16 Common Things That People Learn Unbelievably Late In Life

Sometimes what we consider to be common knowledge isn't as widespread as we first believed. People are capable of being quite stupid, too. In fact, you could think, "Holy crap, I'm a moron," after reading one or two of these. Well, all people have knowledge gaps. No matter how knowledgeable or skilled we are. You know, that moment of realization or fact that is so brutally clear, it surprises us and leaves us wondering how we managed to go through life without learning such fundamental knowledge.
Depending on their age, people learn things in different ways. You begin to understand that the moon is constantly present, so it is not unusual to occasionally see it during the day, and that the sun still exists even when darkness falls and you cannot see it.
These forms of information is acquired by personal experience, reading, or conversation with others. But occasionally they simply don't surface, and you find yourself ignorant of what is clear to everyone else. Even though it's never too late to pick up a new skill, you can't help but feel awkward when you're the last person to learn something.
The good news is that learning can always be done at any time. Fortunately for us, we have gathered across the internet these little matters and life-changing nuggets of knowledge in order to spare us from any further shame. Thousands of people came forward to share the common knowledge they came to at an absurdly late age in various "Ask Reddit" posts, and they didn't keep anything back.

#1 "At roughly 37, I learned pineapples grow from the ground and not from a tree."

Source: u/Human_Watch4506

#2 "That ponies are NOT baby horses; they're a breed of horse."

Source: u/phrygN

#3 "That baby carrots are just shaved down big carrots. I was devastated a few years ago."

Source:

#4 "That steak is expensive. My parents kept us shielded from the cost of everything growing up, especially when we went out for dinner. So, I would go out to eat with my friends' families and order steak and lobster, because I liked it. I had no idea I was consistently ordering the most expensive shit on the menu and was extremely embarrassed when I learned this as a teen."

Source: u/urbz102385

#5 "That 'rotating tires' doesn’t mean spinning them around in place like you’re in a Fast and the Furious movie. It means you swap each of their positions on the car."

Source: u/Sadlittleferret

#6 "That birds don't live in nests. Just for rearing their young. I learned that at the age of 72. And I have a PhD in biophysics. Not zoology. Never too late to learn."

Source: alanmagid

#7 Until the age of 14, I thought Princess Diana was a famous marine biologist. They always called her "The Princess of WALES" so.....

Source: AIRjaram

#8 My dad would tell me bulls**t things to mess with me as a kid. Usually he would remember eventually to correct it. Sometimes, however, he forgot. I went through the first 17 years of my life thinking an artichoke was a nocturnal rodent. Went to Italian restaurant and was horrified to see artichoke hearts on the menu. My girlfriend still gives me s**t for it three years later

Source: xDeezyz,

#9 I always thought that you had to legally be 16 to have coffee. Soon after my 16th birthday I went to the nearest coffee store and ordered one. I was sweating and hoping they wouldn't ask for id, because I didn't have any.

Source: anonymous

#10 It's called "metal" because it's harder than rock

Source: HiDeAnkTum

#11 That not every woman who's nice to me is interested in me, they're just being friendly. Wished someone made that clearer when I was younger, would've saved me a lot of embarrassment and stupid moments in high school and early college

 

Source: Err0rbot

#12 That the world owes you nothing. You can be a good person and that's fine but it won't lead to you being blessed with nice things; people can use you if you're too nice to them. I grew up thinking that my life was special and that I was destined for greatness but I'm now just another fish in the sea

Source: Norfolkwegian_8991

#13 I have a cousin who quotes Yogi Berra on a fairly regular basis, and it wasn't until last Thanksgiving that I realized he's a real person, and that my cousin hasn't been admiring the words of Yogi Bear all this time

Source: hellothereitsanna

#14 Riding a bicycle. I learnt it at 18, my parents believed in an astrologer who told them that I would have a terrible accident when I drive or ride. So I had to learn bicycle secretly from a friend

Source: hoodibaba007

#15 "Thought Olivia Newton-John, Fig Newtons, and Newton's Laws were part of some sort of family business."

Source:  2OQuestions

 #16 "I was convinced cheese grew on bushes till 12-13 years old."

Source: digdat0