In our world, we’re used to dealing with the probable and the improbable . The probable is, by its very definition, more likely — but improbable things are not impossible things, meaning they will happen from time to time .
So is it an omen or a sign when a seemingly improbably coincidence comes along? Nah, it’s just another coincidence in a long line of coincidences.
“A fish caught by a jellyfish who was caught by the tide.”
This is probably something that happens fairly regularly, but it isn’t often you get such a clear view of the fish who’s trapped. I mean, you can practically read its facial expression.
“Don’t ask how, I don’t know.”
It’s one thing for a car to crash and wind up leaning against something, but this car is only leaning against a foot-tall barricade. I have no idea how it’s able to maintain its balance.
“Bubblevision.”
You could blow a million bubbles in front of a million dogs and never get a picture that lines up as perfectly as this one. The wildest part is that the serendipity of this pic was presumably a complete accident.
“This tree that fell right in the gap.”
There are a lot of big trees, and a lot of dead trees, at Muir Woods National Monument , where this pic was taken. Eventually, a dead tree is going to fall perfectly on one of its surviving cousins.
“Should I ask how it is?”
For a car to get this airborne, it would have to be going fast…but if it was going fast, why isn’t the front bumper all smashed up? Unless there’s a surveillance video, we may never know how this happened.
“This apartment building in Shanghai fell over, and remained mostly intact.”
This pic is either an endorsement of the construction of this building — because it’s intact — or a condemnation of the fact that it apparently has no foundation. In any event, the collapse killed one person .
“This is William West and William West and they are the reason fingerprints were created to find criminals because they were not related at all, shared the same exact name and looked identical to one another.”
Most of us know that there are probably at least a few people out there with identical names, and a few more with identical faces, but what are the odds of a person who has the same name and looks exactly the same?
“They fit together perfectly.”
When you see a photo like this, you have to wonder whether it was a complete fluke, a happy accident, or a case where the photographer camped out for hours in order to snap the perfect pic.
“There is a dog under the silver paint on my fridge magnet.”
Whose dog is this? Why is it on a fridge magnet? Why was the dog painted over with silver paint? These are the kinds of questions that keep me up at night.
“This tree growing in the middle of a parking spot.”
It’s one thing to see a tree growing out of a proper planter in the middle of a parking lot, but seeing a tree just growing out of the parking lot itself is a rare sight.
“Random IP address printed in the middle of a word half way through this book.”
At the intersection between old-school books and new-school technology, we find this: a book with an inexplicable IP address printed on it. I wonder how this happened.
“This corn came with a baby corn attached.”
One could look at this and see an example of bonus corn, which is technically true. Still, I’m not sure how good that weird baby corn could possibly be. Still, it is bonus corn.
“Found a stone with dried seaweed attached to it.”
“Stone with dried seaweed attached” sounds like it would look and smell pretty gross. But this looks like intentional art. It’s incredible how the delicate tendrils of seaweed are preserved on the stone.
“Opened up a lighter and there was just another lighter inside.”
On one hand, a lighter is a lighter is a lighter. On the other hand, if you’re buying a specialized lighter like a barbecue lighter, you kind of want it to function differently than a standard lighter.
“Cobra bites python. Python constricts cobra to death. Python dies from cobra venom. Both snakes lose.”
Have you ever found yourself in an argument with someone, one that goes nowhere, but also one that neither side is willing to back away from? It’s kind of like this photo.
“Found the location of the print on this bill.”
For anyone keeping score at home, this is the Rotunda of Saint Nicolas in Cieszyn , a local landmark in Poland since the 11th or 12th century. It’s cool that this person tracked it down to compare it with the banknote.
“My friend took the best screenshot ever from the cal falcon nest cam.”
I don’t know what’s better here, the fluffy, sleeping-looking baby with its yet-to-be-born siblings in egg form, or its affronted parent, who looks almost Photoshopped into the pic.
“A lonely remora attached to my leg while I was snorkeling.”
I don’t know what this remora’s deal is, or why it doesn’t understand personal boundaries, but I do feel a little bad for it. With no other remoras nearby, it does indeed seem lonely.
“Found this doll in Sequoia National Park that looks like me.”
At first, I thought the resemblance was passing at best. Then I looked at the photo a little more. It really does look quite similar to the guy — not just the complexion and the eyebrows, but also the general facial expression.
“The ear-shaped handle broke off of my Vincent van Gogh coffee mug.”
Vincent van Gogh, if you’re unaware, lopped his own ear off for…uh, reasons. His missing ear may be more famous than his incredible art, in fact. A van Gogh mug losing its ear-shaped handle is an absolutely perfect coincidence to close on.
