Epiphany... Say, What?!

[Ron]

Disclaimer: I got this idea from an article that Buzzfeed wrote. 

 

Over the course of our lives it's possible to learn something that's seemingly common knowledge to a lot of other people. Nevertheless, when we learn these "new" facts we are often gobsmacked by them. How is it possible that we were not in the loop of things already?!

 

Feel free to share some of the common, mundane and dare I add useful 'new to you' things that bowled you over when you learned them.

[Ron]

One from me:

 

Scene: In a rental car with my brother. We need gas.

 

Me: Would you get out and check to see which side the gas caps on?

 

Him: Look at the fuel gauge.

 

Me:

 

Him: There's a little arrow on the fuel gauge that tells you which side you fill on.

 

Me: Ree - - - ally?!

[TetRefine]

I learned a couple months ago that there are different kinds of numbered plastics, and only certain ones are recyclable. I thought they were all recyclable, and had no ideas there were different numbers for different kinds.

[Former Member]

Five years ago, I was moving into an apartment after a little more than two years of homelessness. My ex is good at negotiating and shopping (my brother is a master shopper, but he works and my ex is on Disability). I was shocked to find out that you can negotiate prices at mattress stores! I knew that you were supposed to do it at car dealerships, but no one had ever said anything about mattress stores!  ;–)

[Former Member]

When I was homeless, I found out that both McDonald’s and Burger King offer Senior Discounts on a small coffee – BK also offers it on a small soda! (Note: your mileage may vary since the majority of fast food locations are franchises that are not directly controlled by the franchiser. However, the two restaurants I frequented are located in an area with a very high homeless population who try to ‘bend’ every possible rule. On the other hand, most employees are young and have no incentive to challenge you about your age if you even remotely appear to be old.)  ;–)

[Ron]

3 hours ago, droughtquake said:

When I was homeless, I found out that both McDonald’s and Burger King offer Senior Discounts on a small coffee – BK also offers it on a small soda! (Note: your mileage may vary since the majority of fast food locations are franchises that are not directly controlled by the franchiser. However, the two restaurants I frequented are located in an area with a very high homeless population who try to ‘bend’ every possible rule. On the other hand, most employees are young and have no incentive to challenge you about your age if you even remotely appear to be old.)  ;–)

This is less of an epiphany or something that is widely known but profoundly new to you but more about abusing a privilege, I fear.

[Former Member]

2 minutes ago, Ron said:

This is less of an epiphany or something that is widely known but profoundly new to you but more about abusing a privilege, I fear.

They never specified at what age the Senior Discount starts. Some discounts begin at 50 or 55. Unlike some of the others, I never actually stole soda by digging a cup out of the trash! I spent money buying other items too, so I do not feel guilty.

[Thorn Wilde]

On 10/18/2018 at 6:12 AM, droughtquake said:

They never specified at what age the Senior Discount starts. Some discounts begin at 50 or 55. Unlike some of the others, I never actually stole soda by digging a cup out of the trash! I spent money buying other items too, so I do not feel guilty.

 

Nor should you. Honestly, I think every restaurant should have a homeless discount. I love it when I hear about places that have a  "homeless eat for free" thing, or bakeries who pass out the leftover baked goods at the end of the day to people who are hungry.

[Former Member]

1 hour ago, Thorn Wilde said:

Nor should you. Honestly, I think every restaurant should have a homeless discount. I love it when I hear about places that have a  "homeless eat for free" thing, or bakeries who pass out the leftover baked goods at the end of the day to people who are hungry.

There is a group that operates in my area that has arrangements with numerous stores to pick up expired and expiring food. They distribute that food to non-profits that serve the homeless and other low income people. The agency I used to get my psych therapy from was one of their delivery points. I was one of the clients that was welcomed to assist unloading the truck. There were often interesting and tasty things available, but sometimes the food was spoiled or opened (which we tossed out).  ;–)

 

There are groups in the San Francisco Bay Area that pick up excess food at restaurants and take it to agencies that serve food to homeless people. (The waste disposal company that serves San Francisco also picks up green scraps from restaurants to make compost. They sell the highly desirable compost to farms and wineries. It diverts the green waste from landfills.)  ;–)

[Headstall]

On 10/17/2018 at 5:43 PM, Ron said:

One from me:

 

Scene: In a rental car with my brother. We need gas.

 

Me: Would you get out and check to see which side the gas caps on?

 

Him: Look at the fuel gauge.

 

Me:

 

Him: There's a little arrow on the fuel gauge that tells you which side you fill on.

 

Me: Ree - - - ally?!

I can relate. I bought a new car a year ago, and I was really disappointed when I realized my 'top of the line' radio didn't tell me the name of the song playing, or the artist. It was a little thing, but it made me want to return the car.   Another thing I wasn't impressed with was the quality of my back up cam. It looked blurry, but then I just thought, meh, they're probably all like that... until I saw my son's back up cam in his new Jeep. Argghhh. I was pissed. Seriously pissed. It bothered me for a good while, and then one day I thought maybe I needed to wipe it. Yup. That's when I found out it has a protective plastic film over it that is meant to be removed. OMG. Now I could film a movie with it. It was... kind of embarrassing when I told my kids, but they got a good laugh out of it. 

 

So, back to my radio. I drove my son to pick up his car after servicing, and I waited outside until I was sure it was ready. I started fiddling with my fancy screen on my dash... I'd done that before... but this time I noticed a 'station information' line... I hadn't realized the screen I was on scrolled down... and yup... presto... my radio turned into the perfect radio, and now I know who the hell is singing... after one year of driving my new car.    

 

Epiphanies? Okay... not by others' standards, but big ones for me. I am an old dinosaur in a new world.  

Edited October 21, 2018 by Headstall

[Former Member]

4 minutes ago, Headstall said:

Another thing I wasn't impressed with was the quality of my back up cam. It looked blurry, but then I just thought, meh, they're probably all like that... until I saw my son's back up cam in his new Jeep. Argghhh. I was pissed. Seriously pissed. It bothered me for a good while, and then one day I thought maybe I needed to wipe it. Yup. That's when I found out it has a protective plastic film over it that is meant to be removed. OMG. Now I could film a movie with it. It was... kind of embarrassing when I told my kids, but they got a good laugh out of it. 

You’re not supposed to have to deal with stuff like that! Whoever prepped your new car before you picked it up really screwed up! They’re supposed to take care of things like that! But I’m sure they found the time to put their license plate frame and cardboard ‘license’ ad on your car!  ;–)

[Cia]

Going back to the car thing where you see which side to fill is on is on the dash, the little green exit number on the top left or right on the freeway exit signs tell you which side the exit is on. 

 

For all those who fumble around and close tabs on accident like me, before you do anything else, remember: Control, Shift, T     In a bunch of browsers/devices it'll reopen closed tabs.

[Arpeggio]

I don't know if it counts, but I realized centaurs have two sets of ribcages while reading Harry Potter....