Things You Completely Didn't Understand As a Child

[Angie]

This week's Friday thread comes off of a great suggestion from MeanDean. What are some things that you heard/read about when you were a child that you completely didn't understand?

Here's Dean's example:
For example, when I heard news about the White House, I wondered which of the white houses I'd see as we drove around, they were talking about. I also remember news about the presidential "race" and I, being about 4, thought it was literally a footrace. When I heard a couple days later about the presidential race I was impressed they could still be running after all that time.

 

[CycloneNorth]

When I was little I thought Abraham Lincoln was black.

 

[CLONECONES]

How many "adult" jokes and situations were in cartoons/movies

 

[1100011CS]

I didn't learn that spinach wasn't really seaweed until high school.

 

[acoustimac]

I thought beer tasted like crap.

Why my parent's door was locked some nights.

 

[Mr Janny]

How many "adult" jokes and situations were in cartoons/movies

yep. When i was a kid(8-9), one of my favorite movies was a Western spoof called Rustler's Rhapsody. I was too young to understand what a spoof was, so I took it at face value. Loved it. Watched it again when I was older, and I was shocked at all the innuendo, drug use, adult topics. Not a movie for kids. Then again, I didn't pick up on any of it, so...

 

[1100011CS]

yep. When i was a kid(8-9), one of my favorite movies was a Western spoof called Rustler's Rhapsody. I was too young to understand what a spoof was, so I took it at face value. Loved it. Watched it again when I was older, and I was shocked at all the innuendo, drug use, adult topics. Not a movie for kids. Then again, I didn't pick up on any of it, so...

This is the same reason my kids like Big Bang Theory. They just think the people are silly.

 

[Cycl1]

boobs

 

[cowgirl836]

tornadoes and "touching down". I remember one storm where way, way off in the distance there was a little tornado and we were in the living room watching it (it was pretty light outside our house, not dark and stormy like you would think, also just a few feet from our basement) and my mom was on the phone talking to someone saying she wanted to videotape it but was worried it would "touch down" near us. For a long time I pictured a giant finger coming out of the cloud and touching the ground.

 

[GrindingAway]

I remember I had a friend over as a kid and we started calling each other hickies. I think he started it, he had a much older sister which I'm guessing is where he heard.

I remember my mom hearing it and having to explain that didn't mean what we thought it meant.

 

[TruClone]

Why the sky was blue.

 

[Angie]

There was a certain sex act that I thought meant getting your hair dried with a blowdryer.

 

[CLONECONES]

it took me so many watches of "Tommy Boy" to understand what Chris meant when he said "YA I BET HER HUSBAND PLAYS FOR THE YANKEES!" when he caught David having some alone time at the hotel watchin the girl in the pool

 

[Trice]

There was a certain sex act that I thought meant getting your hair dried with a blowdryer.

You mean it's not?!?

 

[Angie]

You mean it's not?!?

I think if you're doing it right, it actually does.

 

[Cyclonepride]

Had a buddy who was convinced that conception involved peeing. I knew that wasn't right but didn't know exactly what it did involve. Hopefully he figured that one out before his first attempt.

 

[Bigman38]

I thought the shorthand of condominium was condom. I found out it was wrong when I told my parents that when I grew up I was going to live in a condom.

 

[Mr Janny]

Had a buddy who was convinced that conception involved peeing. I knew that wasn't right but didn't know exactly what it did involve. Hopefully he figured that one out before his first attempt.

I sit down with my daughter and I said, "Do you know how babies get here?" And she said, "Well, the lady has an egg inside of her, and the man has sperm inside of him, and the sperm meets the egg, and that's how the lady gets pregnant." And I said, "Do you know how the sperm meets the egg?" She said, "Does the man pee on the woman?" I said, "Sometimes, but that's $35 extra."
-Robert Schimmel

 

[CycloneWarning]

As a kid, had no clue the Village People had anything to do with homosexuals. Never understood the sexual inneundo of staying at the YMCA.

(not that there is anything wrong with that)

 

[Trice]

I thought the shorthand of condominium was condom. I found out it was wrong when I told my parents that when I grew up I was going to live in a condom.

This happened to me as well. I remember being in maybe 4th grade and seeing a headline that said something like, "Scientists concerned about declining sales in condoms." And I thought, why would scientists care if condos aren't selling that well? Had I gone on to read the article I probably would have learned a lot.