Page 18 | What other commonly known stuff should I know, but don’t?

sueelleker · 29/06/2023 17:35

RicherThanYews · 28/06/2023 01:37

That most if not all city buses require you to have the correct change when paying with cash. The buses in the little village where I grew up did not so it was quite a shock to be spoken to thusly:

Me: a single to Blah Blah street please, here's a five.
Bus driver: ARGH! CORRECT CHANGE ONLY! Off you go.

In Brighton, we've only had that since Covid. If you didn't have the right money, they'd give you a voucher instead of change; that you could use on another bud.

BlueThursday · 29/06/2023 17:45

FatOaf · 29/06/2023 13:02

I swear every car I buy has the petrol cap on the opposite side to the last one, so I can never remember which side it is

Usually, it's on the left on cars built for the British, Japanese, Indian, etc., markets (i.e. countries where we drive on the left), and on the right on others. Most multinationals build cars for multiple markets and tend to have the cap on the right-hand side for the European and American markets; while they alter the controls for models to be sold in countries that drive on the left, they don't change the bodywork.

DH and I both have Nissans. His cap is on the left; mine on the right.

clearly they want to trick with me. Luckily the wee arrow is on both 😀

Georgyporky · 29/06/2023 17:59

SirQuintusAureliusMaximus · 29/06/2023 17:29

@Georgyporky
Cleaning silver; the easiest way to remove tarnish from small things is with a rubber - the sort used on pencils, not dicks.

With a rubber? That's not easy and fiddly!

The easiest way to remove tarnis from silver is to put it in a bucket or cup or something it fits in that is lined with aluminum foil shiny side up so it is in contact with the foil bung some bicarbonate of soda/ baking soda and boiling/hot water. Leave it. You don't need to lift a finger.

The tarnish is removed by electrolytic action instead of chemical-polish abrasion and doesn't damage the metal. It works very well on heavy tarnish and you can put a few things in at one time.

Great method.

Not when a piece of jewellery has a note attached telling you to use this method, as other components could be damaged - even by water.

jacqui27 · 29/06/2023 18:05

Unfortunately it's not true. Certainly not I'm my car anyway.

ilovepixie · 29/06/2023 18:12

TheDinosaurDuchess · 28/06/2023 00:13

Talking to my colleagues the other day, I discovered I knew something they didn't.

Your petrol gauge in your car tells you what side your fuel cap is on.

I knew this, they didn't. They returned to the office the next day shocked by this revelation, because they checked their cars on the drive home, and yes the gauge did indicate the side the cap is on 🤣

Not every car does this. Mine doesn't.

Justontherightsideofnormal · 29/06/2023 18:32

Chefox · 28/06/2023 08:24

Never mix bleach with anything except water and make sure you flush before going to loo. When I leave bleach in the toilet I put a little warning sign with tissue on the top so everyone knows to flush first. Your own urine (amonia) causes a small reaction to the bleach and gives off chlorine gas in small amounts.

Whenever I put bleach in the toilets I put the lid down and pop the bottle on the lid (no small dc here)

Justontherightsideofnormal · 29/06/2023 18:36

I am absolutely outing myself here however I got a lift with a (superb) work colleague when it was frosty once. She put on her air con ...... she thought the snowflake button was what you pressed to clear a frosty car 😂

Emptyandsad · 29/06/2023 18:38

ChiefWiggumsBoy · 29/06/2023 09:47

On the flip side, I've only driven one car that has had this (Ford Fiesta) and I've driven a lot of different cars as I used to rent them for work trips.

My current car (Nissan Qashqai) doesn't.

Show quote history

This is the dashboard of a Nissan Qashqai. It has a little arrow/triangle which points to the side where the filler is (circled)

What other commonly known stuff should I know, but don’t?

twinkletoesfairy · 29/06/2023 18:39

'www' is longer to say than 'world wide web' !

MerryHen · 29/06/2023 18:40

wildfirewonder · 28/06/2023 18:20

'W' is the only letter of the alphabet which is pronounced using its actual letter. I do not understand this one at all

Wubble-ewe

Justontherightsideofnormal · 29/06/2023 18:41

You can use latex gloves to pluck the middle of your unibrow, or legs or anything else you may want to pluck

rosyAndMoo · 29/06/2023 18:41

petalsandstars · 28/06/2023 17:49

The new random number/letter combos on veg etc instead of dates are dates in disguise.

ie F30 = June 30. A-Jan, b-feb etc

This one is blooming useful!

fivetonap · 29/06/2023 18:46

TheMildManneredMilitant · 28/06/2023 19:11

Lots of tubes that come with a foil seal under the outer lid, like those you get tomato puree or hydrocortisone cream or whatever in, also have a sharp point in the lid. First use - take the outer lid off, turn it upside down, and use the point to pierce the foil.

Took me approx 40 years to learn this.

What on Earth where you doing before?!

Justontherightsideofnormal · 29/06/2023 18:49

You cannot stick your fingers down your dogs throat to make them sick ...... my dog had gotten hold of an Easter egg and I was worried sick it would make her very Ill I thought the quickest cure would be to help her be sick..... how wrong was I 😳

User34352515 · 29/06/2023 18:50

In terms of general life safety, not strictly a life hack, but electric scooters are incredibly dangerous. Fatal injuries can happen at relatively low speeds, without any third-party collision when not wearing a helmet. The best thing you can do for your kids is encourage them not to use those scooters.

merryhouse · 29/06/2023 18:53

@PrueRamsay when you've dried it with kitchen towel, fill the hole with bicarb and then add hot water

Lincslady53 · 29/06/2023 18:53

Spidey66 · 28/06/2023 21:56

Not in London. They're all cashless. Oystercards, debit or credit cards, or Apple/Google pay. You get on a bus in London with cash and they won't let you on without contacless,

Show quote history

We have just come back from Mallorca. When you get on a bus, tap your credit it debit card. When you get off, tap it again and you are charged the fare for the journey. If you forget on the way out, you get charged the full journey plus 30 cents extra. A really good, easy to use system. You could also pay cash, but were charged more.

NickyT64 · 29/06/2023 18:58

GeriatricMumma · 28/06/2023 18:05

You can use the round end of a key instead of a £1 in the supermarket trolley

Your left thumb and index finger make an 'L' for left.

Turn your bedsheets inside out and it's easier to flip on the duvet.

'W' is the only letter of the alphabet which is pronounced using its actual letter.

W???? I don’t get it!

Pinkrinse · 29/06/2023 19:08

RunningUpThatMill · 28/06/2023 01:26

If you buy tin foil and keep it in the box, there are 2 little punched pieces at each end of the box and if you press them in, it keeps the tin foil roll in place. I found this out a couple of weeks ago reading something on here. Don't know who to credit sorry.

Also, I'm surprised at the amount of people I've spoken to who thought dairy cows lactated naturally - that includes a medical doctor.

i worked with a woman who lived on a farm and didn’t know this 😂

Kindofcrunchy · 29/06/2023 19:10

whiteroseredrose · 29/06/2023 05:53

@NamechangerGamechangerrr

I think you are right. The RSPCA website says that dairy cows give birth every year and are culled at about 6.

This is why I could never buy dairy products again. Obviously they are "just cows" but still, removing babies repeatedly is pretty fucking cruel.

Ilovecleaning · 29/06/2023 19:14

wildfirewonder · 28/06/2023 18:20

'W' is the only letter of the alphabet which is pronounced using its actual letter. I do not understand this one at all

Me neither

SaponificationQueen · 29/06/2023 19:26

Lolabear38 · 27/06/2023 23:55

I found out maybe 6 months ago that you should clean out the filter in your tumble dryer on a regular basis, as it gets full of fluff and lint and is a fire hazard. I had no idea. I’m an educated woman, generally reasonably intelligent and practical, I just had no idea you were supposed to do this. I don’t know how. My friend mentioned it in relation to something and I immediately told my husband who looked at me like some kind of moron - turns out he’s been doing it for years!

I’ve been thinking about it recently and I’m starting to wonder what other commonly known stuff you’re supposed to be doing in day to day life that I’m just not. Any ideas? Can be household related or just general life stuff really. I’m starting to wonder what I might be missing out on/ putting us in danger of.

Quite a few years ago when I lived in a different neighborhood, a loud bang happened just 2 doors down. Then the darkest black smoke I have ever seen was pouring out the front of the house. It turned out they had a gas dryer and never cleaned the lint trap. It completely gutted their house. The noise was deafening. I was surprised that they didn’t know to clean out the lint trap. I thought this was common knowledge.

kennycat · 29/06/2023 19:36

GeriatricMumma · 28/06/2023 18:05

You can use the round end of a key instead of a £1 in the supermarket trolley

Your left thumb and index finger make an 'L' for left.

Turn your bedsheets inside out and it's easier to flip on the duvet.

'W' is the only letter of the alphabet which is pronounced using its actual letter.

No you’ve lost me. Double u doesn’t have a w sound in it…

comeondover · 29/06/2023 19:45

@PrueRamsay if you prod it, it will likely bung up more. You could try using a syringe. Put the end of the empty syringe in the hole and pull the plunger out towards you. It should bring out any gubbins. You can get syringes from a chemist or online. They come in handy at odd times, for getting fluids out of small spaces mostly.

FindingNeverland28 · 29/06/2023 19:48

GeriatricMumma · 28/06/2023 18:05

You can use the round end of a key instead of a £1 in the supermarket trolley

Your left thumb and index finger make an 'L' for left.

Turn your bedsheets inside out and it's easier to flip on the duvet.

'W' is the only letter of the alphabet which is pronounced using its actual letter.

This brings me to mine and it’s a real pet peeve. The letter H is not pronounced haitch. It’s pronounced aitch. It drives me mad when I listen to alphabet songs from YouTube with the kids at school and it’s pronounced haitch. I have to stop the video to tell the kids.