It's a challenge to punish your children in a way that matters. Something that might matter a immensely to them one day, perhaps their favorite show or their favorite toy, can be easily tossed aside the next day. This means your grand consequence is essentially worthless. As a parent, you need to know what works and what doesn't...but sometimes, parents go in weird directions, as evidenced by the stories below.
Reddit user, u/Bamboozled_Bear, wanted to know what was so weird about your time-outs when they asked:
What's the oddest punishment your parent(s) have given you for misbehaving/breaking rules growing up?
"I Am A Guy."
Giphy
My dad made me go out in a dress one time. I am a guy.
I was staying with him for a week, and skipped school one day. He came home to get something and found me watching TV and I said I was sick and couldn't go. He goes back to work. Problem was, this was a Friday and there was a party.
My dad and my step-mom come home and start making dinner. I get better and afterwards say I'm going out. Obviously this was met with skepticism.
My friends showed up in the midst of this. I argue my position passionately. At a certain point, my friends were dying laughing, and my dad switched from trying to get me to admit I lied, to just seeing how far I'd go to prove I hadn't. He even got my friends to tell him where we were going, and just kept saying he couldn't believe how "improbable" the whole thing was. He even told me I could go if I just admitted I lied about being sick. But, I was dug in.
I told him he could pick what I wore in order to prove I wasn't lying (my dad has notoriously terrible taste and this was way before "norm-core").
My dad picked a dress made from the back pockets of jeans. Like an entire dress made of denim back pockets. It was f-cking absurd and extremely uncomfortable. A massive jean dress made of exclusively seams. It didn't breathe, it barely moved, it chaffed. I didn't give a sh-t about wearing a dress, but this was torture.
Ya so I wore that to a party.
Let The Punishment Fit The Crime?
My mother told me I wasn't allowed to talk for the rest of the day, because I licked my arm pit in front of one of my sister's cute friends.
Halting That Perfect Smile
They cancelled my braces. I was with a friend who got caught stealing, after denying any involvement for hours my parents refused to believe me and threatened to hurt my friend (even went to her house) I eventually lied and said I was involved and they cancelled my braces.
Still have crooked teeth to this day, and my parents think I'm a petty thief.
You're Your Own Worst Enemy
The weirdest punishment my mother came up with was making me write a two page essay about why I had broken a rule, then write it again and again until she got home from work.
The weirdest punishment my father came up with was making me put away all my stuff instead of going to see a movie.
But that wasn't sh-t. I was a weird kid with a guilt complex deep as a trench. I'd punish myself sometimes for random things that my parents didn't feel really called for punishment. Sometimes it was simple sh-t like standing in a corner unprompted. One time I coated my tongue in pepper because I gave my mother trouble eating dinner.
But the grand prize winner was probably when, at the age of 7, I made myself watch the movie ALIEN alone in the dark. I don't even remember what I'd done to conclude I needed this, but I felt that the only answer was to scare the sh-t out of myself.
You Lose It All
When I was 15 I got my entire bedroom taken away for 5 months because I missed the bus.. the only thing i had in my room was a mattress and a pillow, no sheet or anything just a pillow
525,600 Minutes
14 years old. Friend used me as an alibi for when she got hammered, without me knowing. This ended up not saving her ass, but handing me mine. Instead of saying 'were you with her when she was drinking?' they took the tack of 'you were there too, so you must have been drinking'— which is wrong, I wasn't there, she just wanted to alibi herself out of trouble.
Parents refused to listen to me and grounded me for a year. I did the year (what option did I have?) and after that, refused to tell them anything ever again. I had told the truth and they didn't believe me. I never recovered from the damage that did, and to this day I tell them next to nothing. I'm 46 years old.
Punishment In More Than One Language
I grew up bilingual in English and Hebrew. My parents aren't religiously Jewish and my mom is only part ethnically Jewish, but they both studied Hebrew in college and wanted me to grow up bilingual. Makes you smarter, apparently.
Anyways, when I was ten, I swore for the first time out of anger in front of my parents. This wasn't just normal swearing either; this was really, really bad. I had heard those words at school a few months before. They then calmly decided that for a week (this was during summer vacation so I didn't have to go to school), I would have to speak in nothing but Hebrew.
It didn't matter where we went. We went to the pharmacy, the grocery store, and other places we normally went during that week. To a cashier, to other kids at the playground, to my parents, and literally everyone else I could only speak Hebrew.
It was honestly torture. No one knew what I was saying. I wasn't allowed to write anything down either. I tried my best to gesture about what I was trying to say but that confused people even more. Other kids wouldn't play with me because they thought I was insane. I was so embarrassed and adults would just give my parents sad, sympathetic looks like "You poor people. Your daughter is crazy" or even asking if I was adopted and then asking how I was adjusting to the States.
Needless to say, I never swore in front of my parents again.
Wait...Back In The Box?
Dad got real pissed once and dumped out a box of fruit loops. Made me sort them by color, count each, add them together, then vacuum up the crumbs after I put them back in the box.
Being Forced To Do It Again In A Way You Hate
So I had to write "I won't lie and do my work." In cursive cause I didn't want to do a reading log in cursive. Honestly I hated that thing. Cursive sucks.
Nothing That Harms Them, Just Sends A Message
My mother's go-to punishment, which I'm sure I will carry on when I become a parent, was cold water in the face. Just enough to shock you. I have vivid memories of each time she came at me with a cup of water (and I got it the most out of my siblings).
Once, my youngest brother was throwing a tantrum in the kitchen while she was washing dishes. Just turned around and shot him with the sprayer. Definitely not the strangest I've seen, but also more creative than time outs or spanking. Very effective as well.
Just Stare At It
I could put the ketchup on the table but was only allowed to look at it. My crime? Asking my foodie dad if I could have ketchup on my steak, I was 7 and that's how I'd always had it when my mom cooked it.
Not to be out done, my mother grounded me from reading because I kept staying up late past my bedtime reading books.
Hot Sauce Is Also An Interesting Variant
We would get mustard pasted on to our tongues if we swore or told lies.
Once we were driven to the local police station because neither of us would admit to tearing the wallpaper, my brother finally admitted it at the last minute. We were very young, I thought we were gonna get locked up.
Punishment By Snuggle
Got grounded for punching my best friend in a fit of rage, my punishment was to get my pyjamas on right after dinner. This was peak summer and we always used to go round for each other after dinner. When door went I was forced to answer door in my pyjamas at 6 pm and explain why I wasn't allowed out. Worst thing was it was the boy I punched at door so was no hard feelings.
Get In Reeeeeeeal Close
Standing nose to nose in the middle of the room with the sibling you were just fighting with....
Threaten The Funko
This happened maybe a week ago:
I was arguing about something with my mom in my room, when all of a sudden during the arguement she walked up to one of my shelves, grabbed an arm full of my Funko Pop figurines, opened my window and threatened to throw them out if I didn't listen to her.
We have a lot of fun in this household.
Erasing The Torture You've Given Yourself
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When I was like 8 my parents made me dig a 4 foot wide, 4 foot long and 4 foot deep hole in the backyard and then just fill it back in because I lied.
It sucked.
The ULTIMATE Guilt Trip
While fighting over a beanbag chair, my brother pushed me and I fell on the fireplace. Busted the back of my head open. My father swooped me up and rushed me to get stitches.
I was 5, my brother was 10.
It wasn't until many years later that I found out how my mother dealt with my brother after my father and I left.
As the door closed behind my father, carrying me out the front door, my mother looked at my brother and said, "Well, you killed your sister."
But we should also be prepared and ready to ask the right questions to have a leg up on the competition.
"What is THE best question to ask on a job interview?"
A company's history or information about a past employee were suggested subjects appropriate for questioning.
Prior Knowledge
"When you were interviewing here, what would you have liked to know before you joined?"
"This worked for me. I asked my interviewer a question about how she had personally dealt with a company policy she had just explained. She bragged about her stellar adherence to the policy. I nodded my approval. I got the job."
A Previous Employee
"One that has always gone over well for me:"
"What were some qualities that the previous employee in this role brought to the job that you would like to see carried forward?"
"Another good thing to do is research the company you are interviewing with and you can ask things about what they may be involved in or you could drop that while reading about the company, you wondered this."
Hypothetical questions were suggested as helpful examples of inquiry.
Indicators Of How Companies Treat Employees
"A question that landed me a job once was: 'If I asked your direct reports about your management style, what do you think they'd tell me?' Stumped a hiring manager and he emailed me personally to tell me about it, no one ever asked him that question but got the job.
"In my current interviews I'm asking 'what did your company do for its employees during [the virus] to improve their day to day, work life balance, etc.' and I ask 'Is there anything your company adopted during [the virus] that they plan to keep post [the virus]?"
"These questions give a lot of insight into whether a company treated their employees well."
Past Performance & Adjustments
"If we were currently sitting in my 1 year review, what would I have done in this year for you to say I excelled in my role?"
"If I could snap my finger right now and change anything about your job or the company, what would it be and why?"
The following questions about a prospective company may not be answered from initial digging on their website.
Measure Of Success & Career Trajectories
"How is success measured in this role?"
"What are some possible career trajectories within the company that could stem from this position?"
Being A Solution
"Ask them what is the biggest problem you can solve for them in your first six months with the company. Similar to 'don't think of a purple hippo,' this forces them to imagine you succeeding in the position."
Simply The Best
"Who is your best employee and why is he/she the best?"
"You will then face 2 situations mostly:"
"panicking CEO who can't answer you 'Bob who works 17 hours a day for a slice of bread' so the fear in their faces must be a big nono for you"
"entusiast CEO who actually follow their business and can tell you who is an added value for the company and why."
– ThePiz91
My experiences with job interviews are different than others seeking work in office environments.
Having had a years-long career as a dancer, my "interview" was the dance audition, where hopefuls dance in small groups of people at a time after learning a routine and then awaiting their fate after the panel evaluates their performances.
The question I may or may not have asked in such a scenario earlier in my career was: "Did I make the cut?"
I did not make the cut. And I learned never to ask that again.
I remember the worst date I ever had. My biggest regret is that I stayed for the entire thing. I should've left as soon as I realized this was not going well, which was basically at hello. But he was paying so I drank, a lot. I'll keep names and dates to myself to protect the innocent.
0/10
Big Brother Reaction GIF by Big Brother After DarkGiphy"Went to brewery, date said I had hairy arms and that meant I was horny, said "you look really awful in this light" and then tried to dig out of that hole by saying in his native language that was a term of endearment long term couples said to each other. 0/10 did not date again."
Lucky 13?
"My wife wanted to plan our 13th wedding anniversary. I was excited because usually, I plan it. She bought us some new disc golf discs and after a quick supper, we went to play. We hadn't played in forever. We were laughing and I had a great time. She served me with divorce papers and told me that the date was a test to see if she still had feelings for me. I also learned that she was having an affair that started well before our anniversary."
- rmorlock
Two Hours from Home
"Not necessarily a date but a person I was dating invited me to his parent's house for the afternoon. He wanted to introduce me to them and show me the house he grew up in. I thought it was super sweet and had no problems going. He was also in the middle of moving and needed to pick up a few things, so it really didn't seem that unusual."
"Yeah, we got there and it was awful. His entire family was there. They traveled from hours away too. This was not just meeting the parents, it was meeting the ENTIRE family. Even worse? At some point, this idiot told his parents that he had proposed. We had been dating TWO months. I spent the entire afternoon dumbfounded and just playing along."
"We were two hours from home and I had no cell service, no way to leave at all. We ended up spending the afternoon brainstorming wedding ideas and planning an Alaskan honeymoon that his parents planned to gift us. His brother even called to say congratulations! We drove back to his apartment in silence. When we got there, I got in my car and left, didn't even bother grabbing my stuff. Weirdest experience ever. I have no idea how he broke it to his parents that we weren't getting married."
You're Cut Off!
"Got set up on a blind date once between mutual friends. She shows up to the restaurant already a little tipsy, orders multiple appetizers and only takes like one or two bites from each one. Then she proceeds to order 3 or 4 more drinks and is visibly drunk at this point. She gets up and says she's going to the bathroom and staggers off. About 15-20 minutes go by so I try to call her several times but no answer."
"Finally I decide to pay the check and just leave. About 2 hours later I'm sitting at home and I get a call from an unknown number. It's the police department. She was picked up on a DUI on her way home after she ditched me and gave the cops my number to see if I could go bail her out!"
- mox44ah
Sorry?
Bbc Three Idk GIF by BBCGiphy"Well, I gave this answer on a different topic, but it ties in with this. We were out on a date, we had been seeing each other for a while, close to a year maybe. She gets a phone call. Suddenly she looks destroyed. Her fiancé had just died in a motorcycle accident."
What in the world? I mean how can we ever expect to pair off with the dating pool being inundated with liars and nut jobs? I'm going to delete my apps.
Girl, Bye.
Sassy Beyonce GIFGiphy"Had a girl openly flirt with the bartender in front of me. She says she wasn't. But handing him her own phone and asking for his contact info in front of her date seems like it to me."
Crazy!
"Came out from a movie, late at night, and date's Camaro was stolen. Apparently, he called his WIFE (that I did not know he had) and let her know where he was and what happened. She showed up and realized he was on a date! She started chasing ME around the parking lot telling me she was going to kill me. Saved by the cops who showed up just in time to take the auto theft report."
Hey Mom
"Met a girl at a country bar one night in my 20s. We were both pretty drunk but hit it off pretty good. Ended up getting her number and we agreed we'd go on a real date. Fast forward to the date, she gets in my vehicle and... she looks almost identical to my mom. I was mortified. I was polite and we went for lunch where I found out she also had a boyfriend she "wasn't sure if she was into". Never talked to her again."
- SgtGo
Liars...
"When I was in college many years ago, before the advancement of cell phones and social media, I was chatting with a girl I met on a BBS who lived on Long Island, NY. I was 18 at the time, but lied and said I was 22 because she said she was 25. We spent a few weeks emailing each other, as well as calling each other."
"We even exchanged pics. When we finally met up, things blew up. Turns out we both lied about our ages: She was really 33, and lied because she thought she looked younger. She admitted she sent a college photo to me. We still had dinner together, but it was awkward as hell. We never spoke again."
Doubles
Kill Me Now Season 1 GIF by FriendsGiphy"It was a double date. She was more interested talking to the other girl throughout the whole thing. Found out later from the other guy that his girl cheated on him with my date."
Ummm... I think I'm just going to stay single. That is a handful of crazy. Why can't people just be honest? I swear the search for love warps people's brains. Be careful out there people.
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