What's one habit you picked up from your parents that you still do to this day?
Posted by YoungAtHeart71@reddit | AskUK | View on Reddit | 215 comments
This is intended as general discussion; it can be something quirky, random, good, bad or anything in between.
Mine is drinking out of just-used containers like glass jars, tins or plastic tubs. My dad did it religiously and I still do it many years after his passing. There's always clean cups, but why create more washing up for myself? I finished off a jar of pickles earlier and have been using the empty as a drinking glass all evening.
MissHibernia@reddit
Open up the egg carton before you buy it
bowen7477@reddit
Do you check the eggs or just open the carton for a laugh?
LeonardBetts88@reddit
I actually had no idea until a few years ago why people always looked at a box of eggs as they picked them up. The lady at the checkout asked if I’d checked the eggs once and I said ‘for what?’
So yeah I assumed everyone was just opening the box for a laugh. I was 34
Illustrious-Berry375@reddit
They’re just being eggstravigant
V65Pilot@reddit
Depends on the carton. I always look for broken eggs, unless the carton is clear, because I can already see the eggs.
Baby8227@reddit
The clear cartons where I live are always the cheap, battery hen eggs 🤢
InsideOutOcelot@reddit
It’s a joke that we’re all in on except you.
We talk about it in the group chat sometimes
SpareAdvice8716@reddit
The bants in that chat is exceptional
Affectionate-Pea-520@reddit
I think you mean Eggceptional
SpareAdvice8716@reddit
How on earth did I miss that!? Sorry everyone, and thanks u/Affectionate-Pea-520 for bringing this to my attention.
cloud_designer@reddit
I didn't once and there was an egg missing from the carton 😂 I always bloody look now
El_Moochio@reddit
Your "cracking' me up with this comment!
memcwho@reddit
Gotta check that they're eggs.
Hence the saying "That's put the tomato's in your egg box" if something isn't quite right.
pinkdaisylemon@reddit
I knew someone who used to go into the supermarket and change all the eggs over. They would get a box of medium eggs, take them all out and replace with large eggs from a different box! They never got caught .
MissHibernia@reddit
Check the eggs every time, although there’s only been a few times I’ve found a broken egg
Clari24@reddit
I opened one this week and one was missing
Training_Region8404@reddit
Haha why do we do this, I’m 31 never once found a broken one. Imma keep doing it
Automatic_Isopod_274@reddit
I am 38 and found my first broken one last week!! Keep going, you’ll get there 💪
CrocodileJock@reddit
In an only tangentially related note, when I was at school, and we had to do work experience, one of my mates was assigned an egg farm to work at.
His job was to open every half-dozen carton of eggs and glue a feather to one random egg in each box.
It was to make the customers think they were getting a more farmhouse experience. Changed my worldview on a lot of things, not just eggs.
MouseEmotional813@reddit
Sounds like jokes on the work experience kid
vociferouswanker@reddit
You're telling me that we could be paying less, but aren't because someone had the scammy idea of glueing feathers to eggs?
CrocodileJock@reddit
In a nutshell (well, eggbox), yes.
Worldly_Let6134@reddit
It used to be for checking if any were broken, now it's to see if they have been swapped for smaller ones.
CarlosIsCrying@reddit
Everytime I open the box when I'm with my wife I say: "yep, definitely eggs"
turbochimp@reddit
The one time I forgot, I picked up a carton in Aldi and while I was walking to the checkout a woman put her arm on my shoulder and said "one of your eggs is broken", smiled and walked off. It bloody was as well.
Now, I realise she probably picked it up and put it back, saw me get it and then told me. But for a moment I thought she was some sort of egg psychic.
Any_Listen_7306@reddit
Literally did this today!
Awkward_Chain_7839@reddit
Did it yesterday. All fine this time!
MissHibernia@reddit
It’s even more important now when they are pricey in the US
hassan_26@reddit
Thats good sense. I've plenty of broken eggs this way.
lilaclavenderlullaby@reddit
Same and last week was the first time I found a broken egg actually!
Immediate_Profit_148@reddit
Knife on the right fork on the left.
anabsentfriend@reddit
If someone gave you a plate of food with only a fork, which hand would you hold the fork in?
Dutch_Slim@reddit
If they gave you only a knife, what hand would you hold that in?
anabsentfriend@reddit
I'd never eat food with just a knife. But if I found myself in the wilderness with only a knife, I'd use my right hand.
If I have a fork, it always goes in my dominant hand (right) because I need to have the most control over anything that's going near my face.
Immediate_Profit_148@reddit
Alais, it depends on what you use the knife for. For instance, if you cook the food, it might be a little too hot for your fingers.
Immediate_Profit_148@reddit
On the right i presume?
Immediate_Profit_148@reddit
On your right sugar
herefor_fun24@reddit
That's something the whole world does though?
Mine is: "I eat food from a plate"
Danandcats@reddit
It's the wrong way round apparently, although I eat that way as both my parents do. Most UK restaurants will place the fork on the left.
herefor_fun24@reddit
Wait I'm confused... It's the right way round to have the fork on the left and knife on the right? The US do it the opposite (but that's the incorrect way)
Dutch_Slim@reddit
Most people are right handed. You hold the knife in your right because it’s the tool that’s doing the work (cutting) and you have better control with your dominant hand. So knife on the right, fork on the left is correct etiquette.
I am a heathen, and hold mine the other way even though I’m right handed.
herefor_fun24@reddit
Yea you are a heathen
AcceptableCustomer89@reddit
I use my knife to cut, and my fork to hold & pick up
herefor_fun24@reddit
Like an American? If anyone hasn't seen an American eating with a knife and fork - YouTube it. They take 5 actions for something that can be done in 2
Stunning_Anteater537@reddit
Lots of the world uses chopsticks 😊
Low_Rush_9028@reddit
Bleaching mugs to get rid of tea/coffee stains
IPoisonedThePizza@reddit
Having anxiety, I guess:
1)Make sure all my house is hoovered, living room bathroom and kitchen looking cleaned and the sofa being impeccable if guests are coming (even at last minute). Having some sort of dessert and drink (coke, beer,wine, depending on who is coming)
2)Pay my bills always first thing and have no debts. If money is borrowed, return it asap.
3)Beds are done immediately after waking up.
4)Being respectful to elderly, disabled and staff working in any establishment
5)Be early if meeting someone
6)Check I have wallet, keys and phone when leaving the house
7)Refill the car immediately when the light blinks (to avoid being stranded during an emergency)
129sapphires@reddit
This. Ditto on every single point!
Visible-Tomorrow5653@reddit
Laying toilet paper down in the loo before having a shit. I don’t know why my mum had us doing it. So random.
129sapphires@reddit
Learnt this from my mum too. Always do this before sitting on a public toilet. Even the ones at work.
129sapphires@reddit
Not pressing a public button (lift button, pedestrian crossing etc) or touching a door handle with my bare finger/hand, but using a clean tissue that I keep with me to use for touching it instead.
BarbieDreams___@reddit
Call the remote a “clicker”
sonofjimmyclitheroe@reddit
Channel Changer
KindPrawns91@reddit
It’s the hoofer doofer in my house
E_III_R@reddit
In our family we called it the diddler. Had to stop doing that after we learned about what most people think a diddler is
goodmythicalrose@reddit
Tellybox for the main TV remote, digibox for the Sky remote!
sharps2020@reddit
It's a zapper in mine and my parents homes
pervertsage@reddit
My Mum used to call it "the telly machine" for some reason. Used to get right on my tits.
petrolstationpicnic@reddit
Doofer to my mum
jxjxjxjdjdkdkd@reddit
Dibber
hamjamham@reddit
I inherited calling it the "Button box"
Thestolenone@reddit
My mother would always boil the tea towels in a big pan. When I left home I didn't have a big pan so the tea towels never got washed. Eventually they became hardened smelly lumps. At some point I realised you could just put them in with the rest of the wash. To be fair I was a still a teenager.
DiDiPLF@reddit
Although I can't be bothered to do it, I'm with your mum on this. A greasy tea towel after making a roast can make the whole wash smell slightly of meat fat.
Ok-Train5382@reddit
The trick is to have enough tea towels that you can just wait until you have enough to put them all on together
HighlandsBen@reddit
My mother always washed any food related cloths (tablecloths, napkins, kitchen cloths, tea towel) separately from clothes and I can't bring myself to do any different.
oncejumpedoutatrain@reddit
Dad told me to swallow my spit cos it's from my own body afterall, and that spitting on the ground was disgusting and never to do it
sharps2020@reddit
I have 2 sets of twins 29 and 27, I told them from an early age if I saw them spit they'd get no inheritance from me. It worked.
doctorace@reddit
You have two sets of twins⁉️
sharps2020@reddit
Yep, there should be some sort of insurance on that 😂
AcceptableCustomer89@reddit
It is disgusting, that's not exclusive to your dad. Unless doing sport I suppose, but even then be subtle. Why do people have excess spit when not doing anything exhausting anyway??
ImpactAffectionate86@reddit
Yeah it’s a horrible habit. The only exception I make for myself is if I cough something up, but even then I’ll hold it in until I find a drain and only spit if there is no one around to see me do it.
cybertonto72@reddit
Iirc this was a PSA in the late 60's early 70's. The tag line was something about coughs and sneezes spread diseases. My grandad would always spit into the fire. And once he spat into our electric fire and broke it.
Appropriate_Dig_252@reddit
Smokers. Their nasal hairs get burnt away and thus doesn't catch the mucus. But smokers are literal tramps anyway, often without realising how much they stink, so spitting is not a concern for them.
bonafidsrubber@reddit
Going foraging, hunting, or fishing when I didn’t have money to buy food. 🤣 I am a recovering addict and when I wasn’t doing so hot I’d go collect oyters, clams, crabs, spear fish under bridges, kill deer at night, catch fish or snapping turtles out of ponds. I kept a rabbit box set all the time. You get a bag of rice and a bag of grits and you’re set for a good while if you kill a deer. Even with a 80 lb deer you still get like 35 lbs of meat if you aren’t afraid to cook and eat all the little sinewy scrap bits. That would last me for a couple months. I’d even stockpile figs and blackberries out of people’s yards that I know and freeze them. I’d pick boletes and oyster mushrooms and lions manes off the side of the road all the time and freeze them for later. My dad did most of this while I was growing up, so I knew how. There is no more motivated or clever forager than one who is hungry and has no food.
Glad-Pomegranate6283@reddit
How on earth do you prep turtles 😅
bonafidsrubber@reddit
You just cut their shell off and then cut the meat out of the shell with the bones still attached. It’s a pretty low yield animal. Lot of work for a little meat. Closest thing in taste would be chicken pork roast
Acrobatic-Pudding-87@reddit
Slurping milk from the cereal bowl like it’s a cup, learnt from my grandad when I was still small. I remember it vividly and never dropped the habit, no matter how much my mum told me not to do it.
Yukes71@reddit
Yep, same. It's a waste of perfectly good milk if you leave it in the bowl.
El_Moochio@reddit
My father was Irish, to this day I say gen- u-inely rather than genuinely, other than that I speak the Queen's English like wot it outa be spoken innit.
ashyboi5000@reddit
Cope with any strong emotions with alcohol.
Southern_Lead_9257@reddit
I saw my uncle do this for the first time and I asked what he's checking He said "I'm check if any of them have hatched!"
the-TARDIS-ran-away@reddit
Sniffing tomatoes before I buy them to make sure they smell tomatoey enough.
iron-muppet@reddit
And strawberries!
1901pies@reddit
To see if they smell of tomatoes?
cursed_cucumbers@reddit
I do that too and I've just realised I got it from my mum!
IdealDevil@reddit
Moan when someone give me a cup of tea and the cups not full
Dutch_Slim@reddit
Got a ladder?
IdealDevil@reddit
Exactly lol
sockeyejo@reddit
Throwing everything in the washing machine together and putting it on a low temperature instead of separating whites and colours and all that nonsense.
Reading in bed with a hot drink before going to sleep.
Don't leave anything on the floor that you don't want to stand on / the dogs to chew.
Tea and coffee live in the cupboard not out on the side.
Stockpile essentials, just in case (to be fair, we lived on a farm in the middle of nowhere. I now live in a town but still have at least 3 weeks worth of tea 🙄)
Redgrapefruitrage@reddit
Tea and coffee live in the cupboard not out on the side.
Yep!!! I keep the counters clear apart from the toaster, microwave, and breadbin. I'm not going to have coffee and tea cluttering up the limited kitchen space we have!
Dutch_Slim@reddit
The tea, sugar and microwave live on the side. The toaster and the bread live in the cupboard! 🤣
Icy_Priority8075@reddit
The dog shelf (aka the floor)
FinnemoreFan@reddit
Until very recently, I used to unplug the television every night before going to bed. My parents were convinced that if you didn’t do that, it would burst into flames and set the house on fire and we would all die.
Eventually my husband convinced me that while this MIGHT have been true of old cathode ray TV sets, modern televisions are no more dangerous than any other domestic device.
Hitonatsu-no-Keiken@reddit
Blame this public information film that wad shown every night for years. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=4PoIdOtKdv4
FinnemoreFan@reddit
….What did I just watch…? 😂
Illustrious-Divide95@reddit
Embarrass my children! 🤣
YoungAtHeart71@reddit (OP)
I think I was the one who started that tradition in my family! Haha
hassan_26@reddit
I wipe down the bathtub and shower area everytime after taking a shower. Apparently it helps keep the mould from forming. I was drilled into doing it by my dad when growing up and now I tell the same things to my wife and kids lol.
cursed_cucumbers@reddit
Interesting. I find cleaning my shower such a chore with very little reward. What do you wipe it down with?
hassan_26@reddit
Squeegee
anabsentfriend@reddit
I squeegee the shower screen to stop it from getting clouded by limescale. I've never had mould in it, though.
Murfiano@reddit
Blowing in a glass before I pour a drink, only me and my dad do it
zzigyzaggy@reddit
No outside shoes in the house and no outside clothes on the bed/couch!
StereotypicallBarbie@reddit
I realised lately that I’ve fully turned into my mother.. even though she passed 4 years ago! Like having to have the tv on for background noise… referring to flashy people as “all fur coat and no knickers” General intolerance for everything… and reading the deaths in the local newspaper!
Sir_TechMonkey@reddit
All fur coat and no knickers - love that! Don’t exactly know what it means but still great anywho. Sorry for your loss
rynchenzo@reddit
Think about the sort of people who go on holiday to Dubai and you're pretty much there
Suspicious_Ground782@reddit
all fur coat and no knickers (not comparable) (UK, idiomatic, derogatory) Having a superficially positive appearance that is belied by the reality, e.g., superficially elegant and beautiful but actually common.
Sir_TechMonkey@reddit
Absolutely love that - never heard that before.
mrs_shrew@reddit
I like to say I've downloaded the software but the hardware has gone to recycling now.
Suspicious_Ground782@reddit
I always have my iPad on to fall asleep, my mother always has the tv on to sleep
alltorque1982@reddit
Don't put off until tomorrow what can be done today.
I can't decide if that's good advice or bad, cos sometimes I REALLY should wait, but can't help myself.
UglyFilthyDog@reddit
Folding clothes or pyjama bottoms that I was going to wear the next day and place them in the same place (jeans and jumpers, nothing like socks and pants, straight in the wash basket for them.) My partner just tosses them on the floor and it drives me INSANE.
anabsentfriend@reddit
Ugh, I hate to see stuff thrown on the floor. Is this person a teenager?
UglyFilthyDog@reddit
Unfortunately not. He's 61 😂
polly-esther@reddit
Iron everything my son wears despite the fact he’s about to go feral in the park or something similar. Can’t have him ‘looking like a bag of wrinkles’, I was very shaken the first time my mother’s voice came out of my mouth.
anabsentfriend@reddit
I've ironed two shirts in ten years. For two job interviews. Everything else I wear gets hung up and has no wrinkles. A friend of mine irons bedding and always complains that she's exhausted. I suggested she stop ironing everything, and she looked at me like I'd just shat on the floor. Life's definitely too short.
polly-esther@reddit
Oh definitely I only iron my sons clothes and things that really need them, my mother just lives in my head
DiDiPLF@reddit
Being risk adverse, my dad was a go getter until he had health issues and he never took a risk again despite getting better. I prioritise stability over everything, even though I frustrate myself with it!
anabsentfriend@reddit
Go on, do something that scares you, set yourself free.
Ok-Acanthaceae-8646@reddit
Not about me, but when I worked in an eye clinic, we had a patient who was seen and her records updated with ‘patient follows her fathers habit of putting her own saliva in her eyes first thing each morning - advised to desist’
She came back 6 months later and confirmed she had not desisted.
anabsentfriend@reddit
From reading those threads it seems that a lot of people are a slave to their parent's habits, whether or not they make sense.
insertitherenow@reddit
Leaving the oven open when you’ve turned it off to use the warmth and putting a jumper on when it’s cold instead of the heating. My wife is always coming home asking why is the house freezing?
Hitonatsu-no-Keiken@reddit
I leave the oven open because it only takes 10 minutes for it to cool down (and the fan to stop whirring) compared to half an hour with the door shut.
Push-the-pink-button@reddit
My wife stands by the oven with the door open whilst its warming. She's an intelligent woman, I thought...
sharps2020@reddit
I do the oven thing, I didn’t get it from my parents though, just made sense.
badonkadonked@reddit
Using pegs to keep food packages closed/sealed. Keeps the food fresh if it’s something like crisps that’ll go stale, and stops it from spilling if it’s something like rice or cous cous.
petrolstationpicnic@reddit
But crisps all get eaten immediately, right?
anabsentfriend@reddit
I've always been astounded by people who open a bag of crisps or a chocolate bar, eat a small amount, and save it for later. I worked with a woman who could keep a small bar of chocolate going all week. She just broke off a square or two a day. I'd eat the whole thing in five minutes.
HighlandsBen@reddit
Try this easy hack to keep crisps from going stale!
Thestolenone@reddit
I do that but its something I started on my own, my mother never did it.
nannyplum@reddit
Used tea bags in the 'used tea bags' holder.
Rather than take 4 steps across the room to the recycling caddy, all tea bags must immediately be dropped into the Used Tea Bag receptacle. Emptied at the end of the day, or possibly when the stack of soggy tea bags gets too high.
Organic_Reporter@reddit
Teabags require a transitional resting place.
TheNotSpecialOne@reddit
Changing gears in numerical order coz my dad did. So when stopping at the lights I'll go down from 4th to 3rd to 2nd then 1st, then maybe I'll put handbrake on. I could go 4th to 1st direct but I don't
petrolstationpicnic@reddit
I just put the clutch down and cruise to a stop, then into neutral!
TheNotSpecialOne@reddit
You heathen!
petrolstationpicnic@reddit
I do it round corners too
reticulatedbanana@reddit
I do this too, I think it might be from my driving instructor though?
I feel distinctly uneasy changing gear any other way!
Appropriate_Dig_252@reddit
Bad instructor then. Gear skipping is preferable for you and your car.
Danandcats@reddit
I think this was to do with the design of gear boxes in order cars. I remember a driving instructor (who also taught both my parents) telling me he used to teach it that way but now not to bother. Can't remember exactly why though.
hhfugrr3@reddit
Telling people - who need to be told - to fuck off. My dad was a master at it, "go on fuck off you silly bastard" while rolling his eyes.
YoungAtHeart71@reddit (OP)
This one, I can get behind!
ghostgirl18242@reddit
Saluting magpies when I see them
YoungAtHeart71@reddit (OP)
Yup, I do this one too! I think it stems from an old wives tale. I can't go past one without saying "morning mr magpie, how's the wife and family?" 😂
Appropriate_Dig_252@reddit
You must mean gherkins. Unless you want gherkin flavoured whatever you are drinking, you'd have to wash the jar anyway.
YoungAtHeart71@reddit (OP)
Yeah, gherkins. I tend to use more universal language when on Reddit. I just gave the jar a rinse and shake with warm water and it was fine.
Redgrapefruitrage@reddit
Planning your meals for the week before you go shopping. Saves so much stress - It’s one of the best habits they passed onto me.
Spiritual_Love@reddit
Every week I do this. I also write the day/dates at the bottom of my list, quick glance instead of standing there working out dates eg Fri-25 Sat-26 etc
cari-strat@reddit
I have ADHD and shopping for food was an absolute nightmare for me, I was always running out of stuff, things going out of date, etc and I'd just use the local shop to get the things I needed for the next 24 hours. Well into adulthood (and I'm talking late 30s) I was useless.
Some years ago I made a vow that I'd get on top of it. I worked out the main meals that we tended to eat regularly, how often we ate them, how many lunchboxes we needed making, how many drinks and snacks on average, and eventually after a bit of trial and error, I managed to draw up a regular weekly shop.
It has been an absolute game changer. Now I go once a week, whizz round, I know exactly what I buy so I don't even need a list as a rule. I keep a set stock of staple emergency things, so for example four tins of baked beans, four soups, a bag of rice, a bag of pasta etc so I literally just peek into cupboard and freezer to check numbers, and as a rule everything in the fridge and the fresh stuff is down to the last bit by shopping day, so I just replace all of that and any tinned/frozen stuff that's low.
Rarely ever run out of stuff or have to buy at the corner shop now and it's so much cheaper and less time consuming.
Redgrapefruitrage@reddit
It is a game changer!! Once you figure it out, makes life a hell of a lot easier.
CyGuy6587@reddit
Closing all the doors in my house before I go to work, and ensure all windows are closed
Asleep_Lack@reddit
Wash new clothes before I wear them to get rid of the “factory smell”. My mum always does this, she even does it with new socks
Spiritual_Love@reddit
I do this, especially with new underwear, the thought of all those grubby mitts all over them yuk!
HighlandsBen@reddit
Yes, you have no idea whose dirty paws have been on them in the factory/warehouse/shop. Plus a lot of clothes are apparently treated with pesticides and starch before shipping.
DiDiPLF@reddit
There was a rich guy who only wore fresh from the shop clothes and got rashes from the residual chemicals. I always wash new undies before wearing, surely that's just normal?
HikingOtter@reddit
I do it too! Hate the new clothes smell.
PurplePlodder1945@reddit
My husband always throws new clothes in the wash. I don’t
Lumpy-Combination847@reddit
Keeping the fat from a Sunday roast dinner
Birdy8588@reddit
This is slightly different in that it's only something I do at my mum's house!
But I always used to leave a very small amount of coffee at the bottom of my cup for my beautiful childhood dog to have. She'd get very upset if you forgot!
Well she died in 2010 and I STILL do it! Never do it anywhere else ❤️🩹
cybertonto72@reddit
My mum and dad always used to leave some tea in their cups, used to annoy me until my grandad made me tea once. He always used leaf tea and not teabags. Both my parents grew up without teabags. I always finished my cuppa as I was scared of getting shouted at for leaving food
E_III_R@reddit
I grew up on leaf tea. Before we were allowed a cup of our own me and my brother used to go round minesweeping the abandoned cups and slurping the last centimetre up, filtering the last leaves with our teeth
risen77@reddit
I tie every crisp packet into a knot.
CranberryWizard@reddit
Take the plates and cutlery back to the counter/ bar when getting food when sitting down anywhere that's not a restaurant
PurplePlodder1945@reddit
Using the phrase ‘were you born in a barn?’ at my now adult kids every time they leave doors open.
cybertonto72@reddit
I remember getting slapped once cause I replied 'no a hospital with swinging doors'
Ivy_dreamyyy@reddit
Love this! I still turn off lights obsessively when I leave a room, thanks, Dad. 😂 It’s like I’m haunted by his “we’re not made of money!” every time I see one on.
YoungAtHeart71@reddit (OP)
Haha, I do the same thing! My mam used to say "it's not the bloody Blackpool illuminations! Get that switched off". I said similar things to my own kids and I hope they pass on the tradition of frugality!
mexicocaro@reddit
I have never been to Blackpool Illuminations, nor my Dad, but it was his favourite thing to say when we were kids, still is. I now live abroad and my kids haven’t even a clue where Blackpool is or what the illuminations are, yet they hear this saying on a daily basis!
pixie-goblin@reddit
lol this is interesting. I presumed it would just be used by people from the north west who frequent Blackpool and are familiar with it. The fact that people use it without ever having been there I think is quite funny!
PurplePlodder1945@reddit
My parents had never been and nor had I until the 90s but it was always something said at home
cybertonto72@reddit
My dad was Welsh, had never been to Blackpool until later in life, mum and her dad from Belfast, all 3 of these people used to say the same thing to me as a kid.
mexicocaro@reddit
We are from the North East and have our own illuminations at Sunderland but Blackpool is still the point of reference, who knows why 🤣
CentralSaltServices@reddit
I went to see the Sunderland illuminations as a wee nipper and for years I thought we'd driven all the way to Blackpool.
Clari24@reddit
I sometimes wonder if this is the only reason my dad took us to Blackpool illuminations once
Odd-Tomatillo-6890@reddit
I follow my husband around and turn lights off every day. One morning he left before I was up and I turned off 8 lights. I can just hear my mother fussing about it.
gander8622@reddit
I have to put shoes on before doing any job.
I can't work or focus on any tasks unless I have some form of footwear on. I can see the old man always putting on his shoes before doing anything and I've continued that.
Thankfully I've found slippers that are like footwear so WFH isn't so uncomfortable!
AlternativePrior9559@reddit
My dad always said never have a light on in an empty room so I turn them off at home and the office!
DarthScabies@reddit
Put a dollop of butter in baked beans when heating them up. Doesn't taste right if I don't do it.
Careless_Squirrel728@reddit
Check the bunch of bananas for spiders lol
Entire-Sentence-9379@reddit
Referring to strange people and things as "odd m'grod"
notlits@reddit
A complete inability to deal with emotional difficulty in a healthy way. First step to change this was realising this and linking it to problems it causes, the following step to change is hard work.
But I’m enjoying reading some of the more lighthearted replies!
KoontFace@reddit
Putting my hand on my passport approximately 80,000 times before leaving, and during my journey to the airport
Babaiena85@reddit
Definitely turning lights off after leaving a room thanks to my Dad. And yes I do catch myself saying "It's like Blackpool illuminations in here!"... I've never been to Blackpool 😆
Henno212@reddit
Having manners and being polite
InevitableFox81194@reddit
Polishing shoes so much you can see your face in them.. to be fair, both parents were military, so our shoes were always polished and looked brand new.
chelsieloo2nd@reddit
I have a few. With our family dog, (not now, he’s deaf) if he was in the way, we would say “beep beep” and he’d know to move. I do that with my own dog now.
If I asked my mum where something was, she’d say up my ass. I now do that with my husband.
The ‘sleep’ in our eyes… both parents called them men. “There’s men in your eyes.” I do that and now my husband does that because of me.
The TV remote was referred to as the box. I say that. Husband does not and doesn’t like that I call it the box.
InevitableFox81194@reddit
We do the beep beep to our dogs and cat.
EpochRaine@reddit
I still masterbate with the light off...
ButteredNun@reddit
My dad taught me that too. No eye contact.
Fun_Stock7078@reddit
😂😂😂🤦♂️🤦♂️🤦♂️
264KB@reddit
Cocaine
blumpkinator2000@reddit
My dad always turned off the lights and stood by an open window whenever there was a thunderstorm, watching and listening. I still do the same thing, instantly dropping whatever else I'm doing so I can watch the storm and enjoy the atmosphere.
stressedoutaboutmula@reddit
Mother always has things in "stock" in the house ,always , could be needles and thread , toothpicks , etc , always in stock, and yearly supplies.Well I used to think she was just too much , but now I never run out of stock.
phatboi23@reddit
they're just useful items tbf.
any house that doesn't have them would confuse me.
MissO56@reddit
in the house? in my handbag!! 🤣
Booboodelafalaise@reddit
Same. When people started stockpiling things during Covid lockdown I was already way ahead. I love a bargain, and I’m pretty good at stock rotation, but I still have this weird compulsion to act like a squirrel in autumn. Thanks Mum!
Running140@reddit
I try and tie any food wrapper into a knot like my dad does
CBdigitaltutor@reddit
Every crisp packet, every time.
Other_Exercise@reddit
Take a cold milk bottle from the back.
GraphicDesignerSam@reddit
For all their imperfections, my parents did instil in me the use of good manners especially towards my elders.
I also picked up from my Dad not to rush into purchases, to research and sort finances before buying.
HikingOtter@reddit
Changing into 'house clothes ' just after coming back from work/being out. I hated it as a kid to change into house clothes after school (where I grew up there were no school uniforms, just regular clothing). Now I can't stand pottering about the house without wearing my cosy stretched outfits ;)
Alwayslearnin41@reddit
Singing - all the time - particularly when I'm washing up/cooking/cleaning etc. It was actually my Grandma more than my Mum. I tell my kids that they'll miss me singing when I'm gone. They're not so sure about that 🤣
Hamsternoir@reddit
Pinch punch first of the month.
Although there are occasions where I really regret teaching the kids as it's now really competitive.
herne_hunted@reddit
White rabbit.
ContributionTop136@reddit
Shaving my face upwards, when I was a kid I used to watch my dad shave and that’s how he did it, yet every video I see online people shave downwards, so it might just be us that do it
eclectic_radish@reddit
It gives a closer shave, at the risk of ingrown hairs
Substantial_Jury_939@reddit
heavy drinking
cluedo_fuckin_sucks@reddit
Real
FrankyFistalot@reddit
Check the oven is off,lights are off,hairdryer off,doors locked,etc….gave me total OCD over things like this.
Delicious-Program-50@reddit
Midnight snacking; both were terrible and now so am I lol
Redhead_Needed_DFW@reddit
Alcoholism
Denver_80203@reddit
Getting by.
cobber336@reddit
Elbows on the table.
JimmyHaggis@reddit
I tried masturbating with elbows on the table, it did not go down well, especially with the rest of the family at Sunday dinner.
We don't eat pork on Sunday more.
ButteredNun@reddit
An egalitarian contempt for all peoples
AutoModerator@reddit
Please help keep AskUK welcoming!
When repling to submission/post please make genuine efforts to answer the question given. Please no jokes, judgements, etc.
Don't be a dick to each other. If getting heated, just block and move on.
This is a strictly no-politics subreddit!
Please help us by reporting comments that break these rules.
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.