Had a phone conversation with a friend today about getting together sometime soon. Said I’d be in touch after we got back from Georgia this weekend. Friend: “Why are you going to Georgia?” Me: “Friends invited us to go to the final day of The Masters!” Friend: “That’s…?”
Now, this friend is not a sports enthusiast at all, but I would have thought knowing The Masters was a golf tournament was common knowledge. Apparently not.
What examples have you encountered where you referenced something you assumed was common knowledge but it wasn’t? Could be about anything at all!!
I hope you post your outfit. And tell us all about it and what you ate
I’m never surprised anymore what people don’t know.
I did say racial epithet the other day and the person was confused. And that Puerto Rico was a territory of the United States. But I wasn’t surprised. I think that’s another story for another day.
This is funny, because I have a Masters knowledge story as well.
I used to work with some incredibly bright people. Think Pulitzer winners, that kind of thing. Well, there were two guys who always were trying to out-brilliant each other. They were ragging on another person who wasn’t there for not knowing something, and it ticked me off. So I enlisted a third person in the office who everyone knew was smarter than the rest of us put together, and I asked her, “At what sporting event does the winner receive a green jacket?” She had no clue. I turned to the guys and asked whether they thought she was an idiot. Of course not, they said. Right, I said. People don’t have to know everything about everything to be intelligent. People have their areas of expertise and knowledge and areas where they can learn and just because their areas don’t line up with yours doesn’t mean they are dumb! ARGH! These guys used to drive me crazy!!!
One time, they were debating their favorite Descartes saying. I said . “Don’t put de cart before de horse.”
Anyway, I’m not saying you think this person is dumb. The Masters just triggered me! lol
I’m incredibly jealous that you are going to The Masters! We went every year for many years, until my in laws’ friends with tickets passed away. We enter the raffle every year & hope to win tickets. I miss everything about being in Augusta during Masters week. Have a great time!
And I also ran across people who didn’t “know” The Masters. When I took my most recent job, it was with the understanding that I would always be able to take vacation Masters week. My last boss tried to cancel my vacation & I told her she was welcome to figure out how to move forward with my work should I need to resign because she wouldn’t let me go.
She isn’t dumb at all! You are 100% correct that we all only know what we know. And not knowing something doesn’t make someone dumb.
I wasn’t meaning to make this about people’s knowledge (or lack thereof) about The Masters. I just kind of assumed (wrongly!) that everyone knew what it was. It just surprised me. Maybe because I feel like I’ve seen tons of commercials for it??
I was looking for examples that others had encountered. Where they were surprised when someone didn’t know something.
I’ll be honest - I often am surprised by what people don’t know that I think “everyone” knows. H & I talk about it a lot. We don’t talk about it with others, though, because it feels kind of condescending. (I mean that to be funny)
Seriously, though, it blew my mind that very few grad students I came across knew how to write a check. I get that it’s not as common as it used to be, but it really surprised me.
We had friends visiting last weekend and he asked for a colander so he could wash the chicken. He didn’t believe me that that is a no no. Google sided with me. He is a water engineer who has designed many waste water systems all over the world. I was shocked he didn’t know.
I’ve always lived in Ca since birth. I know absolutely nothing about the Masters.
When our son was at Ft. Gordon, he passed on the free tix, too, and also refused to rent out his house like a lot of other officers did. Five of them, say, would rent out their houses and shack up with a sixth with whom they’d share part of the rental proceeds. They could make some serious bank in a short period, but our son wouldn’t risk any property damage.
Interesting Side Note: He bought his house from one of the Augusta National chefs. The chef left his movable custom-made work island in the house for our son who loves to cook.
On topic: DH didn’t know the meaning of “dog-ear” when I said that my copy of Hamlet was well-loved with all its dog-eared pages.
My daughter didn’t know what “hand me downs” were really called until she was in middle school or so. She thought they were “handy downs.” She doesn’t read, so she’s lacking in knowledge of common idioms.
I was well into adulthood when I came to the realization that the Marines were called Marines, because they were a part of the Navy. I have always read a lot, and always scored high on the language section of standardized tests, but somehow I didn’t connect the meaning of the word “marine” to the Branch of the military that spends most of its time near, on, or under water.
I think young people probably don’t know coin denominations well or recognize most American coins.
Finally, if my husband and I had a nickel (5 cents lol) for every question with a very obvious answer about forestry, trees, wildfires, and adoption that flabbergasted us, we’d be millionaires.
That’s probably more a skill set that every young adult should have learned while still at home (and I believe was - and can be again - a separate thread) vs items from The Book of Common Knowledge
(I mean that to be funny)