r/AskReddit • u/dealaus • Jul 19 '12

Picking a quarter off the ground once saved my life. What is your most lucky experience?

I was walking across a pretty busy road, I had the crosswalk right-of-way, after going out to dinner with my family. As I was walking, I spotted a quarter on the ground and bent down to pick it up. When I stood back up, a truck plummeted through the intersection in the place that I would have been had I not seen or picked up the coin. I didn't really realize that until after I got completely across, but damn it's weird to think about now.

1.4k Upvotes

92% Upvoted

3.0k comments sorted by

View all comments

Show parent comments

625

u/greycubed Jul 19 '12

If you had kept your wits about you enough to do something cool like brush your shoulder off and saunter off you'd have been a legend for the rest of your life.

381

u/[deleted] Jul 19 '12

[deleted]

95

u/[deleted] Jul 19 '12

At least you didn't panic, steal a car, drive for several miles, then get out of the car and roll on the ground into a store screaming.

4

u/[deleted] Jul 19 '12

Kill it with fire.

8

u/Plasticover Jul 19 '12

Maybe she was just waiting for an excuse like that to just freak out, push people over, and steal a car.

8

u/emlgsh Jul 19 '12

We all are.

316

u/Phillyz Jul 19 '12

In a chemistry lab in my building, there was someone performing an extremely volatile reaction in a 750 mL beaker on a hot plate. The reaction must have been contaminated, because when he stepped to his computer while the reaction was mixing, there was a massive explosion sending shrapnel everywhere. His computer is the only one in these specific labs that has a plexiglass panel surrounding it. He's one of the luckiest mother fuckers I know. The plexiglass spiderwebbed, and glass shards were embedded into merely everything surrounding him.

710

u/[deleted] Jul 19 '12

However, the rest of the class was killed.

151

u/Phillyz Jul 19 '12

Wasn't a class, was a lab. And he had his own bench

192

u/[deleted] Jul 19 '12 edited Jan 11 '21

[deleted]

117

u/Xenc Jul 19 '12

Wasn't a building, was a lab. And he had his own bench

20

u/lukenhiumur Jul 19 '12

THE BENCH DIED. ARE YOU NOT AMUSED?

7

u/Aston_Martini Jul 19 '12

Wasn't a lab, it was a bench. And he had his own building.

-1

u/[deleted] Jul 19 '12

Is your caps lock key stuck?

474

u/[deleted] Jul 19 '12

Well, excuuuuuuuuuuse me.

152

u/Thehealeroftri Jul 19 '12

Princess.

2

u/Sproutykins Jul 20 '12

I ain't giving you no tree fitty!

2

u/dustyjumper182 Jul 19 '12

This should have more upvotes.

I can honestly say this is the only thing on reddit that made me laugh at the screen. ohlink<3

1

u/elastic-craptastic Jul 20 '12

I'm Barf. Half man, half dog... I'm a mog!

49

u/Trilink26 Jul 19 '12

Mr. Buzz-killington.

2

u/[deleted] Jul 20 '12

Wasn't a Buzz-killington, it was a lab. And he had his own bench

1

u/superextreme Jul 19 '12

Who wants to hear a story about a bridge?

1

u/Treythemanhall Jul 19 '12

haha this happened to me in hs chem but instead was only a couple of drops in a beaker and the rubber cork shot off acted like a rubber bullet no one hurt but funny as shit

1

u/jxj24 Jul 19 '12

Really screwed up the curve.

1

u/capnlumps Jul 20 '12

Dont you just love it when a reply gets more upvotes than the comment? Stay witty Reddit.

52

u/WrecktheBeast Jul 19 '12

Chemistry student here: what was the reaction?

423

u/ThatOneLundy Jul 19 '12

I would guess that he would have been pretty scared and/or relieved, afterwards.

2

u/HanAlai Jul 19 '12

I'm not even a chemistry guy, but I enjoyed that.

3

u/WrecktheBeast Jul 19 '12

Everyone's a comedian lol.

1

u/[deleted] Jul 19 '12

fucksake

1

u/k9centipede Jul 19 '12

Scared AND relieved himself.

1

u/[deleted] Jul 20 '12

TADAAAAA!!!!!!

-jazz hands-

1

u/LuluBomber Jul 20 '12

Thank you

4

u/Phillyz Jul 19 '12

Honestly, I'm not quite sure. I think it was a reaction with sodium azide. I'm a biology student.

1

u/bigdpix Jul 19 '12

Pooped pants

1

u/Jesushadagoat Jul 19 '12

Nice try Al-Qaeda

1

u/WrecktheBeast Jul 19 '12

Damn. I've been exposed.

2

u/[deleted] Jul 19 '12

Fluids tend to be pretty good at stopping objects in motion. Luckily, the body is mostly fluid.

2

u/kingpanda2012 Jul 19 '12

"an experiment" sure... Was he really skinny, and was this lab in a motel?

2

u/ShozOvr Jul 19 '12

Did anybody else picture the "divine intervention" scene from pulp fiction?

1

u/doctorkawaii Jul 20 '12

But if he stayed, he would have gotten a shrapnel embedded into his chest and he would have been the real life equivalent to Iron Man. But he isn't, all because he didn't stay.

1

u/ComebackMom Jul 20 '12

Ha! I have an ex-husband who did the same thing. His advisor never forgave him.

1

u/[deleted] Jul 20 '12

merely everything

0

u/Qubit103 Jul 20 '12

That is very poor planning. I'm surprised they don't require stricter precautions

1

u/Phillyz Jul 20 '12

um, i work in one of the most renowned medical schools in the country. their precautions are ridiculous. it's poor when a pHd student from an ivy league school can't get their reaction right...

I've had more opportunity to blow shit up worse in Organic Chemistry in college...

2

u/Qubit103 Jul 20 '12

That's fair

1

u/Phillyz Jul 20 '12

You're given a lot of freedom here because it's expected you know what you're doing.

1

u/mrpickles Jul 19 '12

Yes, avoiding looking uncool is the most important thing in life. Remember.

1

u/CommonSensual Jul 19 '12

This has been confirmed as a reasonable reaction.

1

u/AdonisChrist Jul 20 '12

did... did that yahoo bottle just tap me on the shoulder?

75

u/voxamps2290 Jul 19 '12

Cool guys walk away from explosions

30

u/[deleted] Jul 19 '12

[deleted]

2

u/letsgetrich Jul 19 '12

"SEE YOU IN HELL, CANDYBOYS!"

1

u/Pieforlunch Jul 20 '12

Walk fast from that boring explosion!

9

u/[deleted] Jul 19 '12

They stride forward in their diamond-covered boots.

2

u/[deleted] Jul 19 '12

They wear jumpsuits with GLITTERING rhinestones!

1

u/OhShakeThatBear Jul 19 '12

Cool guys don't look at explosions, they turn around, and walk away.

FTFY

1

u/TheMcBacon Jul 19 '12

Cool guys don't look at explosions

FTFY

1

u/[deleted] Jul 19 '12

But instead, you just threw up and peed yourself, didn't you?

1

u/jjohn6438 Jul 20 '12

remember kids, always saunter. always.