25 People Share Obvious Things They Learned Awkwardly Late

Discovering you were wrong about something most everyone else around you has long known to be true is one of those moments. At that moment we learn that maybe all this time we haven’t been presenting the image of being smart or worldly as we thought. For most people, this can be quite embarrassing, especially if these discoveries are made in the presence of peers.

Reddit user LightningCole asked members of the online community to share some of the things that they learned embarrassingly late. With over 18.6k comments in the thread, we can comfortably say that it’s one of those universal secrets that nearly everyone can relate to. What’s obvious to you might not be obvious to others.

Knowledge blind spots are something that we’ll always have to some extent. These however show its a positive side. However, We should do our best to improve ourselves constantly.

#1. My First time Flying

When I was 20, I was presented with a really wonderful promotion that also required me to fly out of state for a week of training. I was super excited about the whole thing… until I remembered a friend complaining about struggling to acquire a passport. Without giving it a second thought, I promptly declined the promotion which really stumped my superiors. This is how it went down:

Me: Unfortunately, I don’t have a passport.

Manager: Boringberry… you’ve never flown before, have you?

Me: No. I have not.

Manager: You don’t need a passport to fly within the country.

And then it hit me- my friend was going to Mexico. I was just going to a neighboring state. When it finally hit me, my superiors all bursted into laughter.

#2. What You Don’t Learn In History Class

Hawaii was an independent country before the U.S annexed it. Hawaii was a country before the U.S. annexed it.

#3. Truffles Are A Mushroom As Well As A Chocolate.

When people talked about sending pigs in the forest to hunt for truffles I thought they’d buried chocolates in there to teach pigs how to dig food up. I didn’t know they’re hunting for mushrooms.

#4. Pickles are pickled cucumbers.

Took me over 30 years to figure that one out. What a bummer.

#5. The Phrase ‘Mix By Hand’

I thought the phrase ‘mix by hand’ meant to literally shove your hands in the batter and mix, instead of using a spoon or a mixer. My mother found me wrist-deep in brownie batter and enlightened me.

#6. Washington DC

That Washington D.C wasn’t in the state of Washington.

#7. About Houston

That Houston is not the name of the guy astronauts talk to.

#8 Limes and Lemons

That Limes weren’t unripe lemons

#9. Fat Rottweiler Dogs

Rottweilers are not just fat Dobermans

#10. Yogi Berra, Bear…

I have a cousin who quotes Yogi Berra on a fairly regular basis, and it wasn’t until last Thanksgiving that I realized he’s a real person, and that my cousin hasn’t been admiring the words of Yogi Bear all this time.

#11. Just Another Fish In The Sea

That the world owes you nothing.

I grew up thinking that my life was special and that I was destined for greatness but I’m now just another fish in the sea

You can be a good person and that’s fine but it won’t mean you’re guaranteed a nice life. people can use you if you’re too nice to them

12. About Pointy “Cream” Tube Caps

On some of these (antiseptic, lotion) “cream” tubes, you’ve probably noticed that the lid is circular but its centre has a sharp pointy end?.

Typically, these types of creams have a seal and I used to remove the lid and break the seal by finding anything sharp and pointy nearby. It took me 23 years to realise that the pointy end in the centre of the lid has a purpose…

#13. K9 Dog Unit

That K9 stands for “canine”… Like K9 unit in police is dog unit.

#14. Physical Exams

In physical examinations, doctors hits the knees to check for leg reflexes. I honestly thought you were supposed to kick your leg up high, (Everytime you felt the soft tap).

It wasn’t until I was 23 and moved to another country and had to do a physical that the doctor was like, what do you think you’re doing?

#15. Glass, A Fire Hazard

Glass objects should not be put on the stove. Guess how I learned that.

#16. Guarella Warfare

If you’ve watched the movie battle for the planet of Apes maybe guerilla warfare might mean humans in a war against gorilla’s. Well, it’s not.

#17. Social Boundaries.

Not every woman who’s nice to you is interested in you romantically. Some are just being nice and friendly. If only someone made that clearer when I was younger, would’ve saved me a lot of embarrassment moments in high school and early college.

#18. Dad Wasn’t Right Afterall.

When I was little my Dad told me the big cooling towers that are often found beside electricity generating plants were in fact cloud machines and the prime minister of the day had a switch on his desk to turn the big machine on when it got too hot and I believed it all.

Fast forward to when I was around 11 years ago, the teacher asks if anyone knows why some days are dry and some days it rains, some having blue skies and others cloudy.

At the mention of clouds I knew immediately where clouds come from and stuck my hand up to tell everyone about the prime minister and the cloud machines.

Luckily the teacher picked someone else for the answer and I was most confused to hear someone go on about evaporation and rainfall.

#19. Learning A Bicycle

I learnt how to ride a bicycle at the ripe age of 18. I skipped the three-wheeler stage because my parents believed in an astrologer who told them that I would have a terrible accident when I drive or ride. later on I secretly learnt how to cycle with the help of a friend.

#20. Ponies Are Not Baby Horses.

I only recently found out that ponies are not baby horses, but full-sized ponies.

#21. Orgasm, Organism Definitely Not The Same Thing.

#22. Bufallo Birds

I thought buffalos were birds, and buffalo wings were from said birds.

#23. Meaty Organs

My husband didn’t know that meat is the animals muscles. He thought every animal had a bodypart named “meat”.

He had a bit of an emotional crisis when I told him. He is actually a very intelligent man, but this fact had eluded him as his mother avoided upsetting him as a child.

#24. Do Not Pass

I thought the ‘do not pass’ road sign literally meant ‘do not die here.’ I had to ask my grandpa what would happen if someone got into a car accident and died there.

#25. Truth About Growing Old

When I was in 4th grade i was in love with Chris brown. He was 16. I told my mom when i was 16 we would start dating…. she proceeded to inform me that when I was 16 he would no longer be 16. That’s when I realized everyone was also getting older, not just me