People Divulge Their Funniest 'I'm Turning Into My Parents' Experiences

Cleaning and organization are some of the most common areas where parental influence holds some serious sway.

Once tasked with taking care of a home or apartment of our own, we begin to witness a bizarre, familiar investment in how that place looks and feels.

Unilateral Decision Making 

"When I was cleaning the kitchen and didn't want anyone else to help because I felt like it wouldn't be done right." -- Cornwalace

"Oh lord do I feel this! When I had housemates, the only time I could clean properly was when no one else was home because they tried to help and did it wrong!" -- Isoldmysoul4atwix

"Or cleaning the bathroom! The first time I asked my SO to clean the shower he got a paper towel. NONONONONO. You need a sponge at the minimum, ideally a scrubbie brush to get that gunk out! He's since learned my way (the proper way lol) of cleaning the bathroom." -- feedmedammit

"Lordy"

"I no longer tolerate clutter. This past week alone, I sorted out the spice cabinet to the degree that I ended up trashing about 50 vials of expired herbs, spices and sauces, the oldest of which was a bottle of soy from 2013."

"It was a long overdue task and normally I HATE doing anything resembling housework but lordy, it was immensely satisfying to see everything neat, tidy and easily accessible."

"I also have started a binder/folder system to store all important documents that were building up on the overstuffed noticeboard, I'm about to tackle the hoard of books under the coffee table and sometime during the weekend, I might even clear out the medicine cabinet."

"I also spotted a box of 'Microwave Cleaner' on sale in the store today and my first thought was 'ooh, €1.50 a box! That'll be handy.'"

"I can't believe I'm saying this but doing housework has made me feel so much more productive in this pandemic along with giving my depression a bit of a kick up the arse."

"It's not an outright cure-all but I'm happier going to bed exhausted by a busy day and feeling accomplished by the end of it rather than lying awake all night lamenting the fact that I've wasted my waking hours once again."

-- GothTheLife88

Time Warp 

"Going grocery shopping or folding laundry on a Friday/Saturday night. Thinking 8pm is too late to leave the house to do anything."

"In my defense it IS a pandemic, so not much to do otherwise. It's also winter, and I'm pregnant.. so maybe I'll be cool again someday."

-- lindzer1285

Opting for Nice Things 

"Oh my god I just told my sister I was turning into our mom the other day."

"Last year I bought a set of 'nice' silverware. Not extremely fancy but like a $60 set. Well, my daughter dropped a fork in the trash can and said 'I'm not digging through the trash to find it.' I was like bet your a** you are! I was so pissed."

-- tlr92

Never to Be Touched, In Any Home 

"The first time I yelled 'DON'T TOUCH THE FU**IN' THERMOSTAT!' Now, to be clear, this was directed towards my wife, who for some reason has about a two degree comfort range. My kids were confused, because they aren't old enough to know what a thermostat is or what it does."

"A few weeks go by, and I hear my wife in the living room tell my son 'Tell Alexa to turn the thermostat up.' I lean into the doorway a bit, and my son locks eyes with me."

"He then looks my wife dead in the eyes, with the most serious look he can muster and says "No way Mommy. Daddy said don't touch the fu**in' thermostat! Are you trying to get Alexa in trouble too?!" We both died."

-- mediocrity_managed

Others recognized their parents incarnated in their own weird quirks. These weren't connected to chores, but habits and tendencies when their guard was down.

But those moments are the ones that really show who we are.

Credits, Yes. First Scene, Maybe. Anything Else, No Chance. 

"I started falling asleep during movies. I used to get so mad at my mom for doing that, now I have a job and I understand why." -- juliajmusic

"If my wife and kids put a movie on after 7:00 p.m., I just look at it as an early bedtime. I'm asleep within 5 minutes." -- georgefishersneck

"This was me last night, she put on Princess and The Frog, I fell asleep almost instantly. She woke me up when it ended and I felt bad." -- nahiaintdoingthat

Beginning to Picture the Worst 

"Last night, when I got worried because my fiancé was 5 minutes late coming home from the gym and I caught myself saying 'I can't help it, I worry about you.' "

"Bam, I have become my mother."

-- Dimeadozen21

An Age Old Quip 

"There is a shower in my basement that no one ever uses. There are a couple dead bugs in it that I've never bothered to clean up. When our niece came to stay with us for a few days, she planned to stay in the basement."

"My wife asked why I hadn't cleaned the dead bugs out of the shower, I opened my mouth and heard my dad say, 'They go with the decor.'"

-- dude1864

Spitting Images

"I a 63yo woman but caught myself in a mirror and all I saw was my father!" -- amyabrooks50

"I kept logging onto Facebook and catching my profile picture and thinking, 'How is my deceased mother posting new pictures on Facebook???' "

"She wasn't. It was me. It's me every time. I look just like her." -- fireflygalaxies

Life Before 9am 

"My parents were always early risers. On Sunday they're up and banging around in the kitchen by 7am. They made enough racket that even though we had a pretty big house that they'd always wake me up. Always pissed me off."

"When i moved out six years ago i thought 'finally, I'll be able to sleep in.' But i can't. Even without an alarm, on vacation, I'm awake by 7-7:30. If I'm really exhausted i might be able to sleep in until ALMOST 8:30, but no later."

"It's advantageous in a lot of ways but just once in a while I'd like to sleep in."

-- Titus_Favonius

There is one other time when people let their guards down and the true inner essence comes out: moments of anger. Plenty of Redditors discovered the sounds and sights of their parents when they were disciplining their own children.

But their responses to those moments offered some hope of wisdom growing across the generations.

New Appendages

"The 'Mom finger,' I'm a dude. 'Don't you ever let me catch you...' " -- DigitalBishop

"There's a special Italian variant of this, instead of a finger it's a wooden spoon. If you don't immediately obey the holder of the spoon may God have mercy on your soul." -- ahahahahelpme

An Age Old Classic

"The first time 'get off of my lawn' popped in my head." -- adansby

"The first time I yelled at a kid that biked across my lawn I was 23... The realization hit me like a brick wall." -- Thefocker

Presence of Mind 

"Yelled at my kid and at the same time saw myself out the corner of my eye in the mirror."

"I was yelling something my dad used to yell at me, and I look a lot like him."

"I hated it when I was a kid, and immediately apologised to my kid."

-- mission101999

Not Heating the Whole Neighborhood

"When I was a kid, I was constantly going outside and coming back inside. It annoyed my mom to no end. She used to say 'In or out!!!! Pick one!'"

"About 20 years later, I have an amazing kid. Now that he's old enough, he is constantly going outside or coming inside and NEVER closes the the sliding glass door."

"Hence, either heat or air conditioning is being wasted for most months out of the year. I caught myself telling him 'In or out!!!! Pick one.....oh crap, now I understand my mom's frustration.....'"

"And yes, I've told him to shut the door. Many, many times. He's never closed a door or turned off a light without my reminding. I'm hoping it sinks in soon. Sigh."

-- Verticalparachute

"Yelling at the news is one. I remember constantly asking my dad if he realized the people on tv couldn't hear him."

"Sometimes you just have to yell though."

-- puppytv777

Lights Out, Twerps

"When I went thru my house the other day, yelling to my two young kids, 'When you leave a room, turn the LIGHTS OFF!! This costs money!!'"

"I've officially become my dad."

-- TheGoodJudgeHolden

So next time you catch yourself sounding just like your mother or father, take note.

Perhaps you're repeating a wonderful, fun attribute that you should have no shame in replicating. Or maybe it's an uglier tendency, and your noticing can help you dial it down.

Either way, rest assured that the moments won't stop coming.