# Strangest thing you discovered when you moved in your place? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [July 14, 2016, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strangest-thing-you-discovered-when-you-moved-in-your-place/759932 "2016-07-14T22:32:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 7
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2016, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strangest-thing-you-discovered-when-you-moved-in-your-place/759932/121 "2016-07-26T17:31:03Z")
My MIL moved into a condo she had just bought. My wife and I arranged to get it painted for her. The painters removed fixtures to paint, and when they took out the toilet paper roll holder there was a handgun hidden behind in the wall. ---
**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2016, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strangest-thing-you-discovered-when-you-moved-in-your-place/759932/122 "2016-07-26T17:38:17Z")
> [@CookingWithGas](#): > > My MIL moved into a condo she had just bought. My wife and I arranged to get it painted for her. The painters removed fixtures to paint, and when they took out the toilet paper roll holder there was a handgun hidden behind in the wall. Obviously the prior owner wasn’t going to take shit from anyone. Or… wait… ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2016, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strangest-thing-you-discovered-when-you-moved-in-your-place/759932/123 "2016-07-26T17:48:19Z")
> [@CookingWithGas](#): > > when they took out the toilet paper roll holder there was a handgun hidden behind in the wall. I’ll see if there is enough ro… Ahem. Thanks. ---
**Author:** ![cg16](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a698b9/32.png) [@cg16](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cg16)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2016, 12:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strangest-thing-you-discovered-when-you-moved-in-your-place/759932/124 "2016-07-27T00:01:11Z")
white kitchen floor:smack: ---
**Author:** ![cwthree](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9de0a6/32.png) [@cwthree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cwthree)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2016, 5:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strangest-thing-you-discovered-when-you-moved-in-your-place/759932/125 "2016-07-27T05:42:45Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > Did you throw it out or use it? (There’s no other option, right?) > > How you answer tells so much about you. In a good way. Tossed it all. My car didn’t use diesel (bio or otherwise) and the Fry Daddy itself was just disgusting. ---
**Author:** ![MissTake](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/misstake/32/3189_2.png) [@MissTake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MissTake)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2016, 12:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strangest-thing-you-discovered-when-you-moved-in-your-place/759932/126 "2016-07-27T12:25:32Z")
Many years ago, my sister and (then) brother-in-law bought a very old home in North Minneapolis. After they moved in, they found a small false ceiling in one of the bedroom closets, which led to the massive attic. The previous owners left everything in the attic. There were new-in-box GI Joe dolls from the 60’s, a decades worth of Architectural Digest magazine, a slew of Tonka trucks, Legos, a full china set. The weirdest things were the dresses. Not current dresses. Boxed from companies our mom remembered from the 40-50’s, long out of business. There were at least a dozen dresses, from simple day dresses to full crinoline fancy gowns. The previous owners of the house were a young couple, neither who would have been around when the dresses would’ve been worn. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2016, 1:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strangest-thing-you-discovered-when-you-moved-in-your-place/759932/127 "2016-07-27T13:29:58Z")
> [@cg16](#): > > white kitchen floor:smack: Nothing particularly wrong with that unless it was carpet. And if it was carpet, it was wrong in any color. ---
**Author:** ![Kimballkid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b5a626/32.png) [@Kimballkid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimballkid)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2016, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strangest-thing-you-discovered-when-you-moved-in-your-place/759932/128 "2016-07-27T16:45:20Z")
Before I bought the house I’m in now, I rented a house that had carpet in the kitchen and bathroom. I was told that older people do that so their feet don’t get cold. I ended up putting some plastic down in the kitchen so the carpet wouldn’t get stained from spillage. ---
**Author:** ![Chimera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Chimera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chimera)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2016, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strangest-thing-you-discovered-when-you-moved-in-your-place/759932/129 "2016-07-27T16:54:29Z")
One of the coolest things, which I still have to this day (moved into that house in '91), is a large spool of very thin string (like [this](http://www.laurelleaffarm.com/item-photos/vintage-string-collection-rustic-old-wood-spool-of-cord-thread-cotton-twine-etc-Laurel-Leaf-Farm-item-no-z321130-2.jpg)). Probably from an industrial bag sewer or something like that. Too thin to use for kites or tying up plants, so I don’t get a lot of use out of it, but very cool the one time a friend asked if I had any string and I plunked that thing down in front of him. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2016, 1:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strangest-thing-you-discovered-when-you-moved-in-your-place/759932/130 "2016-07-28T01:23:37Z")
> [@cg16](#): > > white kitchen floor:smack: > [@Nava](#): > > Nothing particularly wrong with that unless it was carpet. And if it was carpet, it was wrong in any color. > [@Kimballkid](#): > > Before I bought the house I’m in now, I rented a house that had carpet in the kitchen and bathroom. I was told that older people do that so their feet don’t get cold. I ended up putting some plastic down in the kitchen so the carpet wouldn’t get stained from spillage. The kitchen and bathrooms in the house I grew up in were carpeted. I would not recommend it. ---
**Author:** ![cg16](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a698b9/32.png) [@cg16](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cg16)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2016, 1:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strangest-thing-you-discovered-when-you-moved-in-your-place/759932/131 "2016-07-28T01:25:55Z")
> [@Siam\_Sam](#): > > The kitchen and bathrooms in the house I grew up in were carpeted. I would not recommend it. well I was pleased to see a brown hardwood in the kitchen of the apt I recently moved into:) ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2016, 10:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strangest-thing-you-discovered-when-you-moved-in-your-place/759932/132 "2016-07-28T10:17:55Z")
> [@Chimera](#): > > One of the coolest things, which I still have to this day (moved into that house in '91), is a large spool of very thin string (like [this](http://www.laurelleaffarm.com/item-photos/vintage-string-collection-rustic-old-wood-spool-of-cord-thread-cotton-twine-etc-Laurel-Leaf-Farm-item-no-z321130-2.jpg)). Probably from an industrial bag sewer or something like that. Never really understood string theory before. Thanks! ---
**Author:** ![SmellMyWort](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ea5d25/32.png) [@SmellMyWort](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmellMyWort)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2016, 3:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strangest-thing-you-discovered-when-you-moved-in-your-place/759932/133 "2016-07-28T15:35:14Z")
> [@MissTake](#): > > Many years ago, my sister and (then) brother-in-law bought a very old home in North Minneapolis. After they moved in, they found a small false ceiling in one of the bedroom closets, which led to the massive attic. > The previous owners left everything in the attic. There were new-in-box GI Joe dolls from the 60’s, a decades worth of Architectural Digest magazine, a slew of Tonka trucks, Legos, a full china set. > The weirdest things were the dresses. Not current dresses. Boxed from companies our mom remembered from the 40-50’s, long out of business. There were at least a dozen dresses, from simple day dresses to full crinoline fancy gowns. The previous owners of the house were a young couple, neither who would have been around when the dresses would’ve been worn. Sounds like stuff left long before the previous owners, who just never discovered the attic. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2016, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strangest-thing-you-discovered-when-you-moved-in-your-place/759932/134 "2016-07-28T18:57:52Z")
The little old lady who owned our house before us was a borderline hoarder. She was supposed to entirely clean out the house before we took possession, but didn’t. Among other interesting things, we found a very small shrub growing up from the drain in a seldom-used shower, a jar of 15-year-old (according the label) soup in the fridge, and several nasty wigs. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2016, 6:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strangest-thing-you-discovered-when-you-moved-in-your-place/759932/135 "2016-09-16T06:10:35Z")
I just moved into an apartment in Waikiki and nothing earthshaking, but the previous tenant left behind a jar containing 43 pennies and a dime. ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2016, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strangest-thing-you-discovered-when-you-moved-in-your-place/759932/136 "2016-10-24T15:20:08Z")
Bump! We moved in to a new house this weekend and found [this](https://flic.kr/p/N5fkB5) in the attic. Please, contain your envy! ---
**Author:** ![Folly](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/folly/32/3219_2.png) [@Folly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Folly)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2016, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strangest-thing-you-discovered-when-you-moved-in-your-place/759932/137 "2016-10-24T15:29:43Z")
> [@Dung\_Beetle](#): > > Bump! We moved in to a new house this weekend and found [this](https://flic.kr/p/N5fkB5) in the attic. Please, contain your envy! I hope you told that guy he can’t live in your attic anymore! ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2016, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strangest-thing-you-discovered-when-you-moved-in-your-place/759932/138 "2016-10-24T18:36:02Z")
> [@Dung\_Beetle](#): > > Bump! We moved in to a new house this weekend and found [this](https://flic.kr/p/N5fkB5) in the attic. Please, contain your envy! Dinner for 8! ---
**Author:** ![Typo\_Negative](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/typo_negative/32/484_2.png) [@Typo\_Negative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo_Negative)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2016, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strangest-thing-you-discovered-when-you-moved-in-your-place/759932/139 "2016-10-24T19:20:59Z")
When the realtor showed us the rental house (2 days before we moved in), she drew our attention to a ‘panic’ button in the bedroom that the previous owner had installed. She pressed the button, which sounded an alarm, like an old school bell or fire alarm. It was really loud. Loud enough to disturb our new neighbors. One of them called the cops. And realtor couldn’t turn it off. She found a number for a security company…that had went out of business years before. It rang through the night till an electrician came out in the morning. ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2016, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strangest-thing-you-discovered-when-you-moved-in-your-place/759932/140 "2016-10-24T19:25:20Z")
> [@Folly](#): > > I hope you told that guy he can’t live in your attic anymore! 😃 Oh, _him_ I’m keeping. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strangest-thing-you-discovered-when-you-moved-in-your-place/759932.md?page=6) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/strangest-thing-you-discovered-when-you-moved-in-your-place/759932.md?page=8)