h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

My dad made the car move by waggling the steering wheel

I used to think that if you drank water out of the hot tap you'd be able to climb the walls like spiderman.

And also every time you sneeze a wee man in China dies and if you stop yourself from sneezing you save his life.

I really thought my nose would grow if I lied. I was very preoccupied with large noses on people,trying to figure out if they were lying to me (before I was school age)

I was adopted and did not remember dad so I told everyone I was from a brown and a white parent and thats why I had spots. *freckles* I was quite proud of them for that reason! I was facinated with dark skinned men thinking one was my Dad! Mom kept saying the frackles were angel kisses. I did not believe that and watched intently for her nose to grow.


I overheard the expression"their bed is on the rocks" a few times, concerning marriages. I could not understand why those people did not get a new bed.

Hansel and Grettle story scared me. I thought there were witches that wanted to nibble on children. Every time an uncle would pretend they were stealing my nose, I was secretly afraid they had done so for a quick snack!I always had to go look

>My dad made the car move by waggling the steering wheel<

My dad did that too!

If I didn't count all the stairs (in my head) something horrible would happen.
...and I used to get fully dressed in the middle of the night, shoes and all, and get back in bed just in case I happened to be transported through space and time

Liam.

I really thought that most people in other countries must be left handed.
The reason?
Well, they all use left hand drive cars abroad don't they?

Om

I remember in my class at about 11 years (when everyone was into ghosts and UFOs etc) everyone reckoned they lived in a haunted house. I remembered this at about age 15 and everyone asked admitted their ghost had gone. Strange that

It's nice to know I'm not the only person who used to race to the bottom of the stairs before the toilet finished flushing! I used to pretend that something unspecified would come and get me if I didn't. I never believed it or told my sister about it, it's just something I did.

I still have to go past a scary cupboard in the dark after using the lav, so I prefer to be out of there quickly even now.

as for steering cars, you had to move the wheel in the *opposite* direction to where you wanted to go.

My brother once told me that goats' horns were pink with purple spots. It wasn't easy but I did manage to colour them in like that.

My mum told me she couldn't spell 'table'. She was busy. I thought I was so clever because I checked my spelling later and I had got it right.

I believed that the pine trees in our backyard changed into lions in the dark - they did look a little lion shaped.

Ythika

As a child believed that I was antisocial, of course now I know it's just everyone else!

OH trees!
I did believe they were more *alive* at nightI thought their branches became armsI thought they were benevolent watchers.

Possibly a result of watching the "Wizard of OZ" talking forest scenes.

I was the only "heathen child" in catholic kindergarden. They took us to church one autumn day to receive St Blasius' blessing which was supposed to help against a sore throat among other things. The day after I had a sore throat... and I was sure that it depended on I was not baptised...

I'm sure I would have thought the same thing back then!

My Grandfather told me that a small island in the middle of an inlet was Tasmainia (a state of Australia - the bit down the bottom) when I was driving one day, at 18, with a car full of 18 year olds I blurted out, "That's not Tasmainia" "No S&*#" was the reply.
I'd never ever thought to question it.
I knew where Tasmainia was in location to Australia, but my Grand Pa wouldn't lie. B@%$#@!$

I believed in Jack Frost, and that lightning was god flicking the light switch and the thunder was god moving furniture about.

On a clear day you can see wales from the beach nr our house - when I was little I thought my parents were talking about whales and spent hours scanning the horizon for them

Ok, ok. I'll admit to doing the toilet flush thing. I had to flush the toilet, wash my hands and get out of the room before it finished.

Liam.

God, and also things like, if you swear, you go to hell, i actually believed in that sort of stuff.

Believing my mom when she said that if you play with yourself your willy will fall off. now i think i would be more comfortable with the words, c**k and jacking off

I know a guy whose mother told him that fat people would explode if you laughed at them.

My Auntie Hilary told me that if I ate apple cores then apple trees would grow in my stomach and I still can't bring myself to eat apple cores (horrid anyway).

Up until I was 10 I really believed there was a poltergeist in our house called "Humphy Bogart" who was a sort of goblin, boggart or spriggan.

I also heard of a guy who was told by his parents that if he "played with himself" then the penis fairy would come and take it away and eat it (can I say things like that ?)

*misspelling words when you're a child* I grew up with a boy the same age, and I always wondered about his parents giving him such a silly name: "Zwirn", this is "thread" or "yarn" in english... It took me quite a time to find out that his proper name was "Sven".... *sorry to all people from Scandinavia, but I was not older than 3 years at that time*