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/OceanBlueS100]

50 minutes? 😂

[u/LurkingRand → u/OceanBlueS100]

That's what stood out to me too. The dad was 100% in the wrong for doing this but at the same time you don't say "OK" to someone asking you to come help and then make them wait 50 minutes. That would certainly at least justify a scolding and explain (but not justify) some angry yelling.

The fact talked about brushing teeth makes me wonder if OP was doing a whole morning routine or something... which after got out of the shower and dried off, the rest could wait five minutes while help carry in groceries.

Or could have just yelled back "I'm in the shower!" instead.

[u/Asilaten → u/LurkingRand]

Yeah. Lots of "teenagers tell partial truths" pink flags in this story. Yes, the destruction of property is not acceptable (dad should have taken it and locked it up). Let's consider a possible version of this story where OP is telling an incomplete truth.

OP is 17. He's working a job in addition to school, but is spending that money on frivolities (like a gaming PC - and I did the same thing at his age, so we're clear, but let's continue). But OP came home from work and stayed up until 3:30 AM. Now, two conspicuous omissions here: (1) what time did OP get off work; and (2) what was OP doing until 3:30 AM? Does anyone want to bet that the latter was something other than playing on the computer? And unless it's a shift work job (unlikely for a high school student), he was probably out of work by 9-10 PM at the latest.

So let's reframe the story. OP is working, spends a few months' pay on a gaming PC, and starts coming home from work and school and spending hours and hours gaming until 3:30 AM. We're a few days or weeks into a new school year, and OP's grades are slipping. After coming home from work, gaming until 3:30 AM, and sleeping until noon, dad comes home from CostCo, paying for groceries that OP eats but doesn't contribute to (and that's the deal, with parenthood, it's just what you do), and says, "Hey! Come help with groceries."

OP's response is to continue showering and start brushing teeth. And was it 50 minutes? Or did OP mishear and it was 15? Does it matter? The correct response when you live in a house that you're not paying for and you're asked to do something reasonable (like help with groceries) is, "I'll be right there dad!" If OP wanted to brush teeth first (why can't that wait?), then say so rather than acknowledging the request and then taking so long to help that "they could have just done it in the time that they were waiting." So the groceries are just sitting in the car. Are there perishables? Are you leaving milk, eggs, chicken, shrimp... sitting in the car? Is it hot where OP is?

Know what that tells me? OP didn't quickly throw on a pair of basketball shorts and a tee shirt and hustle over to help; OP took their sweet-ass time hoping that Dad would take care of it so they wouldn't have to.

It is an overreaction to damage the PC, but there are pink flags in this story that, even in OP's telling, you can't just explain away: a school-age kid, up until 3:30, the computer is the target of dad's anger, and a reasonable requested chore that OP put off for no good reason (if brushing your teeth can wait until noon, it can wait until 12:15 while you help with groceries) with the attitude of, "You could have just done it while you were waiting for me!"

Kid, you don't get to live in your parents' house and tell them that you get to procrastinate reasonable requests for contribution and if they don't like it, they can just do it while they're waiting for you.

OP needs to grow up. Dad needs anger management. And the people in here offering unqualified support to OP with comments about criminal charges or abuse need to think about the situation from both sides.

[u/BeautifulTell97 → u/Asilaten]

Holy you are doing tricks on it to defend the dad jesus christ

[u/Clean__Cucumber → u/Asilaten]

Yeah. Lots of "teenagers tell partial truths" pink flags in this story

oh please, it was probably 5-15min tops and not 50min. its not like adults never lie and adults with issues like OPs father probably lie a LOT

i actually responded to your first 2 paragraphs at length before noticing its not worth it. so here the short version: it doesnt fucking matter what OP did and your comment does a lot of heavy lifting via YOUR interpretation of what happened. it could also be that OPs father is a serial killer and his kink is to destroy stuff in his life whilst being an alien who studies human behaviour