Touched a book in a charity shop and now its contents are appearing everywhere?

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DescentNext@reddit

get yourself a carbon monoxide detector.

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nat_urally@reddit

That’s the stupidest reply I’ve seen on here yet.

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nat_urally@reddit

“No”… and then deleted it because you got so many downvotes. It was stupid.

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Lower_Canary5713@reddit (OP)

Did you not consider I already have one

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heyjxdee@reddit

Why not?? It could save your life one day

[-]

You are the universe experiencing itself in a 3d form. It wants to learn about this subject. Allow it that. After a week your algorithm will go back to what it was. Or, you'll have shifted the universal consciousness into a new form line that changes your human perspective further into this.

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tobiasfunkgay@reddit

What in the magic crystals is this

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QuickSpace3289@reddit

Crystals are entirely different. Pretty rocks.

What I am saying is the universe is a conscious creator. Call it god if you want, if it is easier to understand.

As we are it (made in his image) it is us. (God abides in us, and His love has been perfected in us. By this we know that we abide in Him.. - is a bible verse)

I am not Christian but because it's so widely known it's best used to explain.

Basically I believe, our subconscious, is the universe and it is experiencing itself in every format all at once in each reality. The chair is the universe experiencing being that chair, in that location, at that time and also it is the bird that flew past you yesterday. And you are the universe experiencing itself experiencing how live.

It's a bit convoluted - and hard to explain to people who think it's woowoo rather than possible alternatives to existence.

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The-big-snooze@reddit

So basically we are all one, everything that was and everything that will be?

I wonder if there is multiple universes, not just one?

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QuickSpace3289@reddit

I personally believe so.

It's a belief that has gotten me through a lot. I'm not religious at all, nor do I smoke pot or do drugs which when I get talking about this stuff, people are surprised about.

I just see the missing parts in science and can see where bits can be connected even if I don't understand how.

I myself freaking LOVE space. So this post caught my eye. As it so well encapsulates my belief system and a special interest I have for space.

To me, knowing, I'm part of a nebula, or, the painful things I've been through was because of having the experience of it meant something, or, that you and I are one in the same but experiencing existing in our own way, I dunno, makes me feel less alone in the world and less worried about when things go wrong. ☺️

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The-big-snooze@reddit

I feel this 🙌🏼

It does make me feel better to think that too.. it makes things less heavy to think that it’s all one accumulative experience.. but why would the universe want to have multiple infinite experiences 🤔

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QuickSpace3289@reddit

Because it can? There's nothing to stop it from doing it? Because it is wired to do so? Because it is bored?

One theory I heard was the big bang was the universe fragmenting itself into its smallest particles in order to relearn and rebuild itself through a shared ego driven consciousness as it pertains to humankind, and the relationary experiences of the other items in the universe.

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The-big-snooze@reddit

Do you think there is multiple realities/universes?

If in theory there is multiple universes, so you think there laws of psychics could differ from our own?

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QuickSpace3289@reddit

Depends. I think the different dimensions would have different laws of physics because of how space is set up and how objects move through them. As in 3d vs 4d vs 5d For multiverses though, it would depend on which kind we're talking about. Some might have the exact same rules as our 3D world and be a enar exact overlap, but, rather than no breakfast tomorrow you decide to grab a slice of toast, while others could be pretty different. I actually think this is what ghosts are. Just you going for a pee at 4am but in an alternative reality where the vibrations are so similar there's a small vidow of overlap. Super interesting either way!

I'm no physicist (obviously) but I'm sure looking into string theory/many worlds quantum theory/tegmark multiverses will be cool for you!

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The-big-snooze@reddit

I’ll check that out thank you! I could talk about space allll day 😊

I get what you mean about ghosts and the overlapping type thing.. like a higher dimension than us.

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Lower_Canary5713@reddit (OP)

Apparently there are multiple realities

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The-big-snooze@reddit

Boggles my mind that there is some people who never question things like this.. they just go about their routine and don’t even think, why are we here?

I look at the sky often and just wonder what it all is.

I’m not a believer in god, but surly something created the something?

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Lower_Canary5713@reddit (OP)

Exactly. Like I said in a previous comment. We literally live in a made up world where the literal impossible happens on a daily basis but apparently I’m the crazy one 🤣

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Ocean682@reddit

I’m very much with you on this.

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Lower_Canary5713@reddit (OP)

The truth

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Quacking_Plums@reddit

I don’t know what you’re hoping to hear but I have to explain this to my conspiracy-nutjob family and friends all the damn time.

It fits their narrow understanding of the world to have some enemy state not only spying on us via the devices that they manufacture and which we religiously carry around, but also that enemy state is somehow specifically interested in aunt Maud and her preoccupation with teapot doilies.

We voluntarily give away much more information about ourselves than could possibly be gleaned from having your phone listen in to every conversation you’ve ever had. That information is used against us in the war between us meat popsicles and ‘the machine’ and I hate to say that the machine is winning 😅

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ResplendentBear@reddit

Frequency illusion plus luck plus algorithms.

So earlier you come home from the book shop. Pootling about online you see a space video. A surprise, but you watch it. Caught up, you then watch the next one. Even a third maybe.

Now the algorithm thinks you suddenly really like space and sends you more videos. Surprised that Mark Zuckerberg and Geoff Bezos are personally having you followed, you half watch them whilst checking for cars outside and starting to make a hat out of tinfoil.

Cue more space videos.

Mad with paranoia you go onto reddit. Why is space following me. Why have I hidden the word space in this reply. Are you being stalked or can you rewrite reality by touching books?

Probably not.

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Lower_Canary5713@reddit (OP)

No. My videos are always asmr and makeup. Literally never been anything else in weeks. I get home after seeing the books and the first video that comes up is a guy with a telescope looking for Saturn. One of the books was literally about using a telescope to find planets.

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Quacking_Plums@reddit

Literally not how algorithms work. Sit down and write down the topic of every video in your feed as you scroll through them all one by one. They will not be restricted to one or two topics because that doesn’t make you a very valuable commodity for ad sales purposes. There will always be content that you scroll past by default, but the algorithm is there measuring the dwell time on every single one.

If any one topic gains prominence over the rest by even a small margin then you’ll get targeted with content that explores whether you are genuinely interested in it. If your dwell time continues to increase then you’ll get more related content, otherwise you’ll get less. All this happens in the background without you realising yet it influences you more than you think. It is simultaneously amazing and scary.

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DustierAndRustier@reddit

Why are you arguing with every comment? Either it’s the frequency illusion, or you only looked at the books because you were already interested in space, or you’re just mentally ill.

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Lower_Canary5713@reddit (OP)

Probably my because people are lying and trying to rewrite my own experience. Oh you alrwady were interested in space, you already watched videos on space. I think I know what I do in my own free time and unfortunately learning about space isn’t one of them. Too many people are throwing around the ‘mental illness’ accusation and it’s quite frightening how uneducated people are and how quickly they are to throw that out there. People like that are the reasons people do develop illnesses such as anxiety as people attack them for talking freely and sharing their experiences and opinions. You shouldn’t do that anymore

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DustierAndRustier@reddit

What else could it feasibly be though? If you genuinely think there’s some great conspiracy to show you videos about space, then yeah you’re probably mentally ill.

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ResplendentBear@reddit

YouTube recommendations are never just two things.

My top 7 videos right now are about 7 different things (Triassic animals, Chess, Elden ring and 4 different TV shows).

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Lower_Canary5713@reddit (OP)

Your the only person who has mentioned YouTube

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Original_Dream7121@reddit

Did you check the value of the book anywhere?

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Radiant-Major7838@reddit

You probably saw one video about space, and watched it so now the algorithm thinks you wants to see more videos about space. Before if you saw a video of space youd probably scroll past it, but because of the book you watched the video.

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Lower_Canary5713@reddit (OP)

No I got home and the first video that came up as soon as I opened the app was of someone using a telescope to find planets which was literally what the book was talking about. I don’t know why no one believes me 🤣

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Radiant-Major7838@reddit

What im saying is though, if you had not seen the book you wouldn't have given the video a second thought. Also, its not like space is a niche topic.

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Lower_Canary5713@reddit (OP)

But what I’m saying is that any video about space could have shown up. So how is it that the video that did show up first was the exact same thing I had just read in a book. A man finding planets wjth a telescope. It could have been a video just about planets or astronauts. Yet was the exact thing I’d just read

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bright_sorbet1@reddit

Coincidences happen all day everyday. The question becomes whether the coincidence is relevant enough for you to notice.

The first space video was a coincidence. The relevance was in place because you'd flicked through a similar book earlier.

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she_is_a_parsnip@reddit

How is that Likely? Like, rationally?
Your phone is an AI that has machine learning that knows what you search for or what you look at or how long you pause on certain images etc etc and it puts all this masses of data together and sells it. That’s how it works. Your phone “read” you right. The fact that you’re surprised that you looked at something in real life and your algorithm also looks at that is so telling … it’s literally just probability and machine learning. It’s not mind reading.

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bright_sorbet1@reddit

Your phone isn't ingrained in your brain.

While I agree paid advertising is highly targeted, walking into a shop and flicking through a random book is not an event your phone will ever know about.

So in this case, based on OPs description it's coincidence paired with the frequency illusion.

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she_is_a_parsnip@reddit

We are literally in agreement my friend 😊

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Radiant-Major7838@reddit

Yeah its a bit strange, but if it wasn't you wouldn't be thinking about it. Whats more likely, its just a weird coincidence, or your phone is reading your mind?

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Lower_Canary5713@reddit (OP)

Well in my opinion it’s more likely my phone is reading my mind. I’m sure everyone has had an experience you think of something and next thing an ad pops up for it. I know a lot of people who have had this experience. Or you mention to someone oh I might buy some new shoes next thing you know everything is about shoes..

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Etheria_system@reddit

Saying you think your phone can read your mind is concerning. I know you won’t want to hear this, but that could a be sign that your mental health has gone a bit wobbly.

It might be worth keeping track of if you have more unusual thoughts like this and if they start to increase in frequency, have a chat with your GP.

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Radiant-Major7838@reddit

I definitely think our phones listen to us, but I think its a massive leap to say they're reading our minds.

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Ocean682@reddit

I believe you. It’s probably the wrong sub for this topic lol.

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Lower_Canary5713@reddit (OP)

Yeah. I agree just didn’t know where else to put it. I have noticed people usually just get attacked on here lol. Not sure why it’s called askUK when people actaully don’t want to answer questions they just want to let their anger out on people 🤣

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bright_sorbet1@reddit

Its the Baader–Meinhof phenomenon. Your brain starts noticing something more often because it has become relevant to you. The same as if you bought a red Mini Cooper - you'd start seeing red mini coopers everywhere. They've ways been everywhere, you just didn't notice them before.

That would be what's happened here. You usually scroll past a space video, but this time you had an additional reference point that caused it to stand out to you.

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notahouseflipper@reddit

Wow, something similar happened to me twice recently. I don’t remember the first episode, but I do remember it was weird that something I simply thought about would suddenly show up in my feeds. Today, the second one happened. There was a man who was a jogger and promoted his “system” and books on a national level. We met him once and my wife and I joined a local jogging club that was based on his system. We went for a few months but eventually didn’t pursue it. The man passed away a few years ago, and for some reason, I thought of him yesterday. Today he was the lead person in my FaceBook suggestions for people you might want to add as a friend. He had never popped in there before and I did nothing to cause that other than to think of him. However, as I type this, I realize we were in a shoe store and my wife bought me a pair of running shoes yesterday morning. Possibly that was it? Still weird that I thought of him.

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pirategospel@reddit

Okay I’m not a loon I swear but this happened to me recently. I was walking to Sainsbury’s and noticed a teenage girl sitting among pigeons. Literally on the ground with a swarm around her. She was trying to pick one of them up with a piece of fabric. Interesting, I thought. I got the impression she had good intentions and idk it was just a notable experience. Did my shopping and forgot. Didn’t tell anyone. Just saw it and it left a private impression.

I hadn’t been on Instagram in a couple of weeks but that evening I redownloaded the app. First reel I saw was a man demonstrating how he catches pigeons in the city to pull bits of wire etc out their feet. He was sitting on the ground swarmed by them in an identical way, holding fabric jsut like she was.

I’m not a schizo lol and I’m not really deep into any tech conspiracy. But I did think. Wtf.

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EngelbortHumperdonk@reddit

Think of all the other times you saw something in real life that didn’t appear in your algorithm. You don’t remember those times. You only remember the one time something does appear

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Upbeat-Name-6087@reddit

I mean, logically, I suspect that the video you saw went viral recently. The girl saw it and thought she would try it out.

When you redownload/reactivate a account like that. It prompts the algorithm to throw everything engaging at them to try and hook you back in. Hence why you get the viral pigeon feeding video pop up first thing.

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bright_sorbet1@reddit

I can confirm that video went viral because I also saw this and so did several of my friends.

In your case it was just a coincidence. I saw the video without seeing anyone rescuing pigeon feet in real life - no fun coincidence for me.

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Kezmangotagoal@reddit

Judging by your comments, you’re not playing with a full deck or you’re 12 years old…can’t work out which!

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Sweet_Confusion9180@reddit

I saw a kids shelf unit in a shop the other day. It was very specific, with plastic bins and a bunny on each side. I was thinking about buying it but didn't.

I didn't Google anything similar. I didn't talk to anyone about it.

That night I had the same shelf advertised to me on social media / Facebook/ temu adds for the same shelves. How does my phone know I was looking at that shelf????

😵‍💫

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Lower_Canary5713@reddit (OP)

It’s so creepy. I need answers!!

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MaterialFriend1752@reddit

You’ve been told the answers multiple times. You just don’t like them so you keep arguing.

What answer DO you want? Do you want someone to say that yes, we are all being observed even in charity shops and fed into an algorithm?

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Lower_Canary5713@reddit (OP)

What answer did someone give without actually rewriting what actually happened? Because all the comments I’ve seen have said an answer and then gone on to say about how I’m already interested in space or already watched videos. So who are you referring to that hasn’t done that?

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bright_sorbet1@reddit

Setting aside the Baader–Meinhof phenomenon, paid marketing segments are designed to show products to the people most likely to buy them.

Companies like Meta analyse masses of data to build a profile of the person most likely to buy a rabbit shelf. When you analyse enough data you get very reliable patterns.

For example, the woman who buys a rabbit shelf: has kids, lives in a three bedroom house, is married, likes watching Bridgerton, shops in IKEA, enjoys yoga, favourite food is sushi etc.

Sometimes these adverts can feel really targeted because they absolutely are. But not because your phone is listening to you. But because the data shows you are the target audience for this product.

This is the basis for all paid advertising through social media channels and beyond. We pick the people we think will buy the product, and show them the ads.

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SafflowerSour_37@reddit

I'm sorry for the people in the comments talking to you like you're an idiot

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Guitar-Inner@reddit

Clearly the answer you want is that you personally are being followed by advertising people in order to sell you things. Or the universe is sentient but focused on you. Hopefully the ad prople are still followimg you and will send you links on coincidence or something.

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Lower_Canary5713@reddit (OP)

I don’t mind any answer but people are not giving one. People are rewriting what actually happened and then get mad when I tell them thats wrong. If someone just gave an answer without trying to rewrite history or claim that im mentally then I wouldn’t have a problem.

No I didn’t have an interest in space before hand No I didn’t watch videos on space before hand I didn’t look at the books because I have an interest in space. They were colourful and stood out so I looked at them I didn’t come home and go on a space frenzy

Yet thsts what almost everyone here is accusing me of doing 🤣🤣

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she_is_a_parsnip@reddit

You probably are already interested in space/science and your algorithm is picking that up.
Because you are interested in that, you looked at those books in the charity shop for a second.
You actually looked and saw many, many books in that shop, it’s just you paused at the one that interested you for half a second.

It’s like when you buy a red car, suddenly, there’s so many red cars.

Just basic psychology. Don’t worry about it. Honestly. It’s very human to notice what you keep noticing.

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LadyNajaGirl@reddit

I like your username 😊

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she_is_a_parsnip@reddit

Thanks! It’s new 😊

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QuickSpace3289@reddit

Does it have pockets? 😍

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she_is_a_parsnip@reddit

4 way stretch, hidden bra support, and pockets

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QuickSpace3289@reddit

I am seeing a cartoon in my head of a non descriptive character doing the "it even has pockets!!!" twirl 😂 more things need that 4 way strength though omg.

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she_is_a_parsnip@reddit

I’m in my thirties girl - that 4 way stretch😘

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QuickSpace3289@reddit

I'm in my late 30s.i embrace the cringe daily, I thank you for blessing me with your one and only first person cringe bit 😂 . But I fully understand the love of the 4 way stretch.

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she_is_a_parsnip@reddit

Once Reddit stops giving me an error message - you’ll be the first person I give an award to 😊😘

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she_is_a_parsnip@reddit

Thank you fellow Reddit soul sister 😂💋

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she_is_a_parsnip@reddit

Oh, were you fuc*ing with me?
☹️

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QuickSpace3289@reddit

Me?! No!! I just thought the interaction you and the other person were having was cute and it reminded me of women when they have the bathroom besties thing happen and 80% of my experience it's of a nice dress and they're like "omg it has pockets" and they do a lil twirl.

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she_is_a_parsnip@reddit

Ahhh, thanks! 😊 me too!

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LadyNajaGirl@reddit

Parsnips are amazing

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she_is_a_parsnip@reddit

You’re a Sunday roast kinda person? I appreciate that, me too! 🥕

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Lower_Canary5713@reddit (OP)

Not true. Those books were the only ones in the shop and I’m not interested in space at all. I only looked at them because they were the only ones there 🤣

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she_is_a_parsnip@reddit

There were only two books in the whole charity shop?

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Lower_Canary5713@reddit (OP)

No there was 5. Someone clearly donated all their collection

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she_is_a_parsnip@reddit

I see.

Ahh, that makes me feel a bit sad ☹️

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emilicia@reddit

Something similar has happened to me before - I stopped for like the briefest second to look at at something then got an ad for that exact brand and product an hour later. It’s so creepy

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schemmenti@reddit

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frequency_illusion

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Lower_Canary5713@reddit (OP)

Not what’s happening. My entire for you pages have just been ASMR and makeup videos for the last few weeks. I would have noticed if a space video randomly popped up before now as it would have been so out of place

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MickHucknallsMumsDog@reddit

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frequency_illusion

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Sad_Interaction_2933@reddit

Project Hail Mary came out on digital today

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CarlosFlegg@reddit

Baader-Meinhoff is a bitch.

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IamNATx@reddit

I had a similar kind of thing happen to me recently

Not that I touched anything, but that I thought of something that I wanted to research and it literally just started popping up everywhere I looked even though I hadn't got as far as actually researching or verbalising the topic to anyone for my phone to have caught it

So unless my phone is somehow tapped in to my actual brain I have NFI how that happened ... but it did

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Lower_Canary5713@reddit (OP)

This happened to me. One day is was thinking of the black honey lipstick and how I hadn’t seen any influencers using it in a while and next thing had a full day of black honey lipstick videos

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IamNATx@reddit

The world's a crazy place, but the internet's even crazier.

I've learned to just accept this weird shit when it happens now, I'd spend too long over analysing and worrying if I let myself.

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Connell95@reddit

You didn’t completely forget about it – that’s why you’re posting about it on Reddit

You had space on your mind already, otherwise you wouldn’t have flicked through a couple of books on it in the first place. All it takes is watching one video on TikTok / Instagram and if the algorithm notices your interested, it instantly adapts to send you more.

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Lower_Canary5713@reddit (OP)

I 100% did not have space on my mind 🤣 I couldn’t care less about It lol. They were the only books in the shop so decided to just look through the pages for the sake of it. I would know if I had been watching stuff about space

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Connell95@reddit

Nobody just flicks through two books about space just because they are there. If you had zero interest in the topic you’d just have ignored them.

And you have been watching stuff about space. You said it in your original post.

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Lower_Canary5713@reddit (OP)

Yeah they do. If you’re in a charity shop you pick stuff up just for the sake of it. I also never said that. I said after I saw the books videos of space started appearing. I’ve never watched anything about space before. Crazy how people are really trying to change my own experience

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olivinebean@reddit

It's for the sake of curiosity.

I've never picked up a book about golf, I can't even imagine a use for collage making from it.

Everything we do, we do for a reason. CCTV from Oxfam is not being seen by tiktok.

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D5LLD@reddit

I had something similar happen to me a few years ago on a smaller scale...

For context, I'm a huge car fan. I grew up around cars, can name every car make on the road and usually their models too.

We were driving one day and saw this car we had never ever seen before. It looked nice and had an unusual logo, we couldn't even think of words to describe what the logo looked like.

Fast forward to that same night, and I get an advert on Facebook for that very same car - a Polestar. Genuinely never saw that car before, never heard of a Polestar until then, and we didn't even suggest any terms such as star etc in our conversation after we saw the car.

It was one of the most bizarre social media "listening" into the real world situations I've had to date.

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Lower_Canary5713@reddit (OP)

I feel like a lot of people in the world have had similar experiences. Not sure why everyone is acting like I’m crazy lol 🤣 we literally live in a made up world. It shouldn’t be hard to believe things like both of our experiences happened!

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Suspicious-Water-973@reddit

Our brains are very complex beasts. Sometimes they get confused about time order (eg Déjà vu), sometimes they just misremember.

They should be logical but sometimes aren’t, and they lie to your conscious self, odd as that might seem.

Brain chemistry is super complex.

(Trust me, been through anxiety, psychosis /and more)

Maybe start with your GP.

Good luck.

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Lower_Canary5713@reddit (OP)

Suggesting a GP for this is insanity

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Mother_Ad7869@reddit

You also wrote the word 'literally' once and it's appeared all over your post for no reason. 🤨

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Lower_Canary5713@reddit (OP)

Oh right. So I should just change the way I talk just to impress you? Why?

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Crazyblondie11@reddit

I’d post on r/glitch_in_the_matrix

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Lower_Canary5713@reddit (OP)

Thankyou. I will

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MangoonianLord@reddit

I know someone this happened to. They were diagnosed as schizophrenic.

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Lower_Canary5713@reddit (OP)

Well this just isn’t true now is it

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MangoonianLord@reddit

It's true. The illness made them think things were happening which were not.

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Lower_Canary5713@reddit (OP)

Prove that it’s not happening to me then?

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Lower_Canary5713@reddit (OP)

To who?? I haven’t seen anyone

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