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What's the most embarrassing thing you did because of a special interest?

Kalinychta said:
Ohhhh this thread is about embarrassing things that have to do with hobbies and interests. I completely missed that part of the title.
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The thread went off track early on. My first post (OP) describes how a special interest made me venture into someone's yard to observe it. This woman came outside the house and asked me what I was doing on her patio!!! I'd been so caught up wtih my special interest/obsession that I lost insight into what I'd been doing. I promptly vacated her property.

I have to believe that others here did even MORE inappropriate things -- due to a beloved special interest. Please, let's keep this thread clean and on track.
 
Ken said:
I realized after making that posting that it was a mistake. Well, OK. I just hope I won't get banned from the forum.

In 1978 I was working at a high end audio shop as a repair technician. The repair shop had a counter that was about three and a half feet high. That was where customers were to bring in their equipment and fill out the paperwork. One day a thin but overly endowed young lady brought in something for repair - I can't remember what it was. She was wearing a very thin T-shirt. After placing the item on the counter, she lifted her boobs and rested them on the counter.

I got out the paperwork and asked her name, contact info, description of issue, etc. After finishing the paperwork, I turned it around for her to review and sign. She paused and made a funny face and said, "That's not my name." I looked at it and it looked correct to me. So, I asked her to spell it. As she spelled her name, it all checked out. After saying it looks correct to me, she exclaimed, "that is not my name!" As I looked back at the name on the paperwork, as if something magical, the written name transformed before my eyes into... Titts.

Without a doubt, that was the most mortifying thing I have any memory of doing. I couldn't imagine how I could have done that. It just wasn't me. Wasn't anything I would ever do or ever did before or after that. I still do not understand how the spelling matched her real name and then morphed into something very different. It is still mortifying and still mystifying.
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That was a very titillating day for you. No doubt.
 
I think the most embarrassing thing I have done, and continue to do, regarding a special interest is how much I talk about them. Lol
 
By “special interest” do you mean in the autistic sense, as in “highly restricted, fixated interests that are abnormal in intensity or focus (e.g. strong attachment to or preoccupation with unusual objects, excessively circumscribed or perseverative of interests)” per the DSM-5? Just to be clear. I think the term “special interests” is grossly misunderstood on the forum as it relates to autism.

And I don’t have that particular autistic trait, but re: regular old interests, I’ve been a big reader my entire life, and I used to embarrass myself at school quite often when I was a kid by displaying strong emotional responses to whatever I was reading at any given moment, like grimaces of horror and nirvanaesque joy and such. This was actually due to autism, though—I’ve always had an enormous imagination, so I don’t merely read books; I sort of “enter” them. I’m sure it was hilarious to watch me read a book. It probably still is.
 
Same for me regarding the two above posts. My imagination wants to run away with me at every turn. It's sorta of a special interest, because l walk around with a perpetual storyline writing itself like a stock banner spouting out the latest fake news. Once l heard a ridiculous line at depth store and for 5 mins l was writing a story in my head. It's embarrassing to be that way.
 
Kalinychta said:
By “special interest” do you mean in the autistic sense, as in “highly restricted, fixated interests that are abnormal in intensity or focus (e.g. strong attachment to or preoccupation with unusual objects, excessively circumscribed or perseverative of interests)” per the DSM-5? Just to be clear. I think the term “special interests” is grossly misunderstood on the forum as it relates to autism.

And I don’t have that particular autistic trait, but re: regular old interests, I’ve been a big reader my entire life, and I used to embarrass myself at school quite often when I was a kid by displaying strong emotional responses to whatever I was reading at any given moment, like grimaces of horror and nirvanaesque joy and such. This was actually due to autism, though—I’ve always had an enormous imagination, so I don’t merely read books; I sort of “enter” them. I’m sure it was hilarious to watch me read a book. It probably still is.
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Yes, that's what I mean, from the DSM. I've had attachment to objects (window shades in childhood, ponytails in recent adulthood, a few other object attachments as well) plus perseverative, fixated and circumscribed.

One time I saw a woman in the parking lot with this huge ponytail; her hair texture looked very similar to mine, which is exceptionally UNUSUAL. In my car I got a rush and told myself, "I'm gonna FEEL that ponytail."

She entered the store first while I was still parking. In the store I looked for her. Yes, I sound like a nutcase, but hey, it's neurodivergence at its finest. I located her in an aisle, took a few calm breaths, and complimented her on her ponytail.

I said her hair looked very similar to mine, and turned around to show her MY ponytail. She agreed it was similar (fluffy texture, almost like cotton-candy).

I then ... asked if I could feel her hair. She allowed me, and I took some of the ponytail between my thumb and fingers and felt the texture. There was NOTHING sexual about this. It was 100% that description in the DSM. At the time I had no idea I was autistic. I thanked her and moved on, SO GLAD I had felt that ponytail. I'm obsessed with big, voluminous ponytails.
 
Kalinychta said:
Ohhhh this thread is about embarrassing things that have to do with hobbies and interests. I completely missed that part of the title.
Click to expand...

That's what happened to me. I was just scrolling down the thread and thought it was just about embarrassing experiences. I wish I had paid better attention to the post title. It would have saved me from reliving (and sharing) a very demoralizing event in my life.

I think autism definitely played a role. In any environment, I always focus on singular elements that are dominate in the immediate environment. She basically shoved that part of herself into a dominate position. However, nothing like that has ever happened before or since.

Regardless, not due to this experience, but I learned from this job that I cannot work any job where I have to interface with the general public. Not because I embarrass myself, but because the social anxiety is just too much. The constant anxiety was very detrimental to my health and career.

OK, no more topic diversions...
 
Embarrassment? None that I can think of. Though from time to time I seem to have to make it clear that while I find totalitarianism and mass authoritarian movements psychologically fascinating, I support none of them.

Apart from not having a particularly ideological mindset in general. A point of view akin to Temple Grandin.
 
When I was a young kid, whenever I had the opportunity, I would try to observe people behaving naturally without being aware they were being watched. It definitely felt like an obsession for a while.

So one day, I was off school for some reason, and had to go into work with my mum (she was a secretary) as she couldn't leave me at home alone.

I'm not sure why, but after going down to the lower floor, I decided to go into the ladies toilet and have a pee, and while I was in there, someone else came in and entered the cubicle next to me. I suddenly got the urge to try to look at what they were doing.

So, because the dividing wall of the cubicle didn't go all the way to the back, I knew if I carefully peered around, I wouldn't be seen, because I would be behind where the other person was, and they'd be facing forward as well, and I’d get to see something I wasn't supposed to see.

So I began to slowly peer round, and before I got to see anything, the person somehow noticed that somebody was there, and they called out. "Who’s that? Who's there?" :eek:

I didn't know what to do. I was so embarrassed. How could I admit I was a boy in the girls toilet trying to have a peek? Because I didn't answer, she began to get concerned, and I knew I’d better say something, and so, without thinking, and in my best girly voice, I said…”It's only me”.

“Oh OK, that's all right,” said the woman, whoever she was. She then finished up, washed her hands, and left.

Once my heart had stopped beating outside my chest, I left, hoping I wouldn't see anybody coming in, and ran back upstairs to where my mum worked, and never tried anything like that again.
 
Not sure if this counts, but, one of my special interests is architecture, particularly, historic architecture and it's preservation.

I, once, found myself standing in front of a crane/wrecking ball, that was about to begin demolition on an architecturally significant, historic home, requesting they think about the impact their actions would have, and to please refrain. I have always felt a strong connection to historical homes and buildings. They seem to be as meaningful and important to me, as humans and other, living creatures. After this incident, I began engaging in more constructive activities related to architectural preservation.
 
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During my fixation on the movie 1917, I made a document where I crossed it over with another franchise. I showed it in a Discord server for that franchise and got called a fascist for it.
To this day, I still don’t understand what making a wildly unusual crossover about a movie about one of the World Wars has to do with being fascist. Like I get that the movie is from a British perspective, but still? I genuinely did not understand at the time and I still don’t understand now. It was a baffling and strange experience. I can see why it made people uncomfortable, but not how it makes me a fascist.
 
Loren said:
Not sure if this counts, but, one of my special interests is architecture, particularly, historic architecture and it's preservation.

I, once, found myself standing in front of a crane/wrecking ball, that was about to begin demolition on an architecturally significant, historic home, requesting they think about the impact their actions would have, and to please refrain. I have always felt a strong connection to historical homes and buildings. They seem to be as meaningful and important to me, as humans and other, living creatures. After this incident, I began engaging in more constructive activities related to architectural preservation.
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I love historical homes too and I probably would’ve done the same.
 
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