful of people from her family came and it was mostly my parents, siblings, and extended family. If we were to do it again I'd either have it closer to home so more of her family could have attended or just invited fewer people overall."
"The budget was fine, though we could have spent a little less and been perfectly happy. Honestly the whole day was a blur and I wouldn't have even noticed if half of my extended family who was there hadn't attended. Some out of town friends wanted to go out for drinks afterward but we were so tired we just went home and fell asleep around 10pm."
- schu2470
Love is love. No matter what, let your day be for ya'll. Spend a million, spend a dollar. Invite ten, invite ten thousand. Just have the ceremony you want.
Want to "know" more? Never miss another big, odd, funny, or heartbreaking moment again. Sign up for the Knowable newsletter here.
So let's talk about it.
One Reddit user asked:
What is the most intimate (non-sexual) experience you've ever had and will never leave you?
We made it about 4 responses in before we got all misty-eyed and we've been in our feels ever since. Some of these examples are beautiful, some are heartwrenching - some are a potent mix of both.
Grab some comfort carbs or a stuffie, we're going in.
Bears Cry Too
sad panda GIFGiphyFour months after my mother died, I was out shopping for groceries. I helped a middle aged woman with getting something from a high shelf and thought nothing of it.
Later that day, I intervened and stopped the same woman from getting mugged.
She then looked at me and said the one thing my mother always told me when she was happy. "Thank ya baby, you're a life saver."
I promptly broke into a sobbing mess, letting out the pent up emotions that I had for the past four months. She just hugged me and let this giant ass teddy bear cry on her shoulder for an hour.
After that I never saw her again due to me moving across the country.
Shoulder Time
Back in 11th grade, this girl I used to sit on the bus with would occasionally hold my arm and rest her head on my shoulder.
When it first happened, I didn't understand. To this day, I still don't understand.
We weren't dating or anything. We've never talked or interacted that way otherwise. Honestly, the amount of distance she put between me felt pretty random at times.
Either way, she'd just... occasionally hog my arm on bus rides home.
I never said anything. I just accepted it and looked out of the window like usual. Gently let her know when the bus got to the stop.
It was a nice, warm feeling.
A Cat And A Cry
When my mom died, I'd gone to visit her partner while we arranged the funeral.
I ended up getting locked out of their apartment. While waiting in the hall for her partner to get home, a stray cat wandering the building came up to me for scratches.
This was an old-ass cat, looking a bit scraggly, but affectionate all the same, AND VOCAL!
I just snuggled it close and had a good cry...like the cat knew I needed it in my life at that moment...and I did...
6 Weeks Early
My daughter came into this world 6 weeks early. Small town USA hospital only had a hood for breathing and she needed 24 hour NICU.
Less than 8 hours after the C-section, they took her to a town 20 miles away while I had to stay for observation. For 4 days I was separated from her, getting updates via family and drs.
When I could finally get out, I walked into the NICU and she was crying while a lovely nurse held her. I spoke to her and she immediately looked toward my voice and stopped crying. I started crying.
This will never leave me.
Runaways
Me and my sister ran away when we were 17.
On our second week on the road we stopped at this field where there was nothing but grass and trees as far as the eye can see. We got out of the car and sat on the ground in front of it.
For the first time since we had ran away I started to cry. I cried and screamed and trust me this was not pretty, this lasted for hours and the whole time my sister just held me.
I didn't cry out of regret or because I was homesick. I cried because it had to come to this - that this is what we had to resort to just so we could live a happy life.
When I finally stopped crying all she said to me was "Forever and always, we got each other." I'll take that moment with me to the grave.
Human Bodily Needs
Went on a major hike I was NOT prepared for. No jacket, no light, barely any food or water for 3000'+ altitude change and ~10 miles on a winter afternoon.
By the time we were near the top, it was dark. The peak was snowy and icy. We were exhausted, frigid, and had no idea how we'd survive the trip back down.
We had passed a group of students on our way up, and they thankfully decided to wait for us and rescue us. I was still walking, but so cold and tired I couldn't think or say much.
A girl came and put her extra jacket on me, pulling it on over my head, zipping it up to my chin, and putting the hood up. A boy passed me his extra gloves, and she slid my hands into them. She unwrapped food, closed my hand over it and guided it to my mouth. She held her water bottle to my lips.
It was the first time I'd had this full acknowledgement of all my bodily human needs if that makes sense. I felt extremely human, cared for and non-judged.
Did I Snore?
Sleep Reaction GIFGiphyI was once on a connecting flight out of Chicago; I had come from Spain and was on my way home to California. I was on an MD80 (skinny, tight seats) and in a three-seat row between a very large Samoan woman and a very very large Chicago guy.
The two of them talked about food the entire flight, with the Chicago guy talking about bratwurst cooked in beer ("Ya come fer da brots, but ya stays fer da onions, ya know?") and her talking about Pisupo ("It's easy! Corned beef, eggs and rice—maybe little soy sauce.").
I tried to be polite and smile and be alert but my head was pounding, I was still a little drunk from the free wine on Iberia Airlines, I hadn't slept in days and I just nodded off. Woke up around an hour or so into the flight and found I had been fast asleep on this Samoan lady's very ample bosom.
I lifted my head and started to apologize but she pulled my arm under her and pulled my head back down into her neck and shoulder and said "Nonsense. C'mon sleep. I got you." Total darkness, all warmth and I could hear her breathe. It was like being in my mom's arms as a toddler.
She held me while I slept until we reached LAX. I'm just glad I didn't drool on her.
When I woke I asked "Did I snore?" She said "Did you snore?!?! Oh my god did he snore?!?!"
And everyone within three rows started cracking up. Everyone was so understanding of this weary traveler and she was so sweet, I'll never forget her.
- Shah357
Helping Mom Let Go
Hugging my mom as she died in my arms.
It's been 5 years and she was in the hospital for a stroke, so it was not entirely unexpected. I'd do it again in a heartbeat.
The last thing she heard was my voice telling her how much she was loved, the last thing she felt was me hugging her. I'd be a liar if I said I'm the same person I was before that.
No way in hell was it not going to happen as long as I could help it. It still hits out of nowhere sometimes, but it passes.
- tedlyb
I Knew I Mattered
Preface: Girl and I no longer with one another. Was in a very depressed low point of my life. I'm ok now. 👍
Was seeing a girl, a very kind and special one to my heart. I've been kind of deprived of affection before her.
One day after work, I came home and told her I quit smoking. That I didn't want to tell anyone because it has to be a personal battle I needed to win, but I told her anyway.
Her eyes got big, she smiled wildly, rushed over and planted a kiss on my lips. The kind that tells you it really means something. That it's real.
Her arms wrapped around me and she laughed at me because I had began to tear up I was so happy my self.
That feeling and that memory will never leave me until the day I die. That's when I knew I mattered to people.
It Made Her Hate Me More
Getting into a sleeping bag with a very hypothermic girl who I didn't like very much (and the feeling was mutual) to try and bring her body temp up. Then having her cling to me like her life depended on it.
We were in a group of people out for a hike and we got caught in some bad weather. And no, it didn't make us like each other any better. If anything, I think it being me who was saving her life made her hate me more.
I haven't seen or spoken to her since a few months after this happened and it was over 20 years ago. So I'm going to say our friendship never really blossomed.
Want to "know" more? Never miss another big, odd, funny, or heartbreaking moment again. Sign up for the Knowable newsletter here.