I don’t really have any special party tricks or cool things I can do to impress people. My hidden talents mostly just involve my brain working way too quickly for its own good (with the notable exception of #5).
#1. I can read upside down. If you’re sitting across from me at a table with a magazine laid flat between us, printing facing you, I would bet a cupcake that I can read the article just as fast (if not faster) upside down than you will read it right-side up.
#2. Did I mention I’m also a bit of a speed reader? If you give me a 1,000 page novel and eight or nine hours unattended I can usually finish the whole thing in one sitting. And have. And have then realized it was waaaaaaaaay past my bedtime.
#3. I can sleep sitting up. Is that a talent? My hubby seems to think it is. I think it’s a side effect of working night shifts for too many years.
#4. He also thinks I have a hidden talent for finding things via search engine. I call this “knowing how to use a search engine”, but we won’t go into that right now. It’s nice to be needed, right?
#5. I like working the New York Times crossword puzzle and am getting better at working out the riddle that is usually hidden in the puzzle title. I’d like to think I’m also building a good vocabulary via these puzzles. I think I’m fairly good at word-based puzzles, though picture or math-based puzzles still elude me.
#6. I think I do a decent job of mimicking accents.
#7. Here’s one I’m unsure of: is being able to do basic math in your head a talent? Anything that involves guesstimating a quantity, or doing addition, multiplication, etc. Example: I can look at a pallet of freight totes and guess that based on a stacking layout of six totes per layer X three layers = eighteen totes X twenty minutes to work each tote = 360 minutes = six hours worth of work. I don’t really have to think it through. Or if your bill came to $27.36 and you handed me $30 I could tell you without pausing that your change was $2.64. I’m not sure if this is a talent but it seems to impress the people I work with, which means I’m either speedy in the brain or they are…never mind.
So what are your hidden talents? Anything cool you can do? Tell me in the comments!
19 Comments
Katrin
I love the fact that you can read upside down. That is pretty impressive! I wish I could do that. It takes me forever to read one word upside down although I am a pretty fast reader.
I can sleep sitting up too. And I don’t care if it is loud or not.
Martha Woods
Thanks! I will fall asleep right next to a hardcore XBox gaming session, but weirdly enough, if I’m in my bed trying to sleep noise really bothers me!
Jasmine
I can do the read upside down thing too, sometimes my old boss would have me come with her to talk to our COO so I could read the paperwork on his desk and find out what was up! I can only do up to like the Wed Times puzzle – but it has GOT to make you smarter! I can sleep in almost any position and I agree its a result of night shifts. :)
Martha Woods
That’s hilarious! Like espionage. I’m always so proud of myself if I can complete the entire Sunday puzzle. Unless of course I fall asleep and jab myself in the face with my pen in the middle of the puzzle :D
M.
Thanks for reminding me about the reading upside down one! I totally forgot. Had to go back and update my post, because it’s probably the only legitimate hidden talent I possess! I WISH I could speed-read. I read pretty quickly because I read a lot, but definitely couldn’t finish 1,000 pages in a day – let alone 8 hours. Damn, girl. Also yes, that math thing is a talent. You lost me at six totes per layer.
You rock! :)
Martha Woods
LOL When I get into the “zone” with a book, my hubby knows it’s best just to leave me be. I get so wrapped up in the story that I can’t concentrate on anything else until it’s finished! I think that’s why I read so fast, so I don’t have to wait so long for the ending! :)
Tami Rebekah
omgoodnes thats funny!! Im always trying to guess the measurements of something and Im always wrong!! Very cute post!! Following along on BlogLovin :)
Martha Woods
Thanks! You have such a cool blog btw, followed you back :)
Lin
Damn girl, you’ve got lots of talents going on. Label me jealous. Love that you can speed read, always wanted to be able to do that. Unfortunately, I’m a little on the slow side when it comes to reading. The hubs laughs at me cause I have to really take in every word on the page, which usually takes a while haha.
#7 is totally a talent! I suck at math, even the basic stuff. The other day we went out to dinner and I couldnt figure out what our total, including tip, would be without using a calculator :/ Thanks for linking up!
Martha Woods
LOL thanks! The only downside is that I can’t read over someone’s shoulder. I get waaaaaaay too impatient! Thanks for stopping by :)
Sarah Callahan
Hey Martha! I nominated you for the Liebster Award… check out my blog for more information http://cntrygirlinheels.blogspot.com/
Have a wonderful sunny day! ♥
Martha Woods
Aw thanks chica! <3 I’ve actually done the Liebster before but thank you anyway!
Yun, The Polish Hideout
You can read upside down?! That’s amazing, and I totally envy that. I definitely can’t do it, which is a problem when we’re playing board games around the table. I always have to have the board rotated so that the words are right side up towards me. Otherwise, I can’t play lol. :D
~ Yun
Martha Woods
Thanks! I don’t know how I do it, I just do it. :)
Pang
Wow I’m impressed. I would have never thought of reading upside down. I read really slow, that’s why I don’t have the patience to read. When I went to school, my way of speed reading is skipping paragraphs, haha. I always managed to do well in school because I can memorize a lot of stuff for my exams.
Martha Woods
I wish I had a killer memory! It kind of depends on what I’m trying to remember. Unfortunately I’m great at remembering unimportant stuff like song lyrics over important info!
meg m
that math one is super impressive. I reread it and still was like… ummmmm haha i suck at math!
I can read upside down but not nearly as fast as normal.
and I’m BRUTAL at crosswords. my sister can do them in no time but I don’t understand any clues.
Martha Woods
LOL thanks!
Sophia Smith
Here is my hidden talent – I cannot read upside down and now it is not even secret. Lolz. My speed is amazing too I can finish a 1000 page novel in 8 to 9 years. I am an extremely pathetically slow reader.