I’m a father living in Japan, so any competent display of childcare is still met with shock and confusion.

I'm a tall burly cisman so people are always surprised that I know how to sew. I mostly hand-mend my clothes but I made my own pants in high school when I had access to a sewing machine.

After loosing some of my hearing and not being able to compose electronic music anymore, I basically retired from being a musician. Picked up drumming about 9 months ago and I'm surprisingly good at it.

Roller skating. I'm super unathletic, but skating (including teaching to others) was listed in the profile of a girl who contacted me on a dating site, so after chatting for a bit I suggested that as our first date. She was super patient with me, I had never put on skates before that day, and was in my 30s.

We're married now, and I now also teach skating where she does on weekends, sometimes to people who have never tried it before.

Pretty much anything DIY. Plumbing, electrical, carpentry, etc. I'm not an expert at any of those things but I can actually do a pretty decent job. I'm not afraid to research a project and take a crack at it myself. I've completed some really nasty projects that turned out well.

I have an uncanny ability to read super faded receipts, and old people's hand writing.

Depends on unexpected for who. Most native english speakers seem surprised when they realise I understand "big words" (read: any word with a Latin root) without needing to look up a definition. To me it's pretty obvious. My native tongue is Spanish. Having an accent doesn't mean I don't know anything.

Patch making, and I've no idea why people are surprised about it tbh. It's really easy if you've got access to a printer (or you can trace from a screen) and a pair of scissors.

That said I have a slightly unusual process where I design stencils in fusion 360 and then print them on my 3D printer, they're durable and reusable that way. I'm still working on improving the final print quality, but I've had some really good results like this gigantic Ash Bricky back patch that took me ~20 hours over three days.

Driving a manual transmission vehicle.

I'm pretty old & geeky so people are often surprised I can do a great cartwheel. One trick pony when it comes to acrobatics, it's just the cartwheel.

I'm a massive nerd, no one is surprised by my ability to debug a printer or install an operating system.

They're generally surprised by my people skills and carpentry skills though!

I can click my tongue really, really loud. Like a baseball hitting a bat hard. Aside from making people jump, I have yet to find any practical use for this talent.

As I found out recently, drawing.

I took some classes in high school and only recently got back into it, and I’d consider myself..averageish? I know where I need improvements and I see the quirks and wonks, so to speak.

The people in my adult life who have seen my sketchbook make (positive) comments, which surprised me. Still, it’s nice.

Lockpicking

I know how to spin a laptop on my finger

I can drill 6" into my nose, among other sideshow talents.

• I have decent throwing aim. I can shoot most trash into the bin from a couple of meters away. With practice, I can probably increase my range.
• I am pretty flexible for someone my size.
• I have a pretty scary evil laugh that can scare the neighborhood children away.

I can work on/repair basically anything old. Things from a certain period and back just make sense, plain and simple.

I can shave with a straight razor, operate an oil lamp (and I have several throughout my house,) hell, I’m a musician, and I recorded on tape until 2014, using clunky, old multitrack tape machines, which I can also repair and maintain. (I still dream of getting ahold of an 8-track reel machine, a Tascam 80-8 or especially a 388. They are stupid expensive if you can find a working one at all.)

I never forget a face

People are surprised that I can jodel a bit. My geeky high-schools self worked hard to build this skill.

i can perfectly imitate the "adult voice" from Peanuts with just my mouth.

Landscaping

My very first job at the age of 15 was working at a Nursery/ Garden Center. I also would work on the landscaping crews and even did some design work.

When my wife and I bought our house she said she always dreamed of having a big flower garden, but said she didn't know how to do it properly.

Well... I do. Even my Mother-In-Law, who is an experienced gardener, learned a few things from me. Although, I have to admit, she really does know a lot and I learned a lot from her as well.

Our flower beds are beautiful throughout the growing season with a huge variety of plants.

I’m a crossing guard at school. My amazing trick is to balance the lollipop on my nose.

I also know some Shakespearean sonnets and the first page of finnegans wake by heart, but that’s usually more expected.

The most wow reaction i had from my sons’ friends was when i swore better than them. But then again, i once went on a two week tour to schools teaching the kids how to swear, so .., no big deal.

I'm a huge guy, 6'8" and immensely heavy, people do a double take when I tell them I can and do windsurf.

Juggle a football only with my weak foot.

Somehow, it's a surprise to people that I'm a competent trumpet player. As if every high school in the state doesn't have a band class. Fully half of my graduating class in high school were musicians of some kind between chorus, orchestra and band classes. But somehow nobody expects a random dude in his mid-30's to pick up a trumpet and play a few bars of Ravel's Bolero.

I can put a needle in any body cavity (of someone else). Or a wire or a catheter. Besides the skull and a few more delicate ones I also know how to do that without actually killing the person. Well,at least not "certainly" killing... accidents happen.

I surprise ppl with my drawing skills, and they always say my place is nice and cosy. Everyone who comes over for the first time gets weirdly surprised. I am not sure if that is a skill tho xD

Cooking. IDK why but everyone assumes I don't know how to cook. I must fit a stereotype or something. The last time I lived alone I cooked (or had leftovers of something I cooked) every night for like 8 months. I tell people that and they are always surprised. It's a big reason I hate living with roommates because the kitchen situation is so chaotic I can't really do that anymore.

I'm able to forget most things my dad says ... he has an opinion of everything and will babble for 20 minutes about stuff no one else in the house cares about.

Also, I can picture a blueprint in 3d.

People are surprised that I'm really good with horses. I'm a very short, timid person, but I can handle the huge animals with ease.