7 ms·

Thanks, great article! Pickpockets fascinate me. A recent hobby of mine has been to steal people's straws in drinks at parties (a way to practice without being

by GuiA 14y ago

Thanks, great article! Pickpockets fascinate me. A recent hobby of mine has been to steal people's straws in drinks at parties (a way to practice without being arrested when you fail :-) )- it's a fascinating thing to do: you have to observe how people behave, how they react when you talk to them, when you point at something with one finger, etc. I recommend trying it.

monochromatic 14y ago
What a bizarre thing to do at a party...
- Cushman 14y ago
  If you were an alien anthropologist, would that strike you as the most bizarre thing going on at parties?
  - monochromatic 14y ago
    What a bizarre thing to ask!
  - noonespecial 14y ago
    "Alien anthropologist" is the bizarre thing I often do at parties. Its very enlightening. Excitement lagging at party? Grab a friend and start "observing the humans". Its endless fun.
sharkweek 14y ago
Not entirely related, but a fun psychological party trick. When someone is telling a story and you're standing next to them, start handing them random things to hold. You'll be surprised how many people will just start holding whatever you hand them; and by the end of their conversation they're normally confused, wondering why they're holding a bunch of random stuff, and you'll get a good laugh.
- gregschlom 14y ago
  I love to do that, and also the opposite trick: when people are telling a story, try holding one of their fingers between your thumb and index. They'll stop talking immediately, wondering what the hell you're doing :)
  - popopje 14y ago
    what the hell are you doing?
    - rikacomet 14y ago
      its a psychological trick to make them shut up?
      - chris_wot 14y ago
        It's a psychological trick to make them think you are a jerk.
        Profess 14y ago
        You can't deny its performance.
        corin_ 14y ago
        Saying "shut up you're boring me" is equally effective and frankly would make you seem less weird.
rdtsc 14y ago
Have you considered that quite a few notice what you did but just don't want to confront you, rather put you in "that weirdo" category and make a mental note not to associate with you anymore. I would certainly not follow you, point a finger and yell "you stole my straw, give it back" but I would certainly think you are strange and just steer away from you in the future.
- batgaijin 14y ago
  Who is going to let a little klepto sabotage friendship?
- unimpressive 14y ago
  I'd ask, figuring it was some party trick.
- ramblerman 14y ago
  Have you considered that you might be the strange one? You see somebody do something "weird", immediately categorize them, cut communication, and move on... That's a pretty small and boring world to live in. If I saw OP do his thing, I'd laugh and say "give me my straw back you weirdo", he'd explain and that would be that.
  - devcpp 14y ago
    We all do that unconsciously. If you're like most people, you aren't strange.
    - Dylan16807 14y ago
      You're going to parties with too many people if you're marking people as do-not-communicate at a second's notice. It's not like you're in public with hundreds around.
  - rdtsc 14y ago
    If I meet 10 new people at a party and I see one of them taking my straw I will just immediately categorize them and probably choose to associate with the other 9. > If I saw OP do his thing, I'd laugh and say "give me my straw back you weirdo", he'd explain and that would be that. I would do that but depends on the context and how he acts. If he is nervous and acting weird I would probably refuse to say anything and just go and talk with someone else. If he was already interesting and funny I might assume he is just joking. If he is already a friend and is known to do this then I wouldn't care probably.So it really depends on the context.
Woost 14y ago
You should check out http://bobarno.com/thiefhunters/ http://bobarno.com/thiefhunters/ It's a blog by Bob Arno, a once stage pickpocket, who now wanders around the world looking for thieves of various sorts (and then interviews them)
chatmasta 14y ago
God, I'm so glad people are pointing out that this is weird. You really shouldn't do this at parties, dude. You don't know how protective someone is of their drink. Just because you might not mind if someone stole your straw does NOT mean that most people feel the same way. For many people, there is something very private about the drink they are holding. Not only that, but the connotations of people who surreptitiously put their hand anywhere close to a drink at a party are NOT good connotations. I don't think these connotations need to be explained. I don't mean to offend you, man. I rarely even comment on Hacker News. I'm just trying to help you understand why many people (I would say the majority) are extremely off put by this behavior. That said, I don't know what context you do this in. Friends are unlikely to hold a negative perception of this, but people you just met in a bar or party situation could hold dangerously negative perceptions of it. p.s. I notice that you are French. I have no idea how my advice applies to French culture, so this may be a cultural difference. But in American culture, at least that of college age and older, I think most people will agree with this comment.

by GuiA 14y ago

monochromatic 14y ago

What a bizarre thing to do at a party...

Cushman 14y ago
If you were an alien anthropologist, would that strike you as the most bizarre thing going on at parties?
- monochromatic 14y ago
  What a bizarre thing to ask!
- noonespecial 14y ago
  "Alien anthropologist" is the bizarre thing I often do at parties. Its very enlightening. Excitement lagging at party? Grab a friend and start "observing the humans". Its endless fun.

sharkweek 14y ago

Not entirely related, but a fun psychological party trick. When someone is telling a story and you're standing next to them, start handing them random things to hold. You'll be surprised how many people will just start holding whatever you hand them; and by the end of their conversation they're normally confused, wondering why they're holding a bunch of random stuff, and you'll get a good laugh.

gregschlom 14y ago
I love to do that, and also the opposite trick: when people are telling a story, try holding one of their fingers between your thumb and index. They'll stop talking immediately, wondering what the hell you're doing :)
- popopje 14y ago
  what the hell are you doing?
  - rikacomet 14y ago
    its a psychological trick to make them shut up?
    - chris_wot 14y ago
      It's a psychological trick to make them think you are a jerk.
      - Profess 14y ago
        You can't deny its performance.
        corin_ 14y ago
        Saying "shut up you're boring me" is equally effective and frankly would make you seem less weird.

rdtsc 14y ago

Have you considered that quite a few notice what you did but just don't want to confront you, rather put you in "that weirdo" category and make a mental note not to associate with you anymore. I would certainly not follow you, point a finger and yell "you stole my straw, give it back" but I would certainly think you are strange and just steer away from you in the future.

batgaijin 14y ago
Who is going to let a little klepto sabotage friendship?
unimpressive 14y ago
I'd ask, figuring it was some party trick.
ramblerman 14y ago
Have you considered that you might be the strange one? You see somebody do something "weird", immediately categorize them, cut communication, and move on... That's a pretty small and boring world to live in. If I saw OP do his thing, I'd laugh and say "give me my straw back you weirdo", he'd explain and that would be that.
- devcpp 14y ago
  We all do that unconsciously. If you're like most people, you aren't strange.
  - Dylan16807 14y ago
    You're going to parties with too many people if you're marking people as do-not-communicate at a second's notice. It's not like you're in public with hundreds around.
- rdtsc 14y ago
  If I meet 10 new people at a party and I see one of them taking my straw I will just immediately categorize them and probably choose to associate with the other 9. > If I saw OP do his thing, I'd laugh and say "give me my straw back you weirdo", he'd explain and that would be that. I would do that but depends on the context and how he acts. If he is nervous and acting weird I would probably refuse to say anything and just go and talk with someone else. If he was already interesting and funny I might assume he is just joking. If he is already a friend and is known to do this then I wouldn't care probably.So it really depends on the context.

Woost 14y ago

You should check out http://bobarno.com/thiefhunters/ http://bobarno.com/thiefhunters/ It's a blog by Bob Arno, a once stage pickpocket, who now wanders around the world looking for thieves of various sorts (and then interviews them)

chatmasta 14y ago

God, I'm so glad people are pointing out that this is weird. You really shouldn't do this at parties, dude. You don't know how protective someone is of their drink. Just because you might not mind if someone stole your straw does NOT mean that most people feel the same way. For many people, there is something very private about the drink they are holding. Not only that, but the connotations of people who surreptitiously put their hand anywhere close to a drink at a party are NOT good connotations. I don't think these connotations need to be explained. I don't mean to offend you, man. I rarely even comment on Hacker News. I'm just trying to help you understand why many people (I would say the majority) are extremely off put by this behavior. That said, I don't know what context you do this in. Friends are unlikely to hold a negative perception of this, but people you just met in a bar or party situation could hold dangerously negative perceptions of it. p.s. I notice that you are French. I have no idea how my advice applies to French culture, so this may be a cultural difference. But in American culture, at least that of college age and older, I think most people will agree with this comment.