mundane super powers
Whenever somebody asks me what kind of super power I would like to have--which is more often than you'd expect--I generally seize the opportunity to expound upon the concept of mundane super powers. A mundane super power is one which, granted to a superhero, would be incredibly lame, but which, bestowed upon an ordinary mortal, would be pretty cool. For instance, if you created a superhero whose signature ability was to fart both silently and odorlessly, that would be pretty dumb. But if you gave that power to a normal human? Fantastic! You'd never have to hold in another fart.
The only other stipulation is that a mundane super power can't be something you can acquire through practice or training. So the ability to juggle three tennis balls or do twenty pull-ups or speak a foreign language doesn't count. (Conversely, if you get too greedy and say you want to be able to juggle a hundred tennis balls or do a thousand pull-ups or speak every language known to man, you stray into the realm of legitimate, if unorthodox, super powers.)
Here, in addition to the original list of mundane super powers, are some more abilities I would find particularly useful:
The only other stipulation is that a mundane super power can't be something you can acquire through practice or training. So the ability to juggle three tennis balls or do twenty pull-ups or speak a foreign language doesn't count. (Conversely, if you get too greedy and say you want to be able to juggle a hundred tennis balls or do a thousand pull-ups or speak every language known to man, you stray into the realm of legitimate, if unorthodox, super powers.)
Here, in addition to the original list of mundane super powers, are some more abilities I would find particularly useful:
- GPS brain: Pretty self-explanatory. No matter where you went, you would always know your way around--no map or GPS device needed.
- All green lights: Imagine how much more quickly you could get around if you never, ever hit a red light!
- Be extremely photogenic: Every picture of you would turn out great, no matter if you were ready for it or not. Even an unflattering low-angle shot that would normally give any subject triple chins would make you look like sexy as hell.
- Ambidexterity: I know some people really are ambidextrous, but this still fits the definition of a mundane super power because it's not really something you can achieve with practice or training. (This is why 20/20 vision also qualifies.) Granted, I doubt this power would be useful often, but occasionally it could be a lifesaver.
- Never have to perform a tedious toiletry task: Pick one: shave, brush teeth, shower, wipe butt, fuss with hair, etc.
- Always be on time: I'm not sure if this actually counts as a mundane super power. Because what if you left one minute before you had to be somewhere, and it normally took an hour to get there? Would that mean you would reach your destination at super speed, or would time slow down for you? It sounds a little too much like a real super power. For this to work, it would probably have to be keyed down to "you will never underestimate the amount of time needed to reach your destination on time, you will always get out of bed with the first alarm, and you will always give yourself enough time to get ready."
- Never forget anything you've learned: This is another one that comes dangerously close to a legitimate super power. I don't mean that this power would make you like Bradley Cooper in Limitless. You wouldn't learn faster or actually become in any way smarter. You would simply retain every bit of information you ever learned. Think of all the useful knowledge you acquire throughout your life, especially during grade school, that you end up forgetting completely. Imagine if you had access to all that information at the same time, and for always!
- Wallet that always has cash: This is more of a mundane magical item than a mundane super power. The wallet that always has cash in it would NOT supply you with infinite money; it would only ever dispense as much money as you had in your bank account. But whatever denomination of currency you needed, there it would be--just one of each, so as not to be bulky. If you withdrew a twenty, another one would magically take its place--that is, until you drained your bank account.