# Tiny recent mysteries you've encountered **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [March 9, 2022, 2:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-recent-mysteries-youve-encountered/960718 "2022-03-09T02:28:21Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![digs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/digs/32/14889_2.png) [@digs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/digs)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2022, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-recent-mysteries-youve-encountered/960718/21 "2022-03-11T19:09:10Z")
Ever seen a T-Rex try to lift up couch cushions? Or make up a hide-a-bed…? ---
**Author:** ![pullin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c57346/32.png) [@pullin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pullin)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2022, 12:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-recent-mysteries-youve-encountered/960718/22 "2022-03-12T12:48:33Z")
Posted about this before, we’re still stumped. The bangs. Around 2018, we began hearing really loud BANGs on the back wall of our house, always after dark. These sounded like a fastball hitting the wall, mainly near the two back doors. Fastball as in thrown by an MLB pitcher – these were not thumps. Rushing out to investigate revealed nothing at all - nobody, no rocks/missiles, and no evidence of an intruder. When these escalated to multiple bangs in succession we got more alarmed. At one point, there were 3 sharp BAM BAM BAMs against the back door, rattling it in its frame. Even an immediate response (at the window in 1 second) revealed no one. Going outside we found nothing. I installed cameras, motion lights, and other recording equipment outside, mainly concentrated on these areas so we could get audio and video of the next occurrence. And it stopped. It’s never happened since. Still don’t know what it was, or even if it was of human origin. ---
**Author:** ![Love\_Rhombus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/love_rhombus/32/10694_2.png) [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2022, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-recent-mysteries-youve-encountered/960718/23 "2022-03-13T19:07:46Z")
Could it be something inside the wall, somehow? I’m assuming you’ve ruled out tree branches blown by the wind. ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2022, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-recent-mysteries-youve-encountered/960718/24 "2022-03-13T19:34:34Z")
Last night in southern NH a whole bunch of people, me included, heard a tremendous bang. The house only shook a bit, but as we were in the middle of a snow and wind storm, my first thought was that a huge tree had fallen on one of the neighbor’s houses, so I put on my boots and took a couple flashlights so I could check to see if they were okay. Both houses seemed fine. My house seemed fine. My brother, who was still at work, said my sister-in-law who was at their house told him about hearing it too, and they live 1.5 miles away. By this morning there are dozens and dozens of reports from around 10 towns and the working theory is that it was a frost quake. So…any change these bangs are during the winter? ---
**Author:** ![echoreply](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/echoreply/32/3641_2.png) [@echoreply](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/echoreply)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2022, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-recent-mysteries-youve-encountered/960718/25 "2022-03-13T19:35:12Z")
> [@pullin](#): > > we began hearing really loud BANGs on the back wall of our house My Dad was having a similar thing happening, and they now think it was birds flying into a window. At least one causality suggests this is the explanation for some of the bangs. No idea why after 20+ years in that house birds would all of the sudden decide to crash into one particular window. His were happening at night, too. I get thumps and knocks, but instead of a mystery I think it’s just squirrels or the wind. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2022, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-recent-mysteries-youve-encountered/960718/26 "2022-03-13T20:57:38Z")
I was hearing loud thumps. We were curious but not afraid. Mr. Wrekker was out of town. I described it to him, when he got home. He said “no idea” Later that week he heard it. Turned out to be a large metal diesel drum making the thumps as it cooled off in the evening. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2022, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-recent-mysteries-youve-encountered/960718/27 "2022-03-13T21:02:25Z")
Clearly you live on a mystic Indian burial ground. Don’t let small children stare at snow static on TV. And, Do Not dig a pool in the back yard. You’ll be fine.🤭 ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2022, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-recent-mysteries-youve-encountered/960718/28 "2022-03-13T22:39:33Z")
Oh. And buy sage. You’ll need it 🤗 ---
**Author:** ![carnut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnut/32/3531_2.png) [@carnut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnut)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2022, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-recent-mysteries-youve-encountered/960718/29 "2022-03-13T22:59:41Z")
I keep hearing the floorboards creaking when nobody has moved or is near the sound. After a couple of years of this, I have sussed out that it is the just the fake wood floorboards expanding and contracting as cold and heat affect the concrete pad beneath them. ---
**Author:** ![aurora\_maire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aurora_maire/32/328_2.png) [@aurora\_maire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aurora_maire)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2022, 11:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-recent-mysteries-youve-encountered/960718/30 "2022-03-13T23:41:13Z")
Every night I turn my heat down about 30-45 minutes before I go to bed. It’s amazing how many creaks, pops and groans I hear as the house cools down. ---
**Author:** ![Mama\_Zappa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/71e660/32.png) [@Mama\_Zappa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mama_Zappa)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2022, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-recent-mysteries-youve-encountered/960718/31 "2022-03-14T19:00:08Z")
> [@Cheesesteak](#): > > How the hell did we become the dominant species on the planet with these sort of shenanigans going on? 1. our caveman ancestors did not own sofa cushions, thus no pizza crust lasted a month or 2. We survived because we were able to stomach month-old food without dying of it. I’ve got two mysteries, one of which will seemingly never be solved. First was my son’s stuffed bunny toy - it became his “lovie” when he was about 18 months old. When he threw up on it a few months later, we quickly bought a replacement, discarding the ruined one. Then we decided we’d better have spares, so we bought 2 more and kept them hidden. This meant that if one got soiled, we had a spare to tide him over while the other was in the wash. Somehow, one of them disappeared along the way. We’ve moved house since then, and it never turned up. Obviously he’s long since outgrown Bunny, but I am still baffled as to the disappearance. And, my Kindle. I remember having it in hand one day when our housecleaner was coming. It was on the couch. And it disappeared some time after that. We’ve turned the couch cushions over, moved the couch, and ransacked the rest of the house, and the damn thing has never manifested. Lest anyone think the housekeeper might have swiped it, a) she’s as honest as they come (we’ve left CASH out and it’s never gone missing), and b) she barely knows how to use her smartphone, and would have no idea what to do with a Kindle. I made do with reading on my phone for months, before I said the hell with it and bought a replacement. I’m more bummed about the cover (an Oberon Designs cover) than the device. My previous OD cover was on my Nook Color, which was stolen. I’ve decided I can’t have nice things (the replacement Kindle is in a basic 6 dollar case). ---
**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:** [March 14, 2022, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-recent-mysteries-youve-encountered/960718/32 "2022-03-14T19:26:10Z")
> [@Karen\_Lingel](#): > > I don’t know how I could put sheets on the guest bed without realizing the bag was tangled in them. Also I am still hoping to get some of those socks back… We got some of those woolen dryer balls to use instead of the disposal dryer sheets. It’s amazing how those things can hide. I can completely understand overlooking a little bag! > [@aurora\_maire](#): > > Every night I turn my heat down about 30-45 minutes before I go to bed. It’s amazing how many creaks, pops and groans I hear as the house cools down. We have an antique sideboard that would not just creak or groan, it would give a really loud sharp crack – like a less noisy gunshot. Scared us a few times until we got used to it. But it hasn’t done it in years. ---
**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:** [March 14, 2022, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-recent-mysteries-youve-encountered/960718/33 "2022-03-14T19:33:09Z")
dupe dupe ---
**Author:** ![pullin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c57346/32.png) [@pullin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pullin)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2022, 11:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-recent-mysteries-youve-encountered/960718/34 "2022-03-19T11:05:23Z")
> [@Love\_Rhombus](#): > > Could it be something inside the wall, somehow? I’m assuming you’ve ruled out tree branches blown by the wind. We never found debris like this after any of the occurrences. > [@elfkin477](#): > > So…any change these bangs are during the winter? No, they were during warm weather (Spring IIRC) > [@echoreply](#): > > My Dad was having a similar thing happening, and they now think it was birds flying into a window. At least one causality suggests this is the explanation for some of the bangs. Since they were always at night time, usually around 8-9 pm, and never saw dead birds I don’t think they were the cause. Perhaps I need to review a certain Hitchcock movie to be sure. 😬 > [@Beckdawrek](#): > > Mr. Wrekker was out of town. > I described it to him, when he got home. He said “no idea” > > Later that week he heard it. > Turned out to be a large metal diesel drum making the thumps as it cooled off in the evening. No metal drums around the house, and this really seemed to be something striking the wall and door. Out of curiosity, I attempted to recreate the door sound by pounding the door with both fists from outside – really hard. Although done with gloves on, I got a pretty good match of the sound we’d heard. A careful tour of our backyard turned up a section of fence detached from the old pole, and with some effort I could pull it apart and squeeze through into the neighbor’s (unfenced) yard. Although we’ve had rare but always friendly encounters with them, our working theory is some sort of human-caused trickery originating from there. Since they are both deaf, I wonder if it was some kind of minor teen mayhem due to knowing this couple were unlikely to hear intruders. Perhaps it escalated to dares to go through the fence and bang on “that other house”? I never asked the deaf couple, as they moved away a few months later. Added to the fact that everything stopped after I installed cameras and motion lights, this seems most likely. But we’re still stumped. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tiny-recent-mysteries-youve-encountered/960718.md?page=1)