# What strange/obscure/useless thing are you really good at? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 28, 2011, 3:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-strange-obscure-useless-thing-are-you-really-good-at/594350 "2011-08-28T03:14:19Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![rowrrbazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rowrrbazzle/32/414_2.png) [@rowrrbazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rowrrbazzle)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2011, 3:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-strange-obscure-useless-thing-are-you-really-good-at/594350/61 "2011-08-31T03:19:04Z")
I do a great voice impression of Bela Lugosi as Dracula. > [@Joey\_P](#): > > Back in school, I was the one who could read the clock during a movie. If you look right at it, the combination of a dark room and looking at the TV made it impossible to see the clock. But I found that if I looked about a foot or so to one side of it I could read it. You discovered [averted vision](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Averted_vision)! ---
**Author:** ![DaveBfd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c6cbf5/32.png) [@DaveBfd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DaveBfd)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2011, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-strange-obscure-useless-thing-are-you-really-good-at/594350/62 "2011-08-31T14:46:07Z")
> [@rogerbox](#): > > Did you freaking seriously call someone a jungle bunny on youtube? Do you know how that makes you look to civilized people? He is a friend and I was joking with him ;). Generally only people I know see my videos so I didnt expect any trouble from it heh. Looking back it was dumb to write. ---
**Author:** ![rogerbox](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/76d3ee/32.png) [@rogerbox](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rogerbox)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2011, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-strange-obscure-useless-thing-are-you-really-good-at/594350/63 "2011-08-31T16:30:23Z")
> [@DaveBfd](#): > > He is a friend and I was joking with him ;). Generally only people I know see my videos so I didnt expect any trouble from it heh. Looking back it was dumb to write. Ah okay, I definitely don’t say things around my friends I would want strangers to hear, be careful on public youtube videos man. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![DeepLiquid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/deepliquid/32/14893_2.png) [@DeepLiquid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DeepLiquid)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2011, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-strange-obscure-useless-thing-are-you-really-good-at/594350/64 "2011-08-31T17:25:17Z")
> [@KinkiNipponTourist](#): > > I can speak [ubbi dubbi](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ubbi_dubbi) in English and in Japanese–in fact, I seem to be even better at it in Japanese than in English. > > Big hit at parties, where folk are drunk enough to appreciate this amazing, thoroughly useless talent. I can speak “Gicky” or [gibberish](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gibberish_%28language_game%29) as Wikipedia calls it. My best friend and I spoke it non-stop in jr. high school, much to the annoyance of everyone we knew. And I can guess almost anyone’s weight within a pound or two. Handy if I ever decide to run away and join the circus. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2011, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-strange-obscure-useless-thing-are-you-really-good-at/594350/65 "2011-08-31T17:31:29Z")
I can burp at will. How useless is that? I’m excellent at writing song parodies. Very very few people make a living at it, particularly when they cannot sing. ---
**Author:** ![Drunky\_Smurf](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drunky_smurf/32/449_2.png) [@Drunky\_Smurf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drunky_Smurf)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2011, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-strange-obscure-useless-thing-are-you-really-good-at/594350/66 "2011-08-31T17:55:34Z")
> [@rogerbox](#): > > Did you freaking seriously call someone a jungle bunny on youtube? Do you know how that makes you look to civilized people? “Civilized people” on youtube comments? Oh, man this is funny. Thanks for the laugh. ---
**Author:** ![MaxTheVool](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9fc29f/32.png) [@MaxTheVool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MaxTheVool)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2011, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-strange-obscure-useless-thing-are-you-really-good-at/594350/67 "2011-08-31T18:07:56Z")
> [@rogerbox](#): > > I also travel and compete in tournaments for a specific version of the arcade game Streetfighter 2 that came out around 16 years ago. Super Turbo I assume? That’s my favorite version, and the one I’m best at. But I went to a small college in Pennsylvania when it was new, so while I was far and away better than anyone else there, I never could get much better than that, due to a lack of competition. I’m very good at: -skipping stones -4-square ---
**Author:** ![rogerbox](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/76d3ee/32.png) [@rogerbox](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rogerbox)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2011, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-strange-obscure-useless-thing-are-you-really-good-at/594350/68 "2011-08-31T19:22:56Z")
> [@Drunky\_Smurf](#): > > “Civilized people” on youtube comments? Oh, man this is funny. Thanks for the laugh. Of course not, I meant the people here. 😉 > [@MaxTheVool](#): > > Super Turbo I assume? Correct! ---
**Author:** ![An\_Gadai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@An\_Gadai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Gadai)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2011, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-strange-obscure-useless-thing-are-you-really-good-at/594350/69 "2011-09-01T14:55:15Z")
> [@Spoons](#): > > I can play the spoons, hence my username. > > Musical spoons, of course. I’ve played with a number of well-known, and not-so-well-known musicians in my day. Selected experiences include playing with the Barra MacNeils in St. Johns, Newfoundland; with John Allan Cameron in Uxbridge, Ontario; with the Irish Descendants in Lethbridge, Alberta; and with pub jam groups at Fionn McCool’s in Calgary, Alberta and at the Auld Triangle Pub in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Admittedly, in most of these cases, the band heard me playing in the audience, and invited me on stage to play with them, but I even had my own solo spot as part of a music and comedy revue in Edmonton, Alberta; and for a few years, before I left Ontario, I was always asked to play on St. Patrick’s Day at a pub in Sudbury, Ontario. Certainly, a number of Ontario musicians have heard me and asked me to play with them when I am in Ontario. > > Who knew a pair of spoons from the kitchen drawer could make music and be so much fun? 😃 You win the thread. ---
**Author:** ![Full\_Metal\_Lotus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/df705f/32.png) [@Full\_Metal\_Lotus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Full_Metal_Lotus)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2011, 3:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-strange-obscure-useless-thing-are-you-really-good-at/594350/70 "2011-09-02T03:06:56Z")
I can do a spot on Emo Phillips ( [Emo Phillips stand up comedy - YouTube](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ab6LWXeNDA) ) impersonation. Wierd - Check, Useless - Check, Obscure - Becoming more so since the eighties… ---
**Author:** ![alice\_in\_wonderland](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alice_in_wonderland/32/176_2.png) [@alice\_in\_wonderland](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alice_in_wonderland)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2011, 3:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-strange-obscure-useless-thing-are-you-really-good-at/594350/71 "2011-09-02T03:54:38Z")
> [@An\_Gadai](#): > > You win the thread. No way - this is obviously a USEFUL thing and thus exempt from this thread. Still very cool though. 🙂 ---
**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:** [September 2, 2011, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-strange-obscure-useless-thing-are-you-really-good-at/594350/72 "2011-09-02T04:10:05Z")
I can swear like a Cornish fishwife in Esperanto. > [@FloatyGimpy](#): > > I can talk like Kermit the Frog… Another afflicted with the Curse of the Froggy Voice? I’ve had three people in widely-separated circumstances tell me that I sound like Kermit the Frog. This is Not A Good Thing, especially when you are looking for a date or a job. > [@flatlined](#): > > Oh, and I can knit chain mail… That’s about the most worthless skill in the working world. Oh, I don’t know. Given the cutthroat nature of office politics these days, it could come in handy. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Parthol](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/dec6dc/32.png) [@Parthol](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Parthol)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2011, 5:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-strange-obscure-useless-thing-are-you-really-good-at/594350/73 "2011-09-02T05:06:55Z")
When I was growing up, my own father called me “the king of useless talents.” I can juggle, and balance things like brooms and rakes on my nose/chin/forehead. The second-most useless thing I can do is “play my throat” by making my neck taut and tapping it with my fingers (like [this guy](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hVvpN-sBcZg) is doing), but then also make the exact same sound _without using my fingers_. (It seems like magic to people at first, but I’m just using my tongue.) I can play melodies and such, and do a great imitation of someone opening and then pouring a bottle of champagne. The most useless thing I can do is imitate belches. By which I mean, literally, that, if I hear you belch in my presence, I can, within less than 2 seconds, let loose my own belch that is practically indistinguishable from yours. Sorry, ladies, I’m already married! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Melysnl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/76d3ee/32.png) [@Melysnl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Melysnl)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2011, 8:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-strange-obscure-useless-thing-are-you-really-good-at/594350/74 "2011-09-02T08:46:09Z")
I’m good at observing and telling the truth which is quite strange and doesn’t count for much in today’s culture. I wish I were a better liar. ---
**Author:** ![Melysnl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/76d3ee/32.png) [@Melysnl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Melysnl)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2011, 9:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-strange-obscure-useless-thing-are-you-really-good-at/594350/75 "2011-09-02T09:13:11Z")
A couple of other people already mentioned this, but I can also relate to being freakishly able to keep track of time. I’ve never owned a watch and probably never will and can speculate on the time, usually within minutes, or make an accurate guess at the actual time it will take to complete a given task. Both of my parents are good with time also and it obviously rubbed off on me. ---
**Author:** ![conurepete](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a88e57/32.png) [@conurepete](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/conurepete)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2011, 10:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-strange-obscure-useless-thing-are-you-really-good-at/594350/76 "2011-09-02T10:49:57Z")
I am one of the fastest face painters in the world. ---
**Author:** ![gotpasswords](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c57346/32.png) [@gotpasswords](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gotpasswords)\ **Post date:** [September 2, 2011, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-strange-obscure-useless-thing-are-you-really-good-at/594350/77 "2011-09-02T14:10:22Z")
I can set type. Sadly, that’s a useless skill, since there’s probably only about 25 surviving jobcases of type left in the country, and an acquaintance in California owns 20 of them, so my chances of ever touching type again is vanishingly small. Obscure, but not useless, is my ability to administer mainframe users in CICS and Top Secret. Not too many mainframes left, so this skill isn’t particularly transferable if I ever stop working for big banks. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2011, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-strange-obscure-useless-thing-are-you-really-good-at/594350/78 "2011-09-03T03:09:36Z")
> [@KinkiNipponTourist](#): > > . . . I’m kinda more impressed with someone who can start talking about events that happened some 60 years ago \*as she’s having cataract surgery. \* Unless it’s like LASIK, aren’t most people under anesthesia for that kind of surgery? You did well, luv, but I think the old lady won that round! 😃 No, if you’re totally under, your eye’s gonna wander all over the place. You need to be awake (but relaxed) to control it. ---
**Author:** ![Silver\_Tyger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/fbc32d/32.png) [@Silver\_Tyger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Silver_Tyger)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2011, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-strange-obscure-useless-thing-are-you-really-good-at/594350/79 "2011-09-03T03:20:00Z")
I can put my ankles to the top of my head. I can imitate cats, including meowing, purring, and hissing. ---
**Author:** ![notfrommensa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/f14d63/32.png) [@notfrommensa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/notfrommensa)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2011, 3:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-strange-obscure-useless-thing-are-you-really-good-at/594350/80 "2011-09-03T03:35:40Z")
I have always been a fairly big guy but with amazing flexibility, with no real effort. Up until about 10 yrs ago, I could touch my elbows behind my back. w/o assistance. I have an amazing recollection of phone numbers. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-strange-obscure-useless-thing-are-you-really-good-at/594350.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-strange-obscure-useless-thing-are-you-really-good-at/594350.md?page=5)