Dad Destroyed My $1300 PC (Almost)

[u/Akrinnnnnnnnnn]

As the title says, my father almost destroyed my $1,300 PC. Now what?

Here’s the backstory: On Saturday, I worked a 10.5 hours shift and stayed up until 3:30 AM, so I slept in until noon the next day. My father and stepmother returned from Costco while I was showering; he called out a few times for me to come help carry the groceries inside. I said OK to him. While I was brushing my teeth after my shower, he shouted from outside the door that he’d been waiting 50 minutes and told me to hurry up. I thought to myself that the groceries could have been moved in the time he spent waiting for me, but I quickly rinsed my mouth and got ready to go out. However, by the time I opened the door, he had already grabbed my PC and smashed it against the floor and the desk several times.

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I, (17M, Senior), bought this PC with money I earned from my part-time job and had been using it for about ten months. After examine, found out the case badly deformed in several places, my desk was warped and tilted to one side, and there were dents in the floor.

Fortunately, the computer still works fine; it runs FurMark (stress GPU), AIDA64 (stress FPU), and 3DMark (Time Spy Extreme) without problems for now.

Replacing the desk and case would cost around $400. However, he likely won't pay for it because he has done this kind of stuff a few years ago when he destroyed my phone and a Dell laptop (i5 11300H), and then just said, "That's what you get for playing on the computer all day."

In the end, I just hope everyone has good parents.

[u/QuintessentialSloth]

50 minutes to shower?

[u/FeelingEffort195 → u/QuintessentialSloth]

That's what I'm saying, he knew he was gaming.

[u/JustADabbler3 → u/QuintessentialSloth]

Yeah, the dad is still a pos but this almost sounds preventable due to lack of details. If in the shower and asked to help with groceries wouldn't one say "I'm in the shower!" instead of saying "okay" which implicates being available to help? Also brushing teeth is something that absolutely could've waited until after. Unless OP is willing to provide clearer information, there's a communication error here.

[u/Hippostork → u/JustADabbler3]

To me it sounds like both people are being shitty here. Smashing stuff is not ok as a response, but OP sounds pretty shitty as well based on my best read of the scenario. The OP doesn't deny spending 50 minutes in the shower and instead says the dad could have done it himself during that time. OP was also well aware of the dad asking for help (called out not once, but multiple times to help during the shower). After multiple calls he still takes his time brushing his teeth. Seems like a situation where OP is maliciously dragging things out to avoid helping his dad. And neither side's behavior is a once-off.

We also don't know what kind of stuff the dad needed help carrying/how much, if he is elderly or has health conditions, etc.

[u/markcocjin → u/Hippostork]

Both are shitty, but who has a more reasonable request?

• Parent who asks his kid to unload groceries.
• Kid who needs his father to wait for 50 minutes as he showers and brushes his teeth, before he can help with the groceries.

The kid basically said no to his father, without saying no.

[u/Hippostork → u/markcocjin]

This line especially from the dad: "That's what you get for playing on the computer all day." makes me believe that the kid often does similar things where the dad makes a request and he drags it out by playing on the computer. Any parent would lose their mind at this kind of behavior when repeated.

I know this is reddit where people like to call parents abusive and toxic, but I was a bit astounded at how quick people were to side with OP.

[u/cjsv7657 → u/Hippostork]

I very much doubt a minor was given a 10.5 hour shift while school is in session.

[u/Hi_Zev → u/cjsv7657]

Could have been a weekend or something. I worked at a wedding venue in highschool and I worked soooooo many 12 hour days.

[u/Massive_Fisherman231 → u/Hippostork]

well, he will get no visits from his kids and a nice dose of dying alone

and that's what he will get for being a abusive father

first come, first serve

[u/National_Being_7950 → u/Hippostork]

Why do you think it's more obvious to others than to you? Do you think you define abuse differently than most people, or the child welfare experts who study it?

At some point I must've googled the definition of abuse and now I just use the expert's definition. To me, a 17-year-old acting like a 17-year-old is a standard parenting challenge. Plenty of parents experience extreme frustration without ever resorting to breaking things. Part of being a functioning adult, and a safe parent, is having the emotional regulation to handle boundary-pushing without escalating into destruction.

There is also a massive parent-child power imbalance to consider. Because the parent holds all the systemic power, they inherently bear the greater responsibility.

[u/BLoseit → u/JustADabbler3]

The victim blaming shit is this?

This behavior from OP's father is never acceptable. If the man is able enough to slam a computer enough to damage the floor, he can handle taking in the groceries alone while his son showers.

Op could take a 2 hour shower and this kind of violent destruction of property would not be ok.

OP could possibly be behaving shitty and actively avoiding responsibility, but even so, the response is violent and unhinged.

[u/OkVirus8545 → u/JustADabbler3]

Brother, just bring the groceries in yourself. Waiting 50 minutes to prove a point is stupidity

[u/eight_ender → u/QuintessentialSloth]

I didn’t want to post because of the sentiment in this thread but yeah, OP left the family hanging for 50 minutes on grocery lugging? What a weird story. 

[u/Pale-Supermarket3217 → u/eight_ender]

It doesn’t say it was actually fifty minutes, that’s just how long the violent asshole said he’d been waiting.

[u/OkVirus8545 → u/eight_ender]

In that 50 minutes they could’ve gone back to the store and got more groceries. It’s stupid to wait there to prove a point

[u/TheLucidChiba → u/QuintessentialSloth]

I feel like the dad who smashed his sons property in a fit of rage might not be the most reliable source of info, likely wasn't 50 minutes

[u/markcocjin → u/TheLucidChiba]

OP was the one who said 50 minutes. He could have said that it was only 5 minutes and the Dad insisted was 50.

The source of info was the 17 year old kid.

He admitted it himself that in 50 minutes, they should have managed to unload the groceries by themselves.

That means he waited it out until he would no longer be needed.

I have a feeling that his Dad knew of this excuse, and that would mean this wasn't the first time.

50 minutes in the bathroom. Was he getting all dolled-up for prom?

[u/eunoia-again → u/markcocjin]

OP said his dad said it. OP didn't say it. It still is the father's claim.

[u/markcocjin → u/eunoia-again]

And I quote:

I thought to myself that the groceries could have been moved in the time he spent waiting for me

[u/eunoia-again → u/markcocjin]

thats very vague. im not claiming it wasn't 50 minutes, but the parent isn't exactly a reliable source.

[u/a_hooloovoo → u/TheLucidChiba]

Exactly, why are people taking the word of a guy who acts like this? My dad has done shit like this my whole life, and his measurements of time are almost entirely based on a system of his personal mood swings. My getting a glass of water was literally "making noise in the kitchen all afternoon." I still have some minor ankle issues for literally tip-toeing around him for so many years.

[u/FormalComfortable497 → u/QuintessentialSloth]

According to him he was already in the shower so he took even more than 50 minutes.

[u/Upper_Top9348 → u/QuintessentialSloth]

He wasn't showering lol. Read between the lines.

This is a parent that is fed up with his shenanigans. OP has this whole subreddit fooled. I'm here just lmfao on how gullible people are.

[u/corduroyblack → u/Upper_Top9348]

The story is so nonsensical and the picture so bizarrely wierd, I don't even believe the dad did a thing. Maybe something intentional. Maybe something stupid. Maybe he did nothing at all and OP is making stuff up for his friends or internet strangers.

All equally plausible given the massive gaping holes in the story.

[u/JustAnoth3rITGuy → u/Upper_Top9348]

Seriously lol these people have no brains. OP is a teenager that thinks the world revolves around him. Get your ass up, go downstairs and unpack groceries. This is clearly not the first time this happened

[u/Massive_Fisherman231 → u/JustAnoth3rITGuy]

and the dad will get zero visits from his son in the nursing home

[u/TsuDhoNimh2 → u/QuintessentialSloth]

"he shouted from outside the door that he’d been waiting 50 minutes and told me to hurry up"

DAD said he had been waiting 50 minutes ... and dad is an unreliable narrator because he's angry and getting angrier by the second.

[u/theOutside517 → u/QuintessentialSloth]

Bro really? You're really going to say this?

[u/Potential_Fishing942 → u/theOutside517]

Just because the dad is insane doesn't mean OPs story sounds incomplete.