i used to believe that shoes came alive in the night. i would wake up in the morning and freak out that my shoes had been walking over me as they were surrounding my bed. it was only after 6 months of me waking up and screaming that my mum realised that my brother was getting all our shoes and placing them around the bed, then move them back after i started crying and had run from the room.

tash

when you sit by a fire it can dry up you bone marrow

debbie

Up until I was 6 years old, I thought "being grounded" meant being buried alive in the backyard. My parents never understood why, whenever they told me I was grounded, I would start crying hysterically and run screaming from the house.

schizoid cowboy

I have never got over the childhood habit of giving personalities and emotions to inanimate objects...I feel really sorry for cars on scrap heaps, bald Christmas trees that nobody wants, etc...just typing this made me want to cry!!

Maggie

When I was about 3, I had a fear of ceiling fans. I guess I thought they might fall down and slice me up or something.

Anon

Our family lived in Malawi Africa and often there were power cuts. The candles were lit and at 5 years old I firmly believed that the candles helped the electricity come back on.

Simmy

My Mum always told my sisters and I that we couldn't have chocolate decorations on the Christmas tree because the fairy lights would melt them. It wasn't until I was much,much older and had my own Christmas tree,I realised that wasn't true. When I told my mum about my discovery, she just laughed!

Nin - a slow learner

i watched to much cartoons because i used to believe if you stuck a piece of metal in a light socket you could see your own bones like an x-ray...it did'nt work!!!

hi-desert dummy

When I was little, we used to keep a spare key in a freezer we had in the garage. My mom would tell me to put it back right after I opened the door. I used to think that was because the key would melt in the keyhole, so I would always put the key back right away. I didn't figure out that it was to hide it from burglars until I was about ten.

Cythiria

When I was little, I was playing around with my mom's phone. She told me that if I pressed a certain button (don't remeber which one), the house would explode. I thought I had pressed the button, so I ran out of the house screaming and crying. I climbed up a tree, because I thought a tree couldn't catch fire.

Carolyn

Until I was 8 I used to believe that if clothing went into the wash more than once it would turn into gold.

Ben

We had a shilling-in-the-slot gas meter, and I used to believe the shillings themselves actually physically turned to gas.

Ray Ward

I used to believe that chores were a privilege. Around the age of 7-8 I used to BEG my mom to help her with the dishes, clean the bathroom, prepare dinner, etc. I would literally cry if she asked me to just relax.

Why? Because my mom was and still is a neat freak. Every weekend was like spring cleaning and she would blast the radio while doing her chores. Since the only other times I could associate with loud music was birthday parties, BBQs and beach fun...I thought, wow this cleaning thing must be extra fun!!

BarbaraLee

I used to believe that the illuminated light on our doorbell would light up when the movie started at the local drive-in. I don't know why.

Scott

When I was a kid, I was terrified that the if the ceiling fan in my bedroom was set on high, it would be spinning too fast and fly off and kill me at night while I was asleep. I still don't like to have the ceiling fan set on high, but only because it makes too much noise.

Anon

When i was little i would sleep over at my grandparents house sometimes. I would always sleep on the hid-a-bed or whatever. Anyways I would always get scared and want to go and sleep in their bed. To get to their room I had to go down a long hallway. For some reason I thought for the longest time that a huge buffalo was going to charge me from behind if i didn't run as fast as i could down that hallway.

Jon

The wallpaper in my room as a child had scenes of alittle boy & alittle girl in a garden. The girl was using a hoe & the boy was pushing a wheelbarrow. During the day they were stationary, but at night they moved about doing their chores. I thought everyone's wallpaper did this!

Dale

When I was very young, I believed that houses were carved out of one gigantic block of wood.

tinmanjones

I used to believe there were tiny elves in the refrigerator that would turn on the light when they heard you coming. I would always try to sneak up so quietly, but could never be quiet enough to trick the elves.

Kate

up until recently, i always thought a special brick was made for corners. until my kind friend explained that they just turned the brick around...

annin hughes