How did it affect you?The term "going postal" recently reminded me that when I was a kid, a friend of my father was killed in one of the first shootings. He worked at a post office. 1982.I'm only now realizing how this affected my life and decision to go into the criminal justice field.What are any experiences that affected your life trajectory? Sometimes negative can put you on a positive life track.
#1
It's unfortunate but the situations that hurt us are the ones we most remember. I have two:
First - I was about 5 when an uncle who happened to live next door to me played a prank on me causing me to be humiliated. The thought it was hilarious; me not so much so. At his funeral, that's what I was thinking about.
Second - Not the same uncle but a different one (my mother had several AH brothers) held my kitten up in the air and allowed his boxer dog to jump up and snarl at it like the dog was going to eat my kitty. At his funeral, both my sister and I sat there thinking about what a horrible person he was.
When you're an a*s, it makes impressions on others.
First - I was about 5 when an uncle who happened to live next door to me played a prank on me causing me to be humiliated. The thought it was hilarious; me not so much so. At his funeral, that's what I was thinking about.
Second - Not the same uncle but a different one (my mother had several AH brothers) held my kitten up in the air and allowed his boxer dog to jump up and snarl at it like the dog was going to eat my kitty. At his funeral, both my sister and I sat there thinking about what a horrible person he was.
When you're an a*s, it makes impressions on others.
10points
#2
My house was robbed on Christmas, twice. Once in 86, the second in 91. We went from being relatively comfortable economically to broke.
Once, they took even the front door when we were on vacation. Then, when we came back home, the place where we had stored our remaining belongings was also robbed. We wound up even losing that house because of financial crisis.
Also, our neighbour knew the people who robbed us but refused to tell my father their whereabouts.
In 1991, the day the Soviet Union fell, our house was robbed a second time on Christmas. I had just gotten Super Mario 3 that day, and fortunately, it was not stolen.
My parents kept wanting me to take long vacations, but even today, I am very anxious leaving the house alone, more so now that I take care of my elderly mother and my cats.
I cannot take a full vacation without anxiety, and it got to a point a few years ago that I had anxiety attacks even leaving to go to work, after our house got broken into twice again. Once when I was out working (I suspect a neighbour), someone took all of my mother's valuables. Once, when I was asleep, and I caught the robber and fought him until I was able to push him out the door.
I almost got arrested because the cops were adamant that "there was no robber" and I was high or drunk. I had to show them my security cameras.
They did nothing, because ACAB.
Once, they took even the front door when we were on vacation. Then, when we came back home, the place where we had stored our remaining belongings was also robbed. We wound up even losing that house because of financial crisis.
Also, our neighbour knew the people who robbed us but refused to tell my father their whereabouts.
In 1991, the day the Soviet Union fell, our house was robbed a second time on Christmas. I had just gotten Super Mario 3 that day, and fortunately, it was not stolen.
My parents kept wanting me to take long vacations, but even today, I am very anxious leaving the house alone, more so now that I take care of my elderly mother and my cats.
I cannot take a full vacation without anxiety, and it got to a point a few years ago that I had anxiety attacks even leaving to go to work, after our house got broken into twice again. Once when I was out working (I suspect a neighbour), someone took all of my mother's valuables. Once, when I was asleep, and I caught the robber and fought him until I was able to push him out the door.
I almost got arrested because the cops were adamant that "there was no robber" and I was high or drunk. I had to show them my security cameras.
They did nothing, because ACAB.
8points
#3
I remember the moment I learned my mother was going to die like it was yesterday. The way she looked at me, tone of her voice, and the way everyone--mom included--exited the room post-haste. Two years later, a few weeks before I turned 13, she passed. My father broke the news to me just before dinner. I had suspected it was coming because by then the cancer had damaged enough of her brain that she didn't even know who I was, but was still a gut-punch.
8points
#4
I'm 57 now, so this happened 50 or more years ago. I knew from age five or six that I definitely wanted to marry, and did not want kids. Some things you just come here knowing.
I was with my grandmother running an errand, and this older person stopped this new young mother and asked how everything was going. Her words were all gushing and happy... but her entire body screamed tiredness and I could hear the lie from 10 feet away.
Then as a teenager, I visited someone, and for some reason, she felt compelled to tell her birth story, which included her *forgetting how to breathe*! All of this and more just kept reinforcing to me that pregnancy and birth were things to be avoided. No regrets.
I'm glad now that we can talk about these things openly. Growing up in the 70s and 80s, I thought it highly suspicious that ONLY positive things were said about pregnancy, birth, and parenthood, and nothing negative could ever be said, so clearly there was a lie of omission around all of it. That's untruthful. It's not the whole truth. Times have changed for the better and I'm glad we are talking more about every part of it, as we always should have.
I was with my grandmother running an errand, and this older person stopped this new young mother and asked how everything was going. Her words were all gushing and happy... but her entire body screamed tiredness and I could hear the lie from 10 feet away.
Then as a teenager, I visited someone, and for some reason, she felt compelled to tell her birth story, which included her *forgetting how to breathe*! All of this and more just kept reinforcing to me that pregnancy and birth were things to be avoided. No regrets.
I'm glad now that we can talk about these things openly. Growing up in the 70s and 80s, I thought it highly suspicious that ONLY positive things were said about pregnancy, birth, and parenthood, and nothing negative could ever be said, so clearly there was a lie of omission around all of it. That's untruthful. It's not the whole truth. Times have changed for the better and I'm glad we are talking more about every part of it, as we always should have.
8points
#5
Many, but this is one that I often use as an example. Report card day in high school. I brought home a report card that had 3 C's. Everything else, A or B. But three C's. My father looked at me and said, and this is a word for word quote:
"Get out of my sight. I don't even want to look at you. You make me sick."
"Get out of my sight. I don't even want to look at you. You make me sick."
7points
#6
I have one I have been thinking about a lot recently. When I was younger Mexican was just becoming popular in our town (mid 80s). Everyone loved it and my folks liked to meet up with my uncle's family for dinner on Friday nights. Well, one Friday they decided to hit up this "new" Mexican restaurant. While we were there a gentleman at the table beside us had a heart attack and died. Paramedics pronounced him DOA and took him away. To this day every time I smell Mexican food I'm taken back to that moment in time when someone died right behind us. It's still a family joke that the service was so good the waitress stepped over the body to bring us our food.
FYI, I don't like Mexican food
FYI, I don't like Mexican food
5points
#7
I was sort of scammed into believing I was actually swimming well on my own. We had a pool in an apartment complex we lived in when I was about 6 years old. I always struggled to gain the courage to keep my legs up when swimming. I managed to get the courage to do that in this pool and found myself swimming across to the other end of the scary deep end of the pool. My mom was surprised and impressed.
This was also an unsupervised pool, so no lifeguard. My mom recently told me that the mgmt didn't want to risk accidental drownings, or easily, so they added a TON of salt into the pool, making you more buoyant. This explains why people were able to almost do somersaults on top of the water off the deep end and could float on their backs effortlessly. When I try to swim in fresh water or other pools, I can do so okay, but not super great.
This was also an unsupervised pool, so no lifeguard. My mom recently told me that the mgmt didn't want to risk accidental drownings, or easily, so they added a TON of salt into the pool, making you more buoyant. This explains why people were able to almost do somersaults on top of the water off the deep end and could float on their backs effortlessly. When I try to swim in fresh water or other pools, I can do so okay, but not super great.
4points
#8
I have a childhood memory that is soooooo precious and wonderful. On Xmas eve we had a ghastly Italian fish dinner. Multiple courses. All terrible to a child who didn’t like fish. But my mother promised: if you kids are good we will play Bingo afterwards. With prizes! 1956 and onwards forever.
4points
#9
So you are looking for negative responses?
-3points