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Woman Expected To Drop Work And Make Sandwiches For Husband And Stepkid, Loses It And Bashes Him
Woman Expected To Drop Work And Make Sandwiches For Husband And Stepkid, Loses It And Bashes Him
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Woman Expected To Drop Work And Make Sandwiches For Husband And Stepkid, Loses It And Bashes Him

Interview With Expert

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When people get married, they agree to share everything together, whether joy, sorrow or even household chores, including cooking! But many times, what is supposed to be a marriage of equality ends up with one partner bearing more burden of the domestic chores than the other.

Just like Reddit user, Such_Conversation_57, whose husband felt that cooking was ‘her job’ while he played video games. And when she told him that she’ll only cook after she’s done with her work, he threw a tantrum saying that his kid would go hungry because of her.

More info: Reddit

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    The poster of this story mentioned how she saw her mom managing work and domestic chores while dad only worked and slumped around, decided she’d never be like that

    Image credits: Tima Miroshnichenko (not the actual photo)

    Years later when she married her husband, he used to do what he was asked but after a year, he started slacking off till she was in the same position as her mom

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    Image credits: u/Such_Conversation_57

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    Image credits: Matilda Wormwood (not the actual photo)

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    One weekend, her husband got his kid and expected the poster to serve them lunch, but she said she’d do it later as she was busy working on an important project

    Image credits: u/Such_Conversation_57

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    Image credits: cottonbro studio (not the actual photo)

    Unhappy about this, the husband kept demanding that she make them lunch while her project could wait but his kid shouldn’t go hungry, all while he played video games

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    Image credits: u/Such_Conversation_57

    The poster snapped that even he could make lunch but he said that cooking was ‘her job’, she stressed that she would only do it after work

    In this story, the original poster (OP) tells us that when she was a kid, she saw how her mom worked and did all the domestic chores even when her dad was earning the same amount as her mom but he just slumped around while she did the chores. She decided that she would never let that happen to her.

    But little did she know what awaited her in the future. After she got married, her husband, Tom, was alright in the beginning and did what he was asked to do. But after a year, he started slacking off till she was doing the majority of the chores even when both of them worked. And when she used to talk to him about this, he used to sulk, so she just stopped thinking it never got anywhere.

    On a weekend, Tom brought his daughter, Anna, over to their house. OP was busy working on an important project since morning, so he took his kid out for breakfast and after returning, asked the poster about lunch. When she said that she’d make sandwiches later as she was busy at the moment, he gave her a weird look and went to play video games while his daughter went for a nap.

    But he constantly stole glances at his wife while playing, and after a while, came up to her and demanded why the sandwiches were not ready. She told him again that she was busy with an important project and she’d make them later. But Tom was in no condition to listen. He even had the audacity to take away her computer stating that Anna would go hungry and the project could wait.

    Like anyone would, the poster just snapped and yelled that even he had arms, legs, and a brain and he could cook. The man was a little startled, but it didn’t stop him from saying that “cooking was her job”. Wow, the gall of some people, right? But the poster sarcastically “apologized” to him for pushing her duties and said that she would cook only after she was done with work.

    When he started complaining and whining about it, she put her foot down and said that it was either that or he and his kid could look for food somewhere else. But probably feeling confused that she yelled at him, OP went online and asked Redditors whether she was in the wrong for her actions.

    Image credits: Ron Lach (not the actual photo)

    The netizens declared that she was not in the wrong. In fact, he was acting very immature and she was not his maid to do as per his demands. And even we strongly agree with them. But to understand things from an expert’s perspective, Bored Panda reached out to Eden Lobo, a counselor and psychology professor.

    She said, “Our current relationships and behavior are reflective of childhood experiences. We observe, imitate, and model our parents’ behavior as adults because that is who we look up to, to make sense of our world. So a lack of self-awareness and insight might make you unconsciously do behaviors your conscious mind might be against.”

    This explains how the poster ended up in a similar situation like her mom even when she had decided never to let that happen as a kid. The Redditors expressed their anguish that she had to shoulder the burden of most domestic chores and work, while her husband played video games. They called him an absolutely selfish and entitled person for this behavior. 

    “When only one partner is left with the burden of chores, the output is not very positive. It would be a stress and added pressure on the partner to handle multiple responsibilities. The dynamics of the relationship will no longer be perceived to be equal which could cause anger, frustration, and resentment towards the other partner who is not contributing. One will also perceive their partner to be ungrateful, inconsiderate, and selfish,” mentioned Prof. Lobo.

    So, her outburst of yelling at her husband seems justified and as people highlighted, she should not be burdened with the chores this way. They also spoke about his weaponized incompetence which Psychology Today defines, “Weaponized incompetence, also called strategic incompetence, is when someone knowingly or unknowingly demonstrates an inability to perform or master certain tasks, thereby leading others to take on more work.”

    Prof. Lobo stressed, “Weaponized incompetence is intentionally done to shirk away responsibilities. This implies that the person doesn’t care about their partner’s well-being. They do not feel remorse or bad for adding to their partner’s burdens but instead, take pride in having fooled their partners into doing their work. In the long run, however, it could strain relationships because they would be viewed as incompetent, inconsiderate, and lazy.”

    Folks also mentioned how women, most of the time, end up doing the domestic chores because their husbands expect them to. Prof. Lobo said, “Carl Jung calls this as archetypes or in other words we form stereotypes of organized information on what a wife or mother or friend is supposed to be like. So we have those expectations and fit people or our behaviors according to those expectations.”

    “Also, other factors such as the norms that exist in that culture reinforce certain values, beliefs, expectations, roles, and duties to be followed. Many cultures enforce the idea of women being good homemakers and so male children are not taught how to do those roles. They grow up expecting the females to take care of household matters.”

    As sad as it sounds, it’s the truth that many people live with. Have you ever experienced something similar? Let us know in the comments.

    The netizens said that he was using weaponized incompetence just so that she would do things for him

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    Rutuja Dumbre

    Rutuja Dumbre

    Writer, BoredPanda staff

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    Hey, am Rutuja! A storyteller at heart and a writer at Bored Panda. I have a strange love for words, and I mostly survive on coffee which is the driving force behind my writing. I enjoy working on articles that purely entertain our readers. When am not writing or trekking, you can find me staying up late and watching all the matches of Football Club Barcelona!

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    Rutuja Dumbre

    Rutuja Dumbre

    Writer, BoredPanda staff

    Hey, am Rutuja! A storyteller at heart and a writer at Bored Panda. I have a strange love for words, and I mostly survive on coffee which is the driving force behind my writing. I enjoy working on articles that purely entertain our readers. When am not writing or trekking, you can find me staying up late and watching all the matches of Football Club Barcelona!

    What do you think ?
    Bouche and Audi and Shyla, Oh My!
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    She's definitely TA. I mean, did she honestly expect him to stop playing his video game just to feed his child? How unreasonable of her!

    Carole G.
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I "HATE" this way of thinking. Step-up, pull your weight. I was not put on this earth to serve some fool that thinks like a neanderthal...

    Steve Hall
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Neanderthals made their own sandwiches!

    Load More Replies...
    tw 72
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Ah the old "you ovulate therefore you serve"

    Insomniac
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    And six months from now, he won't understand why he's divorced.

    TheReader19
    Community Member
    1 year ago (edited) Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Insomniac, this is my thoughts entirely. I know a lot of the time to many of us on this app say get a divorce; but this man's plan from the beginning was to "ride" her like a donkey and get her to look after Anna ever time he has her over.

    Load More Replies...
    JK
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Hey BP - how about Option 5 for the poll: "leave the useless man-child and find someone who respects you"

    Lyoness
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Absolutely. I go a little mad when BP doesn't give a reasonable answer in the poll.

    Load More Replies...
    Upstaged75
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Why are there so many useless man-children out there in the world who can't even make themselves a damn sandwich? That's ridiculous! Anyone who pulled that with with me would be kicked out immediately. What a twat.

    LayDiva in the Zone
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Sis why did you even allow this to happen in the first place? If it were me I would have never let this get out of hand. I broke up with my last boyfriend because he acted in a similar way and I wasn't going for it. If he cannot cook and clean and make things right in the house, the is a louse, and you need to get out of the marriage. He didn't become that way overnight...

    Alexandra
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    It's not a partnership between OP and her husband, is it? No matter how hard OP tries to convince herself of that. If she has to work, he picks up the slack, whatever the slack is. That's a partnership. OP is well on her way down to floor mat level.

    The Starsong Princess
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    The answer should have been “guess what? Cooking is no longer my job. I resign. It’s yours now. Clean the kitchen while you are at i.” He knows if he whines and sulks enough, his servant will continue to do everything for him. It’s really working out for him. He just has to get through these little episodes as he trains her.

    Vinnie
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    A man like that would make me cry. "It's soooo sad. What if I'm not there or something happens to me?? You'll starve to deeeath!!!!"

    Load More Comments
    Bouche and Audi and Shyla, Oh My!
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    She's definitely TA. I mean, did she honestly expect him to stop playing his video game just to feed his child? How unreasonable of her!

    Carole G.
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I "HATE" this way of thinking. Step-up, pull your weight. I was not put on this earth to serve some fool that thinks like a neanderthal...

    Steve Hall
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Neanderthals made their own sandwiches!

    Load More Replies...
    tw 72
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Ah the old "you ovulate therefore you serve"

    Insomniac
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    And six months from now, he won't understand why he's divorced.

    TheReader19
    Community Member
    1 year ago (edited) Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Insomniac, this is my thoughts entirely. I know a lot of the time to many of us on this app say get a divorce; but this man's plan from the beginning was to "ride" her like a donkey and get her to look after Anna ever time he has her over.

    Load More Replies...
    JK
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Hey BP - how about Option 5 for the poll: "leave the useless man-child and find someone who respects you"

    Lyoness
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Absolutely. I go a little mad when BP doesn't give a reasonable answer in the poll.

    Load More Replies...
    Upstaged75
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Why are there so many useless man-children out there in the world who can't even make themselves a damn sandwich? That's ridiculous! Anyone who pulled that with with me would be kicked out immediately. What a twat.

    LayDiva in the Zone
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Sis why did you even allow this to happen in the first place? If it were me I would have never let this get out of hand. I broke up with my last boyfriend because he acted in a similar way and I wasn't going for it. If he cannot cook and clean and make things right in the house, the is a louse, and you need to get out of the marriage. He didn't become that way overnight...

    Alexandra
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    It's not a partnership between OP and her husband, is it? No matter how hard OP tries to convince herself of that. If she has to work, he picks up the slack, whatever the slack is. That's a partnership. OP is well on her way down to floor mat level.

    The Starsong Princess
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    The answer should have been “guess what? Cooking is no longer my job. I resign. It’s yours now. Clean the kitchen while you are at i.” He knows if he whines and sulks enough, his servant will continue to do everything for him. It’s really working out for him. He just has to get through these little episodes as he trains her.

    Vinnie
    Community Member
    1 year ago Created by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    A man like that would make me cry. "It's soooo sad. What if I'm not there or something happens to me?? You'll starve to deeeath!!!!"

    Load More Comments
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