Abstract, Off-the-wall Questions

**Desmond Linus** · 11-06-2010, 06:38 AM

Yesterday, I was on a school trip to look at apartment buildings. A lady was explaining the various aspects of renting an apartment (lease, security deposit etc.) and we were allowed to ask questions. There were the usual questions about pets and subletting, but I asked the question that made everyone pause:

"What happens if the tenant dies?"

Not only had that question never been asked, but that had never happened to any of the realtor's tenants (at least not yet *knocks on wood*).

Does anyone remember being in a similar scenario where they were on a school trip or something similar and they asked a really bizarre, abstract question that caught everyone off-guard? If so, what was it?

I'd love to hear about it.

**jerkface** · 11-06-2010, 07:38 AM

yes, ive done this a lot. however- not so much anymore because ive become aware of how weird other people find it. also, when i did it- most of the time it happened because i was thinking of something else at the same time as having a conversation (which could also be taken as rude) ex: this ones pretty bad: i was in a class and we were talking about STDs. i had answered some questions, but then, (because i was thinking about calendars) i asked out loud 'is it a leap year?' everybody stopped. the teacher was like 'um. okay.' the people of the class used that incident as an example of my eccentricity for the rest of the year. i swear, when i was asking the question, i thought it was harmless.

Storm · 11-06-2010, 05:38 PM

Death is now abstract and bizarre? How lucky we are.

**Slowandeasy1** · 11-06-2010, 05:44 PM

1. The only dumb question is the one you didn't ask.
2. In most cases, the question you asked was being thought of by 90% of the people, but they were afraid to ask.
3. The whole concept of Type Differences is that we all think differently so that all the questions do get asked.

The only reason something is "bizarre" is because the "majority" did not think of it.

I live in an apartment full of seniors like me. Believe me, death is not "bizarre" and there is a very detailed set of procedures in place for dealing with it. After all, there are really only two types of people in the world, Those that have and those that will.

**Antares** · 11-06-2010, 07:47 PM

I remember in a camp, we were supposed to interview someone, you know, like "where are you from?" etc. And make a factsheet about the other person out of it.

So my partner and I took an exceedingly long time asking questions that sometimes aren't applicable, because (little did I know) we were both INTJs, and we didn't want to ask stupid questions like "what is your favorite color?"

So out of the blue, I asked him: "What is the impression of your childhood?"

He didn't know how to answer that.

**xRedSunflowerx** · 11-06-2010, 10:41 PM

Since tropical systems (e.g. hurricanes, typhoons) rotate either cyclonically or anticyclonically depending on the hemisphere in which they form, I once asked which way a storm would spin if it were to form at exactly 0 degrees latitude. I didn't think my question was too off-the-wall since I asked it in a meteorology class, but the teacher teased me for the rest of the course for asking "oddball" questions.

**Muumeh** · 11-07-2010, 02:51 PM

RedSunflower, what is the answer?

**Rooster5E043** · 11-07-2010, 03:49 PM

Originally Posted by xRedSunflowerx
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Since tropical systems (e.g. hurricanes, typhoons) rotate either cyclonically or anticyclonically depending on the hemisphere in which they form, I once asked which way a storm would spin if it were to form at exactly 0 degrees latitude. I didn't think my question was too off-the-wall since I asked it in a meteorology class, but the teacher teased me for the rest of the course for asking "oddball" questions.

I think this is a great question! I am also curious what the answer is...

**xRedSunflowerx** · 11-07-2010, 04:22 PM

	Originally Posted by Muumeh To view links or images in this forum your post count must be 2 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.
	RedSunflower, what is the answer?

Tropical systems don't form within 5 degrees (north or south) of the equator. Because the Coriolis Effect at the equator is nil, the system couldn't generate rotation in either direction.

/Guess I should have included the answer in my original reply, lol.
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**mieu** · 11-08-2010, 10:38 AM

These questions don't seem bizarre at all! The OPs question might be a bit macabre, but that lady must have been a terrible realtor if she didn't immediately know what the procedure was for taking care of a lease whose tenant had died. Then again, the OP didn't say she didn't know, but I suppose I could see where others on the trip would be so shallow as to say 'Pff, what a weird question!' I do find that most times people don't think of the possibility of their own death when making life decisions (outside of like, life insurance policies).

If I were a teacher, I probably would have been thrilled at hearing RedSunflower's question, because it'd show that at least one of my students wasn't completely comatose and was actually interested.

I can't think of a situation where I asked a bizarre question--probably because if it did happen, I didn't think of it as being a weird thing to ask.

**darcykatrina** · 11-11-2010, 07:23 PM

I do that so much! I'm comfortable doing it around my friends because they know how I am, and they even enjoy it because I make them think. However, around people I don't know so well, they either see me as weird or interesting, which probably depends on their type. I'm sure the NTs are more accepting of it, and the SFs are more weirded out.

11-06-2010, 06:38 AM	#1
Desmond Linus Member [07%] MBTI: ENFP Join Date: Jul 2010 Posts: 312	Yesterday, I was on a school trip to look at apartment buildings. A lady was explaining the various aspects of renting an apartment (lease, security deposit etc.) and we were allowed to ask questions. There were the usual questions about pets and subletting, but I asked the question that made everyone pause: "What happens if the tenant dies?" Not only had that question never been asked, but that had never happened to any of the realtor's tenants (at least not yet knocks on wood). Does anyone remember being in a similar scenario where they were on a school trip or something similar and they asked a really bizarre, abstract question that caught everyone off-guard? If so, what was it? I'd love to hear about it.
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11-06-2010, 07:38 AM	#2
jerkface Member [03%] MBTI: INTJ Join Date: Nov 2010 Posts: 128	yes, ive done this a lot. however- not so much anymore because ive become aware of how weird other people find it. also, when i did it- most of the time it happened because i was thinking of something else at the same time as having a conversation (which could also be taken as rude) ex: this ones pretty bad: i was in a class and we were talking about STDs. i had answered some questions, but then, (because i was thinking about calendars) i asked out loud 'is it a leap year?' everybody stopped. the teacher was like 'um. okay.' the people of the class used that incident as an example of my eccentricity for the rest of the year. i swear, when i was asking the question, i thought it was harmless.
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11-06-2010, 05:38 PM	#3
Storm Administrator MBTI: xxxx Join Date: Mar 2008 Posts: 14,784	Death is now abstract and bizarre? How lucky we are.
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11-06-2010, 05:44 PM	#4
Slowandeasy1 Member [13%] MBTI: INTJ Join Date: May 2010 Posts: 522	1. The only dumb question is the one you didn't ask. 2. In most cases, the question you asked was being thought of by 90% of the people, but they were afraid to ask. 3. The whole concept of Type Differences is that we all think differently so that all the questions do get asked. The only reason something is "bizarre" is because the "majority" did not think of it. I live in an apartment full of seniors like me. Believe me, death is not "bizarre" and there is a very detailed set of procedures in place for dealing with it. After all, there are really only two types of people in the world, Those that have and those that will.
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11-06-2010, 07:47 PM	#5
Antares Core Member [175%] MBTI: INTJ Join Date: Dec 2007 Posts: 7,028	I remember in a camp, we were supposed to interview someone, you know, like "where are you from?" etc. And make a factsheet about the other person out of it. So my partner and I took an exceedingly long time asking questions that sometimes aren't applicable, because (little did I know) we were both INTJs, and we didn't want to ask stupid questions like "what is your favorite color?" So out of the blue, I asked him: "What is the impression of your childhood?" He didn't know how to answer that.
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11-06-2010, 10:41 PM	#6
xRedSunflowerx Member [03%] MBTI: INTJ Join Date: Jul 2009 Posts: 131	Since tropical systems (e.g. hurricanes, typhoons) rotate either cyclonically or anticyclonically depending on the hemisphere in which they form, I once asked which way a storm would spin if it were to form at exactly 0 degrees latitude. I didn't think my question was too off-the-wall since I asked it in a meteorology class, but the teacher teased me for the rest of the course for asking "oddball" questions.
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11-07-2010, 02:51 PM	#7
Muumeh Veteran Member [87%] MBTI: INTJ Join Date: Dec 2008 Posts: 3,518	RedSunflower, what is the answer?
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11-08-2010, 10:38 AM	#10
mieu Core Member [185%] $/)^3^(\$ MBTI: xNTx Join Date: Oct 2010 Posts: 7,433	These questions don't seem bizarre at all! The OPs question might be a bit macabre, but that lady must have been a terrible realtor if she didn't immediately know what the procedure was for taking care of a lease whose tenant had died. Then again, the OP didn't say she didn't know, but I suppose I could see where others on the trip would be so shallow as to say 'Pff, what a weird question!' I do find that most times people don't think of the possibility of their own death when making life decisions (outside of like, life insurance policies). If I were a teacher, I probably would have been thrilled at hearing RedSunflower's question, because it'd show that at least one of my students wasn't completely comatose and was actually interested. I can't think of a situation where I asked a bizarre question--probably because if it did happen, I didn't think of it as being a weird thing to ask.
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11-11-2010, 07:23 PM	#11
darcykatrina New Member [01%] MBTI: INTJ Join Date: Aug 2010 Posts: 25	I do that so much! I'm comfortable doing it around my friends because they know how I am, and they even enjoy it because I make them think. However, around people I don't know so well, they either see me as weird or interesting, which probably depends on their type. I'm sure the NTs are more accepting of it, and the SFs are more weirded out.
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