To ask the most basic thing you knew knew/misunderstood until adulthood - take 2

[Smotheroffive]

the last one ran out of space OP, is it too rude to do a continuation here?

I thought Houston was a person, so when they said “Houston we have a problem”, they were telling a specific person about the problem.

Aged approx 8, I , very sincerely, asked my mum what a 'zig-a-zig-aahh' was

What is it?

@PutOnYourDamnSocks why is he called Shawn?

@KinkyHair it's just a line in the Spice Girls Song 'Wannabe'

Moly - Shawn the sheep. Shorn - as in sheep - shorn fit for wool (I think lol)

random word fit in there

Mine are song related but I was in my mid 30s when I realized the Bohemian Rhapsody lyric was ‘Beelzebub has a devil put aside for me’ and not ‘Beelzebub has a devil for a son’ I always thought it didn’t scan properly but it was just weird lyrics also until about 2 years ago in Lady Gaga’s Bad Romance I thought the line was ‘’Bon Jovi Romance’ not ‘want your Bad Romance’

I honestly thought that Gibraltar was an island.

I honestly thought that Gibraltar was an island.

Is it not??

I love these type of threads, I always end up learning something new or falling down Google wormholes.

Q

I thought the place ‘Timbuktu’ was made up. Like out of space. My mum would say ‘if you don’t behave i’ll send you to Timbuktu’ so thought she was joking, as I could never possibly get there. I was about 30 when I realised it was a place

Sorry, pressed too soon - I was far too old before I realised pineapples do not grow on trees and in fact it's in the ground.
I blame Agadoo.

@SnowyAlpsandPeaks I didn't know Timbuktu was a real place either until adult.
Do you remember the Roger Hargreaves children's books where the animal characters came from Timbuctoo? I used to love them, so when I discovered Timbuktu was an actual place and not a made up one I was like I was around 30 at the time

I've just learnt pineapples don't grow on trees. I'm 32.

I thought Motherwell and Paisley were just outside London until my early 30's when I was sent to both places for work.

I also thought that trains went up and down the diamond frame of the forth rail bridge, was in my mid 30's when I was told they go through it 😂🤦‍♀️

Bit morbid but going off the previous post that said about people putting their heads in an oven to die

My DM once told me if she “had to” go she would put a hose pipe through the window of her car... I asked her why she would chose such a prolonged way to drown

Clearly she meant to put the other end in the exhaust and not turn the tap on!

@FedUpParent - what horrid things to say in front of children.

I used to sing 'Manic Monday' by The Bangles as 'just another man named Monday', I was well in to adult hood before I realised my mistake despite being well aware that what I was singing made no sense whatsoever lol

pineapples don’t grow on trees

@KinkyHair it's just a line in the Spice Girls Song 'Wannabe'

Which sounds almost exactly like the Urdu for having sex.

I was at uni with a girl who believed North to be whichever way you were facing. Shortly after she also revealed she thought your boobs filled with milk once you stopped growing & the baby somehow activated the flow!

My own personal shame was discovering age 28 that they are called rawl plugs, not wall plugs.

"I thought Motherwell and Paisley were just outside London until my early 30's when I was sent to both places for work" where were you living at the time?

I've heard the surbiton one a few times.

I'm not too bad on fictional vs real places my sense of direction though is horrific! Several times I've got lost while driving and my solution has been when seeing signs for somewhere I DO know (so know I can get home from there) I head for there then either as I said get home from there or start seeing signs for wherever "home" is

My mum (excellent sense of direction can find shortcuts within days of moving somewhere new) has been known to say "Graphista can drive a-b 100 times and will find a new route every time"

Yes as in Shorn the sheep.

@Graphista I was living in Edinburgh, where I was born and grew up. That probably makes it worse!
My new manager said I had to attend a meeting in Motherwell I panicked and thought 'How am I going to get to London!' 😂

When I was about 16 I told my mum in a way in which I thought I was gossiping, that I thought there was something romantic going on between the Queen and Phillip 🤦🏻‍♀️
Until 50 my Auntie who raised a daughter who is now a diplomat, thought the sun and moon where the same thing.
My other auntie used to sing "I'm so in love with you, 'beneath the knees'" instead of 'Denise Denise' and instead of 'I'm every woman' she'd sing "climb every woman, it's all in me."