Getting a free, new, concrete driveway isn’t a bad thing. It’s only a cringe-worthy moment if you’re the one who did it. It has a happy ending for the OP, but not so much for the guy who slaved over the driveway, just to find out it was for the wrong house. Not only did the OP receive a gift, but the company certainly received a valuable lesson, and that’s to triple-check the house they’re working on. Now they’ll have to eat the cost and start all over (via Excellent Town).
Parents want the best for us. That’s why they jump through hoops to make sure we’re getting a decent education and having wonderful, fulfilling experiences. But when this Reddit user was 14 years old, they had a gaming addiction. His mother wanted to put a stop to it, so she signed him up for a group that deals with people who have gaming addictions. But it turns out, in Germany, gaming addiction can also mean gambling. So instead of putting him in a group with young kids who also spend a bit too much time on the computer, she put him in a group with old men who have a detrimental gambling addiction that ruined them, and their family’s lives. Every time he walked into that room, he wanted to disappear from the sheer cringe (via Reddit).
It feels good giving compliments. That’s how we build friendships. But when this OP tried to give a compliment to a new guy at the office, it backfired. It didn’t backfire because the person didn’t accept the compliment, it was one of those happy moments that backfired because it was the wrong compliment. They complemented them on their nice backpack and then turned around to show them they had the same one. It turns out they didn’t have the same backpack, and it wasn’t even close to resembling it, and cringe ensued (via Markatur1).
When we’re kids, we try anything and everything to make our friends laugh. It’s especially true when no parents are hanging around us. But since we’re still kids, it’s likely our parents were nearby, so we had to be sneaky. This is why this 13-year-old was given weird looks by her friends when she was spanking herself to make her friends laugh. When she turned around, the girl’s father, who was also the Minister, was staring right at her. Even 19 years later, it’s one of those cringe moments that still haunts her (via runout).
When we assume things, they often backfire. This is especially true regarding someone with a completely different background and culture from us. When the OP was in Thailand, they got to know a friendly woman who spoke very little English. When they were leaving, she reached her arms out. The OP assumed they wanted a hug. Instead of asking, they went ahead and wrapped their arms around her, even though in Thai culture, it’s considered impolite to hug someone. But she wasn’t gesturing for a hug, she was gesturing to pull the cord on the ceiling fan to turn the fan on. Imagine making that gesture, only to have someone wrap their burly arms around you. That’s beyond awkward. At least it was moments before they were leaving, so they never had to see her again (via Reddit).
It’s common courtesy to ask for something politely by adding please and thank you. This is how human exchanges go. When this person texted their water guy for delivery, he responded with “add pls,” which means “address please”. But this person misread the text and thought they asked him to add the word “please”. They thought their water delivery guy was giving them a lesson on manners and teaching them how to speak respectfully. Their ignorance made us a laugh, even though the person texting probably wanted to crawl into a hole and disappear (via Excellent Town).
When we’re put under pressure, most of us get nervous and make ridiculous mistakes. It’s part of being human. When this person’s boss asked them to open a bottle of wine at an important business dinner, they freaked out. It was even harder because of the expectation that French people know how to open wine, considering how much they drink. Well, not this French person. They failed at opening the wine, and they turned a pasty color of white. It’s one of those moments they’ll never forget for the rest of their life (via Reddit Too Addictive).
When this Reddit user was 12 years old, they were playing hide and seek during a family party. Being young children, they figured it was a good idea to hide in the bathtub. After several minutes of waiting, their aunt came into the bathroom to take a leak. That’s the purpose of a toilet, after all. But their aunt didn’t realize they were in the bathtub, and before they could make their appearance known, they had to commit to hiding. Luckily, the aunt didn’t check the bathtub before using it, but the young child was scarred for life. No one wants to hear their aunt using the toilet. At least they were able to semi-disappear, and they both weren’t mortified (via Fake Thriller).
Most of us had no idea how to use Facebook when it first came out. Never before had a “status” existed. So when we first had the chance to list our status, we used it literally. Why would we use it any other way? This Reddit user decided to post everything they were doing, which was nothing. Their first ten Facebook status posts were something like, “nothing,” “still nothing,” and “adding people.” At least they weren’t lying (via Reddit).
The innocent mind of a child is something we all wish we could have again. They live simply without any of the stress or burden that we face as adults. When the OP was younger, they overheard their mom telling their dad they would be on their period next week. As a young child, he didn’t know what a period was, and rightfully so, especially since their mom lied to them about it. They tried to brag to older women they knew what a period was, and they laughed in his face, and it was years before they understand why (via Offbeat_Blitz).
Mistakes happen. Oftentimes, we can laugh at them, but other times, they’re so cringe-worthy there’s no coming back from them. When this Reddit user walked into a Chinese restaurant, they were waiting to be seated. Someone approached them who they mistook for an employee at the restaurant. He ignorantly asked for a table for four. It turns out the person wasn’t a server at the restaurant, he was simply enjoying a meal there. It’s an honest mistake but one you can’t come back from (via h76CH36).
If someone tells you to look elsewhere for a better job, especially after treating you horribly, how would you respond? You’ll simply agree with them. There’s a shortage of employers who are willing to live with only $30,000/year, especially in bigger cities. This is an ideal example of someone who’s not taking that lowball income for an answer. So when the hiring manager suggested they look elsewhere, they agreed. That’s probably not the last walk-out they’ll ever have. They need to learn a thing or two about paying their employees what they deserve, otherwise these cringe moments will keep on happening (via Excellent Town).
The smell of urine is strong and pungent. We notice it when we take our dogs on a walk, or when we use the toilet. There’s no getting rid of the smell, especially if we accidentally get it on our jeans like this person. When they were 15, they got drunk with their friends. They lowered their pants to pee behind a bush, and that’s when everything went wrong. Instead of aiming at the ground, they peed on themselves. It’s an honest mistake that’s happened to all of us, once or twice. Instead of going back to the party and owning up to their mistakes, they left the party and walked half an hour home smelling of urine. The night could have been more cringe-worthy, so at least it stopped then and there (via Reddit).
There’s a good reason restaurants don’t serve medium-rare chicken. It increases our chances of getting salmonella and other diseases. Medium-rare steak, on the other hand, is perfectly healthy and has a great flavor. Bacteria seek refuge inside raw chicken meat, so if you do happen to consume it raw, you better be careful. This ignorant person believed they could eat chicken like they eat their raw steak. We’re not sure what happened afterward, but let’s hope someone commented on this post before they ate it, otherwise, they learned a very valuable cooking lesson. One trip to the hospital should be enough (via Excellent Town).
Miscounting happens to everyone, especially a cashier. We’re handling money all day long, so it comes as no surprise that people miscalculate here and there. When this Reddit user received, what they thought was $9, for a $7.50 bill, they asked the customer if they could keep the change. But after a few moments, he realized he’d handed him $8 and a sympathetic look. In a condescending tone, he told him to keep the change to help him through college, clearly pitying him (via Reddit).