Category: life

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Does Going to a Classmate’s Parents About Bullying Make This Person Evil?

Family dynamics are complicated in the best of times, and when we’re talking about blended families, things can be downright awkward and unbearable when growing pains – and opposite personalities – rear their heads.

These stepsisters don’t usually get along, but when OP found out that her stepsister was bullying a girl in their grade, Mia, she felt as if she had to do something.

She says she never thought her stepsister was a bully but she had the proof in her hands.

The situation at hand: My stepsister (17f) has been bullying this girl in our grade, Mia. Mia is a very shy person. We were never friends but were friendly until the bullying started and then Mia withdrew from everyone. I found out about the bullying over a month ago.

People described it as “not real bullying” but my stepsister has called her names and told her she doesn’t deserve friends. I found a note telling Mia this. I was pissed. My stepsister and I never had a good relationship (always fighting) but I never figured she was an actual bully, just someone who got on my freaking nerves.

OP went to Mia’s parents with the proof and the accusations, and they went to the school demanding serious consequences for her stepsister.

Her father is angry with her and believe the entire incident was motivated by her dislike for her stepsister (or maybe acting out against his remarriage, etc).

I ended up going to Mia’s parents with what I knew and the evidence of the bullying and now it has been brought up with the school and Mia’s parents want my stepsister expelled. My dad is pissed. He said it was so unbelievably petty and mean spirited to go to the girls parents over “sibling issues”. I told my dad nothing between us would ever be sibling issues, because we’re not siblings and my siblings (younger brother and sister) would never do that to another person.

My stepsister has been suspended right now but it looks like she’ll be expelled Thursday when the big meeting happens. My dad’s wife is freaking out and so are my stepbrothers.

It’s not only her siblings and parents who think she was wrong not to talk to her family or her stepsister directly first, leaving OP to wonder whether or not she really did the right thing.

With the exception of my siblings everyone seems to think I’m wrong for doing what I did, for not at least talking to my stepsister first. I feel like going to Mia’s parents was the right call because of how serious bullying can be for the person being bullied and even calling someone names can cut a person really deep.

But I never expected this kind of reaction. Life at home is very awkward right now.

AITA?

Bullying is bad, but it can be tough to know what is right when family is involved.

What does Reddit think? Keep reading!

This person makes a good point, that if the school believes it’s serious enough to expel the stepsister perhaps her parents should be more focused on their daughter’s actions than the reason for the consequences.

Image Credit: Reddit

There is a general sense that OP had a lot of courage, and no one is really telling her that.

Image Credit: Reddit

At least the internet people are here to give her a virtual pat on the back.

Image Credit: Reddit

People who have been there can vouch for the fact that any kind of bullying can have serious consequences.

Image Credit: Reddit

It’s very often a big deal to the person on the receiving end, after all.

Image Credit: Reddit

I have to say, I agree with OP taking decisive action, though if she had a better relationship with her stepsister, chances are she would have at least given her a head’s up first.

Either way, this Mia is lucky to have a good friend.

What are your thoughts? Do you think she was just trying to get back at her family?

Sound off in the comments!

The post Does Going to a Classmate’s Parents About Bullying Make This Person Evil? appeared first on UberFacts.

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Person Asks if They’re Wrong to Take What’s Legally Theirs if It Hurts Someone Else in the Process

Laws can be confusing, especially when you’re young and older relatives – who you’re supposed to be able to trust to guide you in times of trouble.

Too many times, though, the opposite happens. Someone gets taken advantage of, and the only recourse is to bring in more lawyers, who inevitably widen the rifts that were put there previously.

For this kid, it all began with the death of his father. His mother is suffering from dementia, and so in her stead, her family “inherited” and then sold their family home for a ridiculously cheap price.

My father passed away a few years ago and my adopted mom (who is old and has dementia) relatives sold my father’s and my mom’s house for half of the value with everything inside in a rush sale.

I did not know the law that time and was told by my moms relatives that my father had no WILL so everything automatically went to my mom and her family.

Then OP found out that the law actually says that a person’s children, not their spouse, inherits the property, which means the house was his to keep or sell as he saw fit.

He confirmed this with an attorney, who confirmed that OPs fears were correct and this family had taken advantage of his lack of experience.

I came across an article that in that country that when a person dies with out a will their heirs/children automatically inherit the estate. The estate can not be sold with out all heirs agreeing. If it is sold the sale will be void. I have contacted a lawyer and it was true. I can get the house back by simply showing my birth certificate, also because my mom has dementia she is not capable of doing a sale.

After the lawyer went to talk to OP’s mother the family got wind of his inquiries and intentions, and all hell has broken loose.

The lawyer went to meet with my mom on my behalf to ask a few questions about the sale of the house. Her relatives heard everything then started attacking me online and making nasty post about me how I was going to kick a family out a house because of pure “greed” that I already have a house in USA. I’m greedy to have another house. They threathen that they will get the new owners to sue me etc.

They’ve brought up the fact that, if OP takes the house back and wants to sell it for full price, he will be evicting the people who bought the house.

My mom’s relatives don’t work and used the money of the sale of the house for their own benefit, so not only will they have to return all the money , the new owners of the house will now have to look for somewhere else to live, which they can no longer afford a house because the house was sold for half of the market value, and that is what they will be getting back?

WIBTA for possibly kicking them out?

This has him wondering whether this makes him a jerk, and so he’s asking Reddit.

Here’s what they had to say.

The first comment reminds OP that he’s not in the wrong here, and sad that the outcome may be, it’s not his fault.

Image Credit: Reddit

Several people pointed out that the people who got such a “great deal” on the house probably sensed something fishy was afoot.

Image Credit: Reddit

Also, this is not how family is supposed to act.

Image Credit: Reddit

He should place the blame squarely where it belongs.

Image Credit: Reddit

OP can always give the family legitimate options once the dust settles, after all.

Image Credit: Reddit

I’m totally with the commenters here, even though I would be feeling guilty like OP, too.

What about you? Would you have similar qualms or no? Tell us about it in the comments!

The post Person Asks if They’re Wrong to Take What’s Legally Theirs if It Hurts Someone Else in the Process appeared first on UberFacts.

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Woman Wonders Whether She Was Wrong to Snap and Call Her Boyfriend an “Insecure Little Boy”

Relationships can be hard, my friends, I’m not going to lie. It can seem impossible to find that other half, the one that matches up with us, challenges us, supports us, and loves us despite all of our many flaws.

I think that’s one reason it can be hard to see right away – or admit, perhaps – when the person who initially seemed to be a good fit keeps showing edges that don’t match up at all.

Things snuck up slowly on this woman, who earned a liberal arts degree to her boyfriend Tim’s IT diploma. They’ve been together and happy, while she searched for a career path that satisfied her and him climbing the IT ladder.

Tim and I met in an English literature class our junior year of college, and we’ve been together the ten years since. While he ended up going into IT, I stayed in the liberal arts track and ended up doing non-profit work after college when I realized I didn’t actually want to be a schoolteacher. Just to say that we always assumed he’d out-earn me by a considerable margin, though when he made more I always insisted we split things evenly to avoid potential resentment down the road.

Now, she’s bounced around long enough to find not only a job she loves, but one that pays even more than he makes at his cyber security job.

I’ve had sort of a non-linear career path, but ended up switching to the corporate world. To make a long story short, my liberal arts degree and time doing non-profit work gave me a lot of skills that enable me to really excel professionally in some more niche areas. I recently started a new job as a consultant, making way more than I’d ever anticipated.

When I got the offer, I told Tim that the pay was “amazing”, but he didn’t ask about the actual amount and I didn’t want to be braggy about it, especially since I was fairly sure it was above his current income.

He’s just thought to realize that she’s making quite a bit of cash, and is making comments that show it’s obviously bothering him that her English lit degree has managed to snag her an awesome job.

He’s telling her she “cheated the system” to make himself feel better (I guess).

Well we just put in an application for a new place, and in the process of having to submit our paystubs it’s become obvious that I make roughly 30% more than he does now. I expected him to think that was cool, since he’s a feminist and has always been super supportive of my career. But instead he’s started to make increasingly harsh jabs about how I “cheated the system” to get where I am, that no English lit major makes more than a cyber security professional without cheating somehow.

He makes three ridiculous points about her “cheating,” two of which hinge on her just “being female.”

Also, I don’t think it’s called nepotism when your sorority sister recommends you for a job.

His major point is that I got my first job out of nepotism, which set me up to “trample” more qualified people who didn’t have the same advantages. It’s true that I got my first post-college job after being referred by a sorority sister, but it was for non-profit work making 22k/yr, not exactly at somebody’s daddy’s firm.

He also points out that at my first corporate job, I snagged a big promotion after volunteering to take on starting up the company’s diversity/equity/inclusion program, and I’ll admit that were I a white man, it’s highly unlikely I would have been able to be the face of the eventually high-profile diversity program.

Tim also notes that I was awarded a small college scholarship for being a “promising female writer”, when no such scholarship existed for males.

Except she didn’t cheat the system, and his ongoing “jokes” about not only her, but other women who are getting what they deserve (in a good way), pushed her over the edge and she’s wondering if she’s gone too far.

But all that said…I still don’t feel like I cheated the system, and it makes me angry to listen to him “joke” about it, especially since I grew up blue collar and worked fulltime while going to school fulltime to afford my degree.

I reached a breaking point yesterday when he made a crack about how the new/first woman on his team is an obvious diversity hire. I told him that his jokes about women cheating the system to get ahead aren’t funny or “guy-talk ribbing” as he says, they make him sound like an insecure little boy. He told me I was being a naïve Karen and we haven’t really talked since yesterday.

Did I go too far?

I’m going to let Reddit say what I’m dying to scream out here, yeah?

This first person really breaks down all the reasons she’s way too good for him, and I am here for it.

Image Credit: Reddit

Toxic seems to be the word of the day.

Image Credit: Reddit

She needs to go find someone who is actually a feminist and who isn’t intimidated by her confidence and success.

Image Credit: Reddit

It’s so seriously his loss and if he’s smart at all he’s going to regret acting this way some day.

Image Credit: Reddit

She hit the nail on the head, actually, calling Tim insecure.

Image Credit: Reddit

I hope this woman read all of these comments, printed them out, and left them on the coffee table when she packed up and left.

Too harsh? Tell me why you think so in the comments!

The post Woman Wonders Whether She Was Wrong to Snap and Call Her Boyfriend an “Insecure Little Boy” appeared first on UberFacts.

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Woman Wonders Whether She Was Wrong to Snap and Call Her Boyfriend an “Insecure Little Boy”

Relationships can be hard, my friends, I’m not going to lie. It can seem impossible to find that other half, the one that matches up with us, challenges us, supports us, and loves us despite all of our many flaws.

I think that’s one reason it can be hard to see right away – or admit, perhaps – when the person who initially seemed to be a good fit keeps showing edges that don’t match up at all.

Things snuck up slowly on this woman, who earned a liberal arts degree to her boyfriend Tim’s IT diploma. They’ve been together and happy, while she searched for a career path that satisfied her and him climbing the IT ladder.

Tim and I met in an English literature class our junior year of college, and we’ve been together the ten years since. While he ended up going into IT, I stayed in the liberal arts track and ended up doing non-profit work after college when I realized I didn’t actually want to be a schoolteacher. Just to say that we always assumed he’d out-earn me by a considerable margin, though when he made more I always insisted we split things evenly to avoid potential resentment down the road.

Now, she’s bounced around long enough to find not only a job she loves, but one that pays even more than he makes at his cyber security job.

I’ve had sort of a non-linear career path, but ended up switching to the corporate world. To make a long story short, my liberal arts degree and time doing non-profit work gave me a lot of skills that enable me to really excel professionally in some more niche areas. I recently started a new job as a consultant, making way more than I’d ever anticipated.

When I got the offer, I told Tim that the pay was “amazing”, but he didn’t ask about the actual amount and I didn’t want to be braggy about it, especially since I was fairly sure it was above his current income.

He’s just thought to realize that she’s making quite a bit of cash, and is making comments that show it’s obviously bothering him that her English lit degree has managed to snag her an awesome job.

He’s telling her she “cheated the system” to make himself feel better (I guess).

Well we just put in an application for a new place, and in the process of having to submit our paystubs it’s become obvious that I make roughly 30% more than he does now. I expected him to think that was cool, since he’s a feminist and has always been super supportive of my career. But instead he’s started to make increasingly harsh jabs about how I “cheated the system” to get where I am, that no English lit major makes more than a cyber security professional without cheating somehow.

He makes three ridiculous points about her “cheating,” two of which hinge on her just “being female.”

Also, I don’t think it’s called nepotism when your sorority sister recommends you for a job.

His major point is that I got my first job out of nepotism, which set me up to “trample” more qualified people who didn’t have the same advantages. It’s true that I got my first post-college job after being referred by a sorority sister, but it was for non-profit work making 22k/yr, not exactly at somebody’s daddy’s firm.

He also points out that at my first corporate job, I snagged a big promotion after volunteering to take on starting up the company’s diversity/equity/inclusion program, and I’ll admit that were I a white man, it’s highly unlikely I would have been able to be the face of the eventually high-profile diversity program.

Tim also notes that I was awarded a small college scholarship for being a “promising female writer”, when no such scholarship existed for males.

Except she didn’t cheat the system, and his ongoing “jokes” about not only her, but other women who are getting what they deserve (in a good way), pushed her over the edge and she’s wondering if she’s gone too far.

But all that said…I still don’t feel like I cheated the system, and it makes me angry to listen to him “joke” about it, especially since I grew up blue collar and worked fulltime while going to school fulltime to afford my degree.

I reached a breaking point yesterday when he made a crack about how the new/first woman on his team is an obvious diversity hire. I told him that his jokes about women cheating the system to get ahead aren’t funny or “guy-talk ribbing” as he says, they make him sound like an insecure little boy. He told me I was being a naïve Karen and we haven’t really talked since yesterday.

Did I go too far?

I’m going to let Reddit say what I’m dying to scream out here, yeah?

This first person really breaks down all the reasons she’s way too good for him, and I am here for it.

Image Credit: Reddit

Toxic seems to be the word of the day.

Image Credit: Reddit

She needs to go find someone who is actually a feminist and who isn’t intimidated by her confidence and success.

Image Credit: Reddit

It’s so seriously his loss and if he’s smart at all he’s going to regret acting this way some day.

Image Credit: Reddit

She hit the nail on the head, actually, calling Tim insecure.

Image Credit: Reddit

I hope this woman read all of these comments, printed them out, and left them on the coffee table when she packed up and left.

Too harsh? Tell me why you think so in the comments!

The post Woman Wonders Whether She Was Wrong to Snap and Call Her Boyfriend an “Insecure Little Boy” appeared first on UberFacts.

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A Guy Told His Neighbor Off After an Argument. Was He Wrong?

It’s starting to sound like the Hatfields and the McCoys on social media lately!

Every time I turn around, I feel like I hear about another story of neighbors gone wild.

And here’s another one! So hang on tight…

It comes to us from Reddit’s “Am I The A**hole?” page…let’s take a look at what went down.

AITA For telling my neighbor to get f**ked when he told me to remove my doorbell camera?

“So lately, there have been a number of burglaries in the area I live in.

My wife and I were among those who got burglarized and most of the stuff we lost were packages and electronics. My wife and I both work long hours so we’re not home most of the time and despite taking precautions, we still are concerned for the safety of our belongings as well as other things.

So I decided to get a doorbell camera which frankly has become a necessity and it’s cheap to buy ($199) and easy to install. And so far we were able to catch a number of thieves in act (to my surprise some of them I knew personally and were from the area) which helped lot in getting our stuff back.

Onto the issue: So my neighbor and I were discussing this with few other neighbors and I showed him a video that was taking by the camera to explain how we were able to identify the individuals who tried to steal stuff. I was fastforward-ing the footage but He suddenly freaked out and pointed at his wife who was at the door to visit my wife.

I was confused when he asked how long I been keeping this video/and if I made copies of it. He then proceeded to tell me it did not feel right to see his wife being recorded by the doorbell cam and the fact that I didn’t get rid of this part since it had nothing to do with catching the thieves made him uncomfortable.

I apologized for any misunderstanding and promised that it had nothing to do with his wife we had few people stand at our door who were shown on our cam so I wasn’t just his wife. He cut the conversation and left. Then came back in the evening to ask for how long I will be keeping this camera. I asked why and he said he wasn’t sure about his wife being recorded and asked me to remove it.

I said no then he suggested I install one inside but I still said no. He got all p**sed and said that I was acting inappropriately and mean after he came to me with his concerns expecting me to understand that he doesn’t want me having ‘footages’ of his wife. I told him his wife can stop coming over if he was so worried but he went on about never telling his wife what to do or where to go.

He insisted I remove the cam but I told him to get F-ed and never bring this up again. He left and got others involved, they told me I should be more considerate of my neighbor’s feelings and understand where he’s coming from but I stood my ground and refused to remove the camera.

My wife thinks I was being a jerk to our neighbor and his wife and have some respect for them but I don’t think I was being disrespectful. Was I?”

Let’s see what Reddit users had to say about this.

This person said that this guy is not an a**hole at all and that it’s his right to have a security camera on his door.

Photo Credit: Reddit

Another reader thinks that something sounds a little bit fishy about the neighbor and there’s possibly some other reason that he doesn’t want this guy to have a camera on his door.

Photo Credit: Reddit

This individual said that you never really know how people will react if they think they’re being filmed or photographed…

Photo Credit: Reddit

And finally, this person said that it’s possible that this couple might even be in hiding.

Could be…?

Photo Credit: Reddit

How do you think you would have handled this situation?

Talk to us in the comments and let us know?

We can’t wait to hear from you!

The post A Guy Told His Neighbor Off After an Argument. Was He Wrong? appeared first on UberFacts.

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Lord of the Rings Fan Offers Unexpected Analysis of Boromir’s Demise

JRR Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings trilogy, along with The Hobbit, have inspired a cult following among readers and movie-goers.

Personally, I enjoyed the movies but never finished the books. (I’m sorry ?)

And I haven’t joined my mother in semi-annual rewatching events.

So when a Tumblr user wrote an essay about the death of Boromir my first thought was which one was that again? (Don’t stone me ?)

And my second thought was is he the one that’s in EVERYTHING? (I looked it up. Sean Bean, and yes.)

But a lengthy, viral thread from Tumblr made me want to go back and rewatch, and give Boromir his due.

SPOILER ALERT – Boromir dies. And the topic of this particular essay is the reason why his death gets more meaningful the older we get.

The user @letmetellyouaboutmyfeels believes this is because Boromir is the every man, the character we may not have aligned ourselves to as children, but who we most identify with as adults.

Image credit: Tumblr via Cheezburger

It’s an interesting critical analysis worthy of any film studies or literature class, but the user didn’t stop there.

They explained why life beats you down until you are more aligned with the every man than your hero Aragorn.

Image credit: Tumblr via Cheezburger

The user, @letmetellyouaboutmyfeels, has lived to see some stuff, it seems.

Image credit: Tumblr via Cheezburger

And when it comes to Tolkien, they know their stuff.

Tolkien embraced the archetype. There’s a reason we all love Aragorn, and it’s not just because of Viggo Mortensen and his beautiful face.

Image credit: Tumblr via Cheezburger

But Boromir served an integral part of the story. He has agency.

Without him, as with any great character, the story would have turned out differently, maybe for the better, maybe for the worse.

Image credit: Tumblr via Cheezburger

Then @letmetellyouaboutmyfeels brings it all back into context of modern life.

They explain how like Boromir we tend to be–stuck in cycles of expectation, trying, and failing, and just being human.

Image credit: Tumblr via Cheezburger

But, they also point out, that there is strength in Boromir’s frailty, in his humanity.

Because he admits when he fails. And he tries and he tries and he tries again.

Just like we all do–or should–or strive to.

Image credit: Tumblr via Cheezburger

@letmetellyouaboutmyfeels brings it all full circle, showing how Boromir was instrumental, before his death, in handing things off to Aragorn.

They describe how even in his last act, Boromir–human that he was–ensured the final success of the Fellowship.

Image credit: Tumblr via Cheezburger

They write about the evolution of their heroes, from childhood to teenage-dom to adulthood, and how in adulthood we lose sight of the ideal, and begin to focus on our own humanity and failures.

Image credit: Tumblr via Cheezburger

They point out again, all of the good that Boromir did, and all of the ways that Aragorn and the others might not have succeeded without him.

Although he was his own worst critic, as are we all, Boromir was not a complete failure. He had success too.

Image credit: Tumblr via Cheezburger

And that is why his death might hit much harder now than it did as a child.

As a kid, you were probably thinking “Darn, but thank goodness it wasn’t Aragorn! He can still save the day!”

As an adult, you look at Boromir, and you just might see yourself.

Image credit: Tumblr via Cheezburger

The essay took quite a turn when you realize that it was written by, not someone in their 40s or 50s, but by someone mid 20s who has seen a lot of life.

But there’s a lot of truth in it. What about you? Does Boromir’s death get you every time?

The post Lord of the Rings Fan Offers Unexpected Analysis of Boromir’s Demise appeared first on UberFacts.

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Times When People Uncovered Some Huge Loopholes

There are all kinds of loopholes in the world, I think – big, small, in between – and ones that can have a huge impact on the people who find them…or really small ones.

Most of us are willing to bend the rules in some circumstances, though, it’s just a question of how far and how big you’re willing to go.

These 12 people gave no f**ks about your rules, and honestly, it’s sometimes hard to blame them.

12. How do they live with themselves?

Also, man he’s got some good medication.

Image Credit: Ebaum’s World

11. Don’t expect your sub to be a full 12 inches.

That’s not what “footlong” means at Subway, friends.

Image Credit: Ebaum’s World

10. If they’re not human, what are they?

A question for the ages, my friends.

Image Credit: Ebaum’s World

9. I am doing a slow-clap.

Just put your minds to it, friends.

Image Credit: Ebaum’s World

8. Who made this rule to begin with?

I mean I think we know the answer to that.

Image Credit: Ebaum’s World

7. This one of the best drawings I’ve seen.

I need this framed, to be honest.

Image Credit: Ebaum’s World

6. Not technically sugar free.

There are so many “rules” like this one that are so arbitrary.

Image Credit: Ebaum’s World

5. The more you know…

The oldest profession in the world.

Image Credit: Ebaum’s World

4. Ooh I don’t know how I feel about this.

I do slip into my Cons, though…

Image Credit: Ebaum’s World

3. I really just need to know the reason behind this law.

What is ungodly about ice cream sodas, people?

Image Credit: Ebaum’s World

2. Everyone just played along.

I’ll show myself out.

Image Credit: Ebaum’s World

1. Michelle Obama to the rescue.

Ketchup is not a vegetable, my friends.

Image Credit: Ebaum’s World

I had no idea about most of these, to be honest.

What’s the craziest loophole you’ve ever stumbled across? We want to hear about it in the comments!

The post Times When People Uncovered Some Huge Loopholes appeared first on UberFacts.

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Why Can’t We Say “I’m Not Educated On That” About Things We Don’t Know About?

When someone asks us a question, I think most of us feel badly if we don’t know the answer – which is crazy, because no one knows everything about everything, right? Or even a little bit about some things, because we all have our specialities and areas of interest.

A person on Reddit wondered why it’s not socially acceptable to just say “I’m not educated about that” when we don’t know the answer, and to not judge people (or ourselves) for not knowing everything.

Here’s the post:

“I’m not educated on that subject” needs to be a more common/accepted response

There’s this idea that every time someone asks a question about anything they expect some form of answer.

I think there’s 2 reasons:

  1. The world today let’s people have an opinion on anything whether they know about the subject or not. While there’s a ton of information it’s all watered down and bias for the most part. Even when talking to people it’s not their opinion it’s them regurgitating an opinion someone else has
  2. When you don’t have an opinion it’s seen as a negative thing as if you don’t care about what’s happening in the world or you’re stupid or something.

One of the most underrated skills is knowing when to shut up especially for us USA-ers. It’s perfect to tell someone I’m not educated in the subject or even IDGAF!

What does Reddit think about that?

We’re about to find out!

12. Not even teachers know everything.

I teach classes to engineers and engineering students. I use this phrase regularly because they can come up with some great questions. Then, I come back later with the answers.

They respect me a lot more for it than giving an answer that’s not correct or vague.

11. As they should.

I’m straight up when I dont know something. I’ll literally say to someone, unfortunately I don’t have much knowledge on that subject so I cant really speak on it. And everyone respects it. No stigma whatsoever

So yeah, more people should definitely admit when they don’t know something. Nothing will happen haha

10. Just be honest.

I use variations of these quite often, my go to is, ‘I believe (X), but let me refer to (the expert source) to get the final answer, just to make sure you’re getting completely accurate information’ or ‘honestly, I don’t know but I’ll gladly look into it and get back to you once I have the answer’

9. It doesn’t mean you’re dumb – the opposite, actually.

It’s a trait I recognized in my father and grew to adore: if he didn’t know something he would say as much. He might have fun hypothesizing over what the answer could possibly be, but he wasn’t married to his guesses and would only do it as a fun exercise until he found out what the answer was.

Growing up with him as the most intelligent man I’ve ever known, and watching him regularly say he wasn’t sure about something or another, and then looking at my friends’s fathers and their reluctance to ever say they didn’t know something made me realize that the truly smart people know when to keep their mouths shut and defer to the experts.

Smart people become smart by learning the answers to their questions instead of simply assuming that their first guess is correct.

8. If you want to get specific.

I prefer “I don’t know enough to have a sufficiently reliable opinion on the matter, so I would be inclined to take the input of those more educated on the topic over my own opinion.

This will allow me to build a more informed opinion on similar situations, and develop a better discernment between wise men and sly men.”

7. Communication skills are for everyone.

It’s funny, (through great effort & many therapists) I have developed the habit. I actually used it earlier today. But I learned it because I never saw it used. My parents used communication skills so poor I was able to eventually extrapolate good skills.

Well… Okay-ish skills. (I’m trying.)

But as a PhD today, I can definitely say that a significant indicator of intelligence is not knowing things but how someone deals with not knowing something.

6. They shouldn’t, anyway.

For real. I do that all the time.

My background is in science and you will get s**t on if you try to talk about things you don’t actually know about. It’s second nature at this point for me to say “this isn’t my specialty, but these are my thoughts…” or whatever.

No one thinks less of you for being aware of your own limitations.

5. What was modeled for you?

I grew up with the exact opposite father. He would constantly make stuff up and acts like he knew everything. Watching his arrogant behaviour growing up (which has now devolved into him being a conspiracy nut who’s wholly anti-vaccine) caused me to vow to never be that way.

I’m not hesitant to admit I don’t know something, and I try to help others find answers if they ask and I don’t know the answer off the top of my head.

4. Make it a team effort.

I was a supervisor of a small parts assembly team for a few years. When I started I had zero experience with their particular assemblies.

For the first few months whenever an employee would come up to me with a question, my response was almost always “I don’t know, but let’s see if we can figure it out”

This worked great to build a relationship with the employees and also allowed me as an outsider to give new ideas when their processes and procedures didn’t work very well.

3. Wise words.

My parents always said “you don’t need to know the answer for every question, just know how to find the answers you don’t know.”

I grew up with a huge dictionary and I always had to look up a word I didn’t know. They wouldn’t tell me the answer.

2. You can go on the offensive, too.

This also chains well into challenging someone who may be talking out of their a$$. “I don’t know enough about that to speak on it. What’s your expertise? How did you learn about it?”

A bulls*%tter’s position will quickly stutter.

1. Learning the hard way.

I learned to do this the hard way. Years ago, a friend of mine and another acquaintance I didn’t know that well were on a walk. My friend asked a question about good exercises for someone with bad knees. Me being the know-it-all and an aerobics instructor, jumped in with some stuff I pulled out of my a$$.

The other guy was patient and didn’t say anything. After I was finished going on and on, he gave his input and really seemed to know what he was talking about. Later that day I found out he was a doctor. Then I realized she’d really meant for the question to be directed towards him.

I felt like such an a**. But from that point on, I never again just jumped to answer a question with the authority of an expert. I always assume that someone else in the room might know more than me. And if I’m not sure about something, I’ll admit it.

And if I do know a little bit about something but it’s all just from googling and not from a formal education, I’ll admit that too and say, “Please disregard this if someone more knowledgeable says otherwise. I learned this at Google University.” I think I’ve saved myself a lot of potential embarrassment this way.

I’m going to adopt this in my life – maybe you could, too, and we could start a trend!

Thoughts? Leave them in the comments.

The post Why Can’t We Say “I’m Not Educated On That” About Things We Don’t Know About? appeared first on UberFacts.

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People Share the Weirdest Facts They Know

Facts are something that we all love and we all have our favorites.

The ones we can’t wait to drop anytime we get the chance, the ones that never fail to get us the reaction we want – and yes, the weirdest things we’ve heard that are just impossible to forget.

Those are the facts Reddit is asking for today, and let me tell you, these 18 people came up with some real doozies!

18. I’ll be listening for that this summer.

When male honey bees orgasm, their penises explode with a “pop!” audible to human ears.

And when winter comes the worker bees (which are all female) kick the male bees out to die in the cold because they do nothing other than mate with the queen and the queen can make more even if she is new and unmated. She needs to mate in order to make more female bees.

17. Consider my mind blown.

Cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, kale, Brussels sprouts, collard greens, Savoy cabbage, kohlrabi, and gai lan are all the same species of plant (Brassica oleracea), just bred to enhance different parts of the plant.

16. Well that’s unfortunate.

The man who invented the match.com website lost his wife to a man she met … On match.com

15. Cremated or just a really big can?

Fredric Baur, the inventor of the Pringles can, is buried in one.

14. This is definitely useful information.

Door knobs that are made out of brass can disinfect itself in about 8 hours.

Copper has the same effect. This early study published in April 2020 demonstrates the SARS-Cov-2 virus particles became non-viable after 4 hours on copper surfaces.

13. I mean there had to be some trick to it.

Woodpeckers tongues wrap around their brain to cushion them from a concussion when they peck against tree trunks.

12. The weight of paint.

If you want to paint a violin red you have to use a Naphthol or Pyrrol Red as a Cadmium Red pigment is too heavy and will alter the sound.

It adds up, the first two space shuttle External tanks were painted white. The external tanks ended up weighing 600 pounds more than the unpainted ones.

11. Now that’s ironic.

We don’t really know who the inventor of the fire hydrant is, because the patent was destroyed…….in a fire.

Homer: Springfield’s never had a hurricane in recorded history.

Lisa: The records only go back to the ’70s when the hall of records was mysteriously blown away.

10. Those things freak me out.

Koalas have fingerprints that are very close to human fingerprints. There apparently have been several “break-in” in Australia by the same “person” based of off fingerprint evidence.

Turned out to be a koala that was responsible for all of these.

9. I bet that’s delicious.

Volkswagen makes a currywurst (a type of sausage) and it has its own Original Part number. #199 398 500 A

No word on whether or not it’s wrapped in a proper pretzel.

8. This does not surprise me about poodles.

There was a genetic bottle neck in standard poodles starting in the 1950s. A kennel called the Wycliffe kennel linebred exceptional show dogs which became highly sought after as studs.

Even today, many standard poodles carry a substantial percentage from this line which traces back to just five dogs.

7. Fungi are amazing.

A fungi grows next to the highly radioactive “Elephant’s Foot” in the Chernobyl reactor. It feeds off the gamma rays emitted by the nuclear fuel in a process known as “radiosynthesis.”

If you were exposed to similar levels of radiation, you would have a lethal dose in 3 minutes.

Radiotrophic fungus was first discovered at the Chernobyl site in 1991, just after the collapse of the Soviet Union and the start of internationally-aided cleanup/containment efforts. Not so sure about right next to the Elephant’s Foot, but it was definitely found growing in large, flourishing colonies all throughout the site’s cooling water supply.

This fungus appears to use melanin – the same dark-brown pigment that gives humans all their various normal skin tones, except in much, much higher concentrations – to power sugar-producing reactions by deriving energy from nuclear decay the same way plants and cyanobacteria use the green pigment chlorophyll to synthesize sugars by deriving energy from (sun)light.

Basically, this stuff is a mold colony that has the most extreme tan ever, and uses it to eat radiation.

Similar fungi have been found accumulated on the exterior hulls of low-orbit spacecraft, and experiments were recently (2018-2019) conducted to begin investigating if the stuff could be used as shielding to protect astronauts from solar/cosmic radiation. Apparently, results were promising!

6. This is very disconcerting.

The spinal cord has the consistency of a ripe banana.

Yeah our vertebrae are rings of interlocking armor for a reason.

5. Those are fun party tricks.

Sloths can hold their breath longer than dolphins can. They can also die of starvation with a full stomach.

Their gut bacteria is very temperature dependent. Due to Global Warming ™, the temp in the Caribbean can go below its more usual 23C down to about 20C at times, which will kill their digestive bacteria, so they can’t digest what they eat. Sloths can’t regulate their body temperature well, so they can’t maintain an internal temp to stop this happening.

4. Terrifying, if you’re a caterpillar.

When caterpillars make their chrysalises, the don’t just grow wings & change, they dissolve completely into goo which then reforms into the butterfly.

Better yet, if you “train” the caterpillars to dislike certain stimuli, the resulting butterflies retain that memory & will avoid the same stimuli.

I don’t have a source to hand but I asked a relative who works a lot around butterflies.

She said that it has actually been shown that they retain some structure during metamorphosis, including their nervous system which explains the memory retention.

3. Facts about camels.

Most of the camels of Saudi Arabia are imported from Australia.

The largest wild population of camels is also in Australia.

It is illegal to kill wild camels in Arizona.

Back in the day they imported camels to cross Southern Arizona, found horses more reliable so released the camels. There’s a thriving population of wild horses in Arizona but sadly no more camels. ?

Llamas and other camel species can thrive here though.

Lastly, I remember watching Planet Earth for the first time and seeing Bactrian camels on film, for the first time, in their natural habitat. One of my favorite tv memories.

2. Talk about dark.

Anglerfish mate by the male biting the female’s abdomen.

Over time, the male is absorbed and linked to the female’s circulatory system while the male basically melts into a parasite-looking growth that is actually nothing but testicles which the female will use when she’s ready.

Weird enough for you?

1. And they still didn’t see that iceberg coming.

Titanic was fitted with microphones for receiving underwater bell signals. With this system the sound of submarine bells was received through the hull of the vessel.

Submarine bells, used as fog signals, were located on lightships, at lighthouses, and even on some specially equipped buoys. They were actuated by electric signals, compressed air, or simply by wave motion.

Titanic had two submarine microphones on her hull, one on each side. These were the “ears” of the ship. By switching between the port and starboard microphones and comparing the volume of the bells, the navigation officer could determine the direction to the navigation aid. Sound travels much further through water than through air – these bells could be heard over 15 miles away through the headset.

A pretty cool way of navigating at a time when GPS and RADAR didn’t yet exist!

I’m definitely adding some of these to my list.

What’s your favorite weird fact? Share it with us in the comments!

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People Discuss the Secrets They Learned Working at McDonald’s

All jobs have secrets, it’s just that not all of them are required to be kept once you’re no longer employed.

If you work for the CIA, you’ve probably got to take those to your grave, but otherwise…go ahead and spill.

And if you’re someone who goes through that McDonald’s drive thru on a regular basis – no judgement, I promise – you might be interested in hearing what employees learn once they’re given the keys to the castle.

So to speak.

16. That sounds delicious.

Worked there in high school.

Found out that if you put the middle of a Mac bun in the fryer and then add soft serve and strawberry topping, it tastes just like a funnel cake.

Custom creations were the best part of working there.

15. What was down there, though…?

The McDonald’s in my hometown had a basement.

I didn’t work there but on days where they had a shipment in, I’d watch them slide boxes down a slide that covered half the stairs while waiting in the drive through…

14. They get creative after hours.

Ice cream on top of a hot out the oven pie or cookie or cinnamon melt or brownie melt.

Or hot cakes. That shit was my jam.

I used to make quesadillas after close. The southwest mix and dressing was good for that.

We had taco Tuesdays sometimes, with in house toppings. Quarter meat, tomato, lettuce, cheese, tortillas, onions. I think the only thing brought in was the taco seasoning.

I’d scramble or sunnyside up the eggs for my break with the salt and pepper clicker meant for lunch meats and some cheese on top.

Not a “hack” but I miss the OG chicken select strips.

13. Too busy or too stunned?

My first day on the job I was told to be on the lookout for the elderly gentleman who would try to sneak around the counter and pour the entire coffee pot into his mug while everyone was too busy to stop him.

He showed up and I stared him down.

He didn’t get his coffee that day.

12. You never know what you’re gonna get.

I worked there when I was in high school. Not a secret, but I hadn’t known much about franchises before then.

I hadn’t realized that McDonald’s could vary quite a bit in quality and professionalism based on who the owners were and what type of management/workplace they set up. I worked at a really good one (with good management, I mean), but some are s*%t.

have 2 McDonald’s near me, both relatively same distance.

The one I usually go to is more crowded but I feel that the food is better prepared and the drinks taste right.

I’ve been to the other McDonald’s before, not as crowded, but the nuggets tend to have a stale texture and the coke has this weird bubble gum type aftertaste lol.

11. The parking lot is always hoppin.

Depending on which one you work at, the parking lot is basically a meet-up for druggies/drug dealers and (at least where I was in New Mexico) people to meet up and have sex in their cars. As long as they kept their business to the middle of the night and didn’t cause any serious problems, we were told not to call the cops or make a fuss, mostly because they’d come in and buy food after their shenanigans.

Soda and mini pies were really popular with heroin addicts. What I later found out is that management was actually told to let it slide by corporate, since everyone higher up was aware of how much money the “night crowd” brought in. I got to see many, many drug deals.

I’m convinced I saw at least one arms deal, but I of course have no way of verifying that.

10. That’s a lot of sugar.

Former employee here. I found out that, when making 5 gallons of sweet tea, an entire 4-pound bag of sugar goes in.

Sandwiches with round egg use real, cracked eggs. Folded and scrambled come from packaged goods in the freezer or fridge.

I also had a manager that insisted more people purchase Filet O Fish when it’s raining out because they subconsciously associate the watery weather with fish. Anyway, he did some research by poring through sales of Filet O Fish for months and months and comparing it to weather data for each day. Turns out he found something like a 3% increase on rainy days and was very pleased with himself.

Edit: Wow, I will answer some of your questions up here so people can see. The manager voiced his theory one day, and the crews all argued with him about it. This went on for a while. He was committed to proving us wrong, so he secretly pulled the sales numbers at work and did the rest on his own time, never breathing a word until he brought his printed report in to shut us all up.

He did separate Fridays during Lent and compared those days to each other in anticipation of having holes poked in his research. We still did that anyway, of course. As pointless and imperfect as the research was, it was impressive to see his commitment to giving us the middle finger!

9. An upgrade? Really?

Before I worked there , I always thought they used a grill . Turns its more of a heated press machine.

It used to be a grill. Upgrades.

8. That is unacceptable, sir.

My manager used to be on my back all of the time for ‘giving out too much sauce’.

He tried telling me the limit is one per meal.

7. It can be a messy job.

Drop any unopened chicken nugget sauce on the ground once — you’ve got yourself a sauce grenade.

Trash compactor can make for some fun explosions too. We had a volpack of ketchup that needed tossed for whatever reason, someone didn’t realize it shouldn’t go into the compactor. I go back after hearing a bang and a scream, dude is just caked in ketchup and it shot up out of the barrel of the manual compactor and painted the wall, ceiling, and bun rack.

They have since taken away the volpacks.

6. I find this hard to believe.

The official deodorizing spray they gave us is the most pleasant thing I’ve ever smelled in my entire life.

Even now, I wish I could smell it again.

5. The little things you learn.

The pickles are surprisingly aerodynamic. They stick to walls and (if you have the stones) managers shirts pretty well.

Yeah, they fly amazing. Pretty sure me and my old crew cost that store about $1k the entire time we worked there just throwing them things…

lol

4. Who hasn’t heard that one too many times in their life?

I learned that if I have time to lean, I have time to clean.

3. Efficiency wins.

Sauces for sandwiches have the craziest dispensers.

Ketchup and mustard are in these really rudimentary plastic funnel things that have a paddle in the handle, when you squeeze it gravity pushes just the right amount of sauce through holes.

Doesn’t seem like it’d work well but it does if you apply the proper amount of jigglin.

The Mac sauce, mayo, and tartar though, they’re in basically caulk tubes that get loaded into basically caulk guns. You pull the trigger on the handle and a reeeeaally satisfying ratchety clanking delivers a powerfully saucy surprise for the awaiting buns. Problem is, it takes a bit of finesse because if you hit that trigger too hard you’ll blow the bun and the wad of creme right through the condiment station and onto the wall 8 feet away.

No joke, the first couple tarter splurts of a fresh tube came out so hot I’d fire a shot or two in the trash to avoid premature splatulation during the lunch rush. The first salvo, properly elevated and adjusted for wind, could clear the whole kitchen and take out the McInfantry on the cash register.

2. Seriously, a nightmare.

I worked at McDonalds when they first introduced sweet tea and remember that it was brewed in a large bucket mixing hot water with a full bag of granulated sugar.

It makes me sick to think about but I still sometimes crave that disgustingly sweet tasty garbage.

1. The customers are the best part.

Cool story. I worked there in my teens for a couple years. Actually worked at 2 different locations so i saw the difference in standards.

At one store there was a guy who always rode his bike to the store every single day to hangout. He was on the spectrum …”slow” and McDonalds was kind of his castle. Everyone knew him and he got a lot of free food from the employees. He was a daily part of the shift for us.

Anyway, one day he had one too many root beers. (This was a thing he normally did) because he pretended the root beers were like real beers and he would get drunk. Everyone kind of would go along with it because he was funny and never did anything to wild. Unfortunately this day he took it a little too far and ended up in the parking lot throwing bottles at cars driving by.

Long story short. Guy was arrested and he was banned from that McDonalds for life. Kinda felt bad about it because that McDonalds was his favorite place to be. He would pull thru at 3 or 4 on his bike and stay and hang out with employees until like 8. Every. Single. Day. Before that incident one of the managers even made him his own little parking spot for his bicycle, he was happy as hell.

I think about that guy sometimes. Hope he’s found himself a new McDonalds.

Lol

I don’t know how to feel about some of these!

If you’ve ever worked at McDonald’s, do these ring true? Do you have more? We want to hear them in the comments!

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