# Stuff you learned the hard way **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [November 12, 2010, 9:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stuff-you-learned-the-hard-way/560484 "2010-11-12T21:34:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2010, 4:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stuff-you-learned-the-hard-way/560484/41 "2010-11-15T16:42:11Z")
As you get older, joints, muscles, tendons, ligaments, etc. don’t function like they used to. I tried to swat a spider yesterday that was just out of my reach. I now have severe pain radiating outward from my shoulder and can’t lift my arm more than a few inches. Fuck. :mad:☹ ---
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2010, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stuff-you-learned-the-hard-way/560484/42 "2010-11-15T17:04:37Z")
People can be _stupid._ I forget, sometimes, just how very very stupid people can be. Including me. ---
**Author:** ![Lare](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/53a042/32.png) [@Lare](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lare)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2010, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stuff-you-learned-the-hard-way/560484/43 "2010-11-15T17:58:48Z")
Hot metal can look just like cold metal. ---
**Author:** ![MyFootsZZZ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/myfootszzz/32/12580_2.png) [@MyFootsZZZ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MyFootsZZZ)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2010, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stuff-you-learned-the-hard-way/560484/44 "2010-11-15T18:17:01Z")
> [@Gatopescado](#): > > Everything. Tell me about it. Still trying to figure out women. That “Free Hug” girl is a jerk in my opinion. If she knows her boyfriend’s the type to get jealous, why where a shirt like that? So some poor, unsuspecting guy takes her up on the offer only to get roughed up for something that’s advertised as being free. Her boyfriend’s a jackass too. I hate other men that get THAT possessive. I’m sure he got laid that night. ---
**Author:** ![tumbleddown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e9bcb4/32.png) [@tumbleddown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tumbleddown)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2010, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stuff-you-learned-the-hard-way/560484/45 "2010-11-15T19:15:47Z")
Being a radical comes with great costs. ---
**Author:** ![Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de053/32.png) [@Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackknifed_Juggernaut)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2010, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stuff-you-learned-the-hard-way/560484/46 "2010-11-15T20:01:20Z")
> [@MyFootsZZZ](#): > > Tell me about it. Still trying to figure out women. > > That “Free Hug” girl is a jerk in my opinion. If she knows her boyfriend’s the type to get jealous, why where a shirt like that? So some poor, unsuspecting guy takes her up on the offer only to get roughed up for something that’s advertised as being free. Her boyfriend’s a jackass too. I hate other men that get THAT possessive. I’m sure he got laid that night. The bartender told me that they had been there a while; i.e. they were drunk. Maybe he forgot what she had written on her shirt. I didn’t know she was with her boyfriend, or else I would not even have asked for the first one. I wouldn’t need to learn that one the hard way. I will also add that these “free hugs” shirts are pretty common now, and that I don’t typically take anyone up on the offer. But she was hot, so it was a good icebreaker. It almost ended up being a good teethbreaker! ---
**Author:** ![Trepa\_Mayfield](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/edb3f5/32.png) [@Trepa\_Mayfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trepa_Mayfield)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2010, 8:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stuff-you-learned-the-hard-way/560484/47 "2010-11-15T20:03:11Z")
> [@LouisB](#): > > It’s much more efficient to beg for forgiveness than to ask for permission. While it is more efficient, it’s also more risky. Much, much more risky. ---
**Author:** ![villa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/bc79bd/32.png) [@villa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/villa)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2010, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stuff-you-learned-the-hard-way/560484/48 "2010-11-15T20:11:08Z")
Molten sugar is freaking hot. And doesn’t come off skin, burning its way deeper. At the same time I discovered melting a bag of store bought caramels is infinitely preferable to making your own caramel. ---
**Author:** ![Woeg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/df705f/32.png) [@Woeg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Woeg)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2010, 8:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stuff-you-learned-the-hard-way/560484/49 "2010-11-15T20:12:52Z")
Just because you ask for forgiveness, doesn’t mean you’ll get it. ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2010, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stuff-you-learned-the-hard-way/560484/50 "2010-11-15T20:14:09Z")
> [@villa](#): > > Molten sugar is freaking hot. And doesn’t come off skin, burning its way deeper. I learned as a child that putting table sugar on top of an un-frosted pop-tart and then heating it on high in the toaster oven is a really, really poor way of creating a frosted pop-tart. ---
**Author:** ![Scubaqueen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c0e974/32.png) [@Scubaqueen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scubaqueen)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2010, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stuff-you-learned-the-hard-way/560484/51 "2010-11-15T20:40:55Z")
never, \*\*ever \*\*go on a road trip without overnight reservations. that way you don’t end up in a fleabitten lantana, florida, roach farm with a chair under the door knob while listening to the open-all-night drug buy/party going on next door. :smack: ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2010, 9:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stuff-you-learned-the-hard-way/560484/52 "2010-11-15T21:28:32Z")
> [@Scubaqueen](#): > > never, \*\*ever \*\*go on a road trip without overnight reservations. > > that way you don’t end up in a fleabitten lantana, florida, roach farm with a chair under the door knob while listening to the open-all-night drug buy/party going on next door. :smack: Similarly, don’t go on a road trip _with_ overnight reservations if you don’t know the character of the neighborhood before you make the reservations, that way you don’t end up in a fleabitten Fort Lee, Virginia roach farm with a chair under the door knob while listening to the open-all-night drug buy/party going on next door. :smack: ---
**Author:** ![markm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9de053/32.png) [@markm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/markm)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2010, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stuff-you-learned-the-hard-way/560484/53 "2010-11-15T21:30:11Z")
Don’t get into a love triangle. At least one party will always get hurt, and probably 2 or all 3. ---
**Author:** ![Dusty\_Rose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ba8739/32.png) [@Dusty\_Rose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dusty_Rose)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2010, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stuff-you-learned-the-hard-way/560484/54 "2010-11-15T22:43:31Z")
Just because you can get an MRI done for $1000 at a local, stand-alone testing center doesn’t mean that a year later you can get an MRI at the local teaching hospital _less than a mile away_ for a similar price. **10,000** dollar lesson learned. I’ll be making payments on that sucker for the rest of my life! :smack: ---
**Author:** ![Linty\_Fresh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Linty\_Fresh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Linty_Fresh)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2010, 11:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stuff-you-learned-the-hard-way/560484/55 "2010-11-15T23:19:09Z")
Thou shalt not trust thy memory (thou fucking moron!) In other words, if it’s important, write it down, and if it’s important _and_ complicated, create a system that involves writing shit down and _stick to it!!_ The trouble I could have saved myself in my life . . . ---
**Author:** ![Illuminatiprimus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/illuminatiprimus/32/11520_2.png) [@Illuminatiprimus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Illuminatiprimus)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2010, 1:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stuff-you-learned-the-hard-way/560484/56 "2010-11-16T13:17:07Z")
Don’t mix friends and money. For those of you not paying attention the first time: DO NOT MIX FRIENDS AND MONEY. I don’t care how good a friend they are, don’t do it. ---
**Author:** ![Scumpup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce73a5/32.png) [@Scumpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scumpup)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2010, 1:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stuff-you-learned-the-hard-way/560484/57 "2010-11-16T13:23:34Z")
Don’t spend money on high quality guns and then cheap out on ammunition, holsters, or belts. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2010, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stuff-you-learned-the-hard-way/560484/58 "2010-11-16T15:04:26Z")
Don’t lend money you can’t afford to lose. That includes putting it into CDs, bonds, etc.: they’re still loans, they just happen to be loans to a corporation instead of to someone with a face. ---
**Author:** ![dwc1970](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a183cd/32.png) [@dwc1970](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dwc1970)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2010, 3:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stuff-you-learned-the-hard-way/560484/59 "2010-11-16T15:05:08Z")
Never loan money to friends (small amounts, such as helping them with lunch, for example, are okay). For big loans, no matter how much they assure you that they’ll pay it back, don’t count on it. ---
**Author:** ![Count\_Blucher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Count\_Blucher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Count_Blucher)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2010, 3:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stuff-you-learned-the-hard-way/560484/60 "2010-11-16T15:05:42Z")
Don’t free-hand rock climb in the rain. Don’t play with fireworks. If you are hurt, ask for help. If you are at work, make sure it is fully documented. Appreciate them while they’re still here, not just after their gone. Getting a lawyer isn’t the time to bargain-shop. A good lawyer is worth the money. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stuff-you-learned-the-hard-way/560484.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stuff-you-learned-the-hard-way/560484.md?page=4)