What commonly known thing did you learn at an embarrassingly older age?

[Anonymous]

I just learned a few years ago, age 57 why women want pantyhose with control top. It is hard to find pantyhose without control top. I know really fat women can have huge bellies, but why do thinner women want control top too.

I'm a mom by adoption and it wasn't until I was told I didn't have enough belly to do an autologous (use your own tissue) to create a breast after my mastectomy. I am plenty of fat, but I have no extra fat on my belly. My fat is on my butt and outer thighs. All these other women were able to have a breast (or two) created out of their own belly tissue and I was really angry I could not. I started asking to see other women's bellies who were slim or average and suddenly they pull their active wear pants lower and a belly sticks out. This was over and over. I had no idea that so many women who are thin had a belly, maybe from childbirth.

But me, who is about 30 lbs over weight did not have enough tissue in my belly for even one breast. That is the same choice for really skinny women. How did I get in this category and oh, now I see why women want control top pantyhose.

[Anonymous]

I have not seen anyone mention this, so I thought I'd mention it, so you would know if your father didn't explain the streets of DC to you when you were in your teens or 20's.

Everyone knows that streets that go north-south are named with numbers. And the numbers are west and east of the US Capitol.
And the lettered streets go east west from the US Capitol.

But my dad went further to explain the first set of streets which went E-W were A - W, no J. The second set of streets E W as you got closer to MD were two syllable streets through the alphabet, then the closer you got to MD, the third set of streets were 3 syllable streets thru the alphabet. And then when you got almost to Silver Spring, the names were names of botanicals from A - R

Eastern and Western Aves are the boundaries E and W. North, South Capitol streets go N-S from the Capitol. There is an E Capitol St, bit no W Capitol St.

So you see you are at Rittenhouse and 16th NW, you have a long way to go to get downtown.


The diagonal streets are names of states. The first states are closer to downtown and the last states (e.g. Alaska and Hawaii) are much further out.

There are no A-B streets, Constitution is where those would be in NW. I'm sure I forgot or got wrong some things that people could fill in.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have not seen anyone mention this, so I thought I'd mention it, so you would know if your father didn't explain the streets of DC to you when you were in your teens or 20's.

Everyone knows that streets that go north-south are named with numbers. And the numbers are west and east of the US Capitol.
And the lettered streets go east west from the US Capitol.

But my dad went further to explain the first set of streets which went E-W were A - W, no J. The second set of streets E W as you got closer to MD were two syllable streets through the alphabet, then the closer you got to MD, the third set of streets were 3 syllable streets thru the alphabet. And then when you got almost to Silver Spring, the names were names of botanicals from A - R

Eastern and Western Aves are the boundaries E and W. North, South Capitol streets go N-S from the Capitol. There is an E Capitol St, bit no W Capitol St.

So you see you are at Rittenhouse and 16th NW, you have a long way to go to get downtown.


The diagonal streets are names of states. The first states are closer to downtown and the last states (e.g. Alaska and Hawaii) are much further out.

There are no A-B streets, Constitution is where those would be in NW. I'm sure I forgot or got wrong some things that people could fill in.

I love the logic of DC streets. When I was a kid in Detroit, I’d always get so very lost and think, “why can’t the streets just be in alphabetical and numerical order?” Good thing I moved to DC!

In New Orleans, French Quarter street names are some rich dude’s last name (Toulouse), followed by a saint (St. Peter), followed by another dead, rich dude (Orleans), then another saint (Ann). The rich mofos didn’t get along, so saints were inserted to keep the peace. Also, I recently heard on the radio that brass bands got big in New Orleans because right after the Civil War ended, the Union soldiers peaced out ASAP, leaving behind all of their marching bands instruments.

[Anonymous]

Why no j?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why no j?

I heard it had something to do with hatred of John Jay but that’s probably false. J probably looks too much like I, or something practical like that.

[Anonymous]

There are A Streets in NE and SE. there’s also a B Street I’m DC but it’s on JBAB.

[Anonymous]

Grew up in a smallish midwestern town. Didn’t know until I came here for college that Jewish was an ethnicity and that many Jews had a certain look. I thought all the Jews were Italians.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I just learned a few years ago, age 57 why women want pantyhose with control top. It is hard to find pantyhose without control top. I know really fat women can have huge bellies, but why do thinner women want control top too.

I'm a mom by adoption and it wasn't until I was told I didn't have enough belly to do an autologous (use your own tissue) to create a breast after my mastectomy. I am plenty of fat, but I have no extra fat on my belly. My fat is on my butt and outer thighs. All these other women were able to have a breast (or two) created out of their own belly tissue and I was really angry I could not. I started asking to see other women's bellies who were slim or average and suddenly they pull their active wear pants lower and a belly sticks out. This was over and over. I had no idea that so many women who are thin had a belly, maybe from childbirth.

But me, who is about 30 lbs over weight did not have enough tissue in my belly for even one breast. That is the same choice for really skinny women. How did I get in this category and oh, now I see why women want control top pantyhose.

Humblebrag detected!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I was in grad school when someone had to explain what “take a dump” meant.

In high school, one guy said he’d meet us an hour later. Completely naive, I asked what could possibly be that necessary. At which point he choked out that he needed to use the bathroom. Everyone was snickering, and I obliviously asked why he couldn’t just take about three minutes and go. So, this poor guy was completely red and told one of the girls to explain while he fled. I’d never been constipated in my life, so taking 30 minutes to just sit and then needing to shower and relax after (figure out a year later that he was going to manually handle the issue, since we were all going dancing) was completely foreign.

What? He was going to do what? Maybe I’m today years old and learning something new

Wait I am needing an answer to this, moderately desperately.

Was he masturbating? Wtf would you do 'manually' for constipation? I'm also today (+ 5 days with NO RESPONSE) years old before I learned this apparently

Yes how do you manually handle using the bathroom? As a man? I know what you can do as a woman. (Reach into your vagina and press against back wall to prompt poo out — gross but it can be done).

For a man? What?

Digital stimulation.

I guess I am dense, because I am still not following. Someone, please, help me out. I’m usually good at this stuff. I’m not the PP that has been waiting for an answer for 5 days, but I feel her pain. What the hell is the OP talking about?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I was in grad school when someone had to explain what “take a dump” meant.

In high school, one guy said he’d meet us an hour later. Completely naive, I asked what could possibly be that necessary. At which point he choked out that he needed to use the bathroom. Everyone was snickering, and I obliviously asked why he couldn’t just take about three minutes and go. So, this poor guy was completely red and told one of the girls to explain while he fled. I’d never been constipated in my life, so taking 30 minutes to just sit and then needing to shower and relax after (figure out a year later that he was going to manually handle the issue, since we were all going dancing) was completely foreign.

What? He was going to do what? Maybe I’m today years old and learning something new

Wait I am needing an answer to this, moderately desperately.

Was he masturbating? Wtf would you do 'manually' for constipation? I'm also today (+ 5 days with NO RESPONSE) years old before I learned this apparently

Yes how do you manually handle using the bathroom? As a man? I know what you can do as a woman. (Reach into your vagina and press against back wall to prompt poo out — gross but it can be done).

For a man? What?

Digital stimulation.

I guess I am dense, because I am still not following. Someone, please, help me out. I’m usually good at this stuff. I’m not the PP that has been waiting for an answer for 5 days, but I feel her pain. What the hell is the OP talking about?

Stick your fingers up your butt and loosen the poo so it comes out.

[Anonymous]

That when a car is backing up, white reverse lights come on. I honestly never knew this until my husband pointed out a car about to come out of a parking spot in a crowded parking lot. I couldn’t understand how he knew they were about to pull out, and he explained the white reverse lights.

Also that 4-way stops operate in a clockwise fashion. And how to properly use a passing lane.

Wow this all makes me sound like a horrible driver! But I swear I’m not— no accidents since high school.

[Anonymous]

That when pushing a shopping cart at a grocery store, it’s common courtesy to pause and look both ways before coming emerging from the aisle.

That DSW stands for Designer Shoe Warehouse.

[Anonymous]

That tadpoles are baby frogs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For a word game competition in college i pronounced Sobriquet as so- bri - que - T.

Everyone laughed at me . Worse when it was their turn to speak, they delibertely purposely mispronounced all the words they were using i.e. K - nife, buffe-T, etc. The audience, the comp and all the participants were in stiches!

I still die a thousand deaths when i think of this.

On a related note (there is a theme here), I pronounced hyperbole as hyper-bowl. My BF at the time asked if it was a larger version of the superbowl. Cringe!

You are not the one who should be embarrassed by this.

Agreed

[Anonymous]

I used to think it is a common knowledge that the person with stroller has a priority
for the use of an elevator even if they came last to the lane. It is because the
stroller can not take escalators or stairs, just as a handicap person with a wheelchair,
anyone with wheels has the first priority.
I learned late that people insist on getting into the elevator regardless
of seeing parents with strollers. This is not just courtesy, it is a law.