# Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/c/miscellaneous-and-personal-stuff-i-must-share/10.md?page=1289 [Latest](https://boards.straightdope.com/latest.md) · [Categories](https://boards.straightdope.com/categories.md) · [Tags](https://boards.straightdope.com/tags.md) **Page:** 1290 --- ## [Is the term "nigga" commonly used by 20-something white American males?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-term-nigga-commonly-used-by-20-something-white-american-males/584982)
**Author:** [@An\_Gadai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Gadai)\ **Replies:** 13\ **Last updated:** [June 11, 2011, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-term-nigga-commonly-used-by-20-something-white-american-males/584982 "2011-06-11T01:38:14Z")
I’ve encountered it a few times and I’ve been told (by them) that it’s not racist. So is it a common thing, any reason why they say it? --- ## [Is it normal for a dog to chew ice?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-normal-for-a-dog-to-chew-ice/584707)
**Author:** [@Baker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baker)\ **Replies:** 27\ **Last updated:** [June 11, 2011, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-normal-for-a-dog-to-chew-ice/584707 "2011-06-11T00:28:08Z")
I have a dachshund named Nathan('cause he’s such a good hotdog) I got him from the animal shelter, and based on their estimate he is by now a little over a year old. Lately he has developed a taste for chewing on ice. … --- ## [What does this do? Useless unused features on things that you own.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-this-do-useless-unused-features-on-things-that-you-own/583744)
**Author:** [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Replies:** 169\ **Last updated:** [June 10, 2011, 10:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-this-do-useless-unused-features-on-things-that-you-own/583744 "2011-06-10T22:45:29Z")
Driving home tonight I was looking for the button for the rear window demister and my eye fell upon the dashboard light dimmer button. What a waste of effort that is. I have never brightened or darkened the instrument di… --- ## [What ever happened to that guy....?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-ever-happened-to-that-guy/584225)
**Author:** [@guizot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/guizot)\ **Replies:** 61\ **Last updated:** [June 10, 2011, 10:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-ever-happened-to-that-guy/584225 "2011-06-10T22:44:42Z")
That guy that everyone was talking about a while back? You know the guy I’m talking about, right? He did something, I think, or he said something? What ever happened to him? --- ## [What are some stranger jobs that you've heard about?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-stranger-jobs-that-youve-heard-about/584533)
**Author:** [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Replies:** 31\ **Last updated:** [June 10, 2011, 10:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-some-stranger-jobs-that-youve-heard-about/584533 "2011-06-10T22:42:45Z")
What are some strange or inventive ways that you, or someone you know, have made a living? One of the oddest that I know is what the sister of a friend does. She drives a cab – for the Amish. Apparently the Amish are n… --- ## [Innovative school for pregnant teens at risk of being closed](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/innovative-school-for-pregnant-teens-at-risk-of-being-closed/581000)
**Author:** [@lavenderviolet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lavenderviolet)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [June 10, 2011, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/innovative-school-for-pregnant-teens-at-risk-of-being-closed/581000 "2011-06-10T22:02:13Z")
Recently found out about this from a pro-contraception pro-life blog I follow: Help pregnant and parenting students in Detroit keep their school I would like to think that most of us, whether pro-life or pro-choice, can… --- ## [What an incredibly shitty week this is](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-an-incredibly-shitty-week-this-is/584769)
**Author:** [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Replies:** 17\ **Last updated:** [June 10, 2011, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-an-incredibly-shitty-week-this-is/584769 "2011-06-10T20:49:19Z")
Fair warning: this is going to all be whining about stuff in my personal life that no one else will care about. If you don’t like that sort of thing, don’t bother with this thread. I’m having one of those weeks where t… --- ## [Tell me about great lengths you've gone to to avoid irritating people](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-great-lengths-youve-gone-to-to-avoid-irritating-people/584139)
**Author:** [@MeanOldLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MeanOldLady)\ **Replies:** 92\ **Last updated:** [June 10, 2011, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-about-great-lengths-youve-gone-to-to-avoid-irritating-people/584139 "2011-06-10T19:00:06Z")
The “Please Make Me Feel Less Ridiculous” thread. I want to hear stories far more outlandish than mine. I want to hear about people changing planes in Denver unnecessarily, quitting their jobs, moving to another state, … --- ## [Obligatory kitten pictures](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obligatory-kitten-pictures/584677)
**Author:** [@BlackKnight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BlackKnight)\ **Replies:** 41\ **Last updated:** [June 10, 2011, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obligatory-kitten-pictures/584677 "2011-06-10T16:57:22Z")
I have recently acquired a kitten. Pursuant to Internet Law 404.1-C (“All obtainers of kittehs shall, within 30 days of acquisition, post pictures on the Internets of said kittehs …”), I hereby post pictures of my new k… --- ## [Write Sarah Palin's Next History Lecture](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/write-sarah-palins-next-history-lecture/584318)
**Author:** [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Replies:** 70\ **Last updated:** [June 10, 2011, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/write-sarah-palins-next-history-lecture/584318 "2011-06-10T16:16:31Z")
For anybody unaware, Sarah Palin is on Scooby van tour of the U.S. and delivering interesting revisions and analyses of American history. About Mt. Vernon after a 45 minute tour: “The presence” here meaning the marble… --- ## [The world would be a better place...](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-world-would-be-a-better-place/584973)
**Author:** [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Replies:** 2\ **Last updated:** [June 10, 2011, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-world-would-be-a-better-place/584973 "2011-06-10T15:48:13Z")
… if Morgan Freeman was actually God. Discuss. --- ## [Grizzly accident scene in Canada](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/grizzly-accident-scene-in-canada/584868)
**Author:** [@It\_s\_Not\_Rocket\_Surgery](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/It_s_Not_Rocket_Surgery)\ **Replies:** 13\ **Last updated:** [June 10, 2011, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/grizzly-accident-scene-in-canada/584868 "2011-06-10T14:29:57Z")
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20110608/wl\_canada\_nm/canada\_us\_bear As Smokey The Bear says, only you can prevent forest flyers. --- ## [Red Arrows during the Manx TT 2011.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/red-arrows-during-the-manx-tt-2011/584925)
**Author:** [@Lobsang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobsang)\ **Replies:** 1\ **Last updated:** [June 10, 2011, 12:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/red-arrows-during-the-manx-tt-2011/584925 "2011-06-10T12:58:24Z")
These aren’t great but I felt like sharing anyway… Video - Red Arrows - Isle Of Man TT 2011 - YouTube Photos - notails.com - photography - Isle of Man The gallery has only just (a few hours ago) been ‘made live’ with … --- ## [My son was jumped by a couple of punks at school today](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-son-was-jumped-by-a-couple-of-punks-at-school-today/583530)
**Author:** [@The\_Hamster\_King](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Hamster_King)\ **Replies:** 159\ **Last updated:** [June 10, 2011, 2:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-son-was-jumped-by-a-couple-of-punks-at-school-today/583530 "2011-06-10T02:20:25Z")
I got a call from the middle school security officer around 1:30 today. My son was in the nurse’s office with minor injuries and they had two kids in custody who had attacked him on the yard. “Do you want to press char… --- ## [What is the point of punitive exams](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-point-of-punitive-exams/584789)
**Author:** [@madrabbitwoman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madrabbitwoman)\ **Replies:** 26\ **Last updated:** [June 10, 2011, 1:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-point-of-punitive-exams/584789 "2011-06-10T01:31:31Z")
I awoke far too early this morning and as a result spent quite a bit of time lying in bed thinking of random stuff. One of those random thoughts was about my time in university and about one of the nastier types of exa… --- ## [Gah! GAAAAAH! (the biggest ant I've ever seen)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gah-gaaaaah-the-biggest-ant-ive-ever-seen/584576)
**Author:** [@GameHat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GameHat)\ **Replies:** 27\ **Last updated:** [June 10, 2011, 12:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gah-gaaaaah-the-biggest-ant-ive-ever-seen/584576 "2011-06-10T00:59:06Z")
I admit it, I have a phobia of bugs. Insects, spiders, whatever. Anything small with more than two legs that crawls, creeps, flies or stings. I have an irrational panic and disgust response when I see (or worse, feel)… --- ## [Traffic light is out and drivers act like a 4-way stop!](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/traffic-light-is-out-and-drivers-act-like-a-4-way-stop/584745)
**Author:** [@boozilu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/boozilu)\ **Replies:** 21\ **Last updated:** [June 10, 2011, 12:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/traffic-light-is-out-and-drivers-act-like-a-4-way-stop/584745 "2011-06-10T00:54:20Z")
During rush hour this morning, I had to go through a traffic light which was out. The drivers correctly treated the intersection like a 4-way stop and acted accordingly. No accidents and no drama – just an orderly proc… --- ## [The idiocy of the BATFE](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-idiocy-of-the-batfe/584779)
**Author:** [@MacTech](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MacTech)\ **Replies:** 18\ **Last updated:** [June 9, 2011, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-idiocy-of-the-batfe/584779 "2011-06-09T21:26:09Z")
The idiocy of the BATFE; (BATFE=Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives) (BATFE should be a convenience store, not a governmental agency :wink: ) I recently picked up a Yugoslavian made mil-surp. SKS rifl… --- ## [Look, wife, I don't care what you THINK you saw...](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/look-wife-i-dont-care-what-you-think-you-saw/584682)
**Author:** [@Yorikke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yorikke)\ **Replies:** 32\ **Last updated:** [June 9, 2011, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/look-wife-i-dont-care-what-you-think-you-saw/584682 "2011-06-09T19:32:36Z")
I wasn’t drinking directly out of the Mrs. Butterworth’s bottle, and you can’t prove it. Joe --- ## [Advice on dating issue.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/advice-on-dating-issue/584758)
**Author:** [@CatherineZeta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CatherineZeta)\ **Replies:** 27\ **Last updated:** [June 9, 2011, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/advice-on-dating-issue/584758 "2011-06-09T18:58:14Z")
This is a somewhat long story…my apologies. This guy who’s a friend of a friend asked me out back in April. We went on a first date…everything was fine…we decided to do it again, then he cancelled saying he had a lot of… --- ## [I finally told my oldest daughter I'm an atheist. Now she's upset and crying.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-finally-told-my-oldest-daughter-im-an-atheist-now-shes-upset-and-crying/583254)
**Author:** [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Replies:** 226\ **Last updated:** [June 9, 2011, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-finally-told-my-oldest-daughter-im-an-atheist-now-shes-upset-and-crying/583254 "2011-06-09T17:22:21Z")
I was talking to my oldest daughter about the Catholic school she goes to, and about religion in general. She was asking me about my childhood in which I was raised in both Catholic and Southern Baptist traditions (Catho… --- ## [Is this joke funny?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-joke-funny/584648)
**Author:** [@Lukeinva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lukeinva)\ **Replies:** 81\ **Last updated:** [June 9, 2011, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-joke-funny/584648 "2011-06-09T17:14:42Z")
Q: Why did the Siamese twins move to Europe? A: So the other one could drive. Edit: Maybe it should be England. . . --- ## [Heaven and hell found!](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/heaven-and-hell-found/583572)
**Author:** [@Hari\_Seldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hari_Seldon)\ **Replies:** 20\ **Last updated:** [June 9, 2011, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/heaven-and-hell-found/583572 "2011-06-09T16:18:07Z")
I was sitting with my wife last night waiting for a concert to begin. I started telling her about this thread: I finally told my oldest daughter I'm an atheist. Now she's upset and crying. - Miscellaneous and Personal S… --- ## [Dick with a time machine in an alternate timeline.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dick-with-a-time-machine-in-an-alternate-timeline/584770)
**Author:** [@davidm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davidm)\ **Replies:** 7\ **Last updated:** [June 9, 2011, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dick-with-a-time-machine-in-an-alternate-timeline/584770 "2011-06-09T15:17:57Z")
I’m posting this as a sort of counterpoint to this thread: You're a Dick With a Time Machine-what do you do? - Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share - Straight Dope Message Board Imagine that we’re in an alterna… --- ## [Bed bugs!!!](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bed-bugs/504427)
**Author:** [@Don\_Draper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Don_Draper)\ **Replies:** 13\ **Last updated:** [June 9, 2011, 1:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bed-bugs/504427 "2011-06-09T13:29:37Z")
The people in the apartment above mine told me yesterday that they have bedbugs. Later, I talked to another woman who lives in my building, and she says she already had an infestation of bugs six months ago and got an e… --- ## [Man Cited for Paying Bill with 2,500 pennies](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/man-cited-for-paying-bill-with-2-500-pennies/584471)
**Author:** [@UltraVires](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UltraVires)\ **Replies:** 79\ **Last updated:** [June 9, 2011, 1:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/man-cited-for-paying-bill-with-2-500-pennies/584471 "2011-06-09T13:10:19Z")
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110605/ap\_on\_fe\_st/us\_odd\_paying\_with\_pennies;\_ylt=AodH\_6.zY8DjVVo2wQG4fANH2ocA;\_ylu=X3oDMTNkYzJlZnRsBGFzc2V0A2FwLzIwMTEwNjA1L3VzX29kZF9wYXlpbmdfd2l0aF9wZW5uaWVzBGNjb2RlA29mZnB6ZjMwcARjcG9zAz… --- ## [You're in a desert, walking along in the sand, when all of a sudden you look down...](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-in-a-desert-walking-along-in-the-sand-when-all-of-a-sudden-you-look-down/584246)
**Author:** [@samjones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samjones)\ **Replies:** 84\ **Last updated:** [June 9, 2011, 12:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youre-in-a-desert-walking-along-in-the-sand-when-all-of-a-sudden-you-look-down/584246 "2011-06-09T12:49:12Z")
…and see a tortoise It’s crawling toward you. You reach down and you flip the tortoise over on its back. The tortoise lays on its back, its belly baking in the hot sun, beating its legs trying to turn itself over, but … --- ## [Shocking animal welfare in Halal meat trade.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shocking-animal-welfare-in-halal-meat-trade/583769)
**Author:** [@Incref](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Incref)\ **Replies:** 21\ **Last updated:** [June 9, 2011, 5:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shocking-animal-welfare-in-halal-meat-trade/583769 "2011-06-09T05:45:42Z")
Not sure at all if this is the right place to put this, but I just finished watching this Four Corners (Australian investigative program) report on live animal exports to Indonesia and wanted to share it. Please be awar… --- ## [Garage Sale Strikeout](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/garage-sale-strikeout/584313)
**Author:** [@Unintentionally\_Blank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Unintentionally_Blank)\ **Replies:** 19\ **Last updated:** [June 9, 2011, 3:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/garage-sale-strikeout/584313 "2011-06-09T03:13:16Z")
So the neighborhood garage sale is today. We put some stuff out. Some furniture, some toddler’s age fisher price stuff. Nada. Not a single taker. We had, maybe, 5 cars drive by. I’m wondering what would cause such an a… --- ## [My father passes](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-father-passes/577929)
**Author:** [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Replies:** 60\ **Last updated:** [June 9, 2011, 3:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-father-passes/577929 "2011-06-09T03:02:37Z")
My father passed away early Saturday morning. He was 85, a Navy veteran, father of three, always neat and tidy and organized. Dad was born in the Toronto area of parents who came over from England. He joined the Navy at… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/miscellaneous-and-personal-stuff-i-must-share/10.md?page=1288) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/c/miscellaneous-and-personal-stuff-i-must-share/10.md?page=1290)