# 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:** 17
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2015, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-that-it-never-occurred-to-you-others-wouldnt-know/736696/321 "2015-11-17T18:16:22Z")
> [@Zsofia](#): > > Where did you get the bucket of water? The pump is down, remember? The bathtub you filled when you knew a storm was coming. 🙂 ---
**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, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-that-it-never-occurred-to-you-others-wouldnt-know/736696/322 "2015-11-17T19:28:22Z")
Heh, yeah, I know that but other people evidently don’t know that. ---
**Author:** ![carrps](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carrps/32/2957_2.png) [@carrps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carrps)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2015, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-that-it-never-occurred-to-you-others-wouldnt-know/736696/323 "2015-11-17T20:17:52Z")
> [@Sahirrnee](#): > > People who can’t tell common dog breeds apart. > > I have a friend who couldn’t tell the different between a German shepherd, a lab, a golden retriever, a collie, etc. > I can understand when it’s a less common breed, or not being able to tell a miniature pinscher from a manchester terrier. > > Right up there with the people who used to ask me when my pony was going to grow up to be a horse. Similarly, it’s amazing how many people don’t know how to pronounce dachshund (I have two). They say dash hound. I guess they’ve seen the word, but never heard it spoken? It’s dachs (pronounced dox) for badger, and hund (pronounced hoond) for dog. Or badger dog. I’ve had people who thought they were cute little dogs look surprised – and a mite trepidatious – when I’ve told them dachshunds were bred to hunt badgers. ---
**Author:** ![carrps](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carrps/32/2957_2.png) [@carrps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carrps)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2015, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-that-it-never-occurred-to-you-others-wouldnt-know/736696/324 "2015-11-17T20:38:51Z")
> [@Sahirrnee](#): > > People who can’t tell common dog breeds apart. > > I have a friend who couldn’t tell the different between a German shepherd, a lab, a golden retriever, a collie, etc. > I can understand when it’s a less common breed, or not being able to tell a miniature pinscher from a manchester terrier. > > Right up there with the people who used to ask me when my pony was going to grow up to be a horse. > [@ivylass](#): > > I know north south east west. Living in the same place for the past 15 years, I know when I’m going north or south (or east or west) on the major roads. > > But if I’m in a strange place, I can’t orient myself. I’m also directionally dyslexic and strongly right-handed. I have lost my car in parking lots more than once. It’s like my brain doesn’t click on someone telling me to go right means TURN RIGHT. I grew up in west Los Angeles. West was the ocean; East was the mountains. Then I went to Hawaii, and mountains were in the middle, and the ocean was all around. ---
**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 18, 2015, 12:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-that-it-never-occurred-to-you-others-wouldnt-know/736696/325 "2015-11-18T00:05:24Z")
> [@Zsofia](#): > > Where did you get the bucket of water? The pump is down, remember? You take it from the rice pan you haven’t cooked yet … ---
**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 18, 2015, 12:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-that-it-never-occurred-to-you-others-wouldnt-know/736696/326 "2015-11-18T00:07:35Z")
Power outages are more common in the winter here, so filling the bathtub with snow is another method. ---
**Author:** ![Aspidistra](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspidistra/32/3894_2.png) [@Aspidistra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspidistra)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2015, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-that-it-never-occurred-to-you-others-wouldnt-know/736696/327 "2015-11-18T01:59:20Z")
> [@california\_jobcase](#): > > 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. It doesn’t really mean ‘close’, it means ‘almost close’. Pull the door far enough in that you wouldn’t see much light from the next room, but not far enough that the latch engages. I would never have thought someone wouldn’t have heard that expression. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eyebrows_0f_doom/32/3119_2.png) [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eyebrows_0f_Doom)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2015, 2:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-that-it-never-occurred-to-you-others-wouldnt-know/736696/328 "2015-11-18T02:32:58Z")
> [@OffByOne](#): > > 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). New Yorkers pronounce the city of Houston the same way you do- Hyoo-stun. It’s only the street in Manhattan that is pronounced House-ton, because the street is named after William Houstoun, not Sam Houston. ---
**Author:** ![Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slow_moving_vehicle/32/291_2.png) [@Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slow_Moving_Vehicle)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2015, 3:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-that-it-never-occurred-to-you-others-wouldnt-know/736696/329 "2015-11-18T03:38:34Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > Our water comes from a well. Electricity is needed for the pup to move the water from underground to our fixtures. You use a cattle prod on the poor doggie who powers your well? :eek: You monster! ---
**Author:** ![Pantastic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3bc359/32.png) [@Pantastic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pantastic)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2015, 4:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-that-it-never-occurred-to-you-others-wouldnt-know/736696/330 "2015-11-18T04:26:01Z")
On the show Iron Chef, they don’t have all of the chefs on standby for each show, then have the ones not picked stand around doing nothing - they figure out which chef will be challenged, and use stock footage for the ‘I choose…’ bit, and only the chef who will be on the show actually shows up. I don’t understand why people thought they really tried to coordinate schedules for 5 celebrity chefs and paid appearance fees for 3 of them to sit around watching the show for every episode, and will comment on how they feel like the show is ‘fake’ because of it. ---
**Author:** ![Sangahyando](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f14d63/32.png) [@Sangahyando](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sangahyando)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2015, 12:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-that-it-never-occurred-to-you-others-wouldnt-know/736696/331 "2015-11-18T12:15:49Z")
> [@california\_jobcase](#): > > 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. > [@Aspidistra](#): > > It doesn’t really mean ‘close’, it means ‘almost close’. > > Pull the door far enough in that you wouldn’t see much light from the next room, but not far enough that the latch engages. > > I would never have thought someone wouldn’t have heard that expression. 😛 I’m from a different English-speaking country, “where we talk funny”: I’ve always known “pull [or put] the door to” – with the basic meaning as above, but not stipulating either “all the way” or “not all the way”. And, as regards what is done with curtains: per how my parents spoke, “draw” the curtains, meant put them toward each other to obscure the window; when they were pulled apart to uncover the window again, that was “undrawing” them. When I went to school some seventy miles away, everyone there thought this way of expressing things sounded crazy: for them, the actions concerned were “closing” and “drawing” the curtains, respectively. ---
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2015, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-that-it-never-occurred-to-you-others-wouldnt-know/736696/332 "2015-11-18T20:23:36Z")
> [@Pantastic](#): > > On the show Iron Chef, they don’t have all of the chefs on standby for each show, then have the ones not picked stand around doing nothing - they figure out which chef will be challenged, and use stock footage for the ‘I choose…’ bit, and only the chef who will be on the show actually shows up. I don’t understand why people thought they really tried to coordinate schedules for 5 celebrity chefs and paid appearance fees for 3 of them to sit around watching the show for every episode, and will comment on how they feel like the show is ‘fake’ because of it. In other news, the mystery ingredient is not a total surprise! 🙂 > [@Sangahyando](#): > > And, as regards what is done with curtains: per how my parents spoke, “draw” the curtains, meant put them toward each other to obscure the window; when they were pulled apart to uncover the window again, that was “undrawing” them. When I went to school some seventy miles away, everyone there thought this way of expressing things sounded crazy: for them, the actions concerned were “closing” and “drawing” the curtains, respectively. Intersring. I think of “closing” and “drawing” the curtains as both meaning spread them out till they cover the windows. “Closing” and “opening” the curtains would be opposites. ETA: Now I am totally confused. [draw the curtains | WordReference Forums](http://forum.wordreference.com/threads/draw-the-curtains.1682741/) Some say draw is open, some say draw is close, and some say it is open or close depending how they were when you got there! “Opening” the shower curtain became a whole other cans of worms in a thread here. Did in mean throw it open like you do when getting out of the shower, or did it mean pull it open to drip and dry (aka closing in the shower)?! ---
**Author:** ![Pantastic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3bc359/32.png) [@Pantastic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pantastic)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2015, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-that-it-never-occurred-to-you-others-wouldnt-know/736696/333 "2015-11-18T21:39:10Z")
[quote=“gigi, post:332, topic:736696”] In other news, the mystery ingredient is not a total surprise! 🙂 Yeah, I know that too, but I can at least understand why someone would think it is a surprise, since it would be practical to work the show that way. The reason the part about deciding on the challenged chef in advance seemed so obvious to me is that the show runners would have to quadruple their appearance expenses to have three celebrity chefs just sit around every match, which would seriously hurt their budget. ---
**Author:** ![Blue\_Blistering\_Barnacle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blue_blistering_barnacle/32/3386_2.png) [@Blue\_Blistering\_Barnacle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blue_Blistering_Barnacle)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2015, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-that-it-never-occurred-to-you-others-wouldnt-know/736696/334 "2015-11-18T22:27:56Z")
[quote=“Pantastic, post:333, topic:736696”] > [@gigi](#): > > In other news, the mystery ingredient is not a total surprise! 🙂 > > Yeah, I know that too, but I can at least understand why someone would think it is a surprise, since it would be practical to work the show that way. The reason the part about deciding on the challenged chef in advance seemed so obvious to me is that the show runners would have to quadruple their appearance expenses to have three celebrity chefs just sit around every match, which would seriously hurt their budget. Maybe not so bad if they shoot a bunch of shows at once? ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2015, 2:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-that-it-never-occurred-to-you-others-wouldnt-know/736696/335 "2015-11-19T02:10:11Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > Our water comes from a well. Electricity is needed for the pup to move the water from underground to our fixtures. Every place I’ve lived that got water from a well (two places that I can remember, in rural areas), there was a large water tank on a high part of the property. The pump kept the tank full, but there was plenty of water for toilets, showers, and sinks even when the pump wasn’t running. ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2015, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-that-it-never-occurred-to-you-others-wouldnt-know/736696/336 "2015-11-19T02:14:36Z")
> [@Sahirrnee](#): > > People who can’t tell common dog breeds apart. > > I have a friend who couldn’t tell the different between a German shepherd, a lab, a golden retriever, a collie, etc. This is especially common among people who are afraid of dogs and think [every dog they see is a Pit Bull](http://ic.pics.livejournal.com/crysania4/1469517/185868/185868_640.jpg). ---
**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:** [November 19, 2015, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-that-it-never-occurred-to-you-others-wouldnt-know/736696/337 "2015-11-19T02:34:33Z")
> [@elbows](#): > > I can promise you everyone in Thailand washes their rice. > > ( In fact, most Asians are a titch judgemental of white folk not being smart enough to wash rice!:D:D) > > I use the exact same rice as you. Just try washing it, and you’ll see the difference for yourself! > ( Just add too much water, swish it around until the water is milky, pour that water off, add portioned water and cook. I use a rice cooker myself!) Agreed. Not washing rice is unheard of in Thailand. ---
**Author:** ![Sangahyando](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f14d63/32.png) [@Sangahyando](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sangahyando)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2015, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-that-it-never-occurred-to-you-others-wouldnt-know/736696/338 "2015-11-19T02:47:24Z")
> [@gigi](#): > > Intersring. I think of “closing” and “drawing” the curtains as both meaning spread them out till they cover the windows. “Closing” and “opening” the curtains would be opposites. > > ETA: Now I am totally confused. [draw the curtains | WordReference Forums](http://forum.wordreference.com/threads/draw-the-curtains.1682741/) Some say draw is open, some say draw is close, and some say it is open or close depending how they were when you got there! Thanks for link – interesting; but as you say, giving the feeling that confusion totally reigns. No mention anywhere in the link, of my “undraw”. I have seen a mention of “undrawing” curtains in some 17th or 18th century humorous / satirical poem (maybe by Alexander Pope??), but see no way of looking that up. > [@](#): > > “Opening” the shower curtain became a whole other cans of worms in a thread here. Did in mean throw it open like you do when getting out of the shower, or did it mean pull it open to drip and dry (aka closing in the shower)?! I reckon that I’ll choose not even to think about shower curtains ! (I prefer the “tub” method of bathing anyway :).) ---
**Author:** ![Pantastic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3bc359/32.png) [@Pantastic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pantastic)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2015, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-that-it-never-occurred-to-you-others-wouldnt-know/736696/339 "2015-11-19T03:59:06Z")
> [@Blue\_Blistering\_Barnacle](#): > > Maybe not so bad if they shoot a bunch of shows at once? You couldn’t shoot multiple shows at once. For one thing, if the pick of a chef is genuine like the people thinking they were all there thought, then you would need all of them to be available for each shoot. All of your commentators and announcers can only be on one show at once. Two of the judges were the same between each show. Chefs and judges would get burnt out too easily trying to do more than one cooking-tasting cycle in a day. Theoretically you could maybe squeeze two shows into a day, but that would still leave two of your star chefs sitting doing nothing, and wouldn’t get rid of the risk of a chef chosen twice in a day. If you’ve seen the show (especially the original Japanese one, the US one is not quite as intense IMO) I don’t think you’d expect them to try to shoot 4 of them in a day. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2015, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-that-it-never-occurred-to-you-others-wouldnt-know/736696/340 "2015-11-21T00:33:21Z")
The terrorist attack in Bamako, Mali reminded me that many people do not know that Timbuktu, which is also in Mali, is a real place. So is Lake Titicaca. My brother, who is one of the smartest people I have ever known, thought it was something made up for “Beavis & Butthead”, who claimed to come from there. 😛 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-that-it-never-occurred-to-you-others-wouldnt-know/736696.md?page=16) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-you-know-that-it-never-occurred-to-you-others-wouldnt-know/736696.md?page=18)