Sometimes, no most of the time, an argument isn't worth the stress. It can take a lot of will power and quiet strength but we all have to weigh the options. There are just some minds we will never change. And some people we will just never see eye to eye with, even though we share DNA. So personal sacrifices have to be made in order to continue with peace. And often, many of us must swallow a bitter pill so we don't have to participate in drama.
Redditor u/splashingseal wanted to discuss all the times we've let things go for one reason or another by asking.... What's the worst thing you've tolerated to avoid confrontation?In the cupboard....
My flatmate will put my earphones in my food cupboard to tidy them away, but then leave all his dishes about the kitchen and living room
Not the worst, but so needlessly infuriating.
On the Edge....
An emotionally abusive relationship where I was constantly on edge because almost every single conversation resulted in an argument or me being put down. One night he had a huge fight with my mother, and I still went home with him. I immediately texted her to say he was being an ahole and that I actually agreed with her, but I didn't want to deal with the stress of him picking a fight with me about it.
That was probably the defining moment that made me start to reflect and realize the relationship was unhealthy.
As of Tuesday.....
My current work situation as of Tuesday. As part of my job I handle the timesheets for my office and my coworker checks them to see if everything is recorded correctly. If I make a mistake, I understand i need correction but the way she's been handling it lately has been too much. Now instead of calling me over to her desk, she just lectures me in front of the entire office. Then sometimes she complains to sups about me within earshot, pretty much repeating what she said very loudly to my face.
She's even made me cry once, but that was more frustration honestly (I'm an angry crier).
I say as of Tuesday because the last blow up over a timesheet error (that I handled on my own) was one too many. I finally had too much and told my sup it was bothering me. I'm hoping she can meditate between us so I don't start to panic every time I hear my coworker sigh a certain way.
The Chair...
GIF by Kim's Convenience
Giphy
My MSc supervisor taking 6 months to return drafts. By repeatedly doing this, he extended the time it took by 3 years.
Eventually the department chair got wind of this and kicked his butt into gear. I wish I'd approached the chair sooner (well, at all.)
Fredo....
I used to have a roommate and all she ate was fettuccini alfredo for all three meals a day. And she'd only eat half of it and just leave the bowl sitting there. So there were just bowls of half eaten pasta scattered around the house and if we asked her to clean it she'd get upset and yell at us for "making her do all the work".
Yet if anyone else in the house had even a speck of dust near them she'd come in screaming, calling us lazy, telling us how horrible it was for her to live in such a mess. Once she tried to have me kicked out of the house for leaving a half full can of pop lying around that she knocked over and spilled. It was half full because I'd just opened it and was in the middle of drinking it. Meanwhile there's f*cking fettuccini everywhere.
Dad's day....
My fathers wedding. Absolutely hate his wife, her kids. She's a witch and that's not even biased, she's the type to go out of her way to lie in court in a case she has nothing to do with to make people miserable.
He basically blackmailed my sibling and I to come to the wedding ( which we were informed of a week prior as "an important event" and the night before as his actual second wedding) or he would never come to ours in the future.
Yeah, kinda wish I was a confrontational person, just this one time. It would have been glorious.
Oh and then he didn't inform my mother of it. So we kept the secret for another 2 years until he slipped up. Not my story to tell, and that was a conversation I didn't want to have.
Health Issues....
"You guys shouldn't be allowed to become NICU nurses unless you've had a premature baby yourself." Obviously from a mom in the worst moment of her life.
We get a lot of horrible comments or tongue lashing from parents who are just scared, frustrated or mad. I can't retaliate or say anything I might want to say, so we just sit quietly and say we're sorry they're in this situation.
On and On....
90s beauty GIF
Giphy
An Uber driver who rambled on and on to me that women shouldn't work, should cook and raise kids. Said repeatedly how his engineer daughter was a disappointment because she works and has his grandkids in daycare. This was shortly after I, a woman, told him I was traveling for work. I just nodded along praying my hotel was closer.
I Hate You....
Right now I'm tolerating an ex roommate treating their gf and my close friend (separate people) like absolute crap, emotionally abusing and manipulating them. It's terrible and I hate.
However, they live quite a ways away from me and as things stand confronting him about it will only make things worse for the people I care about.
So for right now all I can do us my best to be there for them and support them until they find a way to get away from him. It's terrible, and I hate it, and I wish I could just rip him a new one, but I've dealt with people like him before and I know he'll just take it out on everyone else and they wouldn't be able to handle that right now.
Off the Road....
driving rush hour GIF
Giphy
My Driving Instructor used to debate me on Islam Vs Christianity (though I'm not sure why - I'm agnostic).
Of course I was completely fine with this, in fact as a Welsh born and bred village lad living in a big multicultural city for the first time, I found it fascinating. He was a fantastic instructor and clearly a good dude. But at one stage he tried his best to convince me that the Charlie Hebdo shooting was justified.
I've never been so glad to be in a situation where eye contact is actively dissuaded.
Want to "know" more? Never miss another big, odd, funny, or heartbreaking moment again. Sign up for the Knowable newsletter here.
In fact, some mistakes are so astronomical that they're remembered for decades afterwards, leaving the one who made the mistake a legacy of being a dumba**. Here are a few of them!!!
U/ronjans24 asked: What was the biggest mistake in human history?
Some may argue that the existence of the Universe was a mistake. I disagree. It was clearly Zayn leaving One Direction. But these next few were pretty bad too.
If you do the math, this is also the reason why Hentai exists.
I'll say the wrong turn Franz Ferdinand's driver made that went right in front of Gavrilo Princip.
EDIT: yes I'm aware war may still have broken out even if Franz Ferdinand wasn't assassinated
Imagine you're Gavrilo Princip. The assassination plot you and your friends had been cooking up for about the last year or so has been a complete and total disaster, just a monumental f*ck-up of the highest degree. You're staked out at this deli thinking maybe, just maybe the car will pass by, and by some stroke of sheer luck, it does.
If you're Princip, this is nothing short of serendipity.
Petition to return to the ocean.
Ocean Surf GIFGiphy"Many were increasingly of the opinion that they'd all made a big mistake in coming down from the trees in the first place. And some said that even the trees had been a bad move, and that no one should ever have left the oceans."
"In the beginning the Universe was created. This has made a lot of people very angry and has been widely regarded as a bad move." - Douglas Adams
This was, in fact, a monumental mistake.
Sears not beating Amazon to the punch.
Blockbuster not buying Netflix.
You thought THOSE were bad? Well gear up for their next few, because they are 100% accurate. Except the one about Cats, that movie slaps.
I don’t know sports, but sure.
Seahawks not running it.
I used to wear a Seahawks jersey whenever I took a test because I knew I would pass when I shouldn't.
CATS is great, y'all are just boring.
GiphyThe Emoji Movie.
That live action movie about Cats is also up there.
Very fair point.
Social Media.
Humans are not wired to have that many social interactions and maintain that many relationships. Plus the echochambers it allows people to create for themselves, no matter how conspiratorial or vile their beliefs, means that stupid/evil people are no longer shunned into changing their mind.
Not sure it was worth being able to see what a celebrity had for lunch or what new "dance" your younger cousin and her tween friends are doing.
But in all seriousness, some horrible things may now have happened if the right thing was halted at the right time.
Washington called it.
George Washington Disney GIF by Hamilton: An American MusicalGiphyVoting for people based on what side of the political spectrum they're on. George Washington himself advised against political parties because he thought they would cause too much division in this country. Unfortunately for everyone, he was right.
Big oops on that one.
Barack Obama mocking Donald Trump at the Correspondents Dinner might have led directly to his 2016 run....
"Now, I know that he's taken some flak lately, but no one is happier, no one is prouder to put this birth certificate matter to rest than The Donald," Obama said. "And that's because he can finally get back to focusing on the issues that matter — like, did we fake the moon landing? What really happened in Roswell? And where are Biggie and Tupac?"
Then he turned serious: "But all kidding aside, obviously, we all know about your credentials and breadth of experience. For example — no, seriously, just recently, in an episode of 'Celebrity Apprentice' — at the steakhouse, the men's cooking team did not impress the judges from Omaha Steaks. And there was a lot of blame to go around. But you, Mr. Trump, recognized that the real problem was a lack of leadership. And so ultimately, you didn't blame Lil Jon or Meatloaf. You fired Gary Busey. And these are the kind of decisions that would keep me up at night. Well handled, sir. Well handled."
This is the best Star Wars and no one can change my mind.
I'll take 'Star Wars Christmas Special' for $100.
That atrocious pile of manure gave us Boba Fett, so without the Christmas Special there won't be The Mandalorian.
Wow, in this article, I openly admitted my love for Cats AND The Star Wars Holiday Special. So maybe my existence was the biggest mistake of all.
ANYWAY, I hope you enjoyed, and I hope you all feel a little bit better about yourself. Because when push comes to shove, at least you didn't accidentally start World War I