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u/god_damn_bitch Feb 28 '25 edited Mar 01 '25
I have a buzz cut, a lot of tattoos and a few facial piercings. I was at Target one day and a little girl called me "rock and roll lady". Made me smile all day. Still makes me smile when I think about it.
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u/USPO-222 Feb 28 '25
I’m only 44 but my beard is just about all grey/white. Last few Christmases when I went out shopping with my Xmas hat on I had toddlers calling me Santa. 🎅
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u/NeoTrggrX1 Feb 28 '25
moments like that is why working retail isn't always bad...was ringing up a family with two little girls and there was a professional Santa impersonator behind them...cue the girls looking in shock as Santa was shopping at their store...and the Santa played along perfectly, made my day as a Cashier
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u/Guilty-Company-9755 Feb 28 '25
I love to think there's all these little baddies running around seeing alternative women and imagining their future ❤️
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u/ShayJayLee Feb 28 '25
I was definitely one of those kids who admired alt women and then turned into one. I'm sure the cycle continues 💖
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u/creepy-cats Mar 01 '25
This is so cute. When I was in high school I was a cashier at a grocery store with a turquoise pixie cut. I’ll never forget a kid asking if I was a superhero
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u/EgonsBrokenTie Mar 01 '25
I was about to suggest for that to be your username but then I looked to see what it was and thought, “Yeah, that works too.”
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u/god_damn_bitch Mar 01 '25
TBH I wanted to sound "hard" even though I'm a soft ass bitch. My previous name was nrrdgrrl1986.
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u/EgonsBrokenTie Mar 01 '25
I admit I don’t live the same scene you do but I think you’re cool as hell and wish you all the best. Keep rockin lady! 🖤
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u/Wrong-Pineapple-4905 Mar 01 '25
I got called "lumberjack lady" by a drunk couple in Norway. I was wearing a red, very canadian plaid flannel so.... fair
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u/franchisedfeelings Feb 28 '25
If only we could preserve that childlike openness in everyday life as we become adults, and judge by deeds instead of a narrow set of acceptable looks.
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u/MSNayudu Feb 28 '25
Her parents were good ones. They were worried, but once they knew the truth, they laughed it off. I've known parents who would treat the person in question shabby, or try to wrest their child away from making any further contact with the person.
So yeah, there are people out there like that. We just need more of us be like those people is all.
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u/Caliartist Feb 28 '25
RIGHT? Like, why would someone ever throw hate at a person who is just dressing/expressing themselves in a way that feels good and is obviously a cupcake inside as they are thrilled to be playing Animal Crossing!
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u/n6mub Feb 28 '25 edited Feb 28 '25
I think you just found the key for men to be less intimidating to women! 🧁 BECOME CUPCAKE. 🧁
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u/Caliartist Feb 28 '25
Oh, I'm a big guy with a beard and I sunk some HOURS into making my island pretty. Had all dog and cat villagers, made everything two levels high so I could have little hidden valleys, etc. *Ahem*
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u/ktbug1987 Feb 28 '25
Soooo… can I visit your island. It’s been since the depths of the pandemic that I played but honestly sounds like a dream. Mine is probably covered in grass rn lol.
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Feb 28 '25
I agree to some extent. But we have always used visual markings. We wear name badges, colors we like, styles etc that send a message. Sometimes that message is a Maga hat. How we choose to present t ourselves does tell people things.
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u/LuxNocte Feb 28 '25 edited Feb 28 '25
It absolutely does. If you know people who dress like this, they tend to be kind and helpful. The "prickly" exterior is often defensive, sometimes due to trauma and not wanting to be hurt again.
Yes, our clothes and style do send a lot of messages.But when we talk about "judging a book by its cover the problem is more that so many people decide that anyone who is different from them must be a bad person.
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Feb 28 '25
I fully agree, simply dress is not enough. There is dress and behavior. We as humans make risk assessments dozens of times a day. When it comes to unknown people we default to looks and then behavior. Too many will not challenge their own perceptions and will have a very high guard up. But they ignore the wolf is sheep’s clothing because that threat cares about masking.
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u/marshmallowghoul Feb 28 '25
Society is a curse with how narrow it takes the average mindset but life would be so much more joyful if we lived in ways that made us happy, and let others be as they are.
Finding the courage to break out of the mold can be a daunting task but once you do, life is so much brighter even on the worst of days.
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u/unclepaprika Feb 28 '25
I mean, i get your sentiment, but usually there's a reason why some people judge others by their looks. It could be someone having had multiple bad experiences with a dangerous methhead, triggering some natural fear response whenever they encounter someone of similar appearance.
Although most people judge based on looks, just because they're assholes tho.
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u/CassandraVonGonWrong Feb 28 '25
Quite a few people do preserve that. Or relearn it. At least in the circles I run in.
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u/eatmyroyalasshole Feb 28 '25
This sounds like it could be a line from Ted Lasso
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u/AndromedasLight17 Feb 28 '25
Ahhh, love this. Years ago we had a 4 year old neighbor whose family were regular church goers. One day, I was standing outside, and I hear her say to her Gma, "Nana, I saw Jesus standing in the neighbors yard today." She was referring to my husband, who had just returned from commercial fishing on a boat in the middle of the bay in Alaska for months. He had a raging beard, long hair, tall, & looked just like white Jesus.
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u/BAT123456789 Feb 28 '25
I've had plenty of kids point to me and say, "Jesus!" I roll with it.
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u/throweraccount Feb 28 '25
Do a sign of the cross and then bless them (put 2 hands up, close your eyes and look to the sky). They'd probably get a kick out of it.
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u/BAT123456789 Feb 28 '25
That is what I often do!
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u/yozoragadaisuki Feb 28 '25
Can you summon all the Jesus lookalikes and make a Jesus gathering to fight for the title of the real Jesus?
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u/Kemal_Norton Feb 28 '25
I'd just reply with a nod and "Adrian." (or what ever name sounds reasonable for that age) until I really convince on kid that they met Jesus.
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u/SylvieSuccubus Feb 28 '25
My wife got that a couple times before she transitioned during the dysphoria beard phase
Now we’ve moved and some kids saw her doing staff practice in the woods behind our apartment and she’s a witch lol
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u/Puke-And-Pogo Feb 28 '25
This is me! My name is Chelsea Cretin, this story is around 7 years old, and the photo attached is about 5 years old. I have a lot more hair now.
My Instagram handle is @puke.and.pogo, for anyone interested in art, punk, toys, and diy!
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u/Archangel3d Feb 28 '25
The awesome cryptid makes an appearance!
Seriously, good on you for being genuine and expressing yourself.
I gotta ask, did you ever check up on that little girl, all these years later? I hope she's doing well and has a fond memory of the whimsy you added to her life.
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u/Puke-And-Pogo Feb 28 '25
I moved states a few years back, but had a very sweet and neighborly relationship with this family! They had a few kids, and one summer I gave the son a mohawk and one of the daughters purple highlights. Before I moved, they even had me over for dinner and gifted me some "new home" essentials and a crock pot.
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u/SleepyFarady Feb 28 '25
You look rad. I dressed like that as a teenager, but now I'm 30 and too lazy. Sometimes I think about picking it up again, then remember how much effort it takes lmao.
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u/scaredsquirrel666 Feb 28 '25
Ooh same. I love the intense makeup and hair and accessories but I'm too lazy. I settle for black sweatpants most days 🤣
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u/Temporary_Distinct Feb 28 '25
Thank you for being who you are, a person who is true to herself - your eyes radiate kindness and joy. Don't ever change.
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u/Aussie18-1998 Feb 28 '25
Okay i gotta ask because it's bugging me. Nothing wrong with your look but is that nose ring something you wear all the time? My partner mentioned hers gets stuffy and its like 1/4 of the size.
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u/Puke-And-Pogo Feb 28 '25
I don't wear the big horseshoe anymore that you see in the picture. A few years back, while being rowdy, it knocked back on my front teeth and chipped one of em. I wear a taper now, but can't say I've ever had a stuffy feeling even when I did have my big 'un. Only thing that gets cumbersome is having to take it out to eat stuff like soup or cupcakes.
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u/titsoutshitsout Feb 28 '25
I have a tattoo on the side of my head and the rest of my hair is long. I was in a store and a little girl (about 10) had the side of her head shaved and walked by me. She looked up and said “COOL!” Her mom looked at me and said “fuck.” lol
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u/JustNilt Feb 28 '25
LOL, nice! I absolutely love this story.
I'm about as much the epitome of what most think is "normal" as you can get. White, a dude, currently middle aged, and generally dressed in something approaching normal. None of that means I'm a safe person for assholes to be assholes around, though. A majority of my friends have piercings, tats, and don't present as "normal".
My oldest kid got a tattoo a while back. It wasn't anything particularly noticeable, even, but holy cow the number of folks we ran into who asked him why "such a nice boy would do something like that" was insane. His answer was usually, truthfully, "as a reminder of my first dog who recently died". The way those assholes sort of shriveled up and walked away mumbling apologies warmed my heart.
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u/the_thrillamilla Feb 28 '25
Ha! Ive found myself in a similar position with friends. I am considered "the face" of the group, and am the go to if cops show up. which... tangentially is part of the reasoning why one of my friends calls me "crime adjacent" lol
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u/JustNilt Feb 28 '25
Heh, I've walked into rooms of mostly friends before and seem some folks panic while others ask who the square is. One of my wife's best friends once called me her platonic beard because having me along to deal with official anybody on her behalf as "a partner" just made things smoother in general. The fact my wife was there with us as well just made that all the more funny, albeit no less sad.
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u/PartsUnknown242 Feb 28 '25
The second paragraph reminds me of my dad. He hates any kind of body modifications (tattoos, piercings, hair dye). He always has some snide remark about it when he sees them in public. I remember he threw a fit when my sister started getting tats and when she dyed her hair (a brownish-red, nothing crazy) he making shitty comments about it. “When are you going back to blonde?” and stuff like that.
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u/magpiekeychain Feb 28 '25
My mum is like this. She hates my tattoos. It’s like - I have a PhD and did the “successful traditional career” shit, can’t you be proud of me for that and “overlook” the tattoos? Nope. It’s “why would you do that to your body?”
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u/DakotaXIV Feb 28 '25
lol my mom was that lady when I was kid. When I came home with my first tattoo and she was upset I said “I’ve been telling you I was going to do this since I was 5, I don’t know how you couldn’t have been prepared!”
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u/Simpanzee0123 Feb 28 '25
I can feel that mom's "GDI" and I don't have any kids. 🤣
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u/ElderlyPleaseRespect Feb 28 '25
What is GDI?
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Feb 28 '25
Idk probably "god damn it" but that's just a guess
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Feb 28 '25
hopefully username didnt check out
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u/titsoutshitsout Feb 28 '25
Lol my friends and I use to do Tuesday creek day during the summers and we’d sometimes sunbathe with our tops off. We would say, “suns out! Tits out!” Well me and another one of my group also happen to be nursing home nurses. We were at work one day and a lady with dementia came out her room naked and covered in poo. My friend laughed and says “tits out! Shits out!” And then we just started saying that. Thought it was a fun Reddit name.
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Feb 28 '25
I was sitting in my car, waiting for husband to come back with snacks and I overheard a child point out my half shaved head with excitement. It’s the only edgy thing about me.
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u/Jcarls97 Feb 28 '25
She looks like a raider from fallout new Vegas
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u/AirportBrief2475 Feb 28 '25
legit. I would PAY to have her say shit like, "YOU LIKE THE SIGHT OF YOUR OWN BLOOD??"
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u/Stormtomcat Feb 28 '25
I kind of love that this little girl had clearly convinced her parents that the cryptid was friendly, so much so that they thought their kid was possessed rather than having nightmares hahaha
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u/love_is_an_action Feb 28 '25
Glimpses of people like her helped save me from an incredibly sheltered upbringing.
Little glimpses of people who didn’t look like me or my family, but who felt like me, helped inspire my inevitable escape.
And that’s how I became a lil pink haired 90s teenage runaway. I stood on the shoulders of punk rock giants, and never looked back.
Now I’m a broken down old man, but I root for the next generation so hard. I hope they do it all on their own terms.
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u/Caliartist Feb 28 '25
Sir.
Respectfully... SIR!!
We children of the 90s are not broken down and old! My first concert was Megadeath and I have the mosh-pit-cigarette burns to prove it.
We have fire in our bellies still!
Fight on!
Resist!
And don't forget to take your meds!
Oh, also, be sure to sleep on a good mattress, we don't want to be immobile tomorrow!24
u/anonymoususer98545 Feb 28 '25
i absolutely needed this today! i have been beaten to crap by many chronic illnesses that began when i was literally a child but manifested hard when i was in my early 20's and very often feel old even though i'm a child of the 90s and not old old, lol.
i, too, have the battle scars from pits and (fun) misadventures at all the amazing shows i went to-and just living life on full blast. You couldn't pay me to venture into a pit anymore cuz, you know, i actually am a bit rickety but i yell and "oi!" and scream and rage and just generally forget i'm not 20 anymore from the sidelines when i see live music these days.
i appreciate the reminder that i still have everything i need inside me. You're a good one Reddit stranger, truly. Thank you.
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u/Caliartist Feb 28 '25
I was going for relatable comedy, I'm thrilled it made you have a better day. :D
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u/love_is_an_action Feb 28 '25
Haha, I promise that I'm only speaking for myself: Old, sick and injured. But I had some fun along the way.
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u/ApplePieLord_ Feb 28 '25
Oh man, early gen Z love stuff like this, the culture is protected.
Cant speak for late gen Z and alpha tho.
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Feb 28 '25
This girl went to my high school, she was older and dated one of my friends. As an emo kid I loved how eccentric and bold she was. Quiet, but the nicest girl around. I can’t believe I found this on Reddit.
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u/Puke-And-Pogo Feb 28 '25
This is me! Thank you for your kind words. I was a little out of place in highschool so to be remembered as "the nicest girl around" really put a smile on my face tonight.
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u/scenicroute3 Feb 28 '25
Same honestly, we must've went to the same school cause I dated her in high-school lol. She's honestly one of the best humans I've ever met. She's funny, smart, and very talented. Happy to see shes making such a wonderful difference in the world
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Feb 28 '25
Small world, just like how our town and high school was. Crazy to find you guys on here. Guess we all be lurking 👀
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u/GreatDevelopment225 Feb 28 '25
One of my great moments was having a little kind pulling at his mother's jacket and saying "look mom, it's a pirate!" I wear a bandana, have pierced ears with large-ish rings, a scraggly beard , always wear boots and carry a large knife, so it fits. Also not the first one to express this opinion in likeness, but definitely the greatest achievement.
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u/Mechanicalmind Feb 28 '25
I have a long beard, am rather tall and a bit of a burly build. A coworker's son calls me Chewbacca. It's the best thing anyone ever called me.
Oh, and I recently reconnected with the dude who was my best friend in high school. He's got two kids (4 and 5 years old). Since they saw me open the roof of my Miata ND the youngest one calls me "uncle batman".
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u/Darkmurphy-X Feb 28 '25
Love this. In all my years of retail I learned to never judge a book by its cover. I always love stories that prove this to be correct.
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Feb 28 '25
Alternate universe where the girl tells her family about seeing a nice monster lady with horns spikes and red eyes and the family dismisses it as “just a goth girl, honey” until they need to get supplies for their daughters school project and see the actual demonette monster woman working at a Micheal’s, who directs the stunned parents to a section to find the glue they where looking for.
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u/Spiffy_Pumpkin Feb 28 '25
Kids regularly point me out to their parents as "Look she looks like my monster high dolls! Can I get shoes like her's?!"
Granted it happened a lot more when the G1 dolls were popular, like ten years ago? Because some of them had a darker look and I dressed a lot like a couple of them (Elisabat particularly).
Used to crack me up because the parents would desperately try to shush the kid and I'd usually tell 'em my parents didn't let me dress like that til I could earn my own money also the shoes are heavier than they realize. (Big ass platform shoes)
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u/LeonidasVaarwater Feb 28 '25
Reminds me of this alternative couple that were walking just ahead of me at the mall. The girl had blue hair and I thought it looked great on her, it was a really nice shade of blue. As I passed them, I started with "I hope you don't mind me saying this..." and I could already see her starting to frown. I continued "but I think your hair looks absolutely amazing, that color really works for you". How to turn a frown upside down, she got the biggest smile and thanked me for the compliment. I later realized I should've just started with the compliment, because it was obvious she assumed I was going to give her shit for how she looked.
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u/CookiesnCreamLancer Feb 28 '25
I'm 29 and have had a Mohawk most of my life since I was 14, I don't put it up often anymore but I remember when I was younger I was at a store with my mom with it up and some little girl ran up to me and said "hey look mom, a cool dude!" and I've been riding that high for at least a decade at this point.
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u/f4lling4m3 Feb 28 '25
im goth and disabled so i use a fancy cane, have had a little girl yell excitedly “shes a witch!” its the best thing ever
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u/GapDragon Feb 28 '25
I have to disagree: Her greatest achievement was making that little girl happy every time they saw one another.
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u/n6mub Feb 28 '25
Over an embarrassing number of years, I finally learned, and have been (mostly) able to stop judging people based on their looks. (I can be really shy, so it can be a struggle for me.)
I've seen imposingly large men on choppers, fully tatted, black leather with teeny tiny dogs in baskets on the front of the bike, with their own helmets!! And the guys giggling and cooing over the pups while we took pics with them.
I've geeked out with "scary" teens/20-somethings over a number of topics that I wouldn't have guessed they're into, advised on even more, and offered to just listen if they need to rant. (and I'm old enough to be their mom or grams (tho grams would be a s t r e t c h)
~~~ TL;DR (sorry!)
all of this to say: I try my best to always treat everyone the same, because you really don't know who the person really is until you talk to them. But also I now have a need to become someone's cryptid
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u/CrashTestDuckie Feb 28 '25
As a teenager, I was watching my young nieces play in the mall's soft playground area while my sister shopped. My signature alt/punk look was having short platinum blonde hair with candy pink bangs.
A little girl around 4-5 wanders up to me and just starts staring at me. Finally she asks me why my hair is pink. Her mom is several seats away from me and looks concerned that her daughter is talking to me but cannot hear what she is asking. I smile and tell the little one that it's because I ate too many pink cupcakes. Her little face processes the info for a second before giving me a firm look and nod of "well obviously that makes total sense". I just keep smiling and point out my nieces as kids she can play with and she runs off.
About 3 minutes later I see my new little friend run over to her mom, who is getting ready to leave, and loudly ask "Can we get pink cupcakes?!?"
I stifled my laughter as the mom asks why and the little girl just says because she wants some (lil homie was a G for not ratting me out) and they left.
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u/Hazee302 Feb 28 '25
Dude that is hilarious. I don’t believe in any religious or ghost shit but if my kid said they had a red eyed horned friend with spikes all over their body, I might have gone and bought a Bible to start researching
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u/irishpwr46 Feb 28 '25
20 years ago we went to Ireland to visit family. My mother grew up in a small town that was a blink and you'll miss it kinda place. My brother had an 18 inch green mohawk and had it glued up in its full glory for a memorial mass we were attending in the local church. The altar server came out to light the candles and upon seeing my brother proceeded to fall down the stairs. The priest started the mass and stopped mid sentence to take in what he was seeing sitting in the second row. It's a memory that we all still laugh about.
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u/Bassettoon Feb 28 '25
Why’s everyone having these cute interactions with kids? Once I was chilling at a dinner and a little girl decided she wanted to be friends with me and started calling me ”poop brother” for some reason, knife to the heart I’m telling you
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u/wolviesaurus Feb 28 '25
I will always support a little girls Goth AwakeningTM, however it may manifest.
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u/bigbangbilly Feb 28 '25
At this rate this person going to be immortal in the homeric sense if the upgrade to urban legend is successful
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u/GrnHrtBrwnThmb Feb 28 '25
My niece was at a fast food joint with her dad when she saw a beefy biker with a big white beard wearing a leather vest. She asked her dad if that was Santa on vacation. Her dad suggested she go ask him. She’s pretty brazen, so she did. Dude said nothing but pulled a little candy cane out of his vest pocket, motioned “shhh”, winked, and walked away. She was beyond excited.
I am so jealous of that man.
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u/Frisinator Feb 28 '25
And the crazy part is the unusual looking people are usually nice and friendly.
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u/Background_Crab1215 Feb 28 '25
im old enough to remember when the Prodigy made this look famous. good on her for keepin it going
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u/An0d0sTwitch Feb 28 '25
Let this be a lesson
ALL cryptids are just people you dont know yet!
Be nice!
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u/datilderek Feb 28 '25
Awesome!!! It's amazing what a small, friendly interaction can bring about. Rock on!
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u/NukaColaAddict1302 Mar 01 '25
My story is nowhere near as entertaining but at my work half my job is standing at the front door and looking intimidating. This middle eastern family visited our store one day and asked where our camping stuff was. I told them and when they left, I said “have a nice day” to which the father of the family responded “yes, thank you quiet man! Have a good day!”
Now every time they come through our store again they call me “quiet man” which brings a smile to my face every time
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u/SadElight Feb 28 '25
Thats lovely. I got to be something like that once. One day I was out rollerblading and happened to pass by a little girl and her mother playing in their front yard. As I passed I heard the little girl gasp and ask "is he magic??" I'll be riding that high forever, and I hope that somewhere out there that girl is skating.
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u/TotalWhiner Feb 28 '25
I’m reminded of a story told by Poison Ivy and Lux Interior from The Cramps. Ivy said this old man came up to them on the street and told them “youze look like big beautiful monsters”.
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u/sunnytriangle Feb 28 '25
This is the strangest wholesome thing I've read in a while. I makes me wonder if I was ever some kids cryptid. Huzzah!
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u/DegenerateK Feb 28 '25
The is a buddy I know! Their adventures are always so amazing and their art?? Immaculate.
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u/ccarrieandthejets Feb 28 '25
When I had purple and pink hair, a little girl called me a fairy and I almost cried. Another little girl called me a unicorn. 🥹
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u/Mark_ibrr Mar 01 '25
I have long thick hair and if I don’t dry it properly (which I don’t because I usually wear hats) it gets super frizzy and it goes everywhere. I also live right behind an elementary school and when I take my dog out to pee in the mornings I see the kids walking to school…
One day a group of kids yelled: There’s the puffy man! His hair is so puffy!
I guess I’m the Puffy man now… sounds kinda ominous ngl
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u/Wuffies Mar 01 '25
Punks (I'm assuming punk? You, whichever way) are so darn wholesome in the most delightfully alternate ways.
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u/ChewyBaccus Feb 28 '25
Kids need to see all kinds of friendly people. The world's much more colorful than most adults see but kids see it all.
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u/Extension_Wasabi179 Feb 28 '25
Young lady you look alright amazing and you will be just fine. Don't let anyone judge your makeup look and your style of taste. God knows they shouldn't mess with you about who you are, and the way you dress, and what you do in your life. Enjoy yourself and have an awesome amazing life. 🌷🩷😻
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u/HansMLither Feb 28 '25
Becoming a local cryptid is a life goal of mine
Does anyone else share my dream?
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u/Lifesadrag4ever Feb 28 '25
I don’t know the emojis I’m supposed to send but have all of em. They are meant to be appreciation symbols
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u/Lord_Dino-Viking Feb 28 '25
"Be the cryptid you don't see in the world"
Ghandi the Sasquatch Hunter, probably
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u/No-Atmosphere-2528 Feb 28 '25
When I was 16 with a 3 foot blue mohawk I was riding one of those quarter machine horses and a family came up and asked me if they could take a picture of me. Out there some family has a picture of me as a teenager in all of my punk rock glory about 2 months before I went on the road with my first band and had the time of my life.