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For better or for worse, every family on Earth has its fair share of quirks and behavioral oddities. So, it helps to be polite, tolerant, and a tad more forgiving when you’re invited over to visit for dinner, a party, or a sleepover. However, some family rules and traditions are so weird that they might affect you quite a bit.
Some confused (and slightly creeped out) guests took to a thread on AskReddit to share the most bizarre house rules they’ve ever personally witnessed when visiting someone else’s place. You’ll find their stories as you scroll down.
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#1
My friend must ask his father before he is allowed to eat anything in their house. One time our group of friends wanted to go out on a Friday night. We asked if he could come and our friend said he was grounded. We asked him what he did this time and he responded, "I ate a bowl of cereal when my dad wasn't home."
Probably the stupidest thing i've ever heard someone get grounded for.
Surly Scot 8 months ago
Grandma asked me to do the dishes. Soapy glass slipped out my hand into the sink and broke. Grounded for 2 weeks. She loathed me costing her money.
Blue Bunny of Happiness 8 months ago
My Dad grew up with this rule. Limited finances and five teenage boys. My gran got fed up of being unable to make a meal because they’d eaten the ingredients.
Shark Lady 8 months ago
We had the same rule in our house. Only fruit from this one particular bowl, left on the kitchen table, was allowed to be consumed without asking.
KnightOwl 8 months ago (edited)
My parents did this too. We had to ask for anything and a lot of our snacks and treats were literally locked away. I think it was mostly for financial reasons, they had 8 kids back to back and only one income. We got 3 meals a day and one snack in the evening, we only got a treat like chocolate, candy or ice cream once or twice each week. If we were caught with any food we didn't have permission to eat we were 'smacked' and grounded.
RELATED:
#2
I had a friend who instead of washing the dishes after a meal just put them straight back in the cupboard. I thought his parents would freak out but it turns out it was just something they did in their house.
Whenever I went over I always made sure to eat beforehand.
Blue Bunny of Happiness 8 months ago (edited)
Reminds me of a story my Mum tells. We had a dishwasher in the early 1970s which was very uncommon where we lived, one of my friends when I was about 6 saw Mum loading the dishwasher with dirty plates and was horrified as she thought they were being put away without being washed.
Michelle C 8 months ago
That’s a health hazard and I pray someone who cared about them exposed the family to the truth!
Huddo's sister 8 months ago
I don't know whether it would be better or worse if they let the dog lick them first
geezeronthehill 8 months ago
Dog slobber is very hard to remove from dishes. My wife and I ran that experiment.
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#3
No fighting over the heel of the bread. The father once off hand told his oldest children that the heel of a loaf of bread was the best and made them want it instead of the regular pieces. By the time there were 4 kids sometimes fist fights would break out over the heels. Loaves had been opened on both sides, or loaves were a mess because someone reached through the sack and pulled the back heel out. For a while there was a turn system where the heels were promised to a child for each loaf, but that fell apart when one went to summer camp and lost their turn. One time my friend wasted an afternoon waiting for his mother to come home with a fresh loaf of bread instead of going out and playing. I witnessed fist fights over the bread most people throw away.
Riley Quinn 8 months ago
I didn't fall for that when my parents and grandparents said the heels were the best part. Although, I do like a toasted heel with peanut butter.
nottheactualphoto 8 months ago
The crust is the best part. The heel has the highest proportion of crust. Q.E.D. And plus - which "most people" is it that throw the heel away? That's insanity!
Michelle C 8 months ago
I always loved the heels of bread loaves as a kid, but can’t imagine fighting anyone for them!
Nota Robot 8 months ago (edited)
Don't throw the heels away! Collect them until you have half a loaves ' worth. Shred them into a large bowl with three eggs, some milk and some crushed garlic and some mustard. Let soak, and knead into a 'dough'. Add shredded mushrooms. Fry some diced bacon and add to the mixture fat an all. Add some thyme, pepper and salt. Give it a final mix and transfer to a large casserole dish. Press down if required. Top with shredded cheese and bake for 30 min at 200 Celcius. Let settle for 5-10 min. Serves 4-6.
Matthew Currie 8 months ago
I also always prefer the heel, but most people don't, so I never have to fight over it
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Dusty's mom 8 months ago
No problem when I wwas a kid. I was the only one who loved heels. Otherwise Mom would throw them to the wildlife.
To be completely fair, it’s usually best to give your hosts the benefit of the doubt. It is incredibly difficult to see how peculiar some of your family rules and traditions might look to an outsider. It’s only by interacting with lots of different people from various backgrounds that you can then begin to look at your own situation and upbringing more objectively.
Some of these rules and traditions form so naturally and gradually that it’s hard to pinpoint exactly when they became ‘a thing.’ What’s more, some behaviors are so deeply ingrained in your daily routine that you don’t actually notice that you’re doing them. Reading through the thread, it’s actually quite a revelation to hear that other families also used to prioritize the heel of bread (it’s crunchy and delicious!) while others just threw it away (which also makes some sense).
When you start thinking about all of these dozens of little behaviors, you start to realize that every family is weird… though some are much more bizarre than others. For example, it’s natural to be weirded out if someone doesn’t wash the dishes after dinner and just puts the plates back on the shelf, dirty.
#4
In college I had a friend that lived with his grandparents when he went to school. Before they'd let him leave the house his grandmother would say "nothing good happens after midnight" and he would have to repeat it.
If I was there, I would also have to repeat the phrase.
Veronica Jean 8 months ago
Believe it or not, I found this great advice when I was a teenager. My parents never said this, a few of my friends did (we all looked out for each other). If one of us was out after midnight, someone always checked in to make sure they were ok 💜 Miss those people. Still besties with one of them
Jayeff Vee 8 months ago
As a professional musician, I can definitely assure your that LOTS of good and fun things happen after midnight.
LittleTeapot 8 months ago
This is endearing rather than the nutty or gross things in this list.
#5
I had a friend whose mom required her to sit on the floor. Never a chair, couch, bed, or other piece of furniture. I went to her house once and sat down on her bed and she flipped out, made me get off it and spent several minutes smoothing the sheets to make it look flat again. I think her mom thought "kids are dirty" but the rule was in place even after bathing and wearing clean clothes.
...
I also have a family member has a "no pants dragging the ground" rule. In addition to taking shoes off, you have to roll up your pants when you come into the house. Last time I visited, I brought jeans straight out of the dryer, never worn outdoors, and changed into them when I got there. She still gave me dirty looks.
Nina 8 months ago (edited)
The kids sitting on the floor seems a bit abúsive. Like, they're little humans, don't they deserve to be treated as such and not as pets?
Huddo's sister 8 months ago
I did 'no furniture' for the 40hr famine once and there is no way I would want to live like that all the time.
QuincyForrest 8 months ago
Never allowed to sit anywhere except on the floor? That IS CHILD ABUSE, period. Hope that was way back when, and the person came out of it o.k.
murmelinpaiva 8 months ago
As a child I always sat on the floor because the dog was not allowed on the furniture.
Uncle Panda 8 months ago
My seven month old kitten pulls me down to the floor several times a day. Help me! Help me!
sara jahan 8 months ago
This is odd. Then what the bed is for ?? Another thing is that sitting on the floor for sometime is actually good for the body. I and my family eat lunch and dinner together sitting on the floor on a simple mat, daily. Perhaps the floor is very cold in the countries where they have snow and they need a dining table.
#6
I posted something about this once before.
They yelled at me for not letting the cat that was walking around on the table eat from my plate. I love cats, but what the hell?
Apparently gently nudging the cat away from my food was "interfering with the freedom of another sentient being".
I was 12 I think. I was pretty freaked out.
Not-a-Clue (she/her) 8 months ago (edited)
I once visited friends who let their cat walk over the dinner table while we were eating. I emphasise 'once'. I insisted we go out for meals together from then on.
Philly Bob 7 months ago
My cats are devious little shïts! They lay in wait then strike. No need to eat their stolen prize from my plate. They grab and run like hell.
Royal Stray 8 months ago
I mean sure letting the cat have a snack is one thing, but they shouldn't eat from your plate, especially not when you're eating. Not to mention that cats can't eat all the same things humans can and this could seriously harm the cat.
But speaking up about these rather strange behaviors can be incredibly awkward and embarrassing. You’re a guest, after all! So, if something’s concerning you deeply, you could, for example, pull your host aside for a friendly but frank chat. Tell them how it affects you while also not sounding judgmental.
How open you can be is obviously going to depend on the type of relationship you have with the host. If someone’s super close to you, you can joke around more and be less guarded. Someone who’s still half a stranger, however, might react very strongly to any criticism about how they go about their business at home.
You could also reach out to the host at a later point in the future if that sort of behavior continues. Or you could simply reevaluate the friendship you have and come over for dinner less often if something bothers you that much.
#7
Not a house but a dorm room--these two guys had a big list of words that were banned within the room. A lot of them were swear words (not because they were opposed to swear words, but just because using a lot of them is a lazy way to speak), but others were things like "good," and "bad." They didn't really get mad if you said them, but it was still kind of challenging to avoid using "lazy" words when you were visiting.
Pencil 8 months ago
Me, too. I don't think I'd want to live with it all the time but it's creative and intellectually challenging.
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The Mediterranean Fruit 8 months ago
I know I'll get down voted. But swearing IS a lack of verbal skills. People get mad and their only way to deal with it is to swear. Telling a story? People swear then too. Simply talking to a friend? More swearing. It's awful at my university and I can't stand it.
Zophra 8 months ago
Maybe in everyday conservation - but sometimes the shock value is a very attention-grabbing, especially when its not done frequently. "I'm angry that I asked you three times to unload the dishwasher." vs. "What the f---, why isn't the dishwasher unloaded?"
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Donna Peluda 8 months ago
We did some sales training like that, couldn't use negative words or sentences like sorry we don't sell that,.
Lyone Fein 8 months ago
Good for them for challenging themselves to think harder and speak more clearly.
Rick Murray 8 months ago
As a child, I'd get a smack if I swore, and an extra piece of cake if I expressed the same sentiment politely. "This ridiculous pile of llama excreta is failing in a manner that greatly irks", yummy.
Gunný Petersen 8 months ago
It's not allowed to swear at my mömmu and I did not allowed to swearbat my home when my daughter was little.
Huddo's sister 8 months ago
My grandad was like that. I don't know for sure about swear words because I never tried using the in front of him. Saying 'yeah' or 'yep', especially when I was studying teaching got me a lecture, as did 'kids' instead of children (with the bonus 'they aren't baby goats') and answering 'good' instead of 'well' when asked how we were.
Nikole 8 months ago
Oh that would have driven me up a wall. I bet the same thing was done to him when he was younger.
Load More Replies... #8
Not so much a rule, but a weird thing. My mother in law had an aunt who was a self proclaimed "hand dipper." When you ate a meal at her house, she used her hand to scoop up a portion and put it on your plate. It could be mac n cheese, a casserole, whatever.
Kathrin Pukowsky 8 months ago
My grandma used to mix lettuce/salad with her hands. I didn't mind because I knew she washed her hands approximately 20 times while preparing a meal, but SERVING food with one's hands sounds impractical.
Robin Roper 8 months ago
One way to cut down on people mooching meals in your home but wouldn't that bur. Mac & cheese would be hot.
Philly Bob 7 months ago
As someone who could wash their hands 20 times a day, I find this most unsettling. Even with my clean hands I wouldn't do that. Ewww!
#9
My best friend in elementary school had a paddle on the wall in the kitchen engraved with the bible verse about "sparing the rod". Next to it were different infractions and how many swats with the paddle they were worth.
I was later asked not to return after I said "Oh, God" after a sad story.
Crystalwitch60 8 months ago
brainwashed cults !! Religious lunatics believing the biggest work of fiction ever written ! And using it to harm people ! religion root of all evil think about it lol
What are some of the weirdest rules or traditions that you’ve personally witnessed after being invited to come over to someone else’s home? What was your first reaction when you realized something bizarre was happening, dear Pandas?
Are there any strange rules in your home that you think might leave some of your guests a tad confused? We’d love to hear your opinions. If you feel like sharing, feel free to write your thoughts in the comments below.
#10
I had a roommate that was very particular about her home. She called it OCD, but I don't like throwing around that term. She was never diagnosed, and coped pretty well most of the time.
She always said she didn't expect me to follow her crazy rules, but I could tell it stressed her out, so I just did my best to remember and follow some of the "rules" so she didn't freak out as much.
* All towels had to be folded the "right way" and stored in a specific order. They also had to be the same color. I had to hide my towels in my own room because she couldn't stand to see my brightly colored towel amongst her gray ones.
* All shampoo and soap bottles had to face the same way, with the label facing outward. All cans in the cupboard had to face the same way as well.
* If the vacuum tracks started fading, it was time for another round. There were times she felt the need to vacuum at 3am.
* All shoes had to point the same way, be with their pairs, sorted from larges to smallest AND should be sorted by color. I can't remember how the colors went. I never got that one right.
* When she felt stressed at work, she would tear apart the house and clean EVERYTHING. I couldn't be in the way, so I either stayed in my room or left the house. Her cleaning binges could last 8 hours or longer.
* She refused to use Tide laundry soap because she believed it left a coating on her clothes because they illuminated under a black light. I didn't have the heart to tell her almost all soap is going to do that. The same night, she turned the light onto the carpet, she was up until 5am cleaning all of the carpets in the house.
* She was also pretty superstitious and hated it if I brought anything in the house that could be associated with the occult. I had to hide a lot of incense, candles, necklaces with charms, and some books. Lord of the Rings would have sent her over the edge.
Funny thing is, I'd live with her again in an instant. At least the house was always clean.
Surly Scot 8 months ago
Seems normal to me...but I understand why it's weird to others. Friend tried to prank me by coming by my apartment to wake me up at 2am, joke's on her, I was awake and mopping my ceiling. She walks in, looking gobsmacked yelling "what the H*LL are you doing?! It's 2am for gods sake! You're insane."
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and_a_touch_of_the_’tism 8 months ago
Some of that seems like it might be actual OCD, the whole vacuuming a 3 am, cleaning binges, superstitions.
Royal Stray 8 months ago
The feeling of needing to do something or she gets visibly stressed out and uncomfortable does very much sound like something diagnosable.
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Rika 8 months ago
I'm not trying to diagnose someone I don't know, but this sounds more like autism than OCD. I'm autistic, and I have rules like that. Unlike people with OCD, I don't get stressed out because I think something bad will happen if cans don't face the same way. I get stressed out because it's logical for me to have them face the same way, it barely takes a second to make it happen, I just don't understand why someone wouldn't bother like, do you have something so important to do that you can't spare half a second to follow logic ?
Don't listen to me 8 months ago
Agree mostly but not vacuuming like that. In the middle if the night! That's way too much.
Load More Replies... Little Bit 8 months ago
She sounds like my ex-husband. He was obsessed with having a clean house. Honestly the dust wasn't allowed to settle. Every day, before I went to work I had to clean the house from top to bottom. The ornaments had to be lined up perfectly with the spacing between each one exactly the same. After I had finished washing up I had to fold the dishcloth into a nice neat square. He would actually inspect what i had done and if I failed to do any of these things or if he found the slightest bit I'd missed he would go crazy with rage.
Jnausicaa 8 months ago
Nope. I ended a relationship with someone who constantly told me that I did not fold the towels correctly that I used in the bathroom she had me use when I would stay over. Later found out she gave prospective employees spelling tests and other shenanigans. (When she had a medical dictionary at the receptionist's station in her office.) She was a health care practitioner who lost her practice by basically driving her staff away.
#11
I slept over a friends house in grade school one time. He prepared us a bowl of cereal the next morning for breakfast. Not thinking ANYTHING of my behavior, I didn't finish the milk. I just never used to. I don't know.
He was like "You uh...gonna finish that?"
"Uhhh oh...I uh...I don't think so? Does that matter?"
He panicked. Absolutely panicked. I think he put it down the toilet before his parents came back into the room.
I don't know what the rule was, exactly, but FINISH YOUR MILK OR DIE would be my guess based on his reaction. I still feel bad about it. I was like 8 and didn't think.
Apatheist Account2 8 months ago
Always thought that phrase was odd - if you don't waste it, you don't want it. Huh?
Load More Replies... Chewie Baron 8 months ago
I used to know someone that in their house, any left over cereal milk was put back in the bottle.
PattonPawter 8 months ago
lol as of this comment the post below it is someone who pours the unused milk back into the carton
Dragons Exist 8 months ago
If you think food waste is enough of an issue for a kid to be that scared at his friend not finishing some milk, get help pls
Load More Replies... #12
I moved across country years back. I was looking for a room through craigslist. You find some pretty wild house rules on there
Showers can only be had on specific days
no one in common areas after 10 pm
no overnight guests
vegans only
i had more freedom living with my mother.
Laura Jones 8 months ago
vegan i can understand as smelling meat cooking would make me sick. also the use of pans etc would make it hard for a vegan to use after
Alex Boyd 8 months ago
Yeah, that's not unusual if the current residents are vegan, and it's an area where the population and demographics mean that finding another vegan to rent to won't be too difficult. In combination with the other stuff, though, it comes across like either you're rooming with a control freak, or they're recruiting for a cult.
Load More Replies... #13
When I was about 15 I was invited over to my friends house. The house rule was that no one spoke during dinner and its not like they watched TV or something. Dead silence. When they did communicate it was so formal "may you please pass me the salt" then silence again. Suffice to say it was the most awkward dinner I've ever experienced and I no longer went over for dinner.
Robin Roper 8 months ago
Dinner table conversations is how children learn and develop so they will someday be able to hold adult conversation. Around the dinner table is how we taught our son about life and decisions. This house/family sound dreadful.
Roxy222uk 8 months ago
When I went away to college at 18 I remember the first time we all excitedly sat down for our first meal in the refectory (dining hall for halls of residence) and one girl said "right we all have to shush now" with a kind of question mark in her voice. We asked what she meant and were all stunned to learn that she had grown up in a home where they had to be silent at the meal table. She was also stunned to learn that this wasn't anyone else's experience.
murmelinpaiva 8 months ago
My parents didn't talk in the car, even when moving me into or out of college another state away. I don't know what that was about.
sara jahan 8 months ago
Dinner time conversation is great and keeps the family together. Children learn family history and learn about many things from elders and elders learn about childerns' minds, how they are growing up. Only thing is to avoid bickering. They learn tolerance of others' views. Much can be written on this topic but it is already available everywhere. Eating in total silence seems like prisoners in a prison. Then what's the point of "being together" ?? Go, eat anywhere, standing or sitting "alone" !! Why "belong" to a family, a world, the earth, or, humanity ?? Tyrants will we have, if we can't "converse" in childhood, adulthood, and elderhood.
Rick Murray 8 months ago
So so so so so many families in southern England are like this. No talking, no discussion, please and thank you when asking for anything. I got in the habit of making myself a bowl of pasta so I had an excuse to avoid eating with others as it was so stifling.
Little Bit 8 months ago
When I first started dating my now hubby, he invited me to dinner one afternoon. What he failed to tell me about was the 'no talking' rule at mealtimes. So there we all were eating our meal, and there was I chattering away trying to makeconversation. His dad kept glaring at me. When the meal was over he took me to one side and growled at me, "Mealtimes are for eating not talking."
Joe DeLory 8 months ago
Conversation during dinner helps us to pace our eating so that we don't overeat.
#14
I went to a friend's house where the friend's mom made everyone take off their shoes and socks when they got inside. Not totally outrageous yet. But after I took off my flats I told her that I couldn't take my socks off because I was actually wearing tights.
“That's fine,” she said. “Have a seat and hold on a minute.” I sat down on a kitchen stool.
Five seconds later she came back with a pair of meat scissors, bent down, grasped my feet, cut off the ends of my tights, and rolled them up to my ankle so that my bare feet were showing!
I was totally shocked! She didn't even give me a chance to change out of my tights, she just went for it. Had no problem destroying her guest's clothes without warning! Needless to say I never wore tights again in that house.
QuincyForrest 8 months ago
OP "never wore tights again in that house." I wouldn't have gone back to that house, period.
#15
I know people who pour the milk they don't finish back in the carton. Ewww.
Don't listen to me 8 months ago
So why can't they just finish it up?? A quick drink & its all gone!
TheGayUmbrella 7 months ago
Contrary to your username, people should absolutely listen to this
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Laura Jones 8 months ago
thats awful and dirty i would rather pop it in one of the pets food bowls for a treat
#16
My neighborhood friend and I would hang out almost every day of the summer. We would go out exploring in the woods with a bunch of our friends and would usually come back all muddy and tired. My friend was very nice and would offer me water and food. His parents would take those away from me if they saw me with them saying they were only for their children. He was always allowed to eat at our house yet I'd have to walk back if they started having any type of meal. The worst though was his next door neighbor who had a daughter our age and when we were hanging out we all got muddy (we were 10) the girls mom proceeded to take her daughter and my friend into her house to clean them up and told me I wasn't allowed to enter and that I could use the hose. Some people just know how to ruin a kid's self esteem.
QuincyForrest 8 months ago
I had just the opposite experience once as a kid. Playing over at a friend's house, a long walk away from my own house. Rainy day, but me and my buddy stayed out and got real wet, pretty muddy, and darn cold. His mom put us both in the shower (we were about ten), and washed and dried my dirty clothes while I waited in a big towel and blanket. Greatest friend mom in the world.
Crystalwitch60 8 months ago
Eugh downside of growing up in a sodding town ! I grew up on a farm in the sticks ! I’m 60 n back then actually even now cos I still live in the sticks little village n if anyone came round we feed em ! HOW IT SHOULD BE what awful parents those poor kids had
#17
In my friends house you were only ever allowed to drink water. No juice, no beer, no milk. Water. Even if you took your own drink to her house, you had to drink water.
Rika 8 months ago
My mom has neighbors like that. The wife only drinks water and won't let her husband drink anything else. He's always happy when I visit because when they offer me a drink, I always ask for whiskey. He pours himself a shot every time that he pours one for me, his wife is fuming, but she doesn't dare say a thing because if she made a comment about his drinking, it'd sound rude towards me.
Kathrin Pukowsky 8 months ago
An age-old, braindead pattern: Person wants others to do thing A because it's good for them. Instead of hyping up thing A like it's the best thing since sliced bread, they forbid others to do thing B and C. Others connect not being allowed to do B and C with thing A and start hating thing A, thus only doing it reluctantly or not at all. And the person doesn't understand why the others now actively hate doing A.
Rick Murray 8 months ago
Let's put it like this. I crunch and eat paracetamol pills (which you'll know have an awful taste) because I think water tastes *worse*. I can actually tell you the last time I drunk water - 3am at a motel in Spain (Cruces or something near Soria) because nobody was around and I was so thirsty. Otherwise, apple or pineapple juice, milk, lemonade, hot chocolate, or ridiculous amounts of tea. No water. Ewww, no.
#18
When I was in the military I lived in base housing. They have a lot of rules that most HoA's would have but one always stuck out to me. We could only set our A/C to 10 degrees below the outside temperature. At first this kind of made sense because we didn't pay the power bill, they did. However I was stationed in west Texas where the average summer temperature was well over 100. They got onto me a lot about using too much power, I kept mine at 70 all year, until I proved to them that 90 degrees in your home is considered unlivable conditions.
nottheactualphoto 8 months ago
Military or not, the broad brush has long been one of the lazy manager's favorite tools.
Load More Replies... LittleTeapot 8 months ago
70 is actually a fairly cool set point for that hot of a summer and pretty warm in a cold winter. Agree their rule was wrong but honestly so was your set point.
Sven Grammersdorf 8 months ago
I keep my thermostat set to 70° all year round. It's always a comfortable temperature.
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Marnie 8 months ago
Any place where it gets over 100F more than twice a year is not fit for humans to live. What the hell? I had NO IDEA it was that hot in Texas that the AVERAGE temp in the summer is over 100F. The body's normal temperature is 98F, so anything above that is very dangerous.
Kim Kermes 8 months ago
Check out heat indices which take into account temperature and humidity. 100F is tolerable for healthy people to work in as long as they get breaks in the shade and drink plenty of fluids. I'm not so young or healthy, but I've managed 122°F in the sun, wearing a hat, for brief periods here in the Mojave Desert. When I lived in Minnesota, we had heat indices higher than tropical rain forests. Then there are the winter days when it was warmer on Mars...
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Jnausicaa 8 months ago
A very long time ago we were living on base, my dad was the CO, and it was a nice house, 4 or 5 bedroom, several full and half baths, living room, family room, formal dining room, etc. One of my schoolmates had 6 siblings but they had a small unit, 3 bedrooms and maybe 2 bathrooms. One day he got all pi$$ed at me saying it.was unfair that we got a bigger house and only had 2 kids when they had such small quarters. "Well," I replied. "Your father has 4 stripes and mine has 2 stars."
#19
Separate toilets for guys and girls......... In a house.
Nota Robot 8 months ago
Problems, no. But it is kinda strange. I had this come up 9nce when looking for a room. The landlady would use the toilet in the bathroom, I was to use the toilet downstairs. She'd use the bath, I'd use the separate shower in the same room. I wasn't allowed in the living room or downstairs at all when she was having guests over. Amsterdam housing situation being what it was I'd still have taken the room if it wasn't that I was way too tall for the bed.
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Blue Bunny of Happiness 8 months ago
As a girl who flat shared with another girl and 3 boys I’d appreciate this rule!
Mobey Drunk 8 months ago
Are we doing this in private now too? Just let them use the toilet and get out. We're all human, it doesn't matter what body parts we have. We all use the same thing for the same purpose. Just let them go and get on with your life.
#20
When we were little (like 7-10). When i had sleep overs at my friends house, his mother would force us to take a dump every day. She heard stories about ( i dont know whats it called in english) organs f*****g up for some kids that didnt go to the bathroom enough. So each night id go to the bathroom,play in front of a mirror for a few minutes,flush and go out.
Mel in Georgia 8 months ago
My parents were engaged when they visited my dad's mom. One question my grandma had for my mom that struck her as very strange was, "Are you regular?" This was in the 50s when bodily functions weren't considered polite conversation, but I guess my grandma thought it was an indication of good health??
Bi.Felicia 8 months ago
Maybe Grandma was asking about her monthly cycles?
Load More Replies... Royal Stray 8 months ago
I have a feeling there was a debate about cleaning leading up to this. Not saying it was the guys not cleaning, or the girls. But it seems like the most logical reason behind it.
#21
In college my roommates and I had a rule of "No Lifetime" which meant the television could never be on the lifetime channel. Another roommate had a girlfriend that would stay over a lot and would sometimes change the channel to lifetime. If one of us walked through the room and saw it we just turned the TV off and said "No Lifetime", even if we were leaving. We didn't really like her and it showed, but the rule survived in every house I have lived in since then, though I'll let my girlfriend do it as long as I'm not in the room.
Honestly, it started as a joke but snowballed into a very intense rule. When I was living with my ex years ago she had a friend over and they were watching TV and her friend changed it to lifetime and I remember my girlfriend yell "NO LIFETIME!". That was the point I realized I had won.
Sue Denham 8 months ago
I could be wrong but i think I have a clue as to why she's your ex. the last sentence screams "controlling".
Elwood Schwartz (it/that) 8 months ago (edited)
Lifetime is fine. My rule would be No Freeform. That channel has objectionable material. Namely the 700 club.
nottheactualphoto 8 months ago
Isn't Pat Robertson dead yet? And why does the 700 club still exist?
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ElfVibratorGlitter 8 months ago
Lifetime was actually one of the more popular channels watched by the inmates at the prison I worked in. It'd be interesting to see OP tell them to turn off lifetime 🤣🤣🤣
tracy black 8 months ago
i dont blame you i hate lifetime channel and i HATE BEYOND HATE hallmark movies
Tropical Tarot 8 months ago
Disease of the week, murder of the week, soo many sappy Xmas movies
Load More Replies... Uncle Panda 8 months ago
Left over from my college era is "Sometimes you got to bowl tough or die." I thought it was an original Addams Family quote but have never found it. I can tell you that I get funny looks from everyone but 3-4 of my friends from that time. Still say it. Still satisfying.
#22
I had a friend whose dad owned white leather sofas. They took precautions to keep the sofas pristine, which was understandable, but one of the rules was that you couldn't move when sat down. Either you sat down, and that was your position for the rest of the movie, or you would have to stand up and sit back down in your new position.
I'm a fidgeter and was always forgetting this rule. If I ever shifted position my friend would grit her teeth and take a sharp breath like I just showed her a gory picture or something.
Huddo's sister 8 months ago
I would choose to sit on the floor instead. I have restless leg syndrome so I can't stay in one position for long.
Shark Lady 8 months ago
I think you have to be ever so slightly insane to buy a white sofa, even more so if you have children.
Crystalwitch60 8 months ago (edited)
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Billo66 8 months ago
White leather? Whatever you do don't invite Rick James over with his muddy boots.
Flavia Slag 8 months ago
Had an aunt that had an all white living room that no one could use! Why have a showcase that was unusable?
Isabel Galvez 8 months ago
A woman I used to work for had a white leather sofa we couldn't use because she wanted to keep it new. The sofa took half of the room and none used it.
#23
I've got a friend who had to walk the dog to get permission to wear his favourite jumper...
Michael Largey 8 months ago
Well, you can't expect the dog to let just anyone wear his favorite jumper.
Donna Peluda 8 months ago
Sad they had to make him walk the dog. When I was a kid my dog would always come and play with us, if he wanted to. Worst thing of moving out when I grew up was living my dog. Eventually I managed to bring him with me but got thrown out of my rental because of the no pets rule. I worked for a company that had barz clubs and restaurants. I made a dog house on the roof where all the aircon machines were so I could take him to work and walk him at lunch time. Some days he would sit in the office with the accountant, he was a a celebrity. Even they owner would bring him treats.
Child of the Stars 8 months ago
It's odd, but I kinda get this one. In order to do something fun or have a privilege, you have to do a chore. I do something similar with my 12yo. If she wants to stay home alone instead of running errands, she has to do a chore or two. Empty the dishwasher, wipe down the window sill, something to earn the privilege.
Nikole 8 months ago
Or you could just give her some autonomy without making her pay for the privilege of being her own person.
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#24
As a college kid who comes home for summers, I can tell they're trying to get me out of here ASAP with all the new rules I have every summer. This year: I have to ask to take showers, have to ask to use the washer and dryer even if no one is home, and I can't use the oven to cook anything.
Going to have to say though, I guess their plan is working. I work two jobs, seven days a week, and haven't had an off day in about 27 days, just because I don't want to be at home and want to move out.
Jack Smith 8 months ago
As soon as I turned 18 my dad and stepmom started making up all manner of BS rules in order to motivate me to move out ASAP. Finally tired of waiting they just kicked me out at 19 with only a duffle bag full of clothes. My step brother & sister on the other hand, as well as my half brother were still living there until 30ish and were able to do whatever they want whenever they wanted. I haven't spoken to my dad or my stepmom in a decade or so...
Bi.Felicia 8 months ago (edited)
It sounds like stepmom played a significant role and shame on your dad for allowing her to treat you differently. Don't take on the role of stepmom if you're going to treat the husband's kids any less than. I'm sorry you were treated that way.
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Crystalwitch60 8 months ago
Yeah f*k right off ! Y two kids I’m in uk live at home lol 24-21 I’m 60 n it’s THEIR HOUSE , I’m housebound disabled they help with stuff they can do the same as they could as a kid ffs sheessss parents out of order ! They your children NOT GUESTS ,
#25
My friends mom asked me to leave her house one time because she didn't allow guests over unless she knew the guests had insurance.
Pencil 8 months ago
I'd guess she'd been sued in the past. One time my mom slipped and cut her hand at my apartment. Just needed a bandaid. The next day, she happened to have an appointment with a new doctor. (Medicare) He asked her about the cut and then proceeded to try to pressure her into suing me for it. Said my renter's insurance would cover it. Like... what?!
#26
All through middle school, the rule at my best friend's house was "no belts are to be worn at the dinner table." This was because when we were 12-14, my best friend was in her emo stage and would wear studded belts. Apparently, the studs on her belts would rub against the back of the chairs and cause damage to the wood. In hindsight it actually makes sense, but at the time I used to think it was mad strange to have her mom double check I wasn't wearing a belt before I sat down.
JoNo 8 months ago
The rule should have been "no belts with studs are to be worn at the dinner table". Then the regular belt-wearers get to do something the emo-stage girl couldn't do. Why punish everyone for someone else's choice of accessories? Not that taking off a belt is arduous.
Sue User 8 months ago
Or just make the wearer put a pad between thenselves and back of chair
Load More Replies... #27
When I was a kid, one of my aunts had a rule where she insisted that the TV be turned to the station she she wanted to watch a full five minutes before her show started, even if that meant other people watching TV didn’t get to watch the last few minutes of their show.
Christina Born 8 months ago
My dad would do this. Thought he was the only one entitled to watch TV. Even when he lived with my ex and I. Same thing. He couldn't care less that it wasn't his house or TV.
#28
During college years, I used to visit my friend during summer months at his parents' house, where he lived at that time. They had two odd "house rules" I'll never forget:
1) We couldn't open any window in the house (even the bathroom window) - ever! Even if it was far cooler outside than inside during the summer.
2) We weren't allowed to close our bedroom doors at night, so that his parents' cat could have free access to all rooms at all times. (This made it difficult to sleep, without a breath of air from the windows, and the cat walking over us in bed while trying to sleep.).
Helena 8 months ago
Allergies. I don't open my house windows because I don't want more pollen.
Load More Replies... Boris Long-Johnson 8 months ago (edited)
The second one is a terrible idea. For older kids they get no privacy but far more importantly it has a significant impact on fire safety : https://www.london-fire.gov.uk/safety/the-home/bedtime-checks/
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#29
I knew a guy who owned a house he was renting out to a few people, he had a legit house rule of 'if it's yellow, let it mellow. If it's brown flush it down' for the toilet. His reasoning? "Saving money on the water bill"
He meanwhile would take 30+ minute showers. I tried to tell him that shaving 10 minutes off a shower would save a weeks worth of 'yellow' flushing.
Huddo's sister 8 months ago
We had that rule for most of the late 90s, early 80s because of drought, but we also were restricted to 4 minute showers. We also had buckets to collect water a*s it heated up for our shower and only that could be used to fill the cistern. It's just what you do in Australia in droughts.
nottheactualphoto 8 months ago
Collecting the warm-up water is actually a good idea.
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Wm D Deck 8 months ago
Common in the mountains where septic tanks are a necessity.
Load More Replies... #30
When I did home care I ran into some real doozies.
One would not allow me to speak during her soap.
Another made me stand at attention while she delivered a longer blessing over her food than the time it had taken me to prepare it.
One very sour lady made me wear makeup daily, and I was not allowed to keep my hair in braids or two side ponytails. I had to put it up in a bun or wear it down. Her house was broiling hot in the summer, and at the end of my three hours my blush and mascara were running halfway down my face.
One fellow was a vegan and a vitamin junkie. I lost count of how many supplements he popped a day; they must have done something because he was over 90 and meaner than dirt. He religiously followed the newsletters put out by the Center for Science in the Public Interest (the buzzkills who threaten impending doom if you so much as wave hello to a French fry) and basically lived on leaves and wheat germ. I was not allowed to bring any lunch for myself that had animal products; however, he was not a fully committed vegan as he wore leather.
Huddo's sister 8 months ago
The one thing I really didn't like about having dinner at my best friend's place was sitting through grace. My family were also Christian so we would do grace (every Sunday lunch and sporadically during the week if mum felt like it) so it wasn't that which was the problem. It was that her dad used it as a mini sermon and sometimes it went for 15minutes! I just sat through it but we had some friends that wouldn't go to dinner there because of it, which is fair enough, especially as they weren't Christian.
nottheactualphoto 8 months ago
"Good food, good meat, good god, let's eat!"
Load More Replies... Cydney Golden 8 months ago
How could someone demand you wear make up? And why would you agree? What if the health carer was male?
Anna Drever 8 months ago
Someone who eats a ‘vegan’ diet for health reasons and still uses leather is ‘Whole Foods Plant Based’. I know this because I used to do it, then the ethical side crept in, as did the vegan junk food. Oops. 😬
#31
When I was younger, my best friends mom didn't allow anyone entrance to her apartment if we had white socks that weren't completely white. Any stains meant bye bye. Also, holes in the socks was instantly bye bye aswell. No socks, you guessed it. Bye bye.
Oh. Only white socks, no other colors were accepted. She was really weird back then. Now, she's my second mother. She's not like that anymore.
#32
I had a business partner whose wife was a neatness and a cleanliness freak. Way over the top. They lived in a very large house that could be described as a mansion. No shoes were allowed inside the house. That’s not uncommon. The living room was filled with expensive furniture. Visitors were allowed to walk through the living room but no one was permitted to sit on or touch the furniture. The room was strictly for show only. The main dining room was similar. It was turned out to the ninth degree but never used. For show only. They took their meals in the breakfast nook. She didn’t cook. He would bring home fast food or have burgers and fries delivered. The kitchen featured a huge Sub Zero refrigerator that was basically empty. Just sodas and beer and some milk. They both died early deaths. Probably too much junk food.
Elchinero 8 months ago
I took a bus to Baton Rouge I took a bus to Baton Rouge All the front rooms were kept closed off I never liked to go in there much Sometimes the doors they'd be locked 'Cause there were precious things that I couldn't touch Company couch covered in plastic Books about being saved The dining room table nobody ate at The piano nobody played Bus to Baton Rouge - Lucinda Williams
#33
I have a girl friend who like to go around her home in bra/underwear and sometimes a bikini. She also has 2 kids around 7yrs old.
As long as there was no men around, she expected her friends to be dress down to bra/underwear. It sort like some homes when you show up, you cant wear shoes in the house, so your have to remove them. She expect her girl friends to be dress down like her.
Second rule, this actually make sense so I was cool with it, visitor needed permission to use her bathroom. Her reason is that she did not want her kids to hold it if someone was in there. So she would ask her kids, if they were fine, then you were allowed to use the bathroom. Here you needed to plan ahead and not wait until your about to wet yourself.
Here is the funny thing, if I knew she was coming over, I got naked and required her to be naked too!
Upstaged75 8 months ago
Hey, it's your eyes if you're going to force me to undress. It's not a pretty sight. ;)
#34
My friend had two fully furnished living rooms.
One for doing the usual stuff in (TV, reading etc), and one for show only. You weren't even allowed to enter it.
Ace 8 months ago
It was a very common feature of respectable working class homes (in Britain, Northern England in particular) well into the latter half of the 20th century that the "front room" or parlour was reserved for special occasions only so that if the vicar popped round, for example, it would be spotless and full of all the best china, ornaments, silverware, anything else that they had that they thought would demonstrated their "we're not poor" aspirations. They didn't have another "living room" though, but mostly just a general purpose dining/kitchen/sitting room.
Michael Largey 8 months ago
My grandmother had a living room and a parlor. As kids, we weren't forbidden to go in the parlor (our grandmother forbade us nothing.) But since there was no one in there to spoil us, we mostly stayed out.
Load More Replies... Damned_Cat 8 months ago
I had lots of friends that had that kind of house. Usually the room for casually hanging out was just called the family room.
Little Bit 8 months ago
In the UK the show room used to be referred to as the parlour where all the best carpets, furniture and ornaments would be on display. When I was growing up the front room was only ever used on special occasions and at Christmas time. It was a privilege to be allowed in when we had guests and I always had to be on my very best behaviour, no food, no drink, no toys and no dirty shoes in there.
Peeka_Mimi 8 months ago
We had that when I was growing up. There was the family room and the living room. No one went in the living room.
Beth Wheeler 8 months ago
It was called a formal living room and only used for Christmas or adult company.
Rika 8 months ago
My dad had this, too. The "forbidden" living room had glass doors, guests coming over for the first time were confused when they had to walk past it on their way to the actual guesting area. Now, it made sense to me, and it wasn't for show: My dad liked the stuff that was in there. He just didn't want the dog to pee on the leather couch or one of us clumsy kids spilling soda on the pricey rug or knocking over a statue.
#35
When my dad worked for Frito Lay we had a rule that saying the word "Pringles" was a swear word.
#36
My wife's mother and step-father had a rule where pizza slices would be taken in order. The step father would take the largest to start, then the mother would set the order by taking the next most-favorable piece. In a family of 4 with an 8 slice pie, when their turn came up again, they had the best ones to pick again.
Billo66 8 months ago
Man what's with these stingy, petty people. I want my kids to eat even if I don't. If I bring food home and they eat it all, good, they aren't hungry. I will find something. I'm happy I found something they like :)
Philly Bob 7 months ago
We do that. Kids first, wife second and me last. Even though I do all of the cooking.
Load More Replies... Jay Scales 8 months ago
I like the rule that one person cuts the thing, & the other person chooses first..... You'd be amazed how carefully they cut :D
Brian Droste 8 months ago
Did they get this idea from prides of lions. Usually the males will eat first and take the best than the females finally the cubs eat last.
#37
A friend whose mom insisted that much of their house was off-limits including their all-white living room. She had set up those velvet ropes and brass poles used in theaters to guide the crowd so that no one could accidentally enter the wrong room.
G A 8 months ago
Did she charge for entry? The house, not the mother, before anyone else says it
#38
From the ages 3-11, I had this babysitter who had... strange eating rules. She wanted all our meals to be finished completely in 30 minutes, or else we'll be in trouble. When different amounts of time passed, she'd give warnings (e.g. 10-minute warnings). Also, she hated how my brother, sister, and I talked at the table instead of eating, because she felt our talking killed time.
Rick Murray 8 months ago
Did she go to boarding school? Even now, thirty five years later, I can finish a meal in twenty minutes and get stressed if it takes longer (at the twenty minute point the prefects would come and take the tray and dump the food).
Sven Grammersdorf 8 months ago
When I was in high school we had 24 minutes for lunch, and that seemed like plenty of time, even counting the time spent waiting in line.
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#39
Can't pour a drink for yourself. Very awkward when thirsty.
G A 8 months ago
Just say " person could die of thirst waiting on a cup of tea, round here..."
Anna Drever 8 months ago
Apparently my grandmother would say “My tongue’s out, it’s dragging on the floor” when she wanted my mother to make her a cup of tea.
Load More Replies... #40
I was doing a project with a classmate at her house and on our way to her house we stopped at a store and picked up some snacks. We did our schoolwork and then just kind of played and messed around while eating those snacks. Then her mom came home and lost her absolute s**t about the snacks. It wasn't so much that we had eaten them, it was because the snacks had crumbs that had contaminated their otherwise purified home.
My friend had to stop everything and vacuum the entire house to get every crumb of snack, then take the nearly empty vacuum bag, the empty snack bags, and the half-empty but "contaminated" bag of kitchen trash outside and ask one of the neighbors if she could put it in their garbage bin because not a crumb of that kind of food was allowed on the property in *any* form after sunset. My mom picked me up and as I was leaving they were doing some additional purification ritual and my friend was praying for forgiveness for having potentially defiled their home.
Turns out they were 7th Day Adventist and it was against their code or whatever to have leavened foods in their house/property during a certain period of time? I don't remember the exact details, but I remember it was a pretty big thing about how every crumb had to be removed from the property ASAP.
Lyone Fein 8 months ago
Just because you have no experience with someone else’s culture doesn’t entitle you to mock them.
Load More Replies... Robin Roper 8 months ago (edited)
7th Day Adventists do not prohibit leavening products from their homes; they use unleavened bread in their communion. Practicing Jewish people cleans their homes of all leavened products during Passover.
Lyone Fein 8 months ago
It sounds like they celebrate the Jewish Passover, in addition to observing the Jewish Sabbath. For Passover Jewish people remove all leavened food from the house: breads, pastries, etc. and a variety of other foods. Even crumbs are hunted down and removed. The entire kitchen and dining areas are cleaned out, including all cupboards, countertops, the fridge and oven, etc. For eight days, only unleavened foods can be eaten. This is a way of reenacting the journey out of Egypt when the slaves were freed; they had to leave so quickly they didn’t even have time for dough to rise so they could make bread for the trip. Anyway, the mom probably freaked out because all the preparation is a ton of work. And the crumbs were undoing a week’s worth of labor.
Sven Grammersdorf 8 months ago
7th Day Adventists produce more cult leaders than any other religion
#41
Extremely nutty about the walls. Don't touch the walls or lean on them to put your shoes on. Accidentally splashing food (like a sauce) on the walls will result in a new paint job. No pictures, art, mirrors, or decorations go on the walls.
Max Robitzsch 8 months ago
The poster gave an example? Lean on it while putting your shoes on. Also, I often touch the walls at night when I'm going to the bathroom but don't want to put the lights on...
Load More Replies... GlitterPanda 8 months ago
leaning on the wall for stability when you are putting the shoes on your feet
Load More Replies... #42
At a friend's parents house everything was covered in plastic. Don't walk off the plastic walkway. Don't take plastic off furniture. If sitting on furniture sit on the edge to not wrinkle plastic.
When using the bathroom only use certain towels. Hang them exactly the same way. I got yelled at one time because I hung one towel a tiny bit off.
Lara Verne 8 months ago
Remind me of pne family in Wife Swap. They had decorative pillows on their couch, but pillows were still in plastic packaging, so they don't get dirty.
#43
College apartment with five girls, two guys and at least one couch crasher at a time. Freezer and fridge space was at a premium. So if you opened a beer/bottle of wine/bottle of hard liquor you had to either safeguard the lid with your life or plan to finish it. If you lost the lid you had to personally drink the entire bottle because there was nothing else to do with it. This got out of hand with things like tequila because people would go out of their way to find and take the lid.
#44
I knew this family that would share the same bathwater as a means to cut down on their water bill. So when one person took a bath, they ALL took a bath that day. The waiting list was about 4-5 people deep. From what I understand, a lot of families do this, however, I just couldn't see myself washing off in someone else's soapy leftovers =( If that were the case, I got first dibs on getting in the bathtub first lol.
The Starsong Princess 8 months ago
Not uncommon back in the day before people had running water.
Upstaged75 8 months ago
Sounds like the olden days before running water. Reminds me of the Little House on the Prairie books. :)
Delta Dawn 8 months ago (edited)
We’d do this sometimes when I was growing up. First my mom with the water at its hottest, then me, then my twin younger sibs who were 8 years younger than me and always filthy. Yes, my mom had grown up on a farm taking washtub baths
Brian Droste 8 months ago
If I did this which I wouldn't, I would make sure my guest would be the first to use the bath water. I wouldn't want them to use dirty water. I would go last.
#45
~There was a pooping toilet and a urinating toilet at my grandmother's house growing up. If we pooped in the toilet that was not intended for it, it was frowned upon.
~Sleeping late is rude in my parents house. IF you sleep past 8, you better be exhausted and it better not be everyday.
G A 8 months ago
Might be a plumbing issue. And I wouldn't sleep late if I was a guest. Seems rude.
Upstaged75 8 months ago
You were a guest in your parents' house as a kid? They must not have liked you very much.
Load More Replies... Blue Bunny of Happiness 8 months ago
Went to a talk at a rabbit sanctuary that was based at someone’s house (think Victorian farmhouse type of a place). We were told where the two toilets were and if we were planning on doing “anything more ambitious” to use the downstairs toilet as the “plumbing was more cooperative “.
Boris Long-Johnson 8 months ago
We do this - no s******g in the downstairs toilet. This is only a rule for me and my partner, guests are excluded. It’s an easy and practical rule so that the downstairs doesn’t stink of s**t (it’s just by the front door), plus cause we barely use the downstairs toilet at all it’s always pristine for anyone who needs it (guests, delivery drivers etc)
Lilybdcsa 8 months ago
When my sisters and I were teenagers, if my dad felt we were sleeping too late on a weekend, he would blast big band music until we were all up. Oddly enough, I still like big band music.
Upstaged75 8 months ago
At my house if we wanted to wake each other up we'd go get this obnoxious snowman that played off-tune Xmas carols and put it right in the person's bedroom door. It was motion activated so we'd go kick it if it stopped and the person wasn't up yet. My brother and I had wars with that snowman for years, depending on who woke yup first. :)
Load More Replies... #46
My girlfriend's dad allows no non-family members upstairs.
Elwood Schwartz (it/that) 8 months ago
* Doesn't want teens at it -in the house-
Load More Replies... #47
Had these old friends with marriage issues. Trip and grace iirc.
They had this wierd-a*s rule where you couldn't say the word "melon" or trip would throw you out.
D**n near anything else you could say. But not melon.
Surly Scot 8 months ago
I got way too excited that someone knew what "in flagrante delicto" meant, I can't recall the last time someone used latin in a sentence. I really gotta move somewhere with more intellect than this dusthole.
Load More Replies... #48
One family had the rule of cleaning the toilet every single time you used the bathroom... P**sing included.
Lyone Fein 8 months ago
I do this too. My immune system is compromised and it is one of many practices to keep me from being sick every single day.
Upstaged75 8 months ago
Do you have OCD? And you clean your own toilet after every pee? That's weird. I'd be cleaning all day - I pee a lot.
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#49
I was only allowed to watch PBS and occasionally Saturday morning cartoons, until age nine. Then my mom married my stepdad and we moved into his house where there were almost zero TV rules. It was a rude and sudden awakening to say the least.
#50
Not really a rule to follow, but I went to the house of a kid in my school years ago, and apparently they had this thing where you had to write your name in permanent marker on the wall if you had never visited the house before.
#51
I had a friend growing up whose family made her wear a bib at meals until she was like 9. She had like 10 different bibs and her family would make me choose one and wear it when I had dinner at her house.
T'Mar of Vulcan 8 months ago
If I get dressed up and have to eat before going out, I tie an apron around my neck. I'm 56. (To be fair, I have very little depth perception so I often make messes by misjudging how far things are.)
#52
Don't put keys on the table. Superstition that supposedly brings bad luck. You must be a f*****g idiot to believe that s**t.
G A 8 months ago
Probably because they scratch furniture. Hang them in or put in a bowl. Sensible.
Little Bit 8 months ago
My ex-husband was superstitious. There was a big long list of do's and don'ts for fear of bad luck.
#53
I wasn't allowed to put extra salt on my food, had to be in bed by 8pm (all the way through middle school), and had to ride my bike to school everyday even though my best friends parents offered to take me.
#54
If you are not the parents, you are not allowed to lay down anywhere. Their kids and are only allowed to lay down in their beds and their kids/any guests were only allowed to sit or stand, this was regardless of how long you knew the family or how close you were. The parents felt like you were being rude by making yourself too comfortable in someone else's house.
Max Robitzsch 8 months ago
"Please feel very much not at home here. You are a GUEST, after all."
#55
When my stepdad still lived with us, he had two weirdly specific rules-
If you need to clean up a mess, don't use kitchen roll. That's too expensive. Use the wet cloths that leave a mark.
If you want an orange juice/lemonade drink, you can only have 20% orange juice because it will waste it. He didn't understand that some of us like it weaker, nor that not having lemonade would use up more orange juice.
#56
Well, my niece in law got pissed because I used "her" towel to dry myself with. She acted as if I took the biggest, messiest dump ever and wiped myself with her towel.
Growing up, when we got out of the bath, we just picked the next towel from the stack. Nobody had assigned towels. I had never heard of that being a thing that people do.
G A 8 months ago
Disagree. We all had a colour coded towel each as a family and even now I have my towel and a guest towel.
Robin Roper 8 months ago
Wouldn't you tell your guests about this and not leave it up to chance. Hand a specific color to the guest so they know which one to use.
Load More Replies... and_a_touch_of_the_’tism 8 months ago
Ew, why would you use someone else’s towel? They dry their butt with that.
Delta Dawn 8 months ago
It’s washed, isn’t it? Or do you not wash your towels? Do guests bring their own towels to your house?
Load More Replies... Upstaged75 8 months ago (edited)
Had it been used already? Sorry but that's gross. They should have asked for guest towels. I dry my nether regions with my own towels. Do you really want to wipe your face with that? ;) And yes I wash them. This makes it sound like they grabbed a used towel.
Rick Murray 8 months ago
Ewww, I wouldn't want to wrap my hair in a towel that had been around somebody else's dīck... Colour coded towels per person, please.
Anna Drever 8 months ago
OP said they picked the next towel from the stack at home. So I’m assuming they did the same at the relatives house. Not grabbed one that’s been used, which you’d hang up or else it wouldn’t dry. Folks getting grossed out may have misunderstood.
tracy black 8 months ago
first time i met my ex's family we were having dinner and i grabbed a fork and the room stopped everyone looked at me and said thats a's for you cant use it they all had certain forks that they used funny thing was they all looked alike to me
Tropical Tarot 8 months ago
I did have utensils I avoided but they reacted with my metal fillings and made a weird taste in my mouth.
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Boo 8 months ago
Growing up, my family was like the OP's. We never had assigned towels, we just took one from the linen cabinet shelf (tbh, I never knew that other families did until now). I mean all the towels were part of a set....same colour, same pattern, so it didn't really matter. All towels were washed a few times a week.
#57
My cousins can't play anything with blood or swearing but apparently Call of Duty is okay, and any kind of foul language(even c**p) gets a stern talking to from my uncle, and when my uncle gives you a stern lecture it's like getting yelled at by a drill sergeant.
#58
I had this one friend when I was about 12. You were not allowed to use the bathroom/toilette upstairs. You had to go to the small one downstairs because the bathroom upstairs was for family only. His mother got really angry if you forgot and used the one upstairs.
He also had to sit at the dinnertable until everybody finished. His sister were a baby and it usually took over one hour.
How about no 8 months ago
Nooo. Second one is awful! Why in the name of anything does a kid need to watch a baby eat for an hour?
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#59
Family who babysat me when I was young had a rule of "no drinking during meals" and I don't just mean soda, juice or milk, no water until your meal is done. This was insane to me because we would be called in to supper/lunch after playing outside in the summer and weren't allowed to drink anything until we sat down and finished our plates. Also, this rule didn't apply to the father of the family who would often drink beer during meals.
My great-aunt had a parlour room in which all the furniture was covered in plastic and never used, it also had a plastic walkway going through the middle (just a strip of plastic cover) which was the only path you could walk on (she would flip out if you touched carpet).
On two seperate occasions in which I dated women who still lived with their parents, they weren't allowed to have boys/men sleep in their rooms. We could have s*x in the basement or elsewhere in the house, make noise and never receive a comment but the one time I broke this rule with on the women, I got chewed out (we had been dating for several months, I often slept over, albeit in the basement and she would even sleep with me, leaving her bedroom empty).
Huddo's sister 8 months ago
The no drink thing is weird. I can't eat anything without a drink, my mouth gets too dry. To the point where I have to sip some tea in between every two bites of toast.
Tyke 8 months ago
I agree. However, a Mum at my kid's school won't let her son have any kind of drink with food... because apparently he fills up on water and then doesn't eat his food. I kind of understand, but as someone who also physically can't eat without a drink I'd never enforce it.
Load More Replies... Lara Verne 8 months ago
My grandma had this rule too. No drinking before of during the meal. I was always so thirsty. Apparently it was some common belief, because our teacher in elementary school make sure we didn't drink anything during meals too.
#60
Lived with a bunch of musicians. We had one rule; no singing at the table.
It was just a silly rule because anytime you get a bunch of musicians eating yummy meals, one of them inevitably starts mindlessly singing to him/herself and it's always fun to be the first one to shout "HEY! NO SINGING AT THE TABLE!!"
Guess you hadda be there.
Surly Scot 8 months ago (edited)
Whenever I have a party and some idiot turns up with a guitar, I tell them they're strictly not allowed to play it. Every time, they find an area of the house to be center-stage, tell people to turn the music off, then start playing guitar and singing, turning a fun party into a dull one-person Truman show. Last time it happened I told the guy if he turned my music off in my own home again, i'd be smashing the guitar over his head and he can wear it home as a necklace. Some musicians don't understand that all the world isn't their personal f*cking stage.
Upstaged75 8 months ago
You sound fun. And usually the rule is that you can play anything BUT Freebird. :)
Load More Replies... #61
One time, when I was a visiting a friends house, her grandmother told her that she is not allowed to wash her hands before she makes sure that there is enough soap in all of the bathrooms.
#62
If you are angry, frustrated or upset, and want to break something, then: (i) do not break computers, electronic equipment, anything with a screen etc, or anything that is irreplaceable, has sentimental value, or costs more than about 50 pounds, or is a personal item belonging to another person; (ii) make sure you give adequate warning to avoid unnecessary alarm, and clear the area to avoid hitting anyone; (iii) clear up after yourself. Within these rules (which were written on the refrigerator door, along with some other strange rules), you were allowed to smash, break and throw things - if you needed too, you'know, if you felt the urge.
A bad day? "Excuse me, I'm going to throw a plate at the wall. Tabitha, mind out of the way. SMASH!!! There, that's better. Now, I'll just go fetch the dustpan and brush.".
G A 8 months ago
By the time you've told everyone, the urge will have passed. Like counting to 10....
Ace 8 months ago
The most worrying thing is that they've clearly been growing up in an environment that not only generates anger within the household, but also accepts that it's OK to vent it by throwing a tantrum, even if you are limiting it slightly. Breaking stuff in anger is never all right, no matter how little value things have.
Upstaged75 8 months ago
??? I've never broken anything in a rage. I just scream and swear. Things cost money.
#63
The rule in my house was that you have to change to "in-house" wears (such as pajama, or loose shirts) right after you come back home. Unless you have to leave again within 30 min. No matter what time of the day it is.
Glasofruix 8 months ago
Well, i have "house clothes", comfy, and "outside clothes", not so comfy. I change pretty much the instant i get home because why the f***k would i want to sit around wearing jeans and a shirt?
Upstaged75 8 months ago
I do this but it's not a rule. I just hate wearing a bra and tight pants. My dad on the other hand gets fully dressed as soon as he gets up and wears the same thing until bedtime. Even just lounging around he's got on jeans/khakis, a belt, and has his shirt tucked in. Me on the other hand I sometimes wear my pajamas all day - and I go commando in my PJs. ;)
Surly Scot 8 months ago
I do this from a germophobe perspective. Keep 'inside germs" and "outside germs" as separate as possible. Yep, sounds batty.
#64
Not technically a house rule but I know of a family who just mutes the tv when commercials come on.. even if no one has anything to say... S**t is as awkward as possible.
Mike F 8 months ago
A great habit to get into to help maintain your sanity.
Load More Replies... Portentia9 8 months ago
H.ell, I mute that incessant c.rap while shouting F.UCK OOOOOOOFFFFFFF!!!! I mean, who doesn't?
Robin Roper 8 months ago
I do the same. Commercials are frequently louder than the programs and who wants to listen to the dribble of the commercial.
GlitterPanda 8 months ago
My mom and step-dad do that, they find commercials super annoying and would rather not hear them.
Delta Dawn 8 months ago
Once you get used to this you’ll never, ever go back to listening to commercials. It’s SO much better.
#65
Boyfriend's last house had a rules list. Number 1 was "Throw away trash." 2 was "Don't park behind another car."
The rules aren't strange, but it is strange that they had to make those rules.
G A 8 months ago
How was parking a car a HOUSE rule? And taking out rubbish is fairly normal unless you are a hoarder...
Upstaged75 8 months ago
You know you don't HAVE to comment on every one of these, right?
Load More Replies... #66
When I was 15 I went to Spain on a school trip.
I was staying with two friends at a Spanish family's house.
Upon arrival, the lady showed us our rooms, and the bathroom.
Here's the surprise: they didn't pu the TP in the toilet, but rather in a trash can near it.
Yes, you read that correctly, there was a trash can filled with poop stained toilet paper in the bathroom.
I admit we were kinda weirded out, but IIRC it had something to do with bad plumbing.
Ace 8 months ago
FFS, where are they getting these crappy posts? Loads of places around the world have sewage systems that were never designed for, and cannot cope with, toilet paper being flushed. It's completely normal to billions of people.
Carrie B 8 months ago
Im American and in my 50s. I didn't know this was a thing until my 30s, and I had traveled internationally. Humans only know what we've been exposed to.
Load More Replies... Beth Wheeler 8 months ago
I have an older relative that does that & I've always thought it was disgusting. I flush & she doesn't know it.
#67
"Don't touch the walls and make sure you have socks on".
I had a friend in high school who's mom was crazy about finger and feet prints. It was the first thing my friend told me when I walked in to her house. At that moment it became a challenge to touch the walls as much as possible for the rest of the evening.
#68
Lived in a house that had two unique rules.
* Party fouls result in an immediate loss of an article of clothing.
* No drinks on the right side of the computer desk, if broken see rule 1.
#69
Don't throw fruit at the computer.
murmelinpaiva 8 months ago
Chimps are likely to throw worse things than fruit.
Load More Replies... #70
Don't say Frankie... No f****n' clue why.
#71
“We don’t swim in your toilet. Please don’t pee in our pool.”
Upstaged75 8 months ago
As a kid at summer camp they used to tell us that if we peed in the pool a special chemical would form a pink ring around us so everyone would know what we did. And no, it wasn't true. This was back in the 80's. They just didn't want hundreds of little kids using the pool as a toilet. I know it was a lie because I tested it. ;) Someone dared me and I was a dumb child.
Aidan Pite 8 months ago
No joke, I actually have a sign above my toilet that says that in reverse.
Upstaged75 8 months ago (edited)
In reverse? We swim in your toilet so please pee in our pool?
Load More Replies... #72
I know I tend to exaggerate sometimes, but this one is fact.
If you're going to fart, do it in another room.
We were sleeping together, already did the usual stuff, and later I farted. She told me to leave. The crazy part of this is that we were already married. I was too controlling, I guess. At any rate, she got a brand new car out of it.
#73
My brother was a high power attorney for years at Hamlin Hamlin & McGill in New Mexico until he took a leave of absence after having some mental issues. He became, we thought, allergic to electronics and electronic waves. He cut off the electricity in his house and couldn't be around any electronic devices. He wouldn't even go outside as electronic waves were in the air. Doctors couldn't find anything wrong, but he reacted so badly to electronics I believed him.
Every time we went to his house, we'd have to leave our phones in the car or in his mailbox. Months later, he started being able to outside and use phones when needed. He ended up f*****g me out of my own high power attorney job, though, even after I brought him food and supplies every week, so f**k him.
Surly Scot 8 months ago
I worked with a guy In Albuquerque whose wife is like this, they had to have a house in the middle of nowhere, he had to park his car a couple of miles from the house with his laptop and cellphone in it. She's utterly convinced electricity, radiowaves, or anything digital whatsoever will poison her, thousands of dollars in medical bills and the docs can't find anything wrong with her. Her poor husband has to go along with it everyday, lives in a house with candles and oil heaters, can't get contractors to come by because they need their phones on them for insurance purposes/she won't allow trucks near the home to deliver materials, he can't ever go on vacation or leave the State cus she has no way to call anyone for help when left alone. So d**n sad.
catherine podojil 8 months ago
Hey. this is part of the tv series "Better Call Saul"! stop plagarizing.....
#74
Was at this guys house and I asked to use the restroom. He was like "go ahead, but you have to sit down to pee in this house."
I didn't even feel like dealing with his weird rules, so I just nodded my head and went ahead and peed standing.
Surly Scot 8 months ago
One of my ex's would sit down to pee, and to this day I don't know how he did it, but his pee would manage to spray through the gap between the toilet seat and the bowl, rolling his urine down the front of the bowl and onto the floor. I still don't understand the physics of this.
nottheactualphoto 8 months ago
Mumble mumble capillary action somethingorother?
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Portentia9 8 months ago (edited)
It's no wonder mental health is a major crisis. The d.rug abuse and alcoholism starts somewhere for certain reasons. Everyone were babies once, remember that.
Jnausicaa 8 months ago
We have a shoe free house. Rain and snow in the winter and some rain the rest of the year. Best to leave any mess in the mudroom or genkan.at the front ot the house. Genkan (玄関) are traditional Japanese entryway areas for a house, apartment, or building, a combination of a porch and a doormat. It is usually located inside the building directly in front of the door. The primary function of genkan is for the removal of shoes before entering the main part of the house or building. (Stolen from Wikipedia). The other rules seem strange to me. YMMV
Portentia9 8 months ago (edited)
It's no wonder mental health is a major crisis. The d.rug abuse and alcoholism starts somewhere for certain reasons. Everyone were babies once, remember that.
Jnausicaa 8 months ago
We have a shoe free house. Rain and snow in the winter and some rain the rest of the year. Best to leave any mess in the mudroom or genkan.at the front ot the house. Genkan (玄関) are traditional Japanese entryway areas for a house, apartment, or building, a combination of a porch and a doormat. It is usually located inside the building directly in front of the door. The primary function of genkan is for the removal of shoes before entering the main part of the house or building. (Stolen from Wikipedia). The other rules seem strange to me. YMMV
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