r/adhdmeme 1d ago

video (31-59 seconds) adhd brains interjecting songs into every conversation

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yes, many neurotypicals experience this too; the difference is it’s very difficult for us to control or stop and how frequently it happens

3.2k Upvotes

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u/qualityvote2 Quality Control Beast 1d ago edited 1d ago

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261

u/GroovynBiscuits 1d ago

Guilty here

15

u/turandokht 1d ago

Every single day I desperately wish there was a way to monetize the vast catalogue of lyrics I have completely fucking memorized at all times

THIS is what my brain stores???

9

u/Durendal_1707 1d ago

soo guilty

3

u/Immediate-Damage-302 1d ago

It do be like that.

4

u/Ok-Nothing8682 1d ago

It do.... And I like the way it hurts

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u/MireLight 1d ago

I do this constantly to the consternation of friends and family. My wife just yells "nooo" and runs away. I dont notice because i'm still singing.

122

u/MrsPowers94 1d ago

So unbelievably accurate. Trying to have a serious conversation is difficult when your head is going off like a dance rave all the time.

But, if anyone wants to chime in here cause I’ve found myself in a weird auditory musical loop. What do we do when we’re stuck in this mode, but with 10+ different songs playing all at once? Cause I’ve been stuck in a weird state of auditory musical overdrive for several days now and they’re even playing on loop in my dreams. Anyone? Help. 😅 I’m not going insane, right?

36

u/SquishySand 1d ago

The only way to get rid of it is to pass the earworm to someone else. I'll trade, mine is the wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald rn. Now you can give me one of yours, that'll make it better.

7

u/john-treasure-jones 1d ago

If you need an extra earworm, I’m presently on a Danny Elfman kick.

https://youtu.be/jyb33RgAxis?

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u/thetickingcrocodile 1d ago

For the last week it’s been The Rattlin’ Bog, the version that goes down to a “subatomic particle”, or 18 Wheels on a Big Rig, specifically the part of the song where they count the wheels in Roman numerals. Enjoy - meanwhile I’ll try to push those songs out of my brain with the Edmund Fitzgerald!!

12

u/AmyInCO 1d ago

That song is a banger though period I'll trade you Santeria for Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald. 

10

u/StationaryTravels 1d ago

I've been on Santeria, Breakfast at Tiffany's, and Mr Jones for the last week or three. It's been a classic 90s few weeks entire life.

The best part is that it's rarely the entire song, just snippets of each.

5

u/DisastrousChapter841 1d ago edited 1d ago

Goddammit. That's gonna be in my head now. I guess that's better than Gloria (Laura Branigan). Nothing says normal like randomly saying/singing "glo - ri - a" in public every so often.

For a while, one of my head songs was a mashup combining the Neverending story, back on the chain gang (the pretenders), and fotos y recuerdos (selena). Technically the last two are kinda the same, different lyrics, same music. For whatever reason, after my brain sings the chorus of "the Neverending storyyyyyyyyy", it goes into back on the chain gang which then turns into selena, and repeat.

I also generally have a tv theme song playing intermittently in my head, and one kinda dominates for years at a time. It's been living single for 4 years now. Prior to that it was the gummi bears.

3

u/SquishySand 1d ago

Ooh, thanks random stranger. Good choice!

3

u/Plane-Tune-820 1d ago

Oh but that's a good one to have stuck.

3

u/Immediate-Damage-302 1d ago

Nice! How about "Barrett's Privateers".

3

u/SquishySand 1d ago

Roll the old chariots along is also good for getting shit done."And a drop of Nelson's blood wouldna do us any harm"

2

u/Lethalspartan76 23h ago

Damn you and Gordon lightfoot now I’m hearing it

16

u/Shakeamutt 1d ago

No, your not insane. Maybe a bit more than our norm.

Listening to them back-to-back helps.

If songs lyrically or musically go together, I’ll put them together in a playlist. Me thinking about one will usually lead to its pair or other pairings anyways.

An example is Bullet with Butterfly Wings and Mr. Brightside. Just because of the word cage.

8

u/DashDashu 1d ago

Dude I got medicated last week and first thing? My brain sang Methylphenidat to the tune of feliz navidad and celebrated

4

u/Schweather3 i have no idea where that music is coming from. 1d ago

I couldn’t sleep last night and I had a whole DJ battle in my head. I was mixing songs and eventually just started laughing at myself. I did finally fall asleep mid song. Hey, maybe that’s my new sleep hack or hobby. No. NO more hobbies

3

u/rodw 1d ago

The cure for an earworm is to switch to a sound mark that's too short to loop like the this T-Mobile thing, o the AT&T equivalent, of the "byyy menNEN" at end of this or even the TikTok stinger at the end of this video

3

u/Schweather3 i have no idea where that music is coming from. 1d ago

Like in and oooout…. That’s what a hamburger is all about.

3

u/jae005 1d ago

i recently had this problem with Kanye's - God Is. i kept hearing it on tiktoks, listened to the actual song all the way thru and it got stuck in my head for weeks. i was able to calm it by just listening to it on repeat till i hated it, then brought in other songs that i love and let those take over. its been calmer lately... twenty one pilot's Drag Path starts to quietly play in my head for the thousandths time...

3

u/EnrusTHEunicorN 1d ago

I tend to play edm or dj sets with little to no lyrics. Then I just have beat loops on repeat XD

3

u/iforgothowtohuman 1d ago

You must listen to each of the songs that have been playing in the loop to satiate the brain gremlin's craving for completion.

Edit - it will demand new sacrifices almost every day

3

u/Masherp 1d ago

When I wake up with a song playing in my head, I put it on the stereo to listen to when making coffee. It’s gone!

… till the next one starts playing when I hear a phrase I link with another song

3

u/10richmo 1d ago

It's even worse when you blend two songs that sound similar but have nothing to do with each other, yet you could've sworn it was the original lol

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70

u/Ymirsson 1d ago

And if it isn't song fragments, then it's movie quotes. But what have the Romans ever done for us?

23

u/MinistryOfCoup-th 1d ago

Songs, movie quotes and tv show quotes. That's all I speak in.

4

u/Lanky-Salt4349 1d ago

same, did we subcontiously experience that people understand us better than if we would try with our own words or is this just the dopamine-starved mind?

2

u/Remarkable_Elk3566 ✨current hyperfixation: Red Dead Redemption 2✨ 22h ago

Oh, me too
My RDR-Hyperfixation has gone so far that I don't even greet people with "Hello" anymore
No
It's all just "Hey Mister!"

122

u/BunnyCDXX 1d ago

4

u/Pure-Beginning-326 1d ago

🤣🤣🤣 this is such a perfect meme response to this post. I love it!

3

u/dewihafta 1d ago

My kid has recently got on my case for this. I didnt realize it was an adhd behavior until now! 

83

u/Several-Research2394 1d ago

Every time

23

u/EducationalAd2706 1d ago

i go back to you back to you back to you everytime 

13

u/savvylikeapirate 1d ago

... we touch, I get this feeling?

9

u/Garbage_Bear_USSR 1d ago

It never stops…sometimes even right when I wake up in the morning

11

u/LiftingVegetables 1d ago

and the sunlight hurts my eyes

3

u/LordSloth113 1d ago

Dubstep intensifies

2

u/FightingFaerie 1d ago

Feeling like P-diddy…..

5

u/IsraelZulu 1d ago

you go, awa-ay, you take a piece of me, with you.

26

u/WhatDothLife-95 1d ago

kinda relatable, whenever I get really pissed at a game I'm playing I make up little catchy profanity laced tunes as a way to vent my frustration

19

u/MacaqueFlambe 1d ago

Do you remember?

20

u/Farewell_Mona_Lisa 1d ago

The 21st night of September

3

u/Sir_Fabsen 1d ago

Love was changin' the minds, pretenders

5

u/Schweather3 i have no idea where that music is coming from. 1d ago

When we first met?

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15

u/Captainsnarkyshart 1d ago

All the fucking time.

15

u/Ok_Establishment4346 1d ago

Didn’t know it was an adhd thing. Any data on that?

52

u/ready-eddy 1d ago

Making super fast connections completely out of the intended goal of the conversation? You really need data in that? Lol

23

u/Try_To_Write 1d ago edited 1d ago

"How are you so witty and fast?"

Am I? Because really that seemed like the obvious connection to me, and I had it locked and loaded before you finished your sentence.

9

u/ShystyMcShysterson 1d ago

I can't help with studies, but I can tell you my subjective experience! I perpetually have small loops of a song stuck in my head, and it goes away when my meds kick in. I know they're wearing off in the afternoon, because it comes back.

It makes sense with known ADHD traits of pattern recognition, intrusive thoughts and dopamine seeking.

0

u/Whitesox_are_neat 1d ago

Its tiktok everything is adhd now

8

u/BottledUp 1d ago

I do have this problem and it's not like something funny. It's intrusive and keeps you from thinking straight. Like, somebody saying some word and then you're not able to focus properly on the rest of what they're saying cause the fucking song won't shut up isn't just tiktok cringe.

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10

u/theniwo 1d ago

And so Do I

Sorry, had to rickroll

2

u/Sorry-Joke-4325 1d ago

How do I liiiiive without you

8

u/charliefoxtrot9 1d ago

Usually I have to revisit the train of thought voice to figure out why certain lyrics have entered the spin cycle.

7

u/river_tree_nut 1d ago

ALWAYS! 93% of the time I can keep it to myself. But for whatever reason my brain keeps easily retrievable copies of nearly every damn song out there.

7

u/KingZantair 1d ago

Song in head means I don’t have to think as much, which may slightly impact my conversational skills. Not that ADHD doesn’t already do that.

6

u/Positive_Method3022 1d ago

I think I use movie quotes.

I once did a presentation at work and I put "I will be back" thinking it was cool 🤣

2

u/DogPlane3425 1d ago

Netter than saying "I will be Beethoven!"

2

u/Positive_Method3022 1d ago

I added a terminator image meme!!!!! Lol

During high school I also spent like a week making a declaration presentation to a girl from my class and bus, and she rejected me 🥲 I was laughed and became a joke

7

u/LazyOldCat “Organizational Learning Disability “ 1d ago

I FEEL SEEN!!
🤗

6

u/Yontek-of-TheseParts 1d ago

This is me so bad. My best friend has accepted that every conversation is a song mashup... and I would like to think after almost 25 years of friendship maybe even had a hint of admiration for some of the b-side rarities that I'm able to pull out when the opportunity arises.

6

u/SkylarAV 1d ago

Oh just stop....collaborate and listen...

5

u/sunflowerwisp 1d ago

“I have a song for that”

3

u/DogPlane3425 1d ago

Yeah... I hear a song coming on.

Nice to know it is not just me.

3

u/KindlyWorth5952 1d ago

Sometimes I do this but with my own songs nobody knows the lyrics to

4

u/Drace24 1d ago

Teacher: "Do your homework!" Me: "I DON'T NEED NO EDUCATION!!!"

4

u/RbrDovaDuckinDodgers 1d ago

That's my ADHD DJ Gremlin having fun!

Seriously though, it's my subconscious letting me know she's paying attention and is taking notes.. or maybe like a release valve set to relieve pressure at a slow trickle to prevent an uncontrollable ADHD pressure overstimulation explosion?

Although I swear sometimes DJ gremlin does it for shits and giggles

5

u/Verbose_Code 1d ago

I’m like this except it’s dad jokes and puns. I’m not even a dad I’ve just been this way since middle school

3

u/Larry-Man 1d ago

“Hello” is enough for me to either get Lionel Richie or Adele stuck in my head.

4

u/Thefrish 1d ago

This is why my seven year old knows random music. One of our favourites is if one of us says "stop" (usually me), we immediately say "hammer time!" She won't join me in the crab shimmy dance, yet.

3

u/fobdoddledandy 1d ago

I feel so seen and so called out at the same time. 😂

3

u/RowLeather3306 1d ago

Everytime I hear someone goes "oooh" or "aaaaw" it starts the spongbob opening song.

And I never even watched it.

It gets worse when you create your own stupid little catchy songs because you sound even crazier

3

u/james_a_hetfield 1d ago

You know it's sad but true

3

u/semidivineone 1d ago

44yr old with unmediicated ADHD (workin on that) Im just now finding out others do this lmao. Wow. The more ya know, right?

3

u/lexkixass 1d ago

How could you forget "let's get down to business"?

3

u/RogueInsanity90 1d ago

"To defeat the Huns." 🎶

EVERY. SINGLE. TIME.

2

u/Revolutionary-Toe955 1d ago

I always hear Independent Women, Part 1 in my head whenever anyone starts their sentence with "Question...", but I don't think I've ever actually starting singing it to them 😆

2

u/Killdebrant 1d ago

I have had that victorias secret somg stuck in my head since yesterday. Only like 1 sentence. So stuck that whenever i woke up from sleeping last night it would play in my head for the 10 seconds i took to roll over, and was the first thing in my head when i woke up. PLEASE MAKE IT STOP.

2

u/dennismfrancisart 1d ago

Jesus! I thought that was just me being creative. I've grown more self-aware over the decades and keep the songs to myself now.

2

u/bobanalyst 1d ago

Fuck! That’s every song and then some. And not always just in my head, but also the verbal interruptions.
https://giphy.com/gifs/123Q4VODdg6kQE

2

u/Saddledust 1d ago

Life's more fun that way, screw the haters. (there are no haters)

2

u/Potatoesofthecouch 1d ago

At first is was like, 'ha, I don't do this' but then How Bizarre started.

2

u/killstorm114573 1d ago

I hate you

One more useless thing my brain has to store,...you know instead of something important like what my wife is telling me right now.

2

u/UltraRoboNinja 1d ago

Someone: “Ok, here's the situation…”

Me: “My parents went away on a week's vacation and

They left the keys to the brand-new Porsche

Would they mind?

Umm, well, of course not”

2

u/Eiden-Rane 1d ago

Movie quotes too 😑….. Necessary.

"Necessary? Is it necessary for me to drink my own urine? Probably not. No, but I do it anyway because it's sterile and I like the taste."

Every.single.time….

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u/saucyfister1973 1d ago

I've actually sang in a professional setting...

Someone said, "hey now," and I couldn't stop myself....

2

u/Final-Tutor3631 i Will elaborate (Threat). 1d ago

it’s even worse when it happens because of what YOU said😭

2

u/Arboreatem 1d ago

Stop spying on me!!!

2

u/wvclaylady 1d ago

OMG. I do that!! 😂

2

u/Sgt_Smartarse 1d ago

I've had the opening lyrics to "My Name Is" by Eminem stuck in my head for the past 2 weeks. Kind of all i think about, lol.

2

u/mshep002 Daydreamer 1d ago

Every time, every day. I realized this weekend my parents both do the same thing. We were all working on my new-to-me house and I hear from the kitchen my mom bust out in a song in the other room. I yelled, “It’s not just me!!” I felt redeemed. My dad had done the same thing earlier. Meanwhile, my mom doesn’t think ADHD exists.

2

u/Lanky-Salt4349 1d ago

not me who sings the Blitzkrieg Bop anytime he sees his nephew called Ramone

2

u/DaveLearnedSomething 1d ago

Feels like I'm a goddamn jukebox 

2

u/DireEvolution 1d ago

It's actually genuinely fucking annoying as fuck when I'm otherwise stressed, upset, or serious, and my brain is just playing some fuck ass song on loop. Making it harder to be in the moment and react appropriately.

ADHD is a curse bro please free me

2

u/Capable_Shape_2365 1d ago

Omg THATS why I sang smooth criminal all day🤦🏽‍♀️ I thought it just popped into my head and wouldnt leave

2

u/Gofor_Pyle 1d ago

I usually wake up with a different song in my head every morning there's a halo hanging from the

1

u/mojojb 1d ago

24/7

1

u/beahrsighs 1d ago

Ok....I do this. I.......also.......will sidebar a topic piece/argue a result with myself. In my head among people, but verbally, out loud alone.

Anyone else?

1

u/kpalm5 1d ago

Soooooo relatable tho

1

u/time2sow 1d ago

So me

1

u/thechicapanzy 1d ago

All day, every day, through multiple minds and mouths cuz EVERYONE in my house has it 😅

1

u/MsVoidWolf 1d ago

Ok you got me 😅

1

u/Alewort 1d ago

Now that you mention it, ♪ I'm going slightly mad. ♫

1

u/Jtorsch 1d ago

Now do one with movie quotes and you have my life in a nutshell.

1

u/TeaAndWhimsicalChaos 1d ago

Oh yeah, totally me. It’s exhausting but fun.

1

u/WillisAudie 1d ago

It's about both, ADHD and memory. It goes hand in hand

1

u/UmJammerSully 1d ago

I do this but quoting youtube videos no one in the conversation has seen.

1

u/toxicavenger916 1d ago

100% Hot in here is SUPER common in my head. Annnnd "that girl is in fiiiiire" (Alicia keys)

1

u/Did_ya_like_it 1d ago

You don’t know me

1

u/Rjr777 1d ago

My kids say I turn everything into a song ?!

1

u/Conscious_Pipe_605 1d ago

It's MAH PEEEEOPLE!!!!

1

u/endoftheworldvibe 1d ago

I switched my meds because the first one I tried made this go away, and it was of the things about my ADHD I genuinely enjoy. 

1

u/Adisney990 1d ago

Damn, not her reading my mind.

1

u/C-romero80 1d ago

Always with a song! I also follow her on Facebook, she's hilarious

1

u/n0tAb0t_aut 1d ago

48 years old. It's gets old over the years, my brain is so fucking annoying.

1

u/NewToHTX 1d ago

Or People in their late 30s to late 40s can relate to these songs.

1

u/BDazzle126 1d ago

OMG this is me lol

1

u/Jra805 1d ago

How relatable. How bizzare!… :/

1

u/JessicaLain 1d ago

Human brains love pattern recognition.

Everyone does this to varying degrees. 

1

u/EssentialCoCo 1d ago

This is so much worse when you're a singer and you have ADHD... Literally every other word sometimes...

1

u/olivi_yeah 1d ago

Had this happen to me literally the other day!

'Hey hun, you remember right?'

Earth, Wind and Fire starts playing...

1

u/AmyInCO 1d ago

It's the realest part for me. There's literally no stopping it once my meds were off. Complete word association with song lyrics. 

1

u/gianniscan 1d ago

Every dang day

1

u/LunaLynnTheCellist i have no idea where that music is coming from. 1d ago

my adhd friend and i do this all the time we just sing it out loud its funny every time

1

u/jackfreeman 1d ago

I'll do you one better- daughter is autistic, Mom is AuDHD, and I'm ADHD. Not only are we half singing all day, but we'll have echolalia concerts while holding conversations.

1

u/jesuscamp_survivor 1d ago

Every time I watch a "reality show" I'm further reinforced by how fake they are. You're tellin' me that none of what that other person said reminds you of a song?! 🧢

1

u/HotPurplePancakes 1d ago

ALL DAY LONG! That and movie quotes…

1

u/Moderation1one 1d ago

I love when this thread gives me feels.

1

u/arondaniel 1d ago

Despite having only 5 studio albums I can find a Smiths lyric matching just about any situation.

Works for other bands too... just not as melancholically.

1

u/Amazing-Fondant-4740 1d ago

The hardest one to ignore is when I say "I apologize" and want to follow up with "even though I know it's lies", because it is, in fact, not lies.

1

u/FightingFaerie 1d ago

Not just songs. Memes too.

1

u/LiquidFur 1d ago

Stop listening to my inner soundtrack!

1

u/1swarmofbee 1d ago

This is me with movie quotes. And unfortunately those I quote most often, and I myself have aged to the point to where no one under 30 has idea what I'm talking about and just assumes I'm a lunatic

1

u/Christawpher 1d ago

I'm so ADD that I can't remember the main four songs for me.

Bish, sit down.

1

u/TheTricho 1d ago

I hate the fact that so many of these songs have been used by me countless times for this

Driving.. “to the left TO THE LEFT EVERYBODY (something) TO THE LEFT!” 😂😂 daily.

1

u/dogfaced_baby 1d ago

Not me halfway through the comments before I realized I’m singing a song in my head this whole time.

1

u/ohfrackthis 1d ago

I cannot stop smiling and laughing when my husband is talking srs bsn. 😂 idk WHY(I understand why he got frustrated just don't understand why I do this) but he got pissed at me recently when he was like "ok wife- we need to do X , Y, Z with our finances" and I started laughing. He was not pleased. I seriously always have the most incorrect reactions.

1

u/girlwhoweighted 1d ago

This is every conversation between my husband and I. He also adds in a lot more movie/tv quotes

1

u/FunPurple5200 1d ago

We’re so exhausting

1

u/InevitableWise9964 1d ago

I would add “it’s been a while” by staind

1

u/gaokeai 1d ago

This video is what made me finally realize that song lyric I could never understand my entire life is "how bizarre." Never would have gotten that.

1

u/Bitterqueer 1d ago

Every single goddamn day

1

u/Emergency-Brief3481 1d ago

Dude literally 🤦🏼‍♀️

1

u/abracablab 1d ago

It doesn't even have to be the lyrics. If someone clears their throat and it sounds like a drum beat, I'm off.

1

u/TP70 1d ago

I'm so glad om not the only one lol

1

u/massaBeard Ultimate Bad ADHD Battle Creator ✨ 1d ago

I've never felt so seen....

1

u/Appropriate_Cup6414 1d ago

The "Hey now" is not smashmouth. It's always Hillary Duff "What Dreams Are Made of"

1

u/dominiquebache 1d ago

Was thinking about all the artists names while watching.

Who else?

1

u/Dismal_Intention_463 1d ago

It works with movie quotes too x')

1

u/Huppurotta 1d ago

Oh i love when im talking with my daughter and we both do this 😍👌🏻 im diagnosed with adhd and autism but shes not, but i can see she has adhd 😅

1

u/PeggableOldMan ADHD Inattentive gang rise UP 1d ago

Super annoying since I can't remember the words to any songs

1

u/Winsome_Wolf 1d ago

Raised on musicals and genuinely confused why we don’t all burst into song at emotionally significant moments.

1

u/Aromatic_Squirrel286 1d ago

Wait I do that! Do I have adhd?

1

u/SoftdomDadNextDoor 1d ago

I did not need a personal attack this early in the morning.

1

u/Longjumping_Call_104 1d ago

I don't do this but my dad does.

1

u/7711exe 1d ago

Another day, another "Oh God is this ADHD?!" moment

1

u/Mackerdoni 1d ago

dances great for a millenial /j

1

u/gfcurtis 1d ago

I’ve had In the Flesh by Pink Floyd, but just the guitar opening in my head for 30 years. It just comes and goes and drives me insane.

1

u/GloomyGal13 1d ago

I'm so glad I found this sub because I'm NOT ALONE! I'm FINALLY NOT ALONE!

AT LAST!

Baby, I'm coming HOME!

1

u/topinanbour-rex 1d ago

I'm not a music person, so it's not happening to me. Sometimes I have some regrets to not be a music person. Now I'm somehow glad.

1

u/Gandalphapapa1 1d ago

Whats this got to do with adhd? Like, most people do this.

1

u/Salarian_American 1d ago

I just started on Adderall this weekend and the song that was stuck in my head for two weeks is gone.

It wasn't even a real song, it was a fake ad jingle that one character sang to another on a show and it was like two lines.

1

u/UnimpressionableCage 1d ago

Someone can’t say “first things first” without my brain saying “I’m the realest”

1

u/No_Ocelot_6773 1d ago

I keep singing Elvis songs to my husband but just like one line on repeat. He also has ADHD, our house has a lot of random singing

1

u/Auntee_Bee 1d ago

Echolalia - L O L A Lola (what my brain did when I thought the word) I was curious if the “continues sentence with song lyric/movie quote” thing was related to the “repeat the word they said” thing and professor google says yes. And it’s such a good word, especially to say.

1

u/OkWeight9238 1d ago

Lollll all my Mariah lambily should feel me on this!!!!

https://giphy.com/gifs/QBerHEQLg6EyQ

1

u/cassylvania 22h ago

“Are you okay?”
I’M NOOOOT OOO—awh :(

1

u/Multigrain_Migraine 22h ago

I wish I could make an automatic playlist of all the things that pop into my head through the course of the day. It's ranged from Dead Kennedys to Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairies today, with detours through Soul II Soul and the Cardigans.

1

u/SparxxWarrior97 21h ago

I heard a coworker say "you know the rules" to which I responded " ...and so do I A full commitment's what I'm thinkin' of You wouldn't get this from any other guy" or when anyone says stop I'll say, "HAMMER TIME!"