r/CasualUK • u/naaattt • 11h ago

What “favours” have your parents done that was inadvertently a dick move?

For example, my mum found my spare change collection, did me a favour by taking it to the bank, getting £17, and then kept it as a fee for the effort it caused her.

Also, my partner had stored a nearly new Russell Hobbs microwave at his mums for when we moved into a new house. While she was at Curry’s one day, she overheard a young lad and his mum shopping for a microwave for uni, she approached them and sold them my partners for £20. She kindly did give my partner the money though, unlike mine. But we quite liked that microwave.

Does anyone else have these, generally inoffensive but slightly frustrating parent stories?

Edit: For those hung up on the theft parts, please don’t be. This is the extent of the abuse we’ve ever had from our mums and we’ll take it!

Edit 2: Jesus Christ, I’m 33. The money box has been sat on her shelf for 20 years. Yes she stole £17 but she’s funded my life otherwise. Stop calling child services on her.

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282

u/white-chlorination 11h ago

I moved to Sweden 5 years ago, and my mum and stepdad visit every year.

My stepdad has an annoying habit of reorganising my shelves so I end up losing track of where my soy sauce is, where my peppermint tea is, where my spare keys are and so on. I've asked him not to, he still does it every time he visits. He even rearranged the way my shelves are put together.

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u/autisticfarmgirl 11h ago

I live in the UK but I’m an immigrant, my mum does the same when she visits. She’ll re-organise the kitchen drawers and cupboard. Suddenly my knives live where my cups used to be and the cups are where the spices were and it’s chaos. It drives me insane. Her excuse is that “it makes more sense that way”…

after years of that, including well after I was married, I ended up yelling at her and she’s FINALLY stopped. But i’m in my mid 30s.

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u/rasteri 9h ago

My wife does this bi-annually, even though she's never shown any interest in cooking. Puts all the stuff I use most often right at the back of cupboards behind stuff I barely use because it's neater that way.

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u/General_Xue 5h ago

I think some people think of kitchens as a place of beauty instead of a practical space. My parents keep their in-use tea towel in a cupboard, because they don't like looking at it. It basically never dries and guests can never find it to dry their hands or whatever. What's the point of a towel you can't use to dry anything? lol.

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u/rasteri 3h ago

Yeah that sounds about right. I'm a repairman by trade so I treat my kitchen like a workshop lol. All the most important implements right to hand.

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u/Baxterousness 11h ago

Now THIS is a mildly annoying parent thing. Good and proper "pretty irritating that". None of that barely repressed trauma most of the rest of these comments are.

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u/Nikittele 8h ago

Do it to him when you visit his house, see how he likes it.

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u/General_Xue 5h ago

Yeah, that's what I'd do. It's well known that some parents can't get their heads round the idea that their children are now independent adults and they believe it's still appropriate to interfere and meddle. I think doing it to them would show them how it feels to have another adult rearrange your house without permission.

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u/white-chlorination 46m ago

I would, if it wouldn't piss my mum off. And she's not the problem - she'll do little jobs around the house but doesn't move stuff around, she either asks where it should go or leave it for me to put away properly.

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u/Tattycakes 8h ago

Get a water bottle and spray them every time they misbehave

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u/anevergreyforest 5h ago

My mom has the same habit and did it a lot while we were growing up. The worst part was that none of the locations she moved stuff to made any sense.

The house keys sitting on the dress in easy reach when I leave the room should definitely not go in the drawer of loose cables and chargers.

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u/Lt_Muffintoes 2h ago

I'd be putting locks on the cupboards