2020 was a rough year for the loved ones in our lives. This isn't in any way referring to their potential health or financial situation, but there did seem to be a sudden rise in "those" sorts of aunts and uncles.
Reddit user, u/neck-pillow, wanted to know how the reverence fell away when they asked:
What made you lose respect for someone?
Maybe the person is having money troubles, but instead of handling it like an adult, being up front about it, asking for understanding and assistance from the loved ones in their live, they use it as an excuse to essentially steal.
When Your Buddy Needs To Pay You Back
"At college in London I had a car and my mate didn't, nor a driving license so I regularly drove to the other side of the city to pick him up or drop him off. Never once asked for petrol and would have rejected the offer if made. It's a mate, right."
"One night a group of us were out in town and decided to go watch a film. I called him up, told him to get over and I'd pick up an extra ticket to make sure he could make it. When he arrived he took the ticket, and casually said, "get the money from Bob, he owes me."
"I'd spent my last ten pounds on that ticket. Everyone decided to got to McDonald's. I couldn't afford to eat. Then they decided to go to a bar, I swear he asked me what I wanted to drink. I asked for coke. He came back holding two, thinking one was for me I reached for it and he looked at me at said, "In your dreams" and walked past."
"Didn't have much to do with him after that."
Stealing From Your Child
"My father took out 2 credit cards in my name, then left me with the bill. When I confronted him about it, I got the "you have absolutely no respect for your elders"
"Also, when my uncle called my 8 year old sister "Fat" right to her face. I've never wanted to fight someone more in my life. I was seeing red"
This Exchange Breaks The Money System
"Now a former friend of mine is very cheap. Like, she won't even throw few pieces of fries away, because she doesn't like to waste food. I really respected that, because I'm not super duper careful with money."
"She rode her junk bike around, and one day, it broke to the point of no return. I had some bikes around that I sort of fixed, so I sold one of them for $50."
"It caused some issues, and I tried to fix it, but didn't work out. I obviously felt bad. Eventually, she asked for the money back. I apologized and gave $50."
"Few days later, I asked for the bike back, so I can fix it and sell it online or something."
"She said "Well, this bike is not worth $50 and it caused so many troubles. I'm not gonna give you the bike back."
"I said "wtf? That's not how this works. Either give me $50 or the bike"
"She said "I'll have my mechanic friend to look at it and offer a fair value for this bike. I need the bike, but it's not worth $50."
"I knew that she's cheap af, but I didn't know that she's this "cheap".
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Unsure Of Their Child's Legacy
"Visited a friend from high school I hadn't seen in a long time to congratulate her on her pregnancy and catch up. While there she told me that she suspected the baby wasn't her husband's but knew she'd be able to tell in the delivery room so she wasn't going to say anything to him until she saw."
Inability To Care For Your Own Son
"Refusing to spend $10k on treatment for their son even though they had the money for it. Unfortunately, the son eventually had to amputate his leg because of it."
The Horrible Tooth
"My son's friend used to spend weekends and nearly his entire summers at our house. One weekend, the boy was staying over with us when he had a terrible toothache. He was crying and just rocking back and forth writhing in pain. We looked at the tooth and it was completely rotten and broken. Tried to reach the parents, but couldn't get ahold of them. We did the best we could to comfort him."
"When we took him back home, we told the parents about it and they admitted they had known about it for awhile, but they couldn't afford the dentist. In damn near the same breath they proceeded to show us the new flatscreen tv and surround sound they had just bought for $700."
"The boy continued to suffer in that home (in many ways we didn't even know about until later) for a couple years when finally my wife and I called CPS. We were so afraid of making things worse and were pretty certain that they would know exactly who made the complaint and it would jeopardize our being able to give him any reprieve if they cut us off from having contact with him."
"When we finally made the call, it went exactly as we had feared. The agency wouldn't give us any details of the contact, but the boy's parents cut us off completely. My son saw him at school and that would be the only way we could communicate with him. One night several months later, he showed up at our door. Turns out he ran away. Cops came, he tried to explain the abuse he was having in the home which at this point we found out had turned into physical beatings and the cop told him to "knock your it off and get in the (police) car" and they took him back to the abusive parents."
"The next morning, the mother came to our house with the boy and told us to keep him. So, we went through a big process and got legal guardianship of him and ever since he has been in our home. He is treated like our own son. First thing we did was go to a dentist."
"I'm not one to wish ill on anyone no matter what they've done, but I hope those people burn in hell."
Then there's these folks, people who may at one point have been a close friend or family member, but shortly after questionable actions, make you think, "Yeah, they're probably not the best people to be in my life."
Pushing The Envelope Too Much
"When my friend taunted her husband into a reaction & then called police on him. Friendship over & I witnessed for his defense & his upcoming divorce!"
Stealing The Spotlight
"My boyfriend threw me a surprise birthday party for my 21st, and invited all my friends which included one that lived 6 hours away! (F21). She ended up coming, but wanted to make the whole night about her."
"She kept telling everyone I shouldn't drink because I get too messed up, kept complaining about how much she missed her 50-year-old fiancé (she kept including the age in order to also mention how more mature she was), and how it was rude that my bf's roommate didn't offer his room to her because his bed was larger. Even the next day when we got brunch, she kept complaining about how much she missed her fiancé, and that I should just get a box so she can take me home and go home herself."
"She managed to piss a lot of people off that night, but especially me. We had been friends for about 3 years, but that night really made me look at our so-called friendship in a brand new light."
A Mentor Gone Wrong
"I was on the same club soccer team from age 9 to 18. I loved my team and I loved my coach who was the father of my teammate. He was like a second father to me as well. Until I turned 18 and he texted me basically hitting on me. Not only was he married with kids but he had seen me grow up. Disgusting."
Ruining The Friendship
"My friend Tiffini had sex with her married "best friend" Clayton when his wife was pregnant with Tiffini's future godchild. Clayton then left his wife and infant child for Tiffani, and soon they had a baby of their own. That all happened in a year. Trashiest thing I've ever personally witnessed. I noped out."
"This sh-tshow contacted me recently to see if I'm ready to be friends again. I replied, "I did not set our friendship aside lightly. I threw it away with great force."
"Edit: added fake names for clarity"
A Classic Problem We'll All Go Through
"Time."
"As I grew up, I realised my dad is an a-hole and not the eccentric genius he thinks he is."
"I feel you. Got a lot of "you'll understand when you're older" and "you'll understand when you have kids of your own" bullsh-t as a kid. Now I'm older and have my own kids and I would never do some of the things he did. What an ass."
Never be afraid to pull away from someone, especially if that someone is not good for you or taking advantage of you. If their making sketchy life choices, it might be time to reconsider the time you're giving that individual. Respect can be replaced with pity but your time can never be given back.
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