Sometimes, there’s a lot more to a picture than what you see. Sometimes, in order for that picture to make sense , you need a bit of backstory. Even if the whole story isn’t long, it can really change how you see a picture.
These pics are all pretty cool on their own, but they become so much cooler once you get the whole story.
“Almost 3 years of collecting balls from fountain pen ink reserves.”
Imagine looking at this picture without the caption. You’d probably be scratching your head, wondering what the heck you’re looking at. That’s why context is so important.
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…Still, what was the point of collecting all these fountain pen balls? What do you do with them?
“At my Airbnb there’s a mushroom growing out of the bathroom door.”
A mushroom growing out of your door is bad enough. But to find one growing out of a door in a place you’re renting? Uh, I think it might be time to pack your bags. And maybe leave a polite yet critical review on the place.
“The full moon is so bright it’s casting a shadow of my house on the yard.”
It almost looks like there’s a spotlight shining on this backyard playground. But nope, that’s the light from the full moon. Who would’ve thought it could get this bright?
Man, the moon is so strange.
“The wonderful nurse who did my lumbar puncture (spinal tap) in the hospital let me take a picture of my cerebral spinal fluid!”
Looking at that vial, you could think there was just water in there (even though it would be weird if someone just had water in a vial anyway). Knowing that it’s cerebral spinal fluid makes it so much cooler.
“When opening my yogurt, the peel came off completely clean. Almost 30 years of yogurt eating and it’s never happened before.”
People post pictures like this pretty often. But knowing that this is the first time it’s happened to someone after decades of opening yogurt cups makes it a lot more wholesome somehow. I dunno, it’s just really nice.
“The cables I need to charge three devices made by the same company.”
Don’t you just love tech companies? It’s like they want everyone to spend as much money as possible on chargers that don’t last very long. And they keep changing the outlets, so any of the chargers you already have won’t work. Sigh …
“4G data is so cheap in India that you get 2GB free with a ₹20 ($0.27) pack of chips.”
Imagine having access to such cheap data. Like, imagine being able to get free data with a pack of chips that cost less than a dollar. It almost seems too good to be true.
But, how would you even claim those free gigabytes?
“This sidewalk was built to accommodate a tree that, now, no longer exists.”
Without that bit of context, you may have ended up thinking this was a strange attempt at a unique design. But now that the sidewalk is like that, they might as well plant a new tree in that spot.
“Costco sells a tiny sachet of saffron in a bulk sized spice container.”
Saffron is, like, super expensive. So this is probably the bulk version of it. I don’t think you really need much of it in cooking, anyway.
Still, it seems like a waste of plastic for such a low volume of spice.
“My son and I used molten aluminum to cast an anthill. These are the tunnels and rooms they built under ground.”
On one hand, I kind of feel bad for the ants (kind of). But this is definitely a cool shot.
Without that caption, though, I’d honestly have no idea what I was looking at. It’s just a big, squiggly piece of metal.
“I reversed my car into a rock and the damage looks like a hand painted mountain range.”
I mean, that kind of sucks. But it also almost looks like it was put there on purpose. Like, the scratches look more like painted mountains than any kind of accident. So at least it’s not the worst thing in the world?
“My finger has been immobilized in a splint for 6 weeks and lost the folds in the last joint.”
I guess that’s what happens when you have to keep a broken or sprained finger in one spot for several weeks. I’m sure, though, that the wrinkles will come back with time. They always do, after all.
“I kept all of my old cell phones throughout the years. Decided to display them for some reason.”
Unless you were literally born in the 2000s (and people actually were. How weird is that?), then you probably have a collection of old brick and flip phones somewhere. Sometimes it’s nice to look back on how far technology has come.
“Two days ago I proposed to my fiancée… I did it by illustrating our story.”
See, this is the kind of well-thought-out marriage proposal I live for. All of that effort shows that this guy really cares.
And it gets better, too. Check out the full album here .
“My $5 and change ‘large bowl’ of soup from Arby’s.”
It seems like nothing special, until you realize that this little cup of soup cost five bucks. For such a tiny portion, that seems like a lot.
But I always wonder, are portion sizes too small now, or are we just used to them being super big?
“Someone asked me to paint my ‘best work yet’ for them, here’s the result!”
All I can say is, if someone asked me to make them my best painting yet, it wouldn’t look nearly as good as this one. I mean, we all start somewhere, but this one’s out of this world!
Just think of what her next “best work yet” will look like!
“Red wine vinegar attracts almost twice as many fruit flies as white wine vinegar.”
Okay, for a second there I thought these were two salad dressings with, like, poppy seeds in them or something. But no, just fruit flies. Who, apparently, like red wine vinegar more than white wine vinegar. Who would’ve thought?
“Fleece from the US embassy in Baghdad, Iraq, found at the Salvation Army near my house in Texas.”
It’s kind of amazing how the most random things will end up in the most random of places. Obviously whoever brought this US embassy sweatshirt to this Salvation Army probably worked there at some point, but why would they get rid of it?
“9 years of wear on the factory insoles of my work boots.”
Some pictures have so much history behind them. We may never know every single thing that happened while this person wore the boots that these insoles came from, but we’ll know that they definitely worked hard. I think it’s time for a well-earned upgrade.
“Taking photos and got lucky when a car’s headlights in the distance illuminated my foreground.”
Who would’ve thought that someone could take such an incredible picture with a light source shining on the backdrop? I mean, it made the picture better, which is cool, but I always thought lights dimmed the stars. I’m gonna stop thinking about this one too deeply.
“The only taxidermized blue whale in the world located in Gothenburg, Sweden.”
Taxidermy is a really strange yet impressive art. Though some taxidermized animals can come out really weird and creepy looking, others actually look kind of cool.
Like this whale, which must’ve taken a really long time to finish. No wonder there’s only one in the world.
“In Vietnam, blood donors receive certificates which they can use to get back the same amount of blood they have donated, for free, if they later need a blood transfusion.”
You really never know when you’d need a blood transfusion (anything can happen), so something like this would actually be really nice. It would make the whole blood donation thing feel a lot nicer.
“Took a flash photo of my boyfriend in a reflective jacket.”
Even though this looks like some kind of digital art piece, it’s totally natural. It just goes to show you how different camera settings can make some really cool effects depending on lighting and stuff. Man, photography really is an artform.
“Went for a walk to my grandmother’s favourite bridge where her ashes were scattered 3 years ago.”
It’s kind of amazing how different settings can mean different things to people. A bridge like this could’ve been where someone had their first kiss, or got a phone call with exciting news. Or, it could be the final resting place of someone whose ashes were spread there.
“This penny that has been stuck in my washer for years.”
So, I guess this is what happens when you get a penny stuck in your washer for years. Eventually, all the color and the design on the face with strip off. Does that mean it got washed into the laundry?
“Seven years ago, I cut off two fingertips with a hatchet. Since it was just above the nail matrix, they grew back. You can still see where the hatchet hit.”
Yeah, that’s pretty scary. But it’s good that everything worked out. This person ended up with their fingers (mostly) intact, and a pretty interesting story to tell at least.
“A fruit fly walked across my chocolate Peppermint Pattie as it cooled – leaving foot prints.”
To be honest, if I found a Peppermint Pattie with those markings on it, I wouldn’t even think twice. But knowing that those are fruit fly footprints makes it seem a bit grosser. Really wouldn’t want to eat that now.
“Water levels at Lake Powell are so low you can find old wrecks out of the water.”
It’s cool that this boat was able to be recovered, but not cool that the only reason why is because the water levels in this lake got so low. Some things are just super complicated, aren’t they?
“Some star fish can have birth defects that make them square.”
So, it’s a starfish, but it’s square in shape. Does that mean they’re squarefish? Yeah, probably not.
Seriously, though, who knew starfish could come in any shape other than star? That doesn’t seem like it’s something that happens very often.
“I own a Star Wars VHS created before Star Wars had episodes.”
Wow, that must be one old VHS tape. Though, didn’t they always have Episode names? Am I missing something here (I truly don’t know a lot about Star Wars so I can honestly say I have no idea here).
