Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

People Break Down What Goods Were Sold On The 'Black Market' At Their School

kids, teens, and college students all find unique ways of making money or obtaining "contraband" items in schools.

A relative of mine ran a gambling ring in junior high, for example, and that was how they (and so many of their classmates) obtained all the candy and chocolates they could stuff their faces with. This same relative has since paid for their black market wits with numerous visits to the dentist over the years.

You win some, you lose some, right?

People were all too eager to share after Redditor Alice_exists asked the online community,

"What was the "black market" at your school?"

"My school banned..."

"My school banned soda. I used to keep a cooler full in my car and sell them for $2 a pop."

jsmys

Look at you, you little entrepreneur!

"So she'd constantly..."

"My mum owned a sweet shop and sweets were banned in our school as we had to have healthy meals and all that. So she'd constantly give me bags of sweets to smuggle in and sell every day at dinner. Made an absolute bomb."

skraii

Your mum owned a sweet shop, huh?

Can you say "privileged"?

Well, you certainly got a leg up!

"I'd burn a bunch of copies..."

"I used to sell bootleg movies in high school. Not the kind of bootleg where you take a video camera into a theater, but I knew someone who kept getting early versions of movies that I guess are sent to theaters (they had some message about it being for screening purposes only/internal use - I don't remember exactly) and giving them to me."

"I'd burn a bunch of copies and sell them to people for $5. They were high quality and still early in theaters."

Cheese_Pancakes

The bootlegs which were nothing more than someone taking a video camera into a theater were the absolute worst.

"In 5th grade..."

"In 5th grade, I sold fairies to every single one of my classmates for $1 each. I gave them names and backstories and drew little portraits of each then would toss them an invisible fairy and then collect from the next sucker."

venuscries

WHAT?

Clearly I was not doing the right thing. You sold people imaginary crap?

"Teachers punished us..."

"Teachers punished us by making us write 'I will refrain from extemporaneous vocalization during valuable pedagogical opportunities' 50 or 100 times as homework. So over the summer, we would do up a few hundred sheets of that, and we could sell or use them, as necessary."

FlavoredCuDispenser

Now this is clever. I love everything about it.

"A porn ring."

"A porn ring."

"Kids would find their dad's VHS pornos or magazines and sell them to this kid. Then he'd turn around and sell it for profit."

"Funny thing is that when the principal caught wind of it and found all the porn in his locker but the money wasn't there. The kid used the locker under his and hid it all in the bottom."

"The porn hustler dude is now a cybersecurity analyst. I asked him at our reunion how much he thought he made back then. He claims $900 in 4 months."

HelpMyBunny1080p

Now the porn hustler dude probably makes sure people aren't spreading viruses with all the crappy porn sites they visit while on company time.

"In high school..."

"In high school, there was this game/fad where people would try to stealth zip tie other people's bags to their desks, shoes together, whatever so they'd be stuck when the bell rang. One guy sold the heavy-duty zip ties and another sold mini scissors for easy escape."

SaSaMei

I think I would hate it if someone did this to me.

"The most popular..."

"In elementary school, it was flavored toothpicks. The most popular were soaked in cinnamon oil. First time I tasted Fireball whiskey took me right back to first grade."

SignificantStuff4930

I'm just imagining you sitting in the bar sharing this anecdote while all the other drinkers around you get a wistful look in their eyes and just nod silently.

"Everyone wanted them..."

"In elementary school, my friend had a sticker maker, and we pumped out hundreds of stickers with Neopets on them."

"Everyone wanted them, we were making away like bandits before teachers started to get pissed they were showing up all over the desks/walls/etc."

"Eventually we got called into the principal's office and had to stop."

colorabro

Aw, the teacher and principal were absolutely no fun!

"The one that stands out..."

"The one that stands out is marbles."

"Marbles were banned at the school, because kids were getting into arguments over them, as well as digging up the gardens making marbles tracks."

FormalMango

Have you lost your marbles??

Sorry, couldn't resist.

Well, it's clear after reading all of these that my black market hustle was severely lacking. Now as an adult, I have to figure out how to obtain such infamy.

Just kidding. I have bills to pay now.

Have some stories of your own? Feel free to tell us more in the comments below!

Want to "know" more?

Sign up for the Knowable newsletter here.

Never miss another big, odd, funny, or heartbreaking moment again.

More from Trending/best-of-reddit

Jesse Watters
Fox News

Jesse Watters Dragged After Adding Another Mind-Boggling Rule For 'Real Men'

Fox News host Jesse Watters, who is apparently an authority of what it means to be a manly man, gave jazz hands to make a point about how "real men" should or shouldn't wave.

The target of his ridicule was Tim Walz, the enthusiastic Democratic Minnesota governor and vice presidential candidate who often greets the public by raising both hands in the air to wave.

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshots of crowd at town hall and Rep. Mike Flood
@MorePerfectUS/X; KETV NewsWatch 7

GOP Rep. Goes Viral For His Response To Crowd Chanting 'Tax The Rich' At Town Hall

Nebraska Republican Representative Mike Flood was criticized following his incredulous response to a crowd that chanted "Tax the rich!" during a town hall meeting.

The Columbus High School auditorium hosted the town hall on Tuesday evening, drawing "nearly 380" attendees, according to local network KETV Omaha. The event was lively, with Flood facing both sharp criticism over Trump administration policies and some appreciation for showing up in person.

Keep ReadingShow less
Elon Musk
Andrew Harnik/Getty Images

Awkward Typo In Elon Musk's Bizarre 'Education Department' Trump Meme Is A Total Self-Own

Billionaire Elon Musk was widely mocked after he celebrated President Donald Trump's executive order to begin to dismantle the Department of Education (DOE) by posting a meme of Trump at the department's grave, only for an awkward misspelling to get all the attention.

Polling indicates that eliminating the Education Department is largely unpopular, with 60% of registered voters opposing the move, according to a Quinnipiac University survey conducted March 6-10. Support stands at 33%, with opposition particularly strong among Democrats—98% oppose it, while just 1% support it.

Keep ReadingShow less
JB Pritzker; Donald Trump
Jacek Boczarski/Anadolu via Getty Images; Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

Dem Governor Reveals Trump's Bonkers Demand In Exchange For Equipment During COVID

Illinois Democratic Governor J.B. Pritzker revealed during a speech this week that he clashed with President Donald Trump during the first Trump administration after Trump promised necessary medical equipment during the COVID pandemic on the condition that Pritzker praise him publicly.

Five years ago, the United States was grappling with the initial impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. The country had entered shutdowns that had severe economic consequences, leaving businesses and industries on the brink of collapse.

Keep ReadingShow less
Scrabble tiles spelling the word scam
Scam spelled with scrabbles on a wooden table

People Break Down How They Realized An Entire Industry Was A Total Scam

We unfortunately live in a world where scams are on the rise.

Thankfully, some of them are pretty easy to detect, such as an automated call from the IRS telling you a warrant is out for your arrest, or an email claiming to be from Amazon or the USPS asking for your credit card information, only to look closer and see the email address is a yahoo account.

Keep ReadingShow less