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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

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
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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
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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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Foxxy (The Original)
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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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#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

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#28

Silent Mode

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#30

Sleeping Pose

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

Yes, i tried sleeping on my back and could never fall asleep. It ws very uncomfortable.

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

I have to lie on my side. That doesn't even look comfortable.

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

As long as I'm two feet from the side of the bed with no body parts hanging off for the boogie man, I'm golden

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

When I was a kid I once woke up turned 90 degrees to the side with my head off the bed and a cat across my neck. I still think the cat did it somehow.

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

I have straight neck syndrome. And also curvatures in my spine, I feel this post. No sleeping position is comfortable 😂

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

I'm never comfortable either, but I'm also immensely surprised people say to sleep with their neck at a diagonal. I'm 37 and never seen this!

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

that but like half my body hanging off the bed whilst I reside in a warm blanket burrito

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

Yeah. I always get a laugh at out of people who give extended advice on how to lie in bed or sit on a chair. Our ancestors crossed the plains in horse-draw wagons, with nothing to eat but what they could hunt along the way, fighting off hostile Indian attacks ... and we obsess about lying in bed in a position that might be slightly uncomfortable.

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

My blankets usually look like a war went on. Between Eli, Sora, and my insomnia, things get wrecked. This morning I woke up to a ball of blankets that i was under, but they were in a giant ball just sitting on top of me.

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

Ughhhh my husband is like that and it really bothers me and confuses me. Even more confusing, before we had kids he instead wrapped himself like a burrito.

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Esther Evans
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

How do you even do that?? In the correct pic you have nothing supporting your upper back....

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

Ever wake up to find that you somehow folded your ear over and have been laying on it that way all night. Then as a result, your ear really hurts.

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

I've always marveled how people can sleep on their backs like that. My lower back freezes up after a few minutes.

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Jolee Hang
Community Member
3 years ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

In sixth grade, my mom pressured me into wrestling, and I got a back injury (I don't know if it was minor, major, semi-permanent, etc cetera). I was trying to do a backbend with a guy that was, like, three times my weight on me, and got injured. For the next few weeks, it hurt, but one day, I woke up really hurting, and then I was able to manage walking down the stairs. Fast forward thirty minutes to my mom finding my in tears on the couch, curled into a fetal position, because that seemed to be the only position that didn't at least double the pain. And I never cry over pain. So mom took me to the UR and they gave me some stretches to do to help the pain. I slept in that position for the next year or so, with it being the only painless way I could sleep, and then for another two and a half years on my side, requiring a particular pillow that was stiff enough that I didn't hurt my neck, which was also injured by extension. I just recently started needing to sleep on my back, and for a little while, I had to stack pillows to put my legs on, or else my neck wasn't at the right angle and hurt. I kept needing to add to the stack, though, and after a month or so, it got to the point where I literally could not stack them any higher without them falling over. I had to work my way back down, and Mom bought me a specialized pillow for my feet.

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

That makes me feel uneasy just looking at it. If I ever got into a position like that, someone would have to call 911 to get me out of it.

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#33

Blanket Choice

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

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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.