# What is your hidden talent? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [February 12, 2006, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-hidden-talent/344132 "2006-02-12T18:47:34Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2006, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-hidden-talent/344132/21 "2006-02-13T14:04:28Z")
I can make “TV Pancakes” - ones that are a perfect, even, all-over golden brown all the way to the edge, just like you would see on a TV commercial. My kids run to the stovetop when I make breakfast to grade my hotcakes and stake their claims on the most TV of them. It’s a burden being that good, but I have learned to shoulder it. ---
**Author:** ![Dorjan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dorjan/32/12440_2.png) [@Dorjan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dorjan)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2006, 3:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-hidden-talent/344132/22 "2006-02-13T15:35:57Z")
Hmm talents. Both of my thumbs are double-jointed. When driving, I can give an ETA that’s accurate to within 1 minute 95% of the time. I can do this independent of distance involved and even if I’ve never made the trip before. I have an uncanny sense of where I am located and the ability to reverse directions, no matter how long and complicated the trip. I can literally “see” a map in my head and twist it around in 3-D space! ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2006, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-hidden-talent/344132/23 "2006-02-13T15:54:49Z")
I can turn what appear to be scrap wood and broken toys and miscellaneous parts into unique toys. 1. A Spinning Merry-Go-Round. 2. Brio™ style Trains with custom shapes and paint jobs. 3. A Covered Bridge that allows for side by side wooden tracks for Brio™. 4. A Cute little Marionette Kitty. 5. A Helicopter with a smiley faces that when you spin the prop with spin for about 20 seconds. 6. Many little wooden cars. 7. Sock Puppet dragons 8. 2 Barbie™ Racks holding a dozen Barbies™ each. 9. Wooden Wall hanging Picture Puzzle of a Cat. 10. A complete HO scale Styrofoam village. I am now working on turning some old lamp parts, scrap wood, a Peanut Butter Jar and 3 feet of Craft wood into a working Night table lamp in the shape of a lighthouse. (my journeyman project) Jim ---
**Author:** ![Draelin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ce73a5/32.png) [@Draelin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Draelin)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2006, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-hidden-talent/344132/24 "2006-02-13T15:56:42Z")
I have excellent highway-driving skills–as long as I also have unconditional control of the radio. I can usually pinpoint an arrival time within 10 minutes, but only if the trip is longer than two hours to begin with. I have been known to find the perfect coffee-cream-sugar ratio for anyone who asks. I can sing songs that name all the periodic elements, the countries of the world, and prepositions. If there is anything to trip over in a dark room, I can be counted upon to find it. I have an uncanny ability to forecast with approximately 90% accuracy the next fifteen seconds of any television show or movie. This is usually limited to me saying a line of dialogue a split second before the character does. I have been known to correctly predict the end of a movie within five minutes of the opening credits, but that’s a little more hit-and-miss. ---
**Author:** ![Bosstone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/22d042/32.png) [@Bosstone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosstone)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2006, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-hidden-talent/344132/25 "2006-02-13T16:15:36Z")
I have an inordinately high failure rate for making predictions, far more than if I were just randomly guessing. Typically the best thing to do when asking me for advice is to do the exact opposite of what I suggest. 😃 Also, sequential thread titles: What is your hidden talent? Stalking the UPS Delivery Man ---
**Author:** ![bouv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bc8723/32.png) [@bouv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bouv)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2006, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-hidden-talent/344132/26 "2006-02-13T16:33:47Z")
I, too, am an excellent liar. So good, in fact, that I would love to take a polygraph test for fun to see if I am as good as I think I am (odds are I’m not, but it’d be good for a laugh.) I can carry all the grocieries from the car to the house in one trip. A few caveats, though. One, it can only be grocieres for one or two people, no families. Two, it can’t be groceries from a K-mart, wal-mart, or a bulk store. No large boxes of things, mostly bags. But other than that, there is no limit to my capacity. I have carried over ten plastic bags, two cases of soda, a gallon of milk, and a thing of laundry detergent in one trip AND was able to fish out my keys and get into my apartment by only putting down the milk. If I have driven to a place once (or paid good enough attention as a passenger), I will never forget how to get there ever, and will be able to go back from where I started without needing “reverse directions.” I can perform oral sex so well I was able to convice two women who previously hated it that it’s a Good Thing[sup]TM[/sup] if I did it. (And in case you were thinking they merely _told_ me I was good, I had independant verification from past boyfriends that they, at most, went down there once or twice.) I _can’t_ roll my tongue into a taco shape (which almost seems odd, considering my last talent.) But from what I understand, it is rarer to not be able to do it than it is to be able to do it. ---
**Author:** ![Clothahump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/51bf81/32.png) [@Clothahump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Clothahump)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2006, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-hidden-talent/344132/27 "2006-02-13T16:41:59Z")
> [@ronincyberpunk](#): > > I have a great memory of faces. I’ll meet someone in passing and recognize their face and then spend the next three hours trying to place it. I once recognized a kid from kindergarten when we were in high school. Egads! Teach me how to do that, will you? I can meet someone ten times in a row and not remember them. ---
**Author:** ![Maastricht](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a88e57/32.png) [@Maastricht](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maastricht)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2006, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-hidden-talent/344132/28 "2006-02-13T16:47:13Z")
I’m extremely good at finishing others people’s sentences. Very annoying for all parties involved. Especially if it is an average kind of person or if I know the person well. Oh, and I bake a mean pancake, complete with the flamboyant turn in mid-air. ---
**Author:** ![Draelin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ce73a5/32.png) [@Draelin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Draelin)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2006, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-hidden-talent/344132/29 "2006-02-13T16:51:24Z")
> [@bouv](#): > > I can perform oral sex so well I was able to convice two women who previously hated it that it’s a Good Thing[sup]TM[/sup] if I did it. (And in case you were thinking they merely _told_ me I was good, I had independant verification from past boyfriends that they, at most, went down there once or twice.) Everybody who desires proof … line up behind me. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Speaker\_for\_the\_Dead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c77e96/32.png) [@Speaker\_for\_the\_Dead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Speaker_for_the_Dead)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2006, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-hidden-talent/344132/30 "2006-02-13T17:27:57Z")
I can blowdry my hair into the style I like with no styling products or other tools (e.g. combs). ---
**Author:** ![Gordon\_Urquhart](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/db5fbb/32.png) [@Gordon\_Urquhart](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gordon_Urquhart)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2006, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-hidden-talent/344132/31 "2006-02-13T18:04:18Z")
For as long as I can remember, I’ve thrilled friends, acquaintances and ophthalmologists with my amazing controlled [nystagmus](http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a1_264.html). I married the only other person I’ve seen who could do it (not right away–I discovered she has a lot of other great qualities as well). ---
**Author:** ![RunSilent](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e0b2c6/32.png) [@RunSilent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RunSilent)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2006, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-hidden-talent/344132/32 "2006-02-13T18:21:47Z")
I can wiggle my ears. ---
**Author:** ![Jman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jman/32/4416_2.png) [@Jman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jman)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2006, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-hidden-talent/344132/33 "2006-02-13T18:22:45Z")
Fools…you taco tongue forming mediocrities. I can fold my tongue into THREE separate curls at the same time. As for true talents, in my line of work (military), few people expect me to have an artistic outlet, though I’m a pretty decent [photographer.](http://www.jordansteele.com) ---
**Author:** ![bubble\_pop\_electric](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ecae2f/32.png) [@bubble\_pop\_electric](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bubble_pop_electric)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2006, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-hidden-talent/344132/34 "2006-02-13T20:29:33Z")
I can make perfect gnochhis every time, ever since I was 4 years old. I kick ass at Twister. I’ve never had a sunburn. I can tell you what kind of fabric a fabric is made out of by feeling it, and how much milkfat is in milk by looking at it. ---
**Author:** ![YaWanna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/bbce88/32.png) [@YaWanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YaWanna)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2006, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-hidden-talent/344132/35 "2006-02-13T20:40:45Z")
> [@ZipperJJ](#): > > When I blow my nose, water (or snot. or magic juice, i dunno) squirts out of my right eye. > > This is a recently developed talent and someday I hope to be brave enough to snort and shoot other liquids out of my eye. And then people will pay me alots of money to do it at parties. Ooh, me too! Only in my case, it’s not a recently developed talent - it’s a natural gift. And somewhat embarrassing when I have a cold. ---
**Author:** ![Ol\_Gaffer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Ol\_Gaffer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ol_Gaffer)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2006, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-hidden-talent/344132/36 "2006-02-13T20:45:07Z")
> [@Stranger On A Train](#): > > I can always discern at a glance the fastest (not always the shortest) line. I dunno–I can just pick out the people who are going to cause trouble, I guess. I wish I could control traffic lights–that would be my preferred superpower–but no such luck. > > Spoon! > > Stranger Damn. I must be the evil anti-stranger as I have the exact opposite ability. No matter which line I choose, I am guaranteed to be behind the lady who is paying for half her items with a paycheck made out to her sister who is “…just outside, wait a minute while I go get her…” and the other half with an expired credit card and is convinced that the toilet paper rang up for .09 cents more than the advertised sale price and she accidentally got the lime-flavored artificial fruit drink and she _really_ wanted the lemon-lime flavor artificial flavored fruit drink… I do, however, possess an excellent sense of direction. I can fold my tongue in half both ways (length and width). I have the enviable ability to immediately locate the largest and freshest pile of dog poop in the yard…this ability is particularly acute when I am not wearing shoes. I can make entire rooms full of strangers go completely silent with an ill-timed sarcastic remark. ---
**Author:** ![Judgejudymom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f1d935/32.png) [@Judgejudymom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Judgejudymom)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2006, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-hidden-talent/344132/37 "2006-02-13T21:17:03Z")
I can bark like a dog… no really! I sound exactly like a German Shepard! Parking garages are my favorite places to scare the crap out of unsuspecting people! ---
**Author:** ![ArrMatey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/arrmatey/32/3522_2.png) [@ArrMatey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ArrMatey)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2006, 9:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-hidden-talent/344132/38 "2006-02-13T21:24:04Z")
I can tell stories. Good ones. And ones for kids… Well, I recently learned that. Spur of the moment, I made up a tale about where trees came from. Later on I made up a story about my nephew saving the world from aliens who were going to turn all food in the world into SOUP! (He hates soup). I’m rather proud of it… Although I despair of the fact that ‘storyteller’ isn’t so much of a profession any longer (and yes, I know, I’ve authored, but it’s not the same as _telling_ the story. I even try voices on occasion.). ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Carrot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f0a364/32.png) [@Captain\_Carrot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Carrot)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2006, 10:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-hidden-talent/344132/39 "2006-02-13T22:17:33Z")
> [@Kyla](#): > > I can sing the names of the presidents in order to the tune of Yankee Doodle Dandy, but only up to Bush Senior, who was president when my seventh grade history teacher made us learn it. After that, I get lost. (This is actually a pretty good party trick, if the other partygoers are drunk nerds.) Yeah, but after Bush Sr., it’s just Clinton and Bush Jr. Not that hard to remember. I can play music on my throat – and no, I don’t mean singing, although I’m pretty decent at that too. I can memorize long sets of meaningless data – I once memorized pi to 1100 places, and I’ve known the entire periodic table since fifth grade. I can crack my fingers, toes, ankles, knees, elbows, neck, and back. So almost every joint in my body. ---
**Author:** ![jawdirk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/df705f/32.png) [@jawdirk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jawdirk)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2006, 10:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-hidden-talent/344132/40 "2006-02-13T22:30:47Z")
I am the (self-proclaimed) greatest Graviton (I and II) player in the world. For those of you who haven’t heard of this computer game (and there are many of you), it is one of the ugliest, most boring, most pointless, rotating/thrusting/shooting/shields triangular spaceship shareware games ever written. It is so frustratingly difficult that most people can’t figure out how to destroy a single turret without crashing into the ground, let alone complete the first level. I on the other hand, have accomplished the following: 1. Passing all levels without using shields or dying. 2. Passing all levels without using shields or refueling (surviving on bonus ships). 3. Passing all levels with gravity reversed. 4. Manuevering in a small inclosed space with 5+ turrets firing at my ship, until my fuel runs out, without shooting, using shields or dying. Naturally I have other accomplishments that could only be comprehended by a master Graviton player. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-hidden-talent/344132.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-your-hidden-talent/344132.md?page=3)