Things our parents told us that we still wonder about...

[J-rap]

For example, my mother once pulled me aside to tell me that if we ever run out of water, we can always drink and cook with the water in the toilet tank if necessary, because despite it being part of the toilet, that water is actually clean.  Okaaayyy....  So, why did she tell me this?   :D  Did she really think there might be a time when this is the only water left to drink in our entire city?  And is it really that clean?

 

I should have added:  Can you think of things your parents told you that you're still scratching your head about?

Edited July 24, 2017 by J-rap

[Elizabeth86]

I always hated that cold/rainy weather would make you catch cold. People still spew this nonsense.

[Ravin]

The water in the toilet tank is clean in the sense of, it hasn't touched any of the icky sewery parts of the toilet yet. Depending on the age of the toilet and the likelihood that it's never been cleaned...I'd probably want to boil it before drinking it.

 

I figure cold/rainy weather 1. makes you cold, which lowers your immune system's defenses and 2. pushes people into closer proximity in warm spaces, making for more exposure to viruses.

 

My dad told me that if I ever drive into sniper fire, the smart thing to do is haul it in reverse to get out of range faster. I've never been able to test that one on a practical level, fortunately.

 

 

[maize]

toilet tank water really is fine to use and yes that information could be helpful in an emergency.

[Tanaqui]

Unless you have an unusual system, the water that goes to the toilet is the same water that goes to the sinks. The water itself is clean and potable right up until you poop in it.

 

However, some systems are set up such that the water that goes into the toilet is not potable. Other systems - and this is rare - fill the tank with run-off from the sinks (a "graywater" system). That water is also not potable. And anyway, as was stated upthread, though the water is clean at point of entry, it's probable that your tank just isn't very clean for storing water. Why would it be? That's a last resort measure.

 

With that said, I've actually told my kids the same thing, because our flush handle comes off the chain a few times a year, and I got tired of them ewing dramatically as I reattached it.

 

I always hated that cold/rainy weather would make you catch cold. People still spew this nonsense.

 

And they argue with you! So frustrating.

 

I hate that line about how toilets or sinks swirl based on the Coriolis effect. A little bit of simple observation would demonstrate to them that this is not the case, but they don't do it. The Coriolis effect causes really big things like storms to swirl differently based on whether they're above or below the equator - but it doesn't affect the water going down the drain. (Oh, I suppose it could if your sink or toilet was perfectly shaped, with not even the tiniest, most insignificant imperfection... but it ain't. So it doesn't.)

[Lady Florida.]

I always hated that cold/rainy weather would make you catch cold. People still spew this nonsense.

 

Or going outside with wet hair. Or sitting on the cold ground (like a porch step). 

[Janeway]

The bunny moved to the farm. So did the dog. I never saw this farm. Whose farm was it anyway? And why was the bunny sleeping when he left? Hmmmm.....

[Tanaqui]

At least "the bunny moved to the farm" is better than "Well, we told you our neighbor's rabbit wasn't a pet! Have some more dinner, it's rabbit stew."

 

Thanks, Grandma. Thaaaaaanks.

[Liz CA]

At least "the bunny moved to the farm" is better than "Well, we told you our neighbor's rabbit wasn't a pet! Have some more dinner, it's rabbit stew."

 

Thanks, Grandma. Thaaaaaanks.

 

A neighbor's Dad would say: "It's been years I had chicken with ears." This way the (younger) kids did not know they were eating rabbit. :)

[MommyLiberty5013]

Or going outside with wet hair. Or sitting on the cold ground (like a porch step).

I think sitting on the cold ground lowers your body temp. Campers, military, or preppers, would wisely insulate themselves from the ground with supplies or gear, or would even use branches. Obviously this is for longer periods of time like if one were sleeping there. But one can get a chill being on bare earth.

 

With the wet hair, I think that's tied into losing heat out of the top of the head, which is the highest heat loss place on the body.

[Julie Smith]

However, some systems are set up such that the water that goes into the toilet is not potable. Other systems - and this is rare - fill the tank with run-off from the sinks (a "graywater" system). That water is also not potable.

  

 

I remember an international event was hosted at a venu that used grey water in the toilets. For some reason I don't remember the venu had to post signs stating, "don't drink out of the toilet." This was followed up with Locals wondering about what the internationals think about them due to those signs.

 

Or going outside with wet hair. Or sitting on the cold ground (like a porch step).

 

Years ago when I was a nanny we were in the middle of a heat wave. I took the kids swimming and then drove them home. The dad was home when we got home and was annoyed that I let his daughter come home with wet hair and insisted that I blow dry her hair immediately. ??? He was very worried about her catching a cold. ... in the middle of a heat wave.

[Lady Florida.]

I think sitting on the cold ground lowers your body temp. Campers, military, or preppers, would wisely insulate themselves from the ground with supplies or gear, or would even use branches. Obviously this is for longer periods of time like if one were sleeping there. But one can get a chill being on bare earth.

 

With the wet hair, I think that's tied into losing heat out of the top of the head, which is the highest heat loss place on the body.

 

Yes, sitting on the cold ground can make you feel cold but it cannot make you catch a cold. A "chill"  doesn't give you a cold. And contrary to popular belief, being cold actually stimulates your immune system, it doesn't weaken it.

[Elizabeth86]

I just got what op meant. Like do I still wonder if it is true. I was thinking do I wonder why they would say that.

Edited July 24, 2017 by Elizabeth86

[Julie Smith]

I just got what op meant. Like do I still wonder if it is true. I was thinking do I wonder why they would say that.

 

When I was a kid, it was more, "Why would you DO that". 

 

Once when I had friends over my mom insisted on: 

 

1. Filling a condom with water in the bathtub to see how big it would get before bursting. 

 

2. Explaining with the add of a catheter, how to insert one. 

 

... 

[QueenCat]

When I was a kid, it was more, "Why would you DO that". 

 

Once when I had friends over my mom insisted on: 

 

1. Filling a condom with water in the bathtub to see how big it would get before bursting. 

 

2. Explaining with the add of a catheter, how to insert one. 

 

... 

 

:lol:  Oh my!

[SKL]

Yes, the source of the water is the same as the sink tap, but I wouldn't drink ours because:

 

1) I wouldn't drink from anything that has held standing water for decades without being cleaned.

 

2) We put a chlorine tablet in our toilet tank, so now it's bleach water.

 

If you don't use bleach, it would be fine to wash with it and maybe OK to drink if you boil it.

[aggieamy]

My dad once told me that a car antenna makes a great weapon in a street fight.

 

Might be useful someday.

 

I. sure. hope. not.

[Tanaqui]

Danae, thank you for saying that for me. That experiment was fatally flawed, but people pass it around like fact.

 

As for the condoms, I recently found out my kids had been making condom water balloons. Which... okay, but I figure if they're comfortable playing with them now, they'll be comfortable using them later. That's the important thing, though I did lecture them on the subject. We actually have a bunch of expired condoms they could've used, which I saved in case I ever get called upon to give an impromptu demonstration. (Using a banana!)

[MommyLiberty5013]

Yes, sitting on the cold ground can make you feel cold but it cannot make you catch a cold. A "chill"  doesn't give you a cold. And contrary to popular belief, being cold actually stimulates your immune system, it doesn't weaken it.

I didn't say the ground could make someone catch a cold as in an illness. Germs do that. But I took your point a step beyond to why we may still wish to insulate the against the ground.

 

As a point of information just in general and not directed at you, being chilled does stimulate the immune system. It can also contribute to hypothermia, which is why people insulate against the ground to help the body overall stay warm. It does not even have to be that cold out to get hypothermia either.

 

But no, someone won't get an illness from lack of ground covering.

 

[Julie Smith]

I know I tell my kids lots of weird useless information.

 

I even have a series of books called, "Utterly useless Information"

[Word Nerd]

My grandma swears she saw a hoop snake rolling itself down the road when she was a girl. False memory, I'm assuming, as she's not the type to pull your leg, but I always thought it was a bizarre story.

Edited July 24, 2017 by Word Nerd

[Debbi in Texas]

I remember hearing that one could catch a cold by going to bed with wet hair.

 

My mother also believes that her shoes will stretch if she wears them with pantyhose, well knee highs.

[J-rap]

Oh, and one from my grandmother.  She always seemed very sensible, but swore that if you were blending batter or eggs or whatever with a non-electric hand-mixer and then switched directions, it would "un-mix" it.

[Tanaqui]

Oh, and one from my grandmother.  She always seemed very sensible, but swore that if you were blending batter or eggs or whatever with a non-electric hand-mixer and then switched directions, it would "un-mix" it.

 

Did you ever demonstrate to her that this was false? It's easy enough to prove....

[trulycrabby]

My dad wouldn't let me wash my hair when I was sick; his reasoning was, "because I was sick." Hours of discussion ensued...

 

"Will it make me sicker?"

"No."

"Then can I wash my hair?"

"No."

""Will it make me stay sick longer?"

"No."

"Then can I wash my hair?"

"No."

"Then why not?"

"Because I said so."

 

It wasn't until I was in my twenties that I realized it was because my dad thought it was hilarious that I would panic because I couldn't wash my hair. He was basically yanking my chain. He grew up in a family of ten children and they teased each other mercilessly. :)

[Ravin]

Yes, sitting on the cold ground can make you feel cold but it cannot make you catch a cold. A "chill"  doesn't give you a cold. And contrary to popular belief, being cold actually stimulates your immune system, it doesn't weaken it.

 

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/next/body/scientists-finally-prove-cold-weather-makes-sick/

[gardenmom5]

my grandmother would dismiss people as "not our kind of people".  honestly? what does that even mean?

[medawyn]

The bunny moved to the farm. So did the dog. I never saw this farm. Whose farm was it anyway? And why was the bunny sleeping when he left? Hmmmm.....

 

Our dog went to Montana.  I was in my twenties before I had a "wait a minute..." moment.

[maize]

Yes, the source of the water is the same as the sink tap, but I wouldn't drink ours because:

 

1) I wouldn't drink from anything that has held standing water for decades without being cleaned.

 

2) We put a chlorine tablet in our toilet tank, so now it's bleach water.

 

If you don't use bleach, it would be fine to wash with it and maybe OK to drink if you boil it.

Your pipes hold standing water every day when the water isn't actually running from a tap. I assume you do not clean them.

 

Most municipalities put bleach in their water.

[slackermom]

When I was a young teenager in the 80's, my dad told me that our phones were monitored and that he had access to aerial footage of our neighborhood (on a military base). I was never quite sure if he was saying it just to make sure I behaved, or if it was true.

[Artichoke]

My dad wouldn't let me wash my hair when I was sick; his reasoning was, "because I was sick." Hours of discussion ensued...

 

"Will it make me sicker?"

"No."

"Then can I wash my hair?"

"No."

""Will it make me stay sick longer?"

"No."

"Then can I wash my hair?"

"No."

"Then why not?"

"Because I said so."

 

It wasn't until I was in my twenties that I realized it was because my dad thought it was hilarious that I would panic because I couldn't wash my hair. He was basically yanking my chain. He grew up in a family of ten children and they teased each other mercilessly. :)

 

 

Part of "the talk" from my grandma including not washing my hair during "that time".   Never did figure that one out!

[Tanaqui]

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/next/body/scientists-finally-prove-cold-weather-makes-sick/

 

That same article has two quotes from doctors questioning an important aspect of the study:

 

The team published its study this week in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

“I found the work to be fascinating and convincing,†said Dr. James E. Gern, a pediatrician at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine, who was not involved in the study. But he cautioned that rhinoviruses infecting cells in a dish may not behave as they would in, say, a wheezing subway commuter.

 

“A main problem is that none of the experiments are done in living animals,†said Vincent Racaniello, a virologist at Columbia University who was not involved in the study.

 

And really, the logical conclusion to all this is that we simply need to keep our noses warm - our hair can be as wet as we like, and the rest of us can freeze, so long as our nostrils are nice and toasty.

[elegantlion]

More of an action than a story. If you are cold and your kids are sleeping, they must be cold too, so cover them up. I cannot count the number of times my mom would come in and try to cover me up because she was cold. Usually I was not and would either refuse the covers or kick them off once she left the room. 

 

I got the wet hair thing a lot too. 

[dancingmama]

My mom told me that if I showered the first day of my period it would stop it and that that was bad. I never understood that at all. Why wouldn't you want to stop it? Besides the first day of my period I usually feel grossest (it's usually my heaviest day). I spent years not being allowed to shower the first day of my period before I found a way to shower before she could stop me.

[J-rap]

Did you ever demonstrate to her that this was false? It's easy enough to prove....

 

No.  She died when I was 16, and I guess it never occurred to me then to prove her wrong!  

[SKL]

Your pipes hold standing water every day when the water isn't actually running from a tap. I assume you do not clean them.

 

Most municipalities put bleach in their water.

 

Yeah, I don't think it's the same.  And even if it is, I'll pass.  :P  Once I decided to clean the inside of the toilet tank (don't ask me why), and it was pretty nasty.

 

I mean if it's a choice between a drink of tank water and dying of thirst, I'll drink a little, but ....

[teachermom2834]

When I was 5yo, out of the blue, my mom had "the talk" with me. I hadn't been wondering or asking questions or anything. Then, never another word.

 

I have wondered about that so many times. Why 5yo? Why all that information? Why never a follow up?

 

Such an odd way to handle it in my mind.

[Janeway]

Oh..and this one my grandpa told me. During WW2 in the Navy, he and his buddies were on leave. He said they stayed in a cabin in the hills and spent their time drinking and playing cards. I asked him what they were drinking. He said orange juice. 

[Southern Ivy]

I was always told to eat the crust of my sandwich because that's where all the vitamins were. It wasn't until last year, when I said it to my daughter, that I really thought about it and realized they lied to me. lol 

Just dancing blissfully through life, I guess. 

Edited July 25, 2017 by Southern Ivy

[Guest]

The bunny moved to the farm. So did the dog. I never saw this farm. Whose farm was it anyway? And why was the bunny sleeping when he left? Hmmmm.....

Yeah, when I was a kid it was, "Oh, yeah, the cat Sam. He ran away." My ass he ran away!

 

Also, once when our dog had (unintentional) puppies, the puppies ALL went to "new homes" in a single school day. More like ONE home - the pound.

[Guest]

My mom told me that if I showered the first day of my period it would stop it and that that was bad. I never understood that at all. Why wouldn't you want to stop it? Besides the first day of my period I usually feel grossest (it's usually my heaviest day). I spent years not being allowed to shower the first day of my period before I found a way to shower before she could stop me.

When I was around 12, my best friend had a little book that had been her mother's about how to manage your period. That little tidbit was actually in the published book! It was about not taking a bath in the tub. Taking a tub bath would stop your period. Oh how I wish that were true!

[MBM]

Wim Hof and his disciples have demonstrated that exposure to cold can have very good effects on the immune system. Same with sauna. And proper fasting.

[MBM]

Our dog went to Montana. I was in my twenties before I had a "wait a minute..." moment.

Our beloved cat flew to Aunt Mary's home in Montana and was having a ball. My sister in Montana played along. LOL.

[Debbi in Texas]

I remember people saying that the vitamins in vegetables were right under the skin, so they should be peeled or only lightly peeled.

[musicianmom]

*

Edited May 21, 2022 by musicianmom

[Pen]

just to add another piece of hopefully never needed by you info: in some houses the hot water heater also can be  a source of water in an emergency... less than ideal, but better than dying of thirst

[extendedforecast]

My aunt told me not to eat bananas before bed because of something to do with cramps. I have no idea what she was talking about.

[flyingaway]

I was told that having a fan blowing on my head could kill me. Eating fish and accidently swallowing a bone could kill me. And, basketball, yes, it could also kill me. I do understand that one, though, because when she was young, my mom did see another young person die on a basketball court, but it was from an undiagnosed heart condition, not basketball.

Edited July 25, 2017 by flyingaway

[Julie Smith]

I was told that having a fan blowing on my head could kill me. Eating fish and accidently swallowing a bone could kill me. And, basketball, yes, it could also kill me. I do understand that one, though, because when she was young, my mom did see another young person die on a basketball court, but it was from an undiagnosed heart condition, not basketball.

Lots of cultures have stories and fears about electric fans. You will find lots if you google, "Korea fan death"

[SarahW]

My mother thought that if you were a virgin you couldn't use a tampon.

 

I did gymnastics and dance, so I took an early professional interest in acquiring some tampons. Oh dear, I was 13? 14? and since my mother lacks grace and tact, my attempt to discreetly ask if we could go to the drugstore before my afternoon class resulted in my mother loudly asking "well, you're a virgin aren't you?" over breakfast, in front of all my siblings.

 

Fortunately, a few weeks later when we visited a missionary friend who was home on furlough my mother thought to share with her my horrible faux pas, and she straightened my mother out. And the next day we went to the drugstore and got a box of regular slenders.