In the movies, the bad guy pretty much always gets some comeuppance--but real life doesn't always work that way and this article is proof.
Reddit user Pixiedustpotatoe asked:
Were you bullied at school? Where are your bullies now and what did they make of their lives?
and it's pretty much like a VH1 Where Are They Now? special for all the people in your life who really, really sucked.
If you experience bullying then you sort of hope to see your bullies face some sort of karmic consequences, but based on these responses it may not happen.
When it does though, ooooohhhh when it does...
She Is Not Her Father
He became an auto mechanic, was married and had 2 kids. He died around 35 years old and I ended up teaching his daughter in middle school. She was very smart which was weird since he was not at all. I went out of my way to be sure I was kind to her and to be sure there was no negative feelings towards her. She is not her father and had nothing to do with how he treated me.
- 1toy4me
They Succeed Just Fine
Yes, and well, they all have normal lives as far as I know. They finished school, got normal jobs, and carried on as if nothing had happened.
I've found out that the thing they tell you about bullies not succeeding in life is just a lie. In all honesty, they have had more successful lives than myself, so it has flipped the other way around. Bullying someone doesn't leave a major impact on your life, while getting bullied can easily lead to social and mental problems.
Plot Twist!
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I was. I became friends with my high school bully as an adult after we connected on Facebook (she had been a Mean Girl, popular, was a model, while I was a weird, bookish art nerd). She confessed in our 30s a few years into the friendship she had feelings for me, it was wild (I never anticipated it, had always thought she was straight.)
She got embarrassed and ghosted after I asked for time to process what she'd told me (I was interested, just blown away.)
I have no idea what she's doing now. I think she's a stay at home mom. I dunno, I hope she's happy. She turned out not to be a bad person, just troubled.
Some Things Never Change
My bully would pull my pants down without fail every day from grade 3 to grade 5. It could be while I was eating lunch, or washing my hands, or walking by - just at any point of the day really. She would even pull my underwear down with my pants occasionally. I would get so embarrassed and cry in the bathrooms.
Fast forward to now, she came up on Facebook as a friend suggestion (stalked a little, she's now married with a baby girl), some of my colleagues being mutual friends. I asked one of my colleagues about how they knew the bully and my colleague said the bully was working here and got fired a month before I started working.
Apparently she was purposely causing dramas between departments. I asked my colleague what she was like and my colleague (who didn't know she was a bully) said she was always very rude, unapproachable and difficult to work with. Sounds like some things never change!
I'm A Better Person
He's got a nice, cushy job, a wife, four kids, and owns his house. And I have PTSD and am currently unemployed in part because of that diagnosis.
But I'm a better person than he is, because I can say without reservation that I've never abused anyone in all the ways he abused me.
I still don't forgive him. I want to but I can't do that yet.
Tenure
Don't know, don't care, I'm a tenured professor now with plenty of time for my hobbies so f*ck them wherever they are.
- nealius
Satisfying
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One boy at school spent years calling me fat and ugly. A couple of years ago he persistently hit on me in a club to the point that a male friend had to threaten him to leave me alone. Satisfying doesn't cover it.
- dgic
The Sheer Disregard
Bullied, called homophobic slurs because I wanted to stay in and sketch/ draw cartoons and not play sports. Kicked and punched a couple of times too.
Met both of them years after we went to school together. One had gone to jail for a year. Both acted like they never did anything or remember what they did. I think that's the part that hurt the most, just the sheer disregard.
Thanks Karma!
Yes, and things actually turned out quite well for me. I was a really nerdy, very unattractive kid. Kids picked on me a lot. All these years later, I turned out to be quite beautiful and am a lawyer. The bullies? Most dropped out of college. The worst of them used to be a very cute kid but turned into a morbidly obese adult who lives at home. Karma did me good.
Once A Year
One of my bullies was/is a friend of my brothers. My brother moved 1000 miles away from me, but the bully friend still lives in my same area. My brother comes to visit 2x a year, and during the summer visit, I throw a large party, to which my brother always invites this person.
I was teased and taunted unmercifully by this guy all through high school about my weight, looks, lack of boyfriend (or type of bf when I had one) you name it. My husband is perturbed that my brother is even friends with this guy still. But he and us only see him once a year for about three hours. We will survive, I am 48 now, I'm an adult, I'm over it an not afraid of him.
I am, however, pleased (in a petty revenge kind of way) to report he has had not one but TWO failed marriages, lost a nice job his sister got him at her company because he came to work drunk, got kicked out of college for who knows what (alleged illegal activity, from what my brother says), and I'm sure his life sucks in other ways.
Feel No Pity
I was bullied to the point where I considered suicide, luckily a few things happened in my life which helped me to change my mind and I'm doing really well right now (I'm currently working toward my dream career!) I still have anxiety and depression but it's not a bad as it used to be.
I find it funny how all the people who bullied me and almost destroyed me, are now destroying their own lives with drugs and alcohol. I don't feel any pity for them, after over 10 years of torment, both mental and physical (of course the school system did absolutely nothing to help me). They got what they deserved.
Motivation
Two mean girls at my high school. One got an abortion and graduated a low tier law school, the other went to some city college for an arts degree and is now doing probably some minimum wage job.
I'd say just keep working hard, and when you get unmotivated think about how good it'd feel to laugh at those people on your way up >:)
Sure as hell got me going.
Relevant Backstory
There were two main bullies, the best I can tell one turned into a typical working class chav and he spends the majority of his time doing petty criminal stuff - his brother, also a bully of mine, is serving hard time for an armed robbery. I expected nothing less. The other, I've no idea what happened to him but mutual acquaintances tell me he is now a drug addict and homeless so I'm in the odd position of feeling sorry for someone who caused me a lot of misery.
On a more positive note, another kid who bullied me in High School ended up becoming one of my friends many years later. He was abused at home as a kid and that was the reason he acted out in school. Now he's happily married and living a great life.
- zerbey
A Lesson Learned
I was bullied and I did some bullying of my own, I am not proud of that, but it did happen and I have since reached out to them to tell them I am sorry and that I had no right to do what I did and asked them to forgive me. They all (thankfully) forgave me and thanked me for contacting them.
I know that 'bullying' by today's standards is vastly more harmful than what I did in the late 80's/early 90's, with everyone seeing it online with cyber-bullying, but I still feel pretty bad about what I said to some people.
Nightmares
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I had a horrible bully in middle school. I was an athletic (judo) girl, not even chubby, but she shamed me into anorexia and eventual hospitalization. Fast forward 5 years, she jumped from an 8 story building and died two days later. Had extremely mixed feelings about it, even went to her funeral. I'd been wishing death on that girl for half a decade. Still have nightmares of me pushing her.
- bellezyk
Better
Ayy, got bullied by someone when younger. Turns out he stole my first girlfriend. We were together for 3 and a half years. It's been like 6 years now and they are still together.
So briefly, my bully stole my girlfriend and turns out to be a better boyfriend than me. Fml.
- morybon
When we're intoxicated, or even the slightest bit tipsy from having a little too much to drink, our immediate perspective on things is hazy.
But there's nothing like a bit of alarming news or a jarring incident to snap us out of the fog and focus on the moment.
Sometimes alcohol isn't always to blame for our impairment.
It can be a state of mind, like a perpetual numbness from being complacent in life, and all it takes is one shocking moment to rattle us back to our senses.
Curious to hear from strangers online about this type of scenario, Redditor Known_Challenge_7150 asked:
"What’s one thing that sobered you up real quick?"
These individuals were witness to shocking events that sobered them up right quick.
Bleeding Out
"Got out of a taxi and found a naked man profusely bleeding from his head crawling up the driveway in my condo. Called him an ambulance completely forgot I was absolutely wasted until 45 minutes later when I'd helped him translate and in to an amublance and stepped in my front door."
"Later a few days later learned he'd slipped in the tub and literally crawled out for help. Poor dude. He was fine but I genuinely thought he was going to die there."
– DongLaiCha
Tragic News
"At a bachelor party and we got a phone call that the groom’s father had suddenly passed."
– accountnameredacted
Bottom Of The Barrel
"I went to visit my parents back in July. I was homeless and deep into fentanyl addiction so I lost a lot of weight. My folks could see it. They knew something was up. Anyway, I spent the night and I was getting ready to leave in the morning and I looked at myself in the mirror for a good long time. I finally had enough and told them everything. They took me to detox, from there I went to rehab. Graduated in August and been living with them ever since then. I have 160 days clean and sober."
– Crotch-Monster
A reality check can be enough for some people to snap out of it.
Like Father, Like Son
"Was driving a drunk friend home, he had been on a bender again and was smart enough to call me for a lift rather than try and drive. As I helped in to his house his mother came down the stairs and said 'your as drunk as your father' and went back upstairs. I haven't seen him drunk since then, he still drinks but the thought of turning into his dad scared him out of hard drinking."
– psycospaz
Busted
"Flashing blue lights."
– FiddleOfGold
"This sobered me up just thinking about it."
– redmaple_syrup
Losing Sight
"Woke up to no sight in one eye. I had cataract surgery so just thought one of the lenses had slipped and it was an easy fix. Eye doc says nope, you had a stroke. I loved soy sauce, teriyaki sauce and salty food, which caused high blood pressure, which caused retina damage. Over six months was able to get most of my eyesight back with medication, and all back within a year. Trying to navigate life with one eye was very sobering. Started taking HBP much more seriously."
– MissHibernia
Quitting The Bottle
"Looked up someone I went to highschool with who was an awesome guy. Found out he had been dead for 3 years from alcoholism, at age 33. I made an overnight change. I hadn't started drinking that night yet, 10 months ago. Haven't touched it again since."
– omgtater
These disturbing moments were enough for Redditors to immediately come to their senses.
Unplanned House Guests
"Me and a buddy Woke up in someone’s living room, realized neither one of us knew the people, they were just nice and let 2 drunk guys sleep on their living room floor. We didn’t even say goodbye."
– Oneinsevenbillion75
Serious Health Warning
"Elevated liver enzymes."
"And the knowledge that this sh** was gonna kill me and I just couldn't orphan my family over it."
"So I opted for recovery, instead."
"Clean and sober since June 5, 2009."
– Far_Meal8674
The Joyride
"Grew up in a rural area. The little town hosted dances at the hockey arena, everyone (adults and kids) went and they overserved everyone, regardless of age. I was maybe 16 or 17 and was absolutely sh*tfaced, and jumped in the back of someone's truck with about 8 other people to go back to someone's cottage for after dance drinking. The driver (still don't know who it was) started racing one of his buddies and we whipped around small dirt roads, flying around blind corners on the wrong side of the road, going god knows how fast. It was basically a disaster waiting to happen. It was crazy scary and I was sober and thankful to be alive when we finally arrived."
– foxfood9116
The human psyche is a fascinating thing, isn't it?
How we can automatically focus on something urgent at a crucial time, even after getting buzzed from drinking too much alcohol.
But as we're in the thick of the holidays, it's a good reminder to drink responsibly and stay off the roads if you drive to your celebratory destination.
Cheers. Stay safe. And happy holidays.
We've all complained or vented about something in our lives which, in the grand scheme of things, wasn't exactly a problem, or is very easily solved.
Then there are those who complain about things that others almost hope will happen to them at some point in their lives.
These are known as "first world problems", as they are problems that pretty much only the world's one percent faces.
From having to fly business class instead of first class, or being served Roederer instead of Dom Pérignon, these complaints are often met with amusement, bewilderment, or even anger.
Redditor jennimackenzie was curious to hear the most absurd "first world problems" anyone ever complained about, leading them to ask:
"What’s the most ridiculous 'first world problem' you’ve seen people get worked up over?"
"Tale As Old As Time..."
"I once knew a mom who was legitimately devastated, to the point of tears/grief, because a doctor predicted her 8 year old daughter's final height to be around 5'2","
"Which wasn't tall enough to get cast as Belle at Disney World."
"That was the child's (and her mother's) only dream in life, apparently."
"Didn't appreciate my suggestion that she could be Minnie or Mickey."
"Lol!"
"Only a face character would do!"- TravelLovingMom
"Must Be Funny, In A Rich Man's World..."
"My boss from about a decade ago was this insanely rich dude who always went to the bank to get fresh and crisp currency."
"He'd call the bank in advance to make sure they had some on hand."
"I think he was a germaphobe."
"He had a trash can that he'd throw $1 and $5 bills in that he thought was 'dirty' and regularly just donated it vs spending it."
"I asked him why he did this and he said it was too much trouble and asked if I wanted it."
"I said f*ck yeah dumped it into my bag and when I got home it was close to $400 in singles and fives.
"Another time, he wanted to upgrade all the computers in his studio, so we went to a store and bought 10 PCs."
"They all had $150 mail in rebates and he wasn't bothered to go through the trouble of mailing them in."
"3 weeks later I received $1500 after spending a whole afternoon filling out all those goddamn forms."- azninvasion2000
Money Burn GIF by nog
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Who Wore It Better?
"When I was about 19 years old, I was at my boyfriends family BBQ."
"I was wearing this pretty floral sundress."
"His cousins girlfriend showed up in the same dress and she was SO mad that she went and changed."
"I will never understand being upset when someone is wearing the same thing as you.'
"Did you really think that your shirt you bought off the rack is going to be unique to you?"
"No."- mertsey627
Seeing Red! Or Blue In This Case...
"The blue of the balloons wasn't quite the same as the bridesmaid's sashes."
"Years ago my wife and I attended a wedding."
"It was very low key."
"The dinner was in the dining hall at the university where the couple met, cinder block walls and all."
"It was a Baptist wedding - no booze and very serious."
"The dark blue balloons attempting to liven up the hall were a slightly darker shade of blue than the sashes on the bridesmaid's dresses."
"The bride lost here sh*t and absolutely raved for nearly an hour."
"I can't remember how they finally managed to talk her down."- mechant_papa
south park wedding GIF
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See You In Court!
"Rich neighbors who end up in expensive court battles because they disagree about where a tree can be planted or whether the color of a fence fits in with the street’s 'amenity'."
'These disputes get really heated and rack up huge lawyers’ bills."
"The most pathetic part is after the judgement when they are arguing about who should pay the other party’s costs."
"Lots of affidavits filed citing the 'emotional distress' they had to endure, or painting themselves as brave warriors who were forced to take a stand to fight for 'justice'."
"Also lots of pompous litigants insisting that the judge refer to them by their 'Dr' title."
"An absolutely insane dumpster fire of entitled rich people problems."- ElectrocRaisin
It's Always People With Money Who Don't Want To Pay!
"I work in a public library."
"People will get so so mad if they have to be put on a wait list for a book."
"A popular book that just came out."
"Ok our services are not only free but so are the books."
"You’re welcome, a**holes."- Switchbladekitten
A Warm Butt Is A Happy Butt!
"My own."
"We have a bidet toilet seat (Fabulous! Everyone should have one!) and not only does it wash your bum and blow dry it, but the seat's heated!"
"It's shocking how much a heated toilet seat makes the whole process more agreeable."
"Except: We had a power outage and I went to use the toilet and the seat was cold!"
"Unacceptable!"
"This shall not stand!"
"I was really upset because it didn't feel good."
"Then I stopped and thought: This is the most first-world problem anyone's ever had."
"I was really pissed because my heiny was tepid."
"I got over it."- DeathGrover
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Holy Matrimony!
"Weddings are a gold mine for this question."
"People get so hyped up over their 'most important day of their life'."
"They'll destroy friendships, go into debt, and have crazy expectations."
"It's not always the couple who go crazy, either."
"Sometimes, it's the parents or another family member who feels entitled to control the wedding."
"It's just a party."
"Be considerate of guests, have plenty of food and drinks, and enjoy it."- magicrowantree
When Fast Food Isn't Fast Enough...
"Having to pull off to the side to wait for a drive-thru order to be brought out to you because your food isn't ready and there's a line building up behind you."- demanbmore
In Case You Don't Think Customer Service Employees Are Undervalued...
"I was working the return desk at a Target next to a military base so I have so many stories."
"One of my favorites was a lady who had her baby shower before revealing the gender and was livid that she had received floral newborn diapers when she’s having a boy."
"It was a huge box of super expensive, all organic diapers, that we didn’t carry and therefore could not return."
"I cannot accurately express her fury and disgust."
"How dare either suggest her boy could wear feminine diapers."
"I suggested she donate them if she didn’t want to use them and she instead threw away the entire box."
"When she left we pulled it out and threw it in our donate bin."
"There have also been multiple times where mom’s order massive toys and when we bring them out to the car they get furious that they aren’t wrapped."
"We don’t offer wrapping services."
"Here’s the thing, if you don’t want your kids to see the toys you got them for Christmas or their bit to day DON'T BRING THE CHILD WHEN YOU PICK IT UP."
'I’ve had multiple women scream and curse me out that I had ruined their kids Christmas by bringing the toys they ordered out to the car like they requested."- clever-mermaid-mae
Customer Service Waiting GIF by Juno Calypso
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Happiest Place On Earth!
"I used to work for Disney."
"That in itself should tell you everything."
"However for fun I'll give you two specific stories one form our tech department and one from my wife who worked bookings."
"I specifically worked for their call center to help with technical issues with magic band and the website."
"Suddenly got worse huh?"
"A right of passage call everyone has at least one story of is the 'Dome call'."
"Basically there is a subset of Disney Guest (TM) that believes if it rains at Walt Disney world there is someone that will push a button to encapsulate the whole of Disney property in a dome to keep out the rain."
"I'm not kidding."
"If this button is not pushed they call our tech department to angrily ask why."
"My wife worked booking."
"Pretty much everything including Bibbidi Bobbidi boutique and Pirate's league."
"These two things did roughly the same thing difference being price and theme."
"BBB was expensive did more and was focused on princesses, pirates league did a bit less and focused on mermaids and pirates."
"Lady called up my wife, and got pissed about BBB being booked up (It goes FAAAAST)."
"Karen: 'Im going to give the phone to my daughter and I want you to tell her how you are ruining her vacation by not letting her do BBB'."
"Wife proceeds to explain how pirate's league is so much cooler and how she can be a mermaid or pirate and basically gets the kid to start demanding to their parents about how they want to be a mermaid instead of a princess."- trollsong
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The horror!
Being booked into a junior suite at Disney World instead of an executive suite!
It's almost as bad as having no money for groceries, or no food to feed you children...
Said absolutely no one.