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There’s nothing quite like being in your own company. It’s a pure judgement-free zone⁠—no pressure to show off, no expectations met by reality, no strange looks given as you’re voicing all the nonsense out loud in an empty room.

And interestingly, some of the most unusual behavior happens while we’re on our own. In fact, the things we do are so random, we don’t really talk about them. Ever. Like doing a remote trace or aligning your feet to the tiles so you won’t die.

Bored Panda has compiled a list of all the odd things we all do but never dare to tell, not even in truth or dare. And you know what? It's better off that way.

Humor plays a vital role in younger generations’ communication and media consumption. But Gen Z and millennials are renowned for what’s called absurdist, surrealist, and often dark comedy full of dank memes and observational one-liners.

In order to get this sense of humor, one has to understand the context in which the youngest generations came to live. In the past decade, the world has been bursting with information which is “both more accessible and less reliable,” writes The Washington Post. “Brands pose as a friend on social media to millennial consumers, and the line between real and artificial matters less than it once did.”

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Another explanation is that such surreal humor is a response to a world that has stopped making sense. According to Andrew DeYoung, the director of 555 and editor on The Eric Andre Show, the Adult Swim school of comedy is designed to “reflect the frenetic distribution of information on the internet.” And that’s why most of their shows are so chaotic and absurd.

Since there’s no time for a narrative joke to be said online, traditional punchline structure doesn’t work. “Instead, things are funny because they are willfully jarring and strange,” writes Rachel Aroesti for The Guardian. Weird Twitter and bizarre dank memes are perfect examples of how millennials break down the joke, decontextualize it, and create utter randomness.

#7

Picking A Song

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Foxxy (The Original)
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

That is definitely a hard one but considering the situation I would be in that I had 6mins to live, I would probably listen to Always look on the bright side of life from Monty Python.

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#8

Things Causing Anxiety

Things Causing Anxiety

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Liam Walsh
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

When the cashier gives you the change by placing notes on your palm and then the coins on top... awkward shuffling around of money ensues.

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#9

Standing In The Way

Standing In The Way

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Foxxy (The Original)
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

If a person is there trying to make a decision or taking too long I just say excuse me please and grab what I want.

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#13

Security Sensors

Security Sensors

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Peter Korpershoek
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I once got 'caught' by a store manager after the alarm went off, i was 12. I patiently waited right after the sirene, but nobody showed up. I got some angry faces from customers and personnel. I tested the alarm again by swinging my plastic bag trough the gates, it went off again. Nobody showed up... After one minute i started walking back to my bike, and right then someone grabbed me by the neck. He dragged me roughly to a small office where i had to empty my pockets and bag. He checked the receipt and saw that I didn't steel anything. He tested the alarm with my bag, it went off. They seem to have forgotten to remove a tag. I was 19 when i had the guts to enter that store again.

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#14

Sleep Time

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Kaisu
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

It's the best feeling ever, knowing you can have lots more sleep! Like waking up at 7 but then remembering it's the weekend and you can go back to sleep

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#15

Auto Pilot

Auto Pilot

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james_fox1984 avatar
Foxxy (The Original)
Community Member
3 years ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

That’s a bit dangerous. Although I have walked to the shops and as I am almost half way home I have thought “I don’t even remember walking to the shops”. It’s like I was just suddenly placed there without knowing how I got there. Does that make sense? Kind of like I was on auto pilot.

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Rissie
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Nah. Your brain is just dismissing the memory while actually working at normal capacity for the task. If for some reason anything out of the ordinary happen your mind is there at the same speed as if you were not thinking of anything else. It's just the nice constant of "working" on something that suddenly makes you aware you are dismissing a lot. But actually you do the exact same thing all the other times with the necessary info. You remember anything out of the ordinary, the rest is dismissed and filled in by memory when you look back. And on familiar roads there is just so little to do, your mind can do so much other stuff it feels like this.

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James Pointer
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I do this riding a push bike, that's why I've chosen so far not to learn to drive. (now 28). I get distracted and don't look where I am going, I'd rather not put myself or others in larger danger

dodsonmichelle avatar
Celtic Pirate Queen
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Or realize you're home without any recollection of the drive getting there (completely sober, BTW)?

azziza avatar
Azziza
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

It's very common to go on autopilot when driving a very familiar route.

melloncollie avatar
MellonCollie
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Yep, this has already happened ... or when you drive somewhere, which happens to be a road that leads to several points you sometimes drive to, and all of a sudden autopilot takes over and you start driving to somewhere else instead of your original destination???

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Kristina Thomas
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

My husband and I have both, and It's usually to jobs we worked at a long time ago. Haha

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Shaun Coleman
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I used to commute to another city. It was 45 minute drive. Some mornings when I got to the office I didn't remember the drive or how I got there! Now that's a WTF!

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Logan Slaughter
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Short-term memories, registered as unnecessary in the long-term, and therefore dumped.

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R L
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Yes, with regularity. Somewhat scary. I hope I would notice a red light and not leave carnage behind me.

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kennedy longworth
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Am I the only one who automatically sleeps 4 more hours on the 1st day of summer?

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Jo Choto
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I so often drive on autopilot. It’s quite disturbing how competent I am at this.

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Elaine Mattingly
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I found myself at a store once. Sleepwalking& driving!!Thank goodness I didn't hurt anyone. I'd never left the house before or sense.

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Heather Reynolds Atwood
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Coming home from a night shift as a nurse, I remember looking at a stoplight at a MAJOR intersection, it was green but then I literally fell asleep driving through it and woke up on the other side. OMG!!! Thank Heaven it was 7:45 on a Sunday or I'd be dead!!!

sfoxly avatar
Billy Haake
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Believe it or not, this is normal. According to Dr. Betty Edwards in "Drawing On The Right Side Of The Brain, driving is a right-brain function (it's explained more fully in her book). Think about it: You've done this countless times and you've reached your destination and never had a wreck, right?

georgehudacko_1 avatar
George Hudacko
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

B***h ! Wake up become 'mindful-aware' for like a month or two and then ask the question!!!

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Sue Knerl
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I was doing deliveries while at work, totally spaced out where I was headed and ended up at my mom's house. Just drove there on auto pilot.

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BabyBooby
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Sometimes get all the home and don't even remember the route I took😂🤣🤭

nubmaeme avatar
Nubmaeme
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Not 5 mins - over 2 hours! I was going home about sunset from getting groceries. I was turning at an intersection 2.5 miles from my home. The next thing I knew it was two hours later, dark as could be, and I didn't recognize the road I was on. I drove for a short distance, but didn't recognize anything, so I turned around and drove a few miles in the other direction. Finally saw a familiar sign and realized that somehow I was now about 10 miles from home and in the opposite direction with no idea how I got there.

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Kristina Thomas
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Scary! Were you sick or something? That happened to my mom walking once, who has a lot of health conditions, in the middle of the day. She was genuinely lost for a while. So ASAP another day she went and got a CAT scan. It was normal. Such a mystery.

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heathervance avatar
AzKhaleesi
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I drive an hour each way to work and no lie one night after I got off of work (and three doubles in a row) I pulled into my driveway like wait.... wtf just happened, I remembered NONE of the drive.

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Kenny Kulbiski
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Good to know. I thought maybe I was losing it a couple of times.

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Nevid
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Sometimes, when I'm waiting at a traffic light and it turns green, I start and after I crossed the intersection, I notice the car behind me is still stopped so I wonder if I actually started at a red light.

jessgunn77 avatar
JessG
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This is actually self hypnosis. If this happens a lot, you know that it's possible for you to be hypnotized

emmterry avatar
*sigh*, The Yellow Teletubby
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I, unlike a lot of people, actually LIKE being on "autopilot". I trust my body to follow my muscle memory, and my brain to do the hard thinking and decisions so I can just relax and not pay attention much and just forget I'm a living being and the fact that I have problems to worry about. It's kind of like an escape from the real world, but in my head.

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Queen Vita
Community Member
3 years ago (edited)

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Nope, never did that... Please be concentrated while driving, don't let anything or anyone distract you!

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Kesam
Community Member
3 years ago

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That's what I was thinking too! Whoever drives around like that should hand in their license.

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#19

Just Adult Things

Just Adult Things

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#21

Walking By

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juice
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

also works when you make awkward eye contact with strangers and don't want to be perceived as rude

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#23

Leaving Without Buying

Leaving Without Buying

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Nea
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

So often i buy things that will eventually be used like kitchen towels just to avoid this...

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#24

Shipping Rates

Shipping Rates

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#26

Well Deserved Rest

Well Deserved Rest

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#27

Just Do Nothing

Just Do Nothing

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#28

Silent Mode

Silent Mode

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#30

Sleeping Pose

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#33

Blanket Choice

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hispanic! at the disco
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I always put one foot in and one foot out. I remember reading it controlled the temperature of your body.

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#34

Package Tracking

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#38

Checking Yourself Out

Checking Yourself Out

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#39

Forgetfulness

Forgetfulness

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Kaisa
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

It is almost like forgetting that the same thing was posted already

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Note: this post originally had 63 images. It’s been shortened to the top 39 images based on user votes.