Most folks would agree that treating everyone equally is, by and large, a good thing. Humans can understand fairness, even when it doesn’t directly benefit us. So it’s important to remember that bad behavior can always go both ways, no matter who you are. Karma doesn’t care if you are a family member, a friend or even someone “important.”

A woman shared her bit of revenge when she had the opportunity to cut off TV access from her stepfather who used to limit her internet when she was younger. We got in touch with the woman who made the post and she was kind enough to answer some of our questions.

Some folks allow the smallest amount of power to go to their heads

Image credits: Rawpixel (not the actual photo)

So one woman decided to treat her stepfather the way he treated her

Image credits: leungchopan (not the actual photo)

Image credits: Tmarie02

Guests in someone’s home generally can’t just go about making demands

Bored Panda got in touch with the woman who made the post and she was kind enough to share some more details. “My step dad still doesn’t know about the reasoning behind the internet being shut off or that I’m doing it. The comments that said to let him find out organically were the most helpful because I think that’s exactly what I want to do. I want to one day say, “remember when you had the internet going out? Well, you did the same thing to me. Now you know how I felt.

We also wanted to know her thoughts on the post’s popularity. “I believe people engaged so much with my post because parents do crappy things to their children and never think there will be consequences. Or really that their children will be able to enact some petty revenge. I was able to and I think a lot of people wish they had the same opportunity and enjoyed seeing a cr**** action by a parent being done back. It was the ultimate uno reverse card.”

At its core, “my house, my rules” is about ownership, responsibility, and respect, three things that make a home more than just a building. A house isn’t just four walls; it’s a personal space where someone has worked, paid, and cared for its upkeep. Whoever owns or manages that space has the right to decide how things function within it. This isn’t about control for control’s sake, it’s about maintaining order, comfort, and boundaries in a place that belongs to them.

Think about it this way, if you walk into a business, a hotel, or even a friend’s car, you naturally follow their rules—no smoking inside, keep your feet off the seats, don’t touch the radio. The same logic applies to a home. It’s a personal sanctuary not a free-for-all. Whether it’s a small rule like taking off your shoes or a bigger one like no overnight guests, the person who lives there gets to decide because they’re the one responsible for everything in that space. This is even more true when someone has enforced this rule on someone else in the past.

Beyond practicality, “my house, my rules” is also about mutual respect. When someone enters another person’s home, they’re a guest and guests follow house rules as a basic courtesy. Disrespecting those rules, arguing over them, ignoring them, or acting entitled, is a sign of disregarding the host’s effort, boundaries, and authority over their own space.

Image credits: LightFieldStudios (not the actual photo)

Respect tends to always be important, no matter how some folks behave

In extreme cases, ignoring house rules can lead to real issues, roommates overstaying their welcome, family tensions, or friendships breaking down over things as simple as noise levels or cleanliness. This story is somewhat unique as the stepfather isn’t a guest of the stepdaughter, but he is using her resources, which is a very modern twist on the classic guest – host relationship.

What adds a delicious twist of irony is that she is treating him exactly how he treated her. Fairness is blind. To be fair, he was taking away the internet of a young woman in college who did pay her bills. He is a grown man, the expectations should be a lot higher, but that seems like an unnecessary level of granularity.

At the end of the day, “my house, my rules” isn’t just about personal preference—it’s about ensuring that a home remains a place of comfort, control, and security for the person who owns or rents it. If someone doesn’t like the rules, they always have the option to leave and create their own space, with their own rules. That’s the beauty of personal responsibility.

Image credits: DC_Studio (not the actual photo)

Readers enjoyed her story and some gave suggestions

Motivations can shift drastically in families, resulting in unexpected requests for assistance. A man’s experience demonstrates the challenges that arise when family dynamics are tested.

This aligns closely with the notion of family relationships being tricky, showing how stepping into a parental role doesn’t always guarantee the bonds others might assume.

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