# Things you know that it never occurred to you others wouldn't know... **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [November 5, 2015, 11:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-that-it-never-occurred-to-you-others-wouldnt-know/736696 "2015-11-05T11:07:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 16
**Author:** ![Jeff\_Lichtman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jeff_lichtman/32/1531_2.png) [@Jeff\_Lichtman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jeff_Lichtman)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2015, 6:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-that-it-never-occurred-to-you-others-wouldnt-know/736696/301 "2015-11-16T06:10:16Z")
> [@Abner\_Ravenwood](#): > > I’ve never washed rice. I always sauté it in olive oil before cooking it in a skillet or sauté pan. It hasn’t failed me yet. There’s more than one way to cook rice. Different methods give different results, and are used for different purposes. Your technique is common for things like pilaf, where you want the grains to be completely separate. You’re right that there’s no point in rinsing rice when you do it this way. On the other hand, when you’re making steamed rice rinsing can help. Most people like steamed rice to come out fluffy. That’s hard to achieve if there’s starchy rice powder between the grains. This is what they do in Chinese restaurants, where you get a bowl of steamed rice with your meal. ---
**Author:** ![elbows](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b3f665/32.png) [@elbows](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elbows)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2015, 10:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-that-it-never-occurred-to-you-others-wouldnt-know/736696/302 "2015-11-16T10:53:12Z")
No, it was not snark! Just an acknowledgment that Uncle Ben’s does not need to be washed. Because it’s been washed already! (Sheesh! Tough crowd!) ---
**Author:** ![wolfman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a8b319/32.png) [@wolfman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfman)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2015, 11:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-that-it-never-occurred-to-you-others-wouldnt-know/736696/303 "2015-11-16T11:02:50Z")
> [@CoastalMaineiac](#): > > Now to shift this back to the topic: I’m always surprised that folks who grew up driving manual-shift cars don’t know that you can use the parking brake to keep it from rolling backward on a hill while you shift to first. I’m doubly surprised that the method they were taught to prevent rollback involves holding the clutch partially engaged and giving it gas the whole time they are stopped! I guess someone has to keep the clutch manufacturers in business. ( I’ve never met anyone who out slipped the clutch the whole time, that would wear out real fast. But I don’t know many parking breakers either. The way we were all taught(AKA the right way ;)) is to fully clutch and use the break pedal while stopped, then just declutch while gassing as normal when you are ready to go forward. ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2015, 12:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-that-it-never-occurred-to-you-others-wouldnt-know/736696/304 "2015-11-16T12:24:06Z")
> [@TonySinclair](#): > > Although I really did try to get smart women for my girlfriends, I had a couple who didn’t know that toilets kept working during power failures. > [@Honey](#): > > Did they think the shower didn’t work either? My toilet and shower most definitely don’t work during a power failure. Well, you get one flush and that’s it. ---
**Author:** ![elbows](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b3f665/32.png) [@elbows](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elbows)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2015, 12:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-that-it-never-occurred-to-you-others-wouldnt-know/736696/305 "2015-11-16T12:27:28Z")
Why doesn’t your shower or toilet work during a power outage? I’m curious, can you explain? Because both continue to work at my house! Confused! ---
**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:** [November 16, 2015, 12:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-that-it-never-occurred-to-you-others-wouldnt-know/736696/306 "2015-11-16T12:32:04Z")
> [@elbows](#): > > Why doesn’t your shower or toilet work during a power outage? > > I’m curious, can you explain? Because both continue to work at my house! > > Confused! Our water comes from a well. Electricity is needed for the pup to move the water from underground to our fixtures. ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2015, 1:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-that-it-never-occurred-to-you-others-wouldnt-know/736696/307 "2015-11-16T13:05:02Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > Our water comes from a well. Electricity is needed for the pup to move the water from underground to our fixtures. You got it. ---
**Author:** ![elbows](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b3f665/32.png) [@elbows](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elbows)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2015, 1:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-that-it-never-occurred-to-you-others-wouldnt-know/736696/308 "2015-11-16T13:20:08Z")
Thanks for the clarification! Of course, it all makes sense now! ---
**Author:** ![Philster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/13edae/32.png) [@Philster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philster)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2015, 2:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-that-it-never-occurred-to-you-others-wouldnt-know/736696/309 "2015-11-16T14:28:40Z")
I just explained to my boss what "top of the hour’’ and ‘‘bottom of the hour’’ mean. Explains so many puzzled looks he gave me during a two-week trip through Europe. Whenever we were just dumping stuff in our rooms and meeting in the lobby, I’d say, "See ya at the top of the hour: (as it was, for example, 8:45 and we agreed to meet at 9). Makes we wonder who does/doesn’t know what these expressions mean… hmmm… . ---
**Author:** ![california\_jobcase](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9d8465/32.png) [@california\_jobcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/california_jobcase)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2015, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-that-it-never-occurred-to-you-others-wouldnt-know/736696/310 "2015-11-16T21:55:14Z")
I remember wondering what “pull the door to” meant when I first heard it. I asked and was told it means “close the door.” To me the “to” on the end needed a destination. It left me hanging, wondering to where I was to pull the door. ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2015, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-that-it-never-occurred-to-you-others-wouldnt-know/736696/311 "2015-11-17T14:31:32Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > Our water comes from a well. Electricity is needed for the pup to move the water from underground to our fixtures. We generally get a couple of flushes because of the reserve in the pressure tank. I think all systems are set up that way. The well does not go on everytime you turn a spigot. It’s not too much of a concern for me since we have a creek on the property that I can get water from to flush if need be. ---
**Author:** ![OffByOne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/45deac/32.png) [@OffByOne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OffByOne)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2015, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-that-it-never-occurred-to-you-others-wouldnt-know/736696/312 "2015-11-17T15:54:15Z")
> [@Guinastasia](#): > > Dyslexia, maybe? I can tell my right from my left, if I stop to think about it. If someone asked me to raise my right hand, right now, I figure I have a 50-50 shot at getting it right. Somehow, though, I never have a problem when someone says, “Give me your left hand.” ---
**Author:** ![OffByOne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/45deac/32.png) [@OffByOne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OffByOne)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2015, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-that-it-never-occurred-to-you-others-wouldnt-know/736696/313 "2015-11-17T16:06:36Z")
> [@MikeF](#): > > Regarding “hydro” (particularly BC hydro!) electricity is not the first thing that comes to mind. What I first think of is hydroponics and a certain plant that is grown with that method. > > Arkansas? I grew up in Pennsylvania but now live near Atlantic City, NJ. After moore than 30 years I still can’t get used to the R-Kansas Ave. that everyone refers to. Or the not-to-distant Fork-ed River. WTF? As a Texan who visited New York City, I have to complain about how the pronounce the name of our state’s largest city, Houston (Hyoo stun, v. House ton). ---
**Author:** ![OffByOne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/45deac/32.png) [@OffByOne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OffByOne)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2015, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-that-it-never-occurred-to-you-others-wouldnt-know/736696/314 "2015-11-17T16:49:06Z")
> [@wolfpup](#): > > I don’t see how being left-handed would weaken the distinction, but I can see how being ambidextrous or cross-dominant might. It’s an interesting idea. > > [Not poppycock](http://bodyodd.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/04/24/11359120-why-some-cant-tell-left-from-right?lite). It’s a real phenomenon, thought to be related to spatial reasoning skills, and I kind of like the idea that there’s a relationship to absence of preferential handedness. Suppose I asked you a directly equivalent question: which is the port and which is the starboard side of a ship? Unless you’re a nautical type, you might have to think about it or even have to look it up. And even after looking it up, you might find it hard to remember without some kind mental cue. Perhaps because you don’t have a handedness preference entrenched in that context, like “I always write with my starboard hand”. > OK, but how does she figure out which one is her right hand? 🆒 Silly! The right hand is the one with the thumb on the left side. ---
**Author:** ![OffByOne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/45deac/32.png) [@OffByOne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OffByOne)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2015, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-that-it-never-occurred-to-you-others-wouldnt-know/736696/315 "2015-11-17T17:11:00Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > I don’t know whether it still does, but _New Mexico_ magazine used to have a regular feature called “One Of Our Fifty Is Missing,” in which they published stories about dumb people who didn’t realize or couldn’t believe that New Mexico was part of the United States. > > This I have heard > This isn’t convincing; what does being in their “natural environment” have to do with it. Not to mention, how is peanut butter any more part of their “natural environment” than cheese is? > Are you sure about this? I’ve never seen Mickey Mouse connected with cheese (nor have I seen his mouse-ness emphasized as a significant part of his character). But “mice like cheese” is a bit of iconic folklore that seems to have been around for quite some time. The song “The Farmer in the Dell” goes through the entire farmstead, with each member asking the next into the “circle”, until, after the cat takes the rat, the rat takes the cheese. (The Cheese stands alone!) This song seemed to already be old when i learned it 60 years ago. Looking at Wikipedia, I see it was published 135 years earlier. Definitely not Disney! ---
**Author:** ![up\_the\_junction](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/f1d935/32.png) [@up\_the\_junction](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/up_the_junction)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2015, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-that-it-never-occurred-to-you-others-wouldnt-know/736696/316 "2015-11-17T17:17:54Z")
With the toilet, can’t you just get a bucket of water and pour it in. That seems to push maybe 90% around the U bend for me? ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2015, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-that-it-never-occurred-to-you-others-wouldnt-know/736696/317 "2015-11-17T17:19:17Z")
> [@up\_the\_junction](#): > > With the toilet, can’t you just get a bucket of water and pour it in. That seems to push maybe 90% around the U bend for me? Where did you get the bucket of water? The pump is down, remember? ---
**Author:** ![up\_the\_junction](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/f1d935/32.png) [@up\_the\_junction](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/up_the_junction)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2015, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-that-it-never-occurred-to-you-others-wouldnt-know/736696/318 "2015-11-17T17:22:55Z")
W don’t have pumps, so I guess it’s different - if the toilet is broken it doesn’t necessarily mean the whole plumbing thing is kapput. ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2015, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-that-it-never-occurred-to-you-others-wouldnt-know/736696/319 "2015-11-17T17:30:30Z")
> [@Zsofia](#): > > Where did you get the bucket of water? The pump is down, remember? In my case, from the stream on our property. ---
**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:** [November 17, 2015, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-that-it-never-occurred-to-you-others-wouldnt-know/736696/320 "2015-11-17T17:37:09Z")
> [@enipla](#): > > In my case, from the stream on our property. In my case, from rain barrels that collect water from the downspouts. Except for December to March. ☹ [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-that-it-never-occurred-to-you-others-wouldnt-know/736696.md?page=15) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-that-it-never-occurred-to-you-others-wouldnt-know/736696.md?page=17)