# Tell me something you can't/don't do, that most others do/can. **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [December 7, 2004, 4:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-something-you-cant-dont-do-that-most-others-do-can/278493 "2004-12-07T04:17:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Keapon\_Laffin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e274bd/32.png) [@Keapon\_Laffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Keapon_Laffin)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2004, 5:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-something-you-cant-dont-do-that-most-others-do-can/278493/21 "2004-12-07T05:54:16Z")
Ay kennet spel. ---
**Author:** ![Kid\_A\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ed8c4c/32.png) [@Kid\_A\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kid_A_1)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2004, 5:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-something-you-cant-dont-do-that-most-others-do-can/278493/22 "2004-12-07T05:59:35Z")
> [@Cunctator](#): > > I can’t open my eyes under water. I’ve tried many times, but I simply can’t bear the feeling of water in my eyes. I popped by to say that I can’t do that and I also can’t draw for the life of me. I’m just awful at it… ---
**Author:** ![kittenlm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ce7236/32.png) [@kittenlm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kittenlm)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2004, 6:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-something-you-cant-dont-do-that-most-others-do-can/278493/23 "2004-12-07T06:08:03Z")
> [@Cunctator](#): > > I can’t open my eyes under water. I’ve tried many times, but I simply can’t bear the feeling of water in my eyes. Ditto. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2004, 6:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-something-you-cant-dont-do-that-most-others-do-can/278493/24 "2004-12-07T06:51:50Z")
I can’t open my eyes under water either, and I can’t master the trick of putting my head under water without holding my nose. Every so often people try to teach me and I get chlorine in my sinuses. :mad: ---
**Author:** ![Darwins\_Finch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darwins_finch/32/20304_2.png) [@Darwins\_Finch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darwins_Finch)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2004, 7:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-something-you-cant-dont-do-that-most-others-do-can/278493/25 "2004-12-07T07:04:28Z")
Swallow a pill. My throat is so narrow that they simply get stuck. Hopefully, though, this will be addressed next Thursday… > [@Smeghead](#): > > I’m living off liquid stuff pumped into a tube hanging out of my stomach. I’ve been there, amigo. It was a looong time ago, but I still bear the scars (and there is the possibility that such has resulted in my current condition). ---
**Author:** ![Anastasaeon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/73ab20/32.png) [@Anastasaeon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anastasaeon)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2004, 8:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-something-you-cant-dont-do-that-most-others-do-can/278493/26 "2004-12-07T08:01:37Z")
I don’t drive. I can, but I don’t, and I don’t have a licence. I can’t swim, and automatically, for some inexplicable and uncontrollable reason, _inhale_ when my face hits the water. My body is plotting against me and trying to drown me. I have very little depth perception. I’m not sure to what extent, just that it’s the part of my driver’s test I always fail, often bump into walls, and watching leaves fall can make me go cross eyed. If I am in the passenger seat of a car, I’ll freak out and yell “STOP!” at a vehicle or pedestrian crossing the road… about 10 miles away… (yeah, I’ve learned to just keep my mouth shut and hang on to the holy sh\*t bar). :smack: To make up for it, I’m ambidextrous, “double jointed” at the elbows and fingertips, and can see sounds. (There’s a name for it, there was even a thread about it, but I don’t remember what it’s called). ---
**Author:** ![gouda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c77e96/32.png) [@gouda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gouda)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2004, 8:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-something-you-cant-dont-do-that-most-others-do-can/278493/27 "2004-12-07T08:01:54Z")
I can’t bargain to save my life. For anything. I try, sometimes, but I just suck at it. 5 year olds can bargain better than I can. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2004, 9:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-something-you-cant-dont-do-that-most-others-do-can/278493/28 "2004-12-07T09:01:10Z")
Differential calculus. I’m still not fully convinced that it’s not all an _Emperor’s New Clothes_ thing. [sub]One day, I’m gonna start a ‘teach me calculus’ thread[/sub] ---
**Author:** ![Hostile\_Dialect](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e495f1/32.png) [@Hostile\_Dialect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hostile_Dialect)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2004, 9:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-something-you-cant-dont-do-that-most-others-do-can/278493/29 "2004-12-07T09:32:05Z")
I can’t ride bikes, blow bubbles, or whistle. I also can’t afford _anything_. No, really. For a long time I couldn’t do anything with balloons (couldn’t blow them up, tie them up, hold them closed, whatever) but a fair amount of experimentation with nitrous oxide fixed that. Used to have depth perception problems but I fixed that with this program called visual therapy. No, really. **Anastasaeon** : It’s called synaesthesia and it’s awesome. I am double-jointed, BTW. ---
**Author:** ![Ephemera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8baadc/32.png) [@Ephemera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ephemera)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2004, 10:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-something-you-cant-dont-do-that-most-others-do-can/278493/30 "2004-12-07T10:01:51Z")
The only thing that’s coming to mind right now is that I can’t swim. People have tried to teach me over the years but I’ve never been able to learn. Depending on anxious I am when in the water, I can’t even float either which is pretty strange considering my weight. And if current disabilities count a la **Smeg** , I can’t walk and haven’t been able to for a month now. I can hop around pretty well though. > [@SolGrundy](#): > > Okay, **Smeghead** wins. That really sucks! > > But in the interest of keeping the thread going: I can’t smell. (That’s not to say that I don’t smell). I had an operation when I was around 4 years old to stop frequent nosebleeds, and since then I’ve had no sense of smell. > > Good for riding the bus and walking through the Tenderloin or the Haight. Bad for being able to tell if my milk’s gone bad, if I’ve got B.O., just how bad smoking makes my breath stinks, or buying bath soaps and perfume and such as gifts. Can you still taste food? ---
**Author:** ![Scissorjack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c67d28/32.png) [@Scissorjack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scissorjack)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2004, 11:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-something-you-cant-dont-do-that-most-others-do-can/278493/31 "2004-12-07T11:40:02Z")
> [@SolGrundy](#): > > Okay, **Smeghead** wins. That really sucks! > > But in the interest of keeping the thread going: I can’t smell. (That’s not to say that I don’t smell). I had an operation when I was around 4 years old to stop frequent nosebleeds, and since then I’ve had no sense of smell. > > Good for riding the bus and walking through the Tenderloin or the Haight. Bad for being able to tell if my milk’s gone bad, if I’ve got B.O., just how bad smoking makes my breath stinks, or buying bath soaps and perfume and such as gifts. I can’t smell, either, and I don’t know why - I remember being able to smell, when I was a kid, but somewhere along the way I lost it. On the other hand, I can do cryptic crosswords in my head, and used to freak out my co-workers by being able to do the ordinary synonym-crunching ones in the time it takes to write them down: they were never convinced that I wasn’t cheating somehow. Mind you, as the manager it only contributed to my aura of omniscience. ---
**Author:** ![TellMeI\_mNotCrazy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tellmei_mnotcrazy/32/3419_2.png) [@TellMeI\_mNotCrazy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TellMeI_mNotCrazy)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2004, 11:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-something-you-cant-dont-do-that-most-others-do-can/278493/32 "2004-12-07T11:56:41Z")
I can’t whistle. (My _son_ has been trying to teach me, how said is that?) I can’t swim. Just never learned. I can float like a motherf…linger, though. I’m also synesthetic, which might make up for the first two 😉 ---
**Author:** ![pullin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c57346/32.png) [@pullin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pullin)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2004, 12:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-something-you-cant-dont-do-that-most-others-do-can/278493/33 "2004-12-07T12:30:04Z")
The OP said can’t/don’t. I guess this qualifies: I’ve never been in a coffee shop. Not Starbucks, not any of them. Ever. (Not a boycott or anything, just never have gotten around to it) ---
**Author:** ![Kitchen\_Wench](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/f08c70/32.png) [@Kitchen\_Wench](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kitchen_Wench)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2004, 12:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-something-you-cant-dont-do-that-most-others-do-can/278493/34 "2004-12-07T12:30:45Z")
**Smeghead** - How awful. Will you ever be able to eat again? I can’t snap with my left hand. And I have major issues with volume or spacial (is that a word?) relationships. For instance, I constantly dirty up at least 2 casserole dishes when transferring food to from a pan. ---
**Author:** ![Balle\_M](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/13edae/32.png) [@Balle\_M](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balle_M)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2004, 12:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-something-you-cant-dont-do-that-most-others-do-can/278493/35 "2004-12-07T12:36:58Z")
I can’t wink my left eye. Certainly not a biggie, but it does cause me to shoot left-handed. ---
**Author:** ![BiblioCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ed8c4c/32.png) [@BiblioCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BiblioCat)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2004, 12:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-something-you-cant-dont-do-that-most-others-do-can/278493/36 "2004-12-07T12:52:24Z")
> [@fishbicycle](#): > > I don’t know how to whistle with two fingers in my mouth. (My mom did this, and you could hear her for blocks.) I can’t do that either. I can whistle the regular way, but I can’t whistle with my fingers. I’ve had people try to teach me, but I just end up with spitty fingers. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2004, 1:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-something-you-cant-dont-do-that-most-others-do-can/278493/37 "2004-12-07T13:00:01Z")
I can’t raise my left eyebrow indepentantly of my right. So I can :dubious: , but not the opposite. I can’t use eyedrops. Even my doctor can’t get ‘em in. That puff o’ air glaucoma test? It’s never been successfully performed on me. My blink reflex is too fast. The really weird part? I wear contacts, and get them in just fine each morning! I also can’t spit. Countless people have tried to teach me just like that scene in _Titanic_. I can’t figure out where to get the thick projectile stuff from. All I end up with is ribbons of saliva. ---
**Author:** ![Canadiangirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/dc4da7/32.png) [@Canadiangirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Canadiangirl)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2004, 1:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-something-you-cant-dont-do-that-most-others-do-can/278493/38 "2004-12-07T13:23:08Z")
My dad had the roughest hands you ever saw - he was a plumber - but he couldn’t hold a peach to save his life. He just hated the feel of it in his hands. If you threw one at him, he’d catch it, realize what it was then drop it real fast. ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2004, 1:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-something-you-cant-dont-do-that-most-others-do-can/278493/39 "2004-12-07T13:44:09Z")
I can’t walk from point A to point B without running into something, somewhere. Most often it’s clipping a doorway or barking my shins. I can’t strategize. Games that involve strategy at all are impossible for me. I have very little sense of smell. I can’t see those 3-d hidden picture thingies. I can’t say “lily,” “free throw,” or “rear-wheel drive” without sounding like a maroon. I can’t get the name of my husband’s new game, “World of Warcraft” right. I call it “War of Worldcraft.” I can’t get warm. ---
**Author:** ![interface2x](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c0e974/32.png) [@interface2x](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/interface2x)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2004, 1:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-something-you-cant-dont-do-that-most-others-do-can/278493/40 "2004-12-07T13:50:03Z")
I can’t swim. When I was really little (probably about 4), I was in lessons and on the first day, they said “okay, everyone, let’s go under water.” I said “no way” and haven’t been back since. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-something-you-cant-dont-do-that-most-others-do-can/278493.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-something-you-cant-dont-do-that-most-others-do-can/278493.md?page=3)