# Things you didn't know but everyone else did **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [February 12, 2003, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-didnt-know-but-everyone-else-did/154673 "2003-02-12T21:55:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 10
**Author:** ![jono](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/7ab992/32.png) [@jono](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jono)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2003, 4:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-didnt-know-but-everyone-else-did/154673/181 "2003-02-24T04:29:42Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Morkfromork \* > \*\*I realized just a few days ago that, in the theme of The Beverly Hillbillies, when they talk about “up from the ground came a bubblin’ crude”…that a few words later, they refer to “Texas tea”, not “Texas T”. > > I always thought they just meant the letter ‘T’. Always wondered why they called it a letter. \*\* thats nothing, until a few years ago i thought the term was “Texas Cheese” i never questioned the strangeness of this term but simply took it for granted ---
**Author:** ![Cyberhwk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7993a0/32.png) [@Cyberhwk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cyberhwk)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2003, 8:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-didnt-know-but-everyone-else-did/154673/182 "2003-02-24T08:03:49Z")
Never realized that July and August both had 31 days. I just thought they alternated every single month. ---
**Author:** ![SC\_Wolf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/eb9ed0/32.png) [@SC\_Wolf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SC_Wolf)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2003, 2:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-didnt-know-but-everyone-else-did/154673/183 "2003-02-25T02:25:54Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Cyberhwk \* > \*\*Never realized that July and August both had 31 days. I just thought they alternated every single month. \*\* This is one you can blame on a Roman Emperor or two. ---
**Author:** ![Orange\_Skinner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/3be4f8/32.png) [@Orange\_Skinner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Orange_Skinner)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2003, 3:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-didnt-know-but-everyone-else-did/154673/184 "2003-02-25T03:28:21Z")
I used to think raped was ‘raked.’ When I heard about a girl that was brutally raked and murdered, I thought it meant she had been swooshed about with a rake into a pile of leaves until she was dead. I distinctly remember saying to my mother: “can you imagine how much that would hurt? Getting raked?” and shuddering. Last Sunday, a friend of mine had one of the best misconceptions I’ve heard of in a while. **Mudshark** , myself and this aformentioned mutual friend of ours were out together, and he and I started talking about euphemisms for breasts. I said I liked them called “tits” because “boob” sounded moronic. At any rate, Stephanie, our friend, said, “ah, but tit just refers to a specific part of the breast…boob…whatever.” **Mudshark** and I exchanged a look, not really getting it. He said something to the effect of, “Uh…no, it doesn’t. The term ‘tit’ encompasses the whole thing, there, Steph.” Apparantly, she’d thought ‘tit’ was a synonym for ‘nipple.’ Terrifying to think that she actually has two of them and can’t even call them by name. Another one of my friends used to think the President literally had little men in a cabinent. ---
**Author:** ![eenerms](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/cdc98d/32.png) [@eenerms](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eenerms)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2003, 5:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-didnt-know-but-everyone-else-did/154673/185 "2003-02-25T05:49:29Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by dwc1970 \* > \*\*My father related a funny little story from his college days. When he was getting registered for his classes everyone kept telling him to go see Dean Smith, then Dean Jones, then Dean Brown, etc. (names made up) My dad thought to himself, “wow, there sure are a lot of people named Dean around here.” He had no idea that a _dean_ was a title! \*\* Similar story: For the most part last names in Saudi Arabia are Al ‘Something’ ie. Al Khoaghi, Al Saud etc. An Expat woman riding in a car through town, looks out the window and says. “There sure a lot of Al’s living here” she was reading the names of the stores! ---
**Author:** ![auntnut](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f6c823/32.png) [@auntnut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/auntnut)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2003, 7:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-didnt-know-but-everyone-else-did/154673/186 "2003-02-25T07:07:34Z")
Oh boy…this is gonna hurt… First of all, I have to tell you that I grew up in Las Vegas Nevada, where there are no oceans, so, I am not REALLY REALLY STUPID, just a little stupid. In 1985, at the age of 27, I moved to Washington State, by the ocean. My husband loved to fish off of the pier, and he taught me “crabbing” (catching crabs at the bottom of the ocean with a crab trap, attatched to a rope, which is tied to the pier) We had been out for several hours, and the tide was coming in. I turned to my husband and said “shouln’t we let out more rope?” He looked at me funny and asked “Why?” I said “Because the tide is coming in!!” He started laughing like I had told a great joke, and I was getting mad…CAUSE THE TIDE WAS COMING IN FAST!!! DONT WE HAVE TO HURRY AND LET OUT MORE ROPE??? He realized I was totally serious, which made him laugh even harder, which made him a big jerk in my book. It took him about 20 minutes to quit laughing, and another 20 minutes to explain that when the crab trap is on the bottom, and the tide comes in, the water moves, the ocean floor doesn’t.:smack: ( I won’t even get into the story about asking him if cow milk was the pee from a cow) ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2003, 8:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-didnt-know-but-everyone-else-did/154673/187 "2003-02-25T08:35:59Z")
Another one. I thought that a “thong” was a piece of swimwear, not underwear. Makes sense… it’s an available product on CafePress, which has no other underwear; I’d seen news reports of teens being disciplined because of wearing visible thongs to school; and I haven’t been to a beach much in years due to the old body-shame thing, plus it’s winter here, so I really don’t know what’s fashionable on the women these days; and I don’t know anyone who would probably wear one anyway… I thought this until [sub]approximately 9:45 last night[/sub]. What’s more, my friend Lunjo tells me that the [particular thong](http://www.cafeshops.com/cp/prod.aspx?p=eotoronto.4860815) sold through CafePress can be worn by _either_ sex! Is this true? ---
**Author:** ![Chum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/3ab097/32.png) [@Chum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chum)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2003, 2:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-didnt-know-but-everyone-else-did/154673/188 "2003-02-25T14:06:02Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by hyperjes \* > \*\*I also thought that the song that goes “Dirty Deeds- Done Dirt Cheap” went “Dirty Sheets and the Thunder Chief.” until I was around 13. I could never understand why someone would write a song about an Indian guy’s bed clothes.:smack: \*\* I thought it was “Dirty Deeds and the Dunder Chief.” Makes a lot of sense, I know. I’ve always pronounced “wolves” with the “l” sound. My boyfriend likes to tease me about it. But he says “Taco Bell” with the emphasis on “taco.” Neither of us has modified our pronunciation after being enlightened by the other. ---
**Author:** ![DanBlather](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/f4b2a3/32.png) [@DanBlather](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DanBlather)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2003, 3:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-didnt-know-but-everyone-else-did/154673/189 "2003-02-25T15:05:38Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Achernar \* > \*\*This isn’t _exactly_ a pronunciation issue, but I thought “Kim Jong Il” was pronounced “Kim Jong the second”. I also did not get the title _Shanghai Noon_ until I saw it the second time. \*\* I just got it now:smack: ---
**Author:** ![Innanna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/ecd19e/32.png) [@Innanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Innanna)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2003, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-didnt-know-but-everyone-else-did/154673/190 "2003-02-25T15:46:09Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Chum \* > \*\*I’ve always pronounced “wolves” with the “l” sound. My boyfriend likes to tease me about it. But he says “Taco Bell” with the emphasis on “taco.” Neither of us has modified our pronunciation after being enlightened by the other. \*\* Here in the wilds of Ohio, we _do_ pronounce the “l” in wolves. Not that we are at the apex of pronunciation–after all, we do have the town of Vie-enna (spelled the same as the rather famous European capital, but said as above)–but we’re pretty standard for the US. Where is your boyfriend from? Could it be a regional thing with him? ---
**Author:** ![Avarie537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/48db29/32.png) [@Avarie537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Avarie537)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2003, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-didnt-know-but-everyone-else-did/154673/191 "2003-02-25T16:44:43Z")
When I was a kid, I thought that a movie soundtrack was ALL of the sound from a movie - NOT just the music. I could NOT figure out why you’d want to just LISTEN to a movie. Anybody remember the old “Hooks” drugstores? We had one near our house with the green sign, “Hooks” in cursive. I was so confused why my parents called it “Hooks” when the sign so OBVIOUSLY said “Flooks.” It doesn’t appear that way with “normal” cursive, but there was just something about that sign. My husband’s cousin used to think that all black people were named “Michael Jordan.” (He grew up in a small midwestern town.) ---
**Author:** ![panache](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c77e96/32.png) [@panache](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2003, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-didnt-know-but-everyone-else-did/154673/192 "2003-02-25T19:22:33Z")
**Cardinal, Maxxxie,** and **d\_redguy** along with **moi** …Can I join your party with a resounding “D’oh!” ??? “Earl?” “url?”… Group smack! :smack: ---
**Author:** ![Fretful\_Porpentine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fretful_porpentine/32/2873_2.png) [@Fretful\_Porpentine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fretful_Porpentine)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2003, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-didnt-know-but-everyone-else-did/154673/193 "2003-02-25T19:37:03Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Innanna \* > \*\*Here in the wilds of Ohio, we _do_ pronounce the “l” in wolves. Not that we are at the apex of pronunciation–after all, we do have the town of Vie-enna (spelled the same as the rather famous European capital, but said as above)–but we’re pretty standard for the US. > > Where is your boyfriend from? Could it be a regional thing with him? \*\* Yeah, ditto, and all the dictionaries I’ve ever seen say to pronounce the L. I’ve heard people say “woofs” or “wooves,” but as far as I know, this is just flat-out wrong. ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2003, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-didnt-know-but-everyone-else-did/154673/194 "2003-02-25T20:08:34Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Orange Skinner \* > Apparantly, she’d thought ‘tit’ was a synonym for ‘nipple.’ Terrifying to think that she actually has two of them and can’t even call them by name. My guess is that she mixed it up with “teat”, which really is another word for nipple. [semi-hijack]Regarding the second quoted sentence - my freshman year in college, my roommate was sexually active with her boyfriend. She insisted it was too embarrassing to say the word “penis”, but yet she could manage to say “pee-pee” instead. I personally found it more embarrassing to try to say the latter, at least with a straight face - and I certainly wouldn’t have referred to my boyfriend’s penis in that fashion![/semi-hijack] ---
**Author:** ![Phoebestar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/13edae/32.png) [@Phoebestar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Phoebestar)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2003, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-didnt-know-but-everyone-else-did/154673/195 "2003-02-25T20:27:15Z")
For the longest time, I thought the (old) eagle logo for the United States Postal Office was supposed to be the hat the mailman wore. For the life of me, I couldn’t see an eagle there. Look at it here: [http://www.creighton.edu/mailcenter/Graphics/usmail\_logo.png](http://www.creighton.edu/mailcenter/Graphics/usmail_logo.png) ---
**Author:** ![Royal\_Nonesuch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/8491ac/32.png) [@Royal\_Nonesuch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Royal_Nonesuch)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2003, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-didnt-know-but-everyone-else-did/154673/196 "2003-02-25T20:46:52Z")
Another erroneous pronunciation for “misled:” until about the age of twelve I said MISS-uld. Growing up my family could never decipher the penultimate lyric to the “All In the Family” theme song. One day in my twenties I finally put it together from memory: Gee our old LaSalle ran great Only by driving through Hartford, CT on a college-shopping trip did I learn that some highway exits are on the left and not on the right. Several years later I learned that the signs for exits on the left have the exit number at the top left of the sign instead of the top right. ---
**Author:** ![R\_inDog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bcef8e/32.png) [@R\_inDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/R_inDog)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2003, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-didnt-know-but-everyone-else-did/154673/197 "2003-02-25T21:19:22Z")
Was fun for a professional lurker of the board to read all these. Me? Photo-graffie. My brain still has to perform a brief scramble to make it come out of my mouth correctly… ---
**Author:** ![davidm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidm/32/225_2.png) [@davidm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davidm)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2003, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-didnt-know-but-everyone-else-did/154673/198 "2003-02-25T22:35:02Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Chum \* > **…I’ve always pronounced “wolves” with the “l” sound. My boyfriend likes to tease me about it…** I’ve never heard it pronounced _without_ the “l”. I think your boyfriend may be mistaken. From [Merriam-Webster Online](http://www.m-w.com/home.htm) : > [@](#): > > Main Entry: 1wolf > Pronunciation: 'wulf > Function: noun > Inflected Form(s): plural wolves /'wulvz/ ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2003, 5:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-didnt-know-but-everyone-else-did/154673/199 "2003-02-26T05:25:01Z")
I hadn’t really ever _thought_ about it, but until I saw the recent proliferation of Pit threads I never realized you have to flush a urinal. I’m not sure I’ve ever seen one up close and personal. And I don’t think I’ve ever heard anybody say “wolf” without the “l”. My ‘l’ and many others around my part of the South are a little indistinct, much like how I have a hard time saying "horror’ and “whore” differently and say “pin”, “pen”, and “peeing” almost exactly the same, but there’s definately an ‘l’. Also, count me another whooshee on the Wierd Earl thing. ---
**Author:** ![Elret](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b9bd4f/32.png) [@Elret](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elret)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2003, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-didnt-know-but-everyone-else-did/154673/200 "2003-02-26T13:55:37Z")
## quote: ## Originally posted by Achernar This isn’t exactly a pronunciation issue, but I thought “Kim Jong Il” was pronounced “Kim Jong the second”. I also did not get the title Shanghai Noon until I saw it the second time. I’m slow. I don’t get it. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-didnt-know-but-everyone-else-did/154673.md?page=9) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-didnt-know-but-everyone-else-did/154673.md?page=11)