Top Stories

People Recount The Most Inappropriate Times They Burst Out Laughing

People Recount The Most Inappropriate Times They Burst Out Laughing
Photo by Surface on Unsplash

There's nothing quite like unleashing a gale of laughter. It's soothing, it's cathartic, it brightens your mood.

But timing is everything, don't you know? You should probably watch who, what, and where you laugh... just in case.

After Redditor Mircalenik209 asked the online community, "When was there a time where you shouldn't have laughed at something, but you did?" people shared their experiences. They're pretty hilarious, if we say so ourselves.


"When I was a student nurse..."

When I was a student nurse I was asked to tell a patient that his daughter couldn't come visit him because she fell down the stairs and had broken both her arms. I could barely contain myself, because the patient was there because he had broken both his arms.

bloodymary88

"So to distract myself from crying..."

I laughed at my grandfather's funeral. Didn't shed a tear. It lead to few people ( neighbors , not family , fam knows what happened) thinking I did something bad to him.

My grandfather was bed ridden for 16 years ( his left side of the body was paralyzed) , I was 17 so basically all my life I've seen him bed ridden. And he was my best friend. He asked me not to cry and always think that God took him because he couldn't see him suffer anymore and wherever he's going he'll be happy. So to distract myself from crying I started thinking about all the good times we had and ended up laughing at one such memory. So yeah that was pretty terrible.

littlerapunzel

"His mom goes up..."

My friend's memorial service. He passed away at only 24. Obviously it's really somber and everyone is crying, his mom goes up to speak. One of my best friends who was one of his best friends used to joke about wanting to sleep with his mom. It was an ongoing dialect between them that was really hilarious.

His mom goes up, starts talking and he whispers "I still really want to motorboat your moms tits dude". Like four of us just lost it. It was extremely inappropriate and EVERYONE stopped and just looked at us. I tried to pretend I was crying to ease the tension.

Rest easy Chris, we all miss you.

uoYredruM

"I buried my face in my hands..."

It happens to me more than I care to admit, but the worst time was at my brother's memorial. An aunt we had, who was a very nice person, had got religion recently and decided to sing a gospel song. The problem was she couldn't sing at all. She got up, with no backing music and sang a really out of tune gospel song. The worst part was she took really long pauses between some of the lyrics, so people started to clap thinking she was done with the song. She wasn't. This went on for like 5 minutes. She would pause, people would start to slow clap, then she would start caterwauling again. I buried my face in my hands and people sitting behind me started consoling me because they thought I was overcome with emotion, as my shoulders were shaking violently. I did have tears running down my face though.

I still feel very bad about this.

FoxPanda32

"In high school..."

In high school we watched a play where a girl dies of a drug overdose. The girl playing the part was way over dramatic, really chewing up the scenery, and when she finally collapsed dead on her bed the theater was dead silent. A kid in the audience yelled out "oh well" and the place exploded with laughter.

hippieflipper808

"At my Uncle Bill's funeral..."

At my Uncle Bill's funeral, my Aunt Mary claimed that she had "cared for him in his darkest times". I let out a solid "HA!". Everyone turned towards me. I finished with an uncontrollable giggle, poorly hidden behind my hand and a wad of tissues. No regerts. RIP Uncle Bill. 12/17/19.

HotSpinach

When I was a kid I often found myself laughing at the most inappropriate reasons at things that were often not funny...

Case in point:

In 5th grade my class went on a field trip to see a Japanese Taiko drum performance at a local theater.

It was SO COOL, I was taken aback by how powerful the drums were.

About halfway through the performance one of the younger uber muscular Japanese American drummers came to the front of the stage and in a deep bass voice told us how he was going to sing us a song that his now dead grandfather taught him years ago. He started to tear up and rubbed away the tears.

He started singing.

It was in falsetto.

I'm not sure what it was, the song was BEAUTIFUL! but for whatever reason I felt an uncomfortable smile start forming on my lips. I panicked and internally started screaming "WHYNOW!?!WHYWHYWHYWHYWHY???" My lips parted to show my teeth and I giggled.

My teacher shot me a look and tutted under her breath and several of the girls next to me whispered that I was showing my true colors.

THE SONG WAS BEAUTIFUL!!!!

I never felt so betrayed by my body in my young life.

Years later I still think about that moment.

komenos

"In boot camp..."

In boot camp, I laughed at another recruit who was getting yelled at, because they were screaming some pretty funny s*** at him. Then they turned around to me...

CTHeinz

"I started covering my mouth..."

Back when I was around 10-11 (ish), my family went to a funeral for an aunt that passed away due to cancer. My dad wasn't really close to/liked that aunt in particular (personal issues that are too boring to go into detail) but he still went to the funeral. He wasn't making a scene or talking bad about her or anything, he was just mainly keeping to himself.

So, during a moment of silence, my cousin (her daughter) started singing the Ave Maria as an eulogy (I guess) while everyone was sitting. Quietly, dad started mock-singing in a very high-pitch tone (quiet enough not to be heard by anyone around, loud enough to be heard by me, sitting by his side).

I started covering my mouth cause I wanted to laught so hard. The more I tried to contain myself the more my dad did the high-pitch singing, up to the point that my eyes were teary. Another aunt behind me saw me; bent over, holding my stomach and my mouth and I guess she thought I was crying. She leaned over and said: "Don't worry honey, she's in a better place."

I lost my s***. I lost it so bad. It was one of those laughing fits that the more you try to contain yourself, the more you laugh. Even my cousin stopped singing and just looked at me as if I had kill her mom myself. I excused myself and got out of there fast. I waited for the rest of my family inside the car while my the rest of the family just stared daggers at me.

During the car ride, I had to explain to my mom and my sister that my dad was the one who made me laugh. My dad just answered: "she's lucky I didn't bring my trombone and do the "wa-wa" while they were putting her on the ground."

yosol

"They asked to see my manager..."

I was 18-20 and working at a department store. 3 men walked up to me and struck up a conversation while buying white button up shirts.

Apparently they were buying matching shirts for a wedding. They asked if there was a child's suit section. One of them added "The best man lost so much weight..." I cut off the sentence with a chuckle, and he finished "that he died." and looked at me like I was a monster.

They all looked really sad or mad depending on who you looked at. They apparently were going to buy a suit for the son of the deceased that was stepping in for him.

They asked to see my manager and she was really disappointed in me for laughing at a story like that. I did my best to tell her that I had no idea it was something terrible like that and I was just laughing since I thought he lost so much weight he needed a kids suit. She didn't really buy it and she didn't respect me after that.

KuromanKuro

"LOL"

emoji laughing GIF by Twitter Giphy

My dad, using 9 "laughing tears" emojis to announce that our family cat whom we love dearly had passed away.

hmssnickers

"Quiet Please...."

My sister and I at our uncles funeral. Our uncles brother-in-law started singing it was bad. Sister and I looked at each other with big stupid 'what the heck' eyes. We both cracked up but tried to play it off as crying. She and I had always been the ones to laugh at awkward situations.

FerretWarDance3

"Dear Ms Smith"

My daughter's teacher's mom died, and the sub had all of the kids make cards and asked me to drop them off, as she lived near me. I was chatting with the teacher as she looked through them and she burst out laughing and handed me one- "Dear Ms Smith, I'm sorry about your mom, but hey, we all gotta go sometime."

sunny_in_phila

"00 Dead"

When my uncle died, his casket was being lowered into the ground, and my cousin threw a flower onto the coffin and said 'from Cornwall with love', and I started laughing because it sounded like the worst James Bond film ever.

beardol

"Face Talk"

I didn't "laugh" but when I used to get uncomfortable my facial expression would look like I was smiling. I did it when my teacher was telling a sob story about herself. She got furious because she thought I was making fun of her and tried to get my family to send me off to a living facility for mentally challenged children.

daystooshort

"WEEEEE"

titanic GIF Giphy

I laughed the first time I watched titanic since my brother was going "WEEEEEE" when the boat tilted and people were sliding down it.

bethkatez

"Gassed"

Anything at the library. Stuff didn't even have to be really funny, the fact that you needed to be quiet and this not allowed to laugh was insane. You tried to suppress it but the more you do, the funnier it gets until you just have to run outside and burst into laughter because the last name of a book's author sounded like.... a fart."

GeezCmon

"there is nothing funny about this"

Once, a friend of mine got ACL reconstruction surgery and nearly died. They had mixed up the anesthesia for the spinal block and instead given her an emergency coagulant. She started having really bad seizures on the operating table and the doctors quickly put her in an induced coma. This lasted for two weeks (felt like a freaking eternity), during which they said they had no idea if the damage to her brain or other organs was permanent, or if she would ever wake up again.

The day it happened, I ended up leaving work early because I couldn't think straight, and as a result I missed a meeting I was supposed to go to. It wasn't a big deal but I had promised I would be there. The next day, a coworker asked me why I wasn't at the meeting. As I began to say that my friend was in a coma and we had no idea how bad it was but she may never wake up again, I started laughing uncontrollably. I even tried to say "there is nothing funny about this," but I just kept laughing and the coworker just looked at me in shock and confusion. I was pretty confused myself; I have never had that happen to me before or since that day. To this day I have no clue if she thought I was making up a ridiculous excuse to miss an unimportant meeting, thought I was a psychopath, or both.

My friend eventually made a full recovery, though she had to go back a second time to get the actual routine surgery she was meant to get in the first place.

EDIT: they gave her a coagulant, not an anticoagulant. If you nick a vein during a surgery and the patient starts to bleed a lot, they inject this stuff to keep them from bleeding out. This is what they accidentally put into her spine instead of anesthesia. Also corrected "spinal tap" to "spinal block." Sorry for my English!

saxiflarp

"I'm a Fool"

In my Imperial Russian History course in university, one of the books was written by a guy with the last name "Overy" which sounds the same as "ovary" and I always had to suppress a giggle because I was and am an immature little moron haha.

SmallRedBird

"Locking Eyes"

One time on a school trip, a homeless man came up to me and was asking me for money, and my teacher shouted out (very loudly, in the middle of one of Paris's busiest squares) "don't look him in the eye!" Which made the giggles I was trying to hold in from being so nervous explode out of me. I got a serious telling off (from the same teacher) for "mocking the poor."

dearsweetanon

"Dear Ma & Pa"

Work From Home Kids GIF by MOODMAN Giphy

As a kid I laughed during stressful situations, so I could barely hold it in when my parents were confronting me about almost flunking out of school.

kingofthepenguins777

"Flying Laughs"

Our entire 7/8 grade class (small catholic school) lost its shit when the teacher decided, in her infinite wisdom, to give a class about "flying buttresses." Every time she said it, we erupted into laughter. I still can't hear the word 22 years later without stifling a laugh.

elisabeth_hudson

"Feeling the Feels"

I still laugh during high stress situations. I have it under control but still will laugh as my first reaction to things, before I have time to process it and ponder it.

When my grandfather died when I was 10, my parents picked me up from my aunt and uncle's and went to my grandma. I don't remember all of it, but I remember my dad and I not playing around but he was making me laugh. They did tell me my grandfather died, but I hadn't processed it and just I was laughing.

My grandmother was extremely angry and basically shunned me for a couple of years. When I went home that night and saw the CD that I had borrowed from my grandfather on my desk, I broke down. I was crying hard and was very hurt.

Moral of the story is that my initial reaction may be laughing but it's not my first thoughts and feelings.

Frenchy4life

"Like a Sack of Potatoes"

Donating blood in college with a friend. We finish and go to the table for snacks where they have people to watch you, to make sure you don't pass out.

Well, my friend is 6'2" or something and meaty. We have a juice box and get ready to go. We both stand up and.... the life drains from his face and falls over like a sack of potatoes.... on top of another much smaller kid. Whelp I lose it and laugh like a hyena (to be faaaaaair I was also a bit light headed and out of it).

A nurse maybeeee 5 ft 100 pounds comes over and starts trying to roll my friend over , who is still unconscious on top of this poor kid who only went there to give blood.

He wakes up a minute later still on top of this dude, and I'm still laughing it up. The nurses then all give me the stink eye like I was somehow at fault here. I'm not a big guy and doubt I'd have been able to help even if I wasn't weak from donating. So I slink out of there with a smile on my face still but trying to hide it from the entire room now watching this scene play out with concern for my friend.

He's fine btw. And I love this story. 10/10 would laugh again.

hogtiedcantalope

"I know that Look"

Not me, but while we were watching a documentary about the KKK in school, and a klan member shows the camera his robes, the class weirdo said, "hey, my dad has that same jersey in his closet!" My friend lost it. I mean, he was wheezing and crying of laughter, but he tried to cover It up by pulling his shirt up. The teacher was so tired of him she didn't even care, so she tried to ignore it.

spider_rico_is_a_bum

"Face First"

Baby Reaction GIF Giphy

Once when I was about, say, four I slammed my face against my driveway knocking out my two front teeth. I was laughing the entire half hour my dad was freaking out with my bloody mouth.

Still to this day I don't know how I was able to laugh when I should've been crying in the scenario.

Edit: why the hell is my most upvoted thing a comment about my yeeting my two front teeth?

Silver-Scythe12

"Brother/Grandpa"

At my grandfather's funeral, my uncle named all of the grandkids by name and how they took on certain attributes of my grandfather. He named everyone but my middle brother and when he looked at me to say "WTF!!" I laughed, and so did my other brother.

J0NAN

"Can't Stop"

A friend told me her grandma had terminal cancer, just a few minutes prior something funny had happened and it was still in my head. I started laughing about the funny thing, then realized how unbelievably inappropriate it was to be laughing at that moment, which just made me laugh harder. It was a vicious cycle that ended in a lot of apologizing.

millivanillalatte

"Tic-Tac Cool"

I was in my low teens, maybe 13 or 14, and with my mom in the drive through at taco bell. We had just ordered, and pulled away from the speaker, when mom just.... Rear ends the people in front of us. No real reason other than the fact that mom can't freaking drive worth a crap. Never has been. So there we are, clogging up the line, mom's doing what she's suppose to, and I don't know how much was embarrassment and how much was the ridiculousness and absurdity of it... I MEAN COME ON! REALLY? AT A DAMN SNAIL'S PACE IN THE DRIVE THROUGH, AND ITS NOT LIKE YOU DIDN'T FREAKING SEE THEM!!!!

And mom asks me to look in the glovebox for some paper or other, which I do not find. But I do find a box of tic tac, which for some reason is suddenly hilarious to me, like the icing on the cake, and I cannot stop laughing. I'm certain this pisses mom off to no end, and looking back I feel terrible about it, but I just laughed and laughed, and offered mom a tic tac.

reyemanivad

"The Cackler"

This girl in 8th grade used to pick on me like it was her job and she got everyone on my case too. One day, she was rocking back and forth in her chair and leaned too far back. Before she fell backwards, she threw herself forward and ended up hitting herself in the mouth. She lost 3 of her top front teeth, legit swallowed them. Blood everywhere.

I cackled.

anoukdaae

"Windshield Art"

waving home alone GIF by 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment Giphy

My mom picked me up from school during winter. As I got into the car, she started telling me that my dad had a heart attack. However I began laughing, because someone had drawn a massive penis in the snow on a teacher's windshield.

It was so detailed that it took genuine talent. My mom thought I was crying, I just pointed to the penis and she started laughing as well.

supertacoboy

"Signs"

I was in an empty mall and I saw some kid run face first into a sign and basically clotheslined himself and I laughed so loud. It echoed through the whole mall. The mom was pissed but I just couldn't help it.

Cassie_1991

"PIZZA! PIZZA!"

tobias funke space GIF Giphy

I watched a kid from a ski lift that definitely was just learning to ski screaming while bombing a slope and a couple seconds later a man following her yelling "PIZZA! PIZZA!" She ended up running into a fence at the bottom and looked okay when I made it down there so I didn't feel as bad laughing anymore.

DJConwayTwitty

"Where is my Camera?"

We were going home from school. One of my classmates fell down the stairs like, well, a log. She didn't bend, put a leg or hands forward, nothing. Imagine one person simply rotating forward and falling down the stairs (there were only 3 so she didn't got hurt). She was lucky that only I and a few friends were around to see it and we are good friends with her so we didn't tell it to anyone else too much. I still wish I filmed it

DaryCDN

"Hellbound"

Funeral GIF by memecandy Giphy

During my grandmother's funeral. The preacher's going on about how we'll see her again in heaven, when my brother leaned over and whispered "but not you."

6ferretsInATrumpSuit

"Sisterly Love"

I work in healthcare. A few years ago I was meeting with a 60-something year-old patient and their family member - both female - who for whatever reason I assumed was her adult daughter since they looked quite alike. We were wrapping up the appointment and were cracking a few light jokes. Addressing the patient's family member, I said something along the lines of "You must get that from your mother", referring to the patient. The patient cocked her head to one side and firmly stated, "She isn't my daughter, she's my sister." Before I had comprehended the gravity of that statement, I reflexively let out a laugh and smile that insinuated, 'that was a funny joke, you look 30 years older than her!'

They did not smile back. The patient proceeded to explain that the person she brought with her to this appointment was her older sister. However, since this patient did not take care of herself and appeared to be generations older than her healthy older sister, I had made the fatal mistake of assuming it was her adult daughter. Needless to say I didn't exactly bounce back from that one and actually felt quite badly for hurting her feelings.

No-contact-4811

"Raincoat Required"

A coworker informed me that he'd be picking up more shifts because he accidentally knocked up a woman he didn't even like.

I snorted, then quickly followed with "sorry that's terrible man".

His own fault. If it's going to rain, put on a raincoat kids.

AllBadAnswers

"That's My Girl"

Yes, and I still feel bad. I came into a co-workers office, saw a picture of this little girl, probably 10-ish. Hair messed up, thick glasses, clothes that had zero chances of matching.

I say to him, "WTF is that" Laughing really hard

He answers "It's my daughter"

I'm like a deer in headlights. I thought it was a possible gag, other's had been placing really weird pictures on peoples desks saying it's family, etc. All as practical jokes. This was no joke.

TheStavis

"CRAZY"

crazy nicolas cage GIF Giphy

My friend texted that a kid we went to high school with had died. I think what I meant to reply was "omg that's crazy" and what my phone sent was "hahahalol that's crazy." Upon realizing, I couldn't stop actually laughing.

Expert__Witness

"Give me a Hand"

I saw a news story about someone walking down the street and found half an arm, hand still attached, on the sidewalk. They picked it up and it was still warm. Contacted police and they said "we've been looking for that!"

Apparently someone was riding in a car with their arm out the window. A random hobo emerges from the brush and cuts off the arm and then throws it somewhere.

Obviously that's not a laughing matter but the sheer randomness of that happening caused me to laugh in surprise.

Liteboyy

"I'm a Potty Person"

When I was about 9, my mom found one of my cassette tapes that I used with my tape recorder. It was FULL of potty humor. My mom was SUPER against potty humor.

So, she called me down and my heart SANK when I saw my tape recorder on the table and the look on her face meant I was going to get beat with a belt. I also knew it was coming because she had a belt sitting on the table too.

She told me to sit down and listen to it. And she pressed play. And I had to listen to recordings of me telling stories that were FULL of super creative but gross potty humor stories. Like the worst. While my mom glared at me.

And a few made me start snickering. I couldn't help it. I thought they were just too damn funny, even though I KNEW I was going to get beat worse just for laughing.

Spookyredd

"XXXX + 1"

At my great grandmother's funeral, during the eulogy the officiant listed her survivors as "WinifredBarkle and her husband xxxx" this issue being that xxxx was my little brother and we were about 14 and 10 respectively. The whole first row started giggling and people farther back shushed us angrily. It became a running joke that it was official since the pastor said it.

WinifredBarkle

"Finally"

My friend had called me and left a voicemail of my phone. He told me to call ASAP. This was weird because normally he calls me a fool or something on the phone. I end up going to his house since I thought something was wrong. He is sitting there on the chair and his wife was on the couch. He tells me that they are getting a divorce and that they need my help. (I'm an attorney). Well I laugh and say "well it's about time," since I thought he was joking. She ends up busting into tears and had me feeling like an moron.

bahansen10

"God's Connection"

My wife's grandmother died. There we are in church waiting for things to start, and I noticed they had a wifi router up in the rafters. I made a comment about it because I was sort of surprised to see it (been a while since I had been in a church), and my wife's uncle says "hey do you know why catholics hate wifi? They can't stand the thought of an invisible higher power that actually works." So yeah, right then.

Davran

"Air Sickness"

Vomit Reaction GIF by moodman Giphy

All.... the.... time! My go to reaction is to laugh. Pissed off a lot of people that way.

Picked up a friend at the airport and she had gotten sick on the plane and threw up everywhere. When she was telling me about it I laughed instead of commiserated with her. Almost lost a friend that day.

MedievalHag

"Freaking Really?"

I was working as a 4K Assistant Teacher and one of my students had a lot of emotional issues. Swearing, kicking, punching, screaming, etc. if something happened he didn't like.

One day we were having snack, and he'd had a really good morning. It was string cheese for snack and we always encourage the kids to do things for themselves so I asked him to open it himself.

He "tried" to open it and after a few seconds he casually tossed it on the table and said in a completely normal tone, "I freaking hate dis."

The casualness of the word "freaking" coming out of a 4yo's mouth was hilarious to me and I laughed but totally shouldn't have.

SchoolOfTheWolf93

"Mic Check"

A few years back, my sister was doing a play with her theater group. One of her friends was doing a scene or something (idk what the hell they're called), and in this scene, she was walking to the front of the stage and singing. Well she walked off the stage! About a 4 and a half foot fall. Well my dumb fool started laughing so hard I fell out of my front row seat. Little did I know the the girls headset mic had come off her head and landed right in front of me. So Then the whole damn auditorium could hear me wheezing like I was gonna die. Fun times, no regrets!

itsssollie

"ICED"

I laughed at my husband for falling on an ice rink. It was super funny until he said he thought he broke his arm and his poor arm was just dangling there all gross. I felt bad for laughing after that, but he understood.

bojeanerrs

"Got Wood?"

toy story swag GIF Giphy

Christmastime. This little kid got a Woody doll from Toy Story. He was running around telling everyone "Look, I got a woody!"

Llama_Mia

Infamous Internet Rumors That Ended Up Being True

Reddit user strakerak asked: 'What started out as an internet rumor that ended up being infamously true?'

boy playing at laptop inside room
Photo by Ludovic Toinel on Unsplash

In 2017, I returned to my office after my lunch break to hear my supervisors discussing Tom Petty. This seemed like a random topic to me until one of my supervisors told me Tom Petty had passed away. He was a huge fan of Petty and spent the next hour or so combing through the internet to get more information.

He came back into the room my other supervisor and I were working in and announced that Tom Petty wasn't dead after all. News outlets had jumped the gun to announce his death, but he was actually still alive.

The next day, I came in to find out that Tom Petty was dead; the news may have been premature, but true.

This is a classic example of the rumor being started on the internet. Sometimes, like with the news of Tom Petty's death, the rumor can run wild and appear everywhere. Other times, the rumor can be seen by just a few people and dismissed. However, a lot of times, these rumors turn out to be true.

Redditors know a lot of internet rumors that turned out to be true, and are eager to share.

It all started when Redditor strakerak asked:

"What started out as an internet rumor that ended up being infamously true?"

The King Of Pop

"Michael Jackson writing the music for Sonic 3."

"He actually did, but was never credited on the game because it would breach his contract with his record label."

– -WigglyLine-

"He did the same when he appeared on The Simpsons. He appeared under a pseudonym, and the Producers said it was an impersonator."

"Only years later they confirmed it really was Michael."

"His singing voice was actually done by an impersonator, though."

– given2fly_

The Truth Comes Out

"In 1998, US Men’s National Team captain John Harkes was shockingly cut from the team right before the World Cup. The coach claimed it was because Harkes wouldn’t fit into his new preferred formation, but rumors flew on the early internet that it was actually because he had slept with his teammate Eric Wynalda’s wife. The rumor was so well-known in soccer circles that Harkes expressly denied it in his autobiography the next year."

"Fast forward 12 years to 2010 and Wynalda admits it’s true. The coach then came out and admitted it was why he dropped Harkes, but that he’d planned to keep the secret as long as Wynalda did."

– guyfromsoccer

Video Evidence

"The Tim Burton Hansel and Gretel that aired once on halloween in the 80's."

"I heard for years that it was fake but I knew it was real because my dad recorded everything in the 80s and he recorded that. We let a good friend of ours borrow it and switch it over from VHS to DVD and soon after that it made its way on to the internet , and there it is now. I know it's our copy because the tracking in the beginning is screwed up. Still have the VHS."

– Frozenthickness

"There was a similar story with a Nickelodeon movie called Cry Baby Lane. It was supposed to be so scary that Nickelodeon got complaints and denied its existence for years. Someone uploaded a taped copy to youtube about a decade ago."

– PattiAllen

The Movie Business

"That North Korea hacked Sony Pictures because of The Interview movie."

"I worked in the movie business at the time and the account managers at Sony all basically needed to get new identities as all of their personal information got leaked online."

OldMastodon5363

"My partner worked on that movie and the production bought all the crew 1 year of an identity theft tracking service."

CMV_Viremia

Keep Away From The Ears Of Kids

"Some banned episodes or scenes of cartoons."

"For example, I remember there was a Dexter’s Lab cartoon where he clones evil versions of DeDe and himself and they swear like every other word (censored of course), and people debated whether it even existed cause they only aired it like once. Now it’s pretty accessible online."

– Spledidlife

Yes, It's True

"Echelon, a massive electronic espionage system by the US and allies to intercept all electronic messages, especially emails."

"In the mid-nineties it was a topic on conspiracy BBS boards. A lot of people in my bubble at the time (mainly uni students in Europe) were including fake threats to the US in the their email signatures as a way to "protest" and "fill the system with false alarms" (obviously useless)."

"Then, in 1999-2000 came out to be true and a lot of security service agencies from UK and other US allies started to admit they were part of the espionage network."

– latflickr

How The Mighty Fell

"John Edward’s love child."

– ACam574

"A reminder that he was cheating on his wife while she was hospitalized for cancer treatment."

– Fanclock314

Ugh...

"Carrie Fisher's heart attack. Some a**hole who was on the same flight was livetweeting the whole medical emergency and justified it by insisting she was just making sure the family was informed."

– everylastlight

It Actually Happened

"Every year around her birthday there was a rumor that Betty White died. When I heard she died, I scoffed, saying that dumb rumor is back.... then saw it on the news. I was in shock."

– Known-Committee8679

"The fact that Betty died literally right before she turned 100 is such a Betty White way to go out."

– Paganigsegg

Big Actor, Small Roles

"I distinctly remember some rumors about the reason why Bruce Willis was taking so many roles in sh*tty movies before it was announced he has dementia."

– KampferMann

"RedLetterMedia did a deep dive on his recent movie activity to try and work out why exactly he was taking part in basically scam-movies. They noticed he had an earpiece in one of the scenes and joked that the director was feeding him lines. I remember they even disclaimed over the rumours at the time, and possible made a follow-up vid when it was revealed to the public."

– CardinalCreepia

What To Do Next?

"That the writer of LOST were making it up as they went."

"Turned out to be absolutely true."

– homarjr

That last one was kind of obvious!

Do you have any to add? Let us know in the comment below.

Person holding large stack of books
Photo by Jay Lamm on Unsplash

Whether you're naturally interested in fun facts and trivia or not, it's always nice to know a few that you can pull out of your pocket at a moment's notice as a nice conversation starter.

But there are some fun facts out there that are so weird, people become more preoccupied with how the teller found out that information rather than the information itself.

Redditor Dry_Bus_935 asked:

"What is your 'don't ask me how I know' random fact?"

Nuclear Fail Safe

"You have quite a lot of time, certainly more than ten seconds, to turn back on the main pumps of a nuclear reactor once you have accidentally turned them off."

- egorf

"I'm not surprised. The amount of fail safes, redundancies, and emergency scenario planning for nuclear power plants is insane."

"I toured a nuclear plant and wrote my high school senior thesis on the plans put in place to ensure the Fukushima disaster would not happen at that plant."

"I'm sure the secondary pumps are plenty capable of handling the reactor until the main pumps are repaired or just turned back on."

- Borderlandsman

Happy Cat

"If your cat chews on fresh eucalyptus, they might start hallucinating and fall over repeatedly, leading to a $400 emergency vet bill just to be told she’s just kinda high."

- oddidealstronghold

"And, that's part of why koalas love it. Little stoners."

- littlebluefoxy

Archaeology: Do Not Lick

"Old human bones are very porous, so if you lick them, they’ll stick to your tongue."

- clanculcarius

Sharing is Caring

"A pigeon will only eat a Starburst if you chew it up a little bit first. Just to clarify: chew the Starburst, not the pigeon."

- OhTheHueManatee

"Instructions unclear. Pigeon unhappy."

- Wild-Lychee-3312

Intriguing Anatomy

"Everyone is here with the creepy crime stuff, and I'm just like, 'A soft fur rat has 22 nipples.'"

- horroscoblue

"Okay, so either they have really small nipples, their nipples overlap, or they have nipples in places where there shouldn't be nipples."

"(I've never written the word 'nipples' so many times in a singular sentence before.)"

- GdeGraaf

'Don't Ask Me,' Indeed!

"Turmeric can be used as clothes dye. It is capable of permanently dyeing cotton cloth even after it has passed through the digestive tract of an adult male."

- SlefeMcDichael

"You s**t your pants, didn't you?"

- PMmecrossstitch

"I'd prefer not to answer that question."

- SlefeMcDichael

High-Risk Survival Skills

"If you ever trying to survive in the Arctic, don’t eat polar bear liver. It is so high in vitamin A, it will kill you."

- WrongWayCorrigan-361

"It's also surrounded by a lethal amount of angry polar bear."

- horanc2

Real-Life Spies

"TV shows and movies go out of their way to make military/intelligence officers look bada**."

"But real-life 'spies,' by design and training, are boring. They have regular houses and standard second-hand cars, they dress down, and they have vague, boring job titles (accounts receivable) as cover, and they do not draw attention to themselves. Most come from specialized academia."

- Ok_Worth_1093

Haunting Reality

"Your muscles can keep twitching for several hours after you die."

- JustDave62

"Also, beards can appear to grow. This is however not because the beard itself grows but because the skin shrinks."

- RRautamaa

"I worked at a morgue for over eight years. If you grasp the hand of a dead body to move the arm, the hand will grasp back, but that's just muscles and tendons reacting to the tension."

- goneferalinid

The Sneakiness of Drowning

"When a drowning victim is revived, get them to a hospital as soon as possible. Drowning is the leading cause of death of kids from the age of one to seven and is ruled as accidental drowning when it comes to secondary drowning or dry drowning."

"Basically, your lungs are full of water despite being revived. Your lungs will absorb the liquid, but not before your body acidifies from high levels of carbon dioxide. The only chance to survive is to have the lungs pumped with oxygen via CPAP machine and time."

"Also, drowning is extremely quiet. You don’t hear the victim go under. And if you see flailing, do not attempt to save the victim otherwise you’ll become another drowning victim. Throw them a lifeline and hope their amygdala realizes that a rope or something is floating near them and grabs on it."

- Dfiggsmeister

Not Everyone's Favorite Chocolate

"Hershey’s chocolate has the strong smell of vomit or feces to some people (me), and that’s because they use butyric acid as a preservative. Butyric acid is the compound that makes vomit smell so bad."

"Edit: Digging further into it, there are some claims that they may not be “adding” the butyric acid, but rather it is occurring from essentially spoiling the milk in their milk chocolate. Either way, the butyric acid and putrid smell remains a part of their product."

- hefewiseman1

"That explains the weird aftertaste I always get! I don’t smell it but their chocolate always has this super unpleasant sharp/acidic aftertaste that I find repulsive. I assume this is why!!"

- PomegranateNo975

Do Not Lick the Asbestos

"Asbestos tastes like chalk. And if you lick it, it has the texture of extremely gritty sandpaper. Which is actually the feeling of microscopic asbestos needles piercing your flesh!"

- TooYoungToBeThisOld1

Mapping Out the War

"Beginning in 1911 in anticipation of the outbreak of WW1 in 1914, two statesmen, one from England and one from France, began visiting locations in France that they believed would be the settings for a number of major battles that would occur during the great war."

"Long bike rides through these future battle zones in the countryside and weeks spent building a foundation for a French-Anglo codebook that would later prove important in helping win the war."

- fjordperfect123

Avoiding Lawsuits > Protecting Patients

"Doctors, or surgeons more specifically, that make too many mistakes during surgery, ie, leaving instruments in patients, frequently gets ‘quietly traded’ to other hospitals where they continue their path of destruction with the patients not being aware of their past record. Hospitals tend to keep quiet about the matter to avoid lawsuits."

- Kittytigris

Bonus Points: Do This While Having Lunch in Your Car

"If you overfill a fast food gravy cup and then put a lid on, it will create a pressurized gravy stream that sprays all over your face and uniform while your coworker looks on in horror."

- thechaosjester776

This subReddit thread was so a roller-coaster of random facts, we've surely all walked away learning something.

But the biggest takeaway might just be: Maybe don't lick so many things.

Shocked woman covering her mouth
vaitheeswaran Nataraj/Unsplash

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.

Woman holding multiple shopping bags
Photo by freestocks on Unsplash

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 Giphy

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 Giphy

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

homer simpson episode 23 GIF Giphy

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 Giphy

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 Giphy

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.