Professionals Reveal Insider Secrets That Would Scandalize Outsiders
Ever wonder what industry insiders know that you, the customer, don't? If so, this thread is for you. Take a glimpse at the secrets businesses don't want you to know.
matthewesp asked: What's a dirty secret that everybody in your industry knows about but anyone outside of your line of work would be scandalized to hear?
Submissions have been edited for clarity, context, and profanity.
Invisible ink, sort of.
When repairing furniture, a lot of times we just use a marker to cover up scratches. Granted they're carefully selected to match the color of course, but they're still just normal markers.
A building my mom cleans was just massively remodeled. They have nice wood desks, and one of the remodeling guys scratched one up badly.
He used the marker method....but he didn't do it right, it just looks like a kid came in and scribbled a sharpie on it.
Mind. Blown.
Water stains on wood furniture can be removed with mayo. (I work with furniture too *fist bump*).
Back in the 1990s, I was watching a playoff hockey game on TV at my Mom's house with a friend. We ordered a pizza and when it was delivered, we set it on my Mother's prized possession walnut table in her living room.
From the time I was little, I learned not to put anything on this table. I know it makes little sense, but think of how grandmas cover furniture with plastic. The living room was not to be jacked up in any way.
Anyway, after the game was over, I picked up the pizza box and found white markings all over the table. I think the heat had lifted years of furniture wax and transmogrified it into a living nightmare for me. I couldn't sleep all night.
I carefully arranged some table decor to hide the mess and hoped that my Mom wouldn't find it. The next day I headed to the library (this was before the internet) as soon as it opened and looked through every Hints from Heloise book I could find. I found something about using mayo to fix water stains on wood furniture. It wasn't exactly what I was looking for, but it was all I had. I went home and grabbed the mayo. It actually worked!!! It took a LOT of rubbing, but you cannot imagine the relief I felt as the markings disappeared.
Ha. I'm just picturing her walking in when you have the table covered in mayo and whooping your a**.
It's just business.
Lawyers generally do not dislike each other.
The prosecutor for your son's case and his defense attorney may very well be good friends.
My brother upon finding this out went and got a new lawyer, who basically told him, "Hey literally every lawyer in this area is at the very least golfing buddies with that guy."
My brother doesn't have the best sense for one reason or another and while he's sticking with this new lawyer he still can't wrap his head around the fact these guys aren't with or against him once the clock strikes five and gets pissy about how they're "probably plotting against" him.
When I was a corporate litigation lawyer, I was taking a deposition on a $40M+ case. The lawyer defending the deposition was really aggressive about instructing the witness not to answer and it got heated between the two of us. Screaming at each other, threatening to call the judge's hotline on each other, unilaterally pausing the deposition to argue in the hall.
After it was over, I mentioned I was probably going to miss my flight because the deposition took so long. He offered to drive me to the airport and we ended up bonding over liking the same music and both being stoners. He got me there in time to make the flight.
Raise your hand if you're shocked.
Parcels marked fragile are treated exactly the same as every other parcel.
I'm an ex USPS worker. I can confirm, but I still mark packages fragile that I ship for eBay. It makes the buyer feel like you took precaution.
I mean... why go home when there are free bagels?
Tech companies that offer breakfast, lunch, dinners, and other amazing-sounding perks are just doing whatever they can to keep you at work for as long as possible.
This was such a huge bummer to realize. I work in IT for a generic manufacturing company and always wanted to get a job with one of the big tech firms. Then I realized they give you all those perks so you can justify working 80 hours a week. I put in like, 35.
My company just started rolling out complimentary snacks and such in the kitchen, and thus far, it's been an abysmal failure. On the low end, things are gone mere moments after they're restocked for the day. On the high end, those in charge of maintaining the program have confused human nature with a vast conspiracy theory, and now being caught eating something even remotely healthy-ish is grounds for and inquest as to where you got it and when.
This wouldn't be problematic if I didn't bring my own oatmeal from home, which is one of their daily offerings.
ALL NATCH BRUH.
Those totally jacked-up personal trainers didn't get that way from the protein supplement they're trying to sell you.
Creatine + Shake Weight = 22" biceps. Pretty sure.
Want real live calls? Watch C-SPAN.
Almost all of the calls you hear on your local radio station are not LIVE. They were recorded during the last song or during a commercial break. There are many sneaky ways to make a call sound LIVE.
Thank you for saying this! Too many people cant understand that phone calls on air are clunky and awkward. If it goes smoothly, it's fake. You can tell when Everyone understands each other perfectly the first time without saying "what" , dropping a call, cutting out, or talking over each other. But over in the talk radio section where real calls are actually Happening, getting live callers to the point quickly is pain staking.
Edit: You can tell that I am live and not a recording because of my awkward pane steaks
I want it.
Not really my industry anymore, but I used to work in a pet store (and now I work for a vet that works closely with several pet stores): if you're in a pet store that sells snakes, there's like a 75% chance at any given time that there's a snake loose in there.
What about anoles? I hear they tend to bolt for the exit any time you open the cage to feed them or change their water.
Worked at a pet store. Our rates were 75% chance of a loose snake, 50% chance of a loose anole or frog (we kept them in a big community terrarium) and 30% chance of a loose crestie, since they're jumpy asf
My local pet store had an escaped leopard gecko that had gone really aggressive. I asked to see it once (it was in the top cage) it jumped out of the cage just to attack the employee. It was hands down the most badass leopard gecko I've ever met.
Wonder why?
Drug abuse of every kind is normalized in the restaurant industry. It's crazy how many alcoholics/casual cocaine users I've worked with.
Although heavy drugs are very much frowned upon, people will boast about killing a bottle of expensive whiskey the other night.
In my restaurant experience the heavy drugs weren't even frowned upon. The kitchen staff sold to everyone who worked there(definitely including management), and that was considered the "nice" restaurant in town. At any given moment the whole staff is probably high/drunk.
Good cake is good cake.
I work at a grocery store bakery and the cake comes to us frozen. We hand decorate most everything, but the cake part is baked at our warehouse and shipped to us frozen. People are genuinely shocked that we don't make every single thing from scratch every day. That would take so long, there's no way. My own family raved about how good our cakes are and when I told them how they come suddenly they're garbage. It's just a grocery store, idk why everyone expects hand crafted artisanal cakes baked fresh every 10 minutes.
Edit: just to clear this up in case you're imagining rock hard frozen cake, they don't get solid like ice. You can cut them while they're frozen or even crumble them up with your hands. They get way softer after they thaw but tbh some cakes taste better if eaten while frozen. Chocolate especially IMO.
I worked for Starbucks for a long time and this is super relatable.
No ma'am, no one came in and baked all these pastries so you could have cheese danish at 5 in the morning, it came from a freezer.
People Are Roasting Trump Over His Mind-Numbing Observation About The Wetness Of Water 😂
Donald Trump thanked the first responders who came to the aid of victims of Hurricane Florence. The storm devastated portions of North Carolina, dumping massive amounts of rain and damaging millions of dollars in property. Many natural areas were destroyed, some farmers lost everything and more than a few people have been left homeless. The first responders after this massive storm were literal life savers, and Trump was absolutely right to thank them. Unfortunately, the sentiment of his message was lost for many people because he didn't seem to put any effort or preparation into what he was saying. Then, in the middle of his off-the-cuff message, he confused everyone by talking about the wetness of water.
As Trump described the storm and the importance of first responders he told the world:
This is a tough hurricane, one of the wettest we've ever seen from the standpoint of water. Rarely have we had an experience like it and it certainly is not good.
The Tweet went out in the middle of the day on Tuesday, September 18th. At the time of this article, it hasn't even been up for 24 hours and already has over 13,000 comments. Many of them pointed out how Trump didn't even seem to try...
and how asinine his description was.
We don't know if Trump will continue to address the public by releasing these kinds of videos, or if they will continue to be as unrehearsed as this one is. We assure you, if they are, Twitter will have plenty to say about it.
H/T: Huffington Post, Twitter
Disheartened Young Boy Calls 911 To Ask For Homework Help, And The Dispatcher Doesn't Miss A Beat ❤️
When you're a kid stuck on a really difficult math problem, what can you do? It's not like you can dial 9-1-1 and get help, right?
Right?
Our dispatchers never know what the next call might be.They train for many emergency situations, homework help is n… https://t.co/3t8eT975at— LafayetteINPolice (@LafayetteINPolice) 1548447263.0
While it's not an endorsed solution, an Indiana boy did just that. On January 14th, he called emergency services due to difficulty with his homework.
The call was answered by Antonia Bundy, a dispatcher with Lafayette Police. Despite the situation being a little less dire than their typical call, Bundy assisted the boy.
The boy starts off the call explaining he "had a really bad day" because of his homework. Bundy asks about the subject he's having difficulty with. As she works through the problem with the boy, Bundy is very patient, not giving him the answer, but instead helping him come to it himself.
It's a really sweet clip to hear.
Boy calls 911 for homework help. So very sweet. https://t.co/RGcyWzbfHN— Randy #RESISTS (@Randy #RESISTS) 1548714991.0
@merrythedog @LafayetteINPD @PoliceOne @apbweb @WLFI @WTHRcom This melts my heart, that little boy overcame an obst… https://t.co/RYNCdqrTij— Mindy reinhardt (@Mindy reinhardt) 1548635286.0
My heart goes out to this kid...sounds like he could have used a hug, too....... 911 dispatcher helps student with… https://t.co/49wUeANFjp— Elizabeth Llorente (@Elizabeth Llorente) 1548793518.0
Again, the department's statement on the situation stresses that 911 services are not for homework help. However, at the time the call was taken, the queue was sparse, and Bundy could see if anyone was on hold. She'd have been ready to help anyone else who called if necessary.
"She's very much a dedicated employee, it doesn't surprise us that she goes above and beyond on a regular basis,"
Said Sergeant Matt Gard of the Lafayette Police.
"They do receive some oddball requests, but this situation of calling asking for homework help — I've been in law enforcement for 13 years and I don't know I've ever heard of this happening."
Bundy most certainly stepped up!
@LafayetteINPD @PoliceOne @apbweb @WLFI @WTHRcom I love this! I'm so happy this struggling child was not chastised… https://t.co/eoJEQcScp2— Gail Burchette (@Gail Burchette) 1548700530.0
@Onlyabrit @LafayetteINPD @PoliceOne @apbweb @WLFI @WTHRcom So true.— Helena Caesar (@Helena Caesar) 1548671811.0
Solid proof of good humans in this world https://t.co/H17OgFVCfd— Jenny Lougheed (@Jenny Lougheed) 1548782808.0
@BichonMom3 @LafayetteINPD @PoliceOne @apbweb @WLFI @WTHRcom I was a latch key kid and it can get lonely. Thanks for helping this guy.— Chris Fox (@Chris Fox) 1548696327.0
Though, if it were someone else, they might have shut this question down due to the fractions alone!
@_shireenahmed_ Couldn’t agree more! (PS I hated solving fractions too)— James Tyler FC (@James Tyler FC) 1548783401.0
@nonfamousbot @LafayetteINPD @PoliceOne @apbweb @WLFI @WTHRcom poor kids!!— Nawali ❄☃ (@Nawali ❄☃) 1548685742.0
@LafayetteINPD @PoliceOne @apbweb @WLFI @WTHRcom Fractions suck, but always ask for help.— 𝑽𝒊𝒅𝒂 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑹𝒆𝒔𝒊𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆 (@𝑽𝒊𝒅𝒂 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑹𝒆𝒔𝒊𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆) 1548734529.0
@LafayetteINPD @PoliceOne @apbweb I couldn't be a 911 operator for various reasons but this is the worst case scena… https://t.co/DFsOak7QS1— Julie Ann (@Julie Ann) 1548692353.0
At the end of the call, the boy apologizes for calling saying he "really needed help."
While Sgt. Gard is happy that Bundy was able to help and brighten this boy's day, he does want to stress the importance of when to call emergency services. Maybe the school can educate the kids on local homework help lines instead?
Time-Lapse Video Shows What A Rocket Launch Looks Like From Outer Space—And It's Dazzling 😮
We've all seen videos of rockets launching from the ground, but what does the event look like from space?
European Astronaut Alexander Gerst, on board the International Space Station, managed to capture time-lapse footage of the Russian Progress MS-10 cargo spacecraft flying through Earth's atmosphere on its way to delivering supplies to ISS.
Very few people will ever have the chance to see an event like this in person.
Russian Rocket Launch Seen by Space Station - Amazing Time-Lapse Videoyoutu.be
Gerst created the video by setting up a camera to take regular photos through the wrap-around Cupola window of the station, which resulted in a video roughly 16 times faster than real life. Watching the rocket launch in person took 16 minutes but, in Gerst's video, the launch, stage one re-entry, and escape from the atmosphere all occur within one minute.
@_TheSeaning @Space_Station That's awesome!— Scott Waby (@Scott Waby) 1542898886.0
The rocket in the video, known as Progress 71, was on its way to delivering 5,652 pounds of supplies to ISS. The next flight, pushed back to December 3 after a sensor malfunction resulted in the cancellation of an October 11 liftoff, will bring replacement personnel for NASA astronaut Serena Auñón-Chancellor and Russian cosmonaut Sergey Prokopyev. Both have been in orbit since June).
If all goes according to plan, the Canadian astronaut David Saint-Jacques will take off from the steppes of Kazakhs… https://t.co/o0LpNWTsJQ— CTV Vancouver (@CTV Vancouver) 1543800600.0
People online were amazed by the footage from space.
@_TheSeaning @Space_Station Seán, thank you for this. THIS is easily one of THE most mesmerising, and exquisitely s… https://t.co/a440XaOEX6— Nathanial_LB - نثنيال (@Nathanial_LB - نثنيال) 1542915054.0
@_TheSeaning @jasonrdavis @Space_Station SO COOOOL— Justin Foley (@Justin Foley) 1542908365.0
@_TheSeaning @Space_Station wow. just...wow. this is incredible— Sarafina Nance (@Sarafina Nance) 1542918245.0
I hardly think I need to hyperbolize this at all, because it’s simply so freaking cool: Time-lapse video of a rocke… https://t.co/lx32324AWv— Phil Plait (@Phil Plait) 1542989889.0
@BadAstronomer I watched this 5 times with my jaw on the floor... And then made everyone around the Thanksgiving ta… https://t.co/iMbSm8nvIO— Marc Leatham (@Marc Leatham) 1542990342.0
@BadAstronomer @LongDogSecurity https://t.co/Yv3YZQI9Oe— MO News DAilY (@MO News DAilY) 1543001454.0
@BadAstronomer I think that’s the most beautiful photo of Earth I’ve ever seen— Ben Migliore (@Ben Migliore) 1543092741.0
@freak1ngawesome Reverse of shooting star— Shivani Jadeja (@Shivani Jadeja) 1543667552.0
@AntonioParis What an inspiring way to begin my day! Thank you! 💫🚀✌🏻— Heather Call-Me-Elf-One-More-Time Hartley (@Heather Call-Me-Elf-One-More-Time Hartley) 1543492212.0
Videos like these are a nice reminder that space truly is the final frontier! If ISS is looking for a soundtrack to put behind their video, we have an idea:
Star Trek: The Next Generation Intro HDyoutu.be
White Supremacists Used App To Trick Brett Favre And Soulja Boy Into Recording Messages Supporting Anti-Semitism
White supremacists are truly a scourge. Every time they think you can't go lower, they find a new way to burrow underground and prove you completely wrong, as they did when they targeted two celebrities over the internet and tricked them into spewing garbage.
Brett Favre, star football player, and Soulja Boy, recording artists, were approached by a group claiming to be "a U.S. veterans organization for Cameo, a company that enables consumers to book personalized video greetings from celebrities."
Favre recorded the message, assuming the "request stemmed from [his] interest in veterans affairs" and recorded the message, a service that the perpetrators paid $500+ to complete.
Later on, Favre found his request was appropriated for the agenda of an anti-Semitic hate group.
"I was distressed to learn that the request came from an anti-Semitic group that reposted my video with comments implying that I endorsed their mission. Nothing could be further from the truth. I am therefore donating my $500 Cameo fee to Charities supporting their fight against hate and bigotry."
I'm on Cameo & kinda jealous they didn't request me. Maybe I need to lower my price? Most importantly Brett Favre d… https://t.co/8hsC292nRs— Tom Arnold (@Tom Arnold) 1543784713.0
@TomArnold How do you not know something is anti-Semitic. #ComeOn— keith lyle (@keith lyle) 1543785859.0
@BuzzFeedNews Log everyone off everything now— Zinskē (@Zinskē) 1543635691.0
The organization refers to itself as the GDL, or Goyim Defense League. "Goyim" is the Hebrew word for a non-Jewish person.
According to BuzzFeed News, the group is run by two YouTubers who go by "Handsome Truth" and "Sway Guevara."
"Brett Favre here with a shoutout to the Handsome Truth and the GDL boys," they tricked Favre into saying. "You guys are patriots in my eyes. So keep waking them up and don't let the small get you down. Keep fighting, too, and don't ever forget the USS Liberty and the men and women who died on that day. God bless and take care."
The coded phrases here include "small" for "small hats," a slur for yarmulkes, and the USS Liberty:
"The USS Liberty is a dog whistle referring to an incident in 1967 where Israeli forces fired on the US spy ship, killing 34, during the Six-Day War. In the aftermath, Israel said that its pilots had thought the ship was an Egyptian vessel, and apologized — the government eventually paid out $6.7 million in reparations to the survivors and families of the dead. Ever since, there have been unproven conspiracy theories surrounding the circumstances that question whether the attack was intentional. Both the Israeli and the United States governments have said that it was a case of mistaken identity."
Soulja Boy was also tricked by the group, recording a video saying "Shoutout to Handsome Truth and Sway at GDL," and "GDL for life, b*tch."
The head of the group, Handsome Truth, admitted to the deception in a Livestream on Wednesday:
"Here's the deal, guys, they can reject it if they don't like it, right, so we were trying to get it, like — we wanted to be cryptic enough to where they would say it."
@BuzzFeedNews Sellebrities. I feel bad for people who are forced to treat themselves as products.— TomCat (@TomCat) 1543635593.0
@BuzzFeedNews Only in America...way to go potus, maga sadly 😟😥😠!!!— S Johnson (@S Johnson) 1543677369.0
@BuzzFeedNews This is what happens when you’ll do anything for money and fame...— gwyn (@gwyn) 1543641284.0
@BuzzFeedNews What a load of garbage!— Klopezdranat Tagor (@Klopezdranat Tagor) 1543682300.0
"Soulja Boy was unaware that the video on Cameo was tied to a group that promotes hate," said a Soulja Boy spokesperson. "The promo video was what the Cameo had directed and in no way supports his personal beliefs. He greatly apologizes to anyone who may have been offended."
The malice of this particular incident runs deep.
"On or about November 22nd, Cameo talent received requests that appeared to be aimed at supporting the American military. After recording the videos Cameo learned that the request came from an anti-Semitic group and contained content that could be interpreted as anti-Semitic," Cameo said in a statement to BuzzFeed News.
"This was a blatant misuse of the Cameo platform and a violation of Cameo's terms of service. This is the first incident of its kind in more than 93,000 Cameos and a gross misrepresentation of the talent's political beliefs," the statement continued. "Cameo immediately removed the videos from the website, requested YouTube to remove the content and created new filters to prevent this from happening in the future. The user has been banned from purchasing Cameos."
But will it quell the hate speech? Racism, anti-Semitism, homophobia, and misogyny have become commonplace since the election of Donald Trump, and it seems there are weekly incidents of that bigotry. Patrick Little, profiled by the Anti-Defamation League for spreading anti-Semitic hate speech, ran for State Senate in California, winning less than 2% of the vote and being barred from all California Republican events for his gross anti-Semitism. He greatly endorsed the white supremacists' actions.
If historical signs are correct, this sort of speech is likely to be misunderstood and catch fire, thereby inspiring even more hatred. The fight against bigotry must get stronger.
It only costs $500 to get Brett Favre to say something on video. So white supremacists used him to endorse anti-Sem… https://t.co/VdkFnujxrK— Gabriel Snyder (@Gabriel Snyder) 1543780513.0
Alexa, show me 2018 in one headline. https://t.co/7HtmwySIU4 via @mashable— Will Greenwald is still spooky in November (@Will Greenwald is still spooky in November) 1543754183.0
@mashable @BrettFavre may have been tricked, but vicious @ScottWalker taught our children to be Nazis and the best… https://t.co/7gMTCQCmRV— Brian Keith O'Hara (@Brian Keith O'Hara) 1543758130.0
just alt right folks paying Brett favre to unwittingly endorse anti semitism, the world is definitely not fundament… https://t.co/JaeOo61dXJ— R Zach Lamberty (@R Zach Lamberty) 1543635101.0
H/T: BuzzFeed News, Mashable