Sometimes we say things we just don't mean. And there are some euphemisms that have become so universal that we all know the truth that lurks beneath the lie. For example, when you tell your friend, "I just got your text," do you really mean, "I got it three hours ago but didn't feel like replying?"
The little, mostly harmless lies we tell are the subject of a funny-because-it's-true viral poster series, "Truths & Lies," by 19-year-old graphic designer Justin Barber.
"I think it all started when I realized the 'last piece of gum' phenomenon was just that -- it's such a seemingly insignificant experience to encounter, but it's happened to everyone at least once before," Justin writes in an email to the Huffington Post. "That got me thinking about other similarly humorous situations that were commonly shared and caused by our human tendencies, and 'brb' immediately popped into my head."
If you haven't yet seen the series, "Sorry, that was my last piece" translates to "I don't like you enough to give you free gum," while the truth behind "brb" is "I'm still here, but I wish you weren't." The series quickly spread over Tumblr -- with one particular post receiving over 60,000 notes.
"The initial response was overwhelming," Justin says. "I never expected it to garner that much attention and watching it go viral was such an amazing experience. [...] It was a lot of fun to see something I created become a shared platform that people enjoyed connecting over, especially since it was on the common grounds of making fun of ourselves."
Check out eight of our favorites in the slideshow below, and click here to see more!
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