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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To be annoyed about her collecting the stones?

207 replies

forestblade · 09/04/2024 00:02

I thought there was an unwritten rule that if you found a stone someone had painted you would pick it up and hide it somewhere else for someone else to find on their walk etc.

My SM now has a collection of painted stones she's found and leaves on her doorstep. I was round the other day and noticed the collection had grown somewhat and was quite surprised and then annoyed. She doesn't paint stones and leave them for others herself, just collects everyone elses!

AIBU??

OP posts:
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16
BlancheSaysYes · 09/04/2024 16:56

I thought this was only a thing during lockdown. We, too, had a rocksnake, which everyone added to on their daily walks. It eventually reached the seafront from the woodland walk in the hills above town. The pebbles were decorated with chalk though, not acrylic paint, so I'm assuming not so bad for the environment? I stand by to be corrected. The kids round here loved it. No-one took the decorated pebbles home.

GreigeO · 09/04/2024 16:43

I have literally never heard of this. I am thankful to your SM for taking them out of circulation. Not keen.

NeedToChangeName · 09/04/2024 16:40

Flossflower · 09/04/2024 14:25

What a load of nonsense. I can’t bear people who put tosh in the countryside.
You should follow the code: ‘Leave only footprints. Take only photographs’.

If I find anything like this - painted stones, peace flags, bits of fabric etc, I remove them to the nearest bin.

@Flossflower I agree. I've never seen painted stones in forests but would regard it as littering

CantDealwithChristmas · 09/04/2024 16:35

Have I wandered into some kind of magical parallel universe?

I had no idea there were regularly painted stones to be found in the wild, let along written and unwritten rules as to what to do with them

savoycabbage · 09/04/2024 16:13

RazzberryGem · 09/04/2024 16:08

I have never heard of this before in my life!

It was all the rage where I lived during Covid. Thankfully it seems to have passed by now.

RazzberryGem · 09/04/2024 16:08

I have never heard of this before in my life!

MetalFences · 09/04/2024 16:07

StarbucksQueen1 · 09/04/2024 15:05

We find and rehide.
Why don’t you rehide hers for her!

But she wants to keep them. That's just not how life works. People going to each others houses and taking stuff because you don't think they should have them.

Unless you are Burglar Bill in which case I stand corrected.

Nowtbettertodo · 09/04/2024 15:53

forestblade · 09/04/2024 00:11

I explained to her when I first noticed them as I was aghast that she kept the first 2 or 3. She just shrugged and said she liked them.

Aghast?? Blimey, a tad dramatic over a few stones

RaraRachael · 09/04/2024 15:42

We had an area around the Welcome to our town sign which somebody decided looked boring and uninviting. If it had been planted with some flowers- fine, but some locals put down a load of painted stones, plastic shit and other assorted tat. Now it looks awful.

SuffolkUnicorn · 09/04/2024 15:27

forestblade · 09/04/2024 00:02

I thought there was an unwritten rule that if you found a stone someone had painted you would pick it up and hide it somewhere else for someone else to find on their walk etc.

My SM now has a collection of painted stones she's found and leaves on her doorstep. I was round the other day and noticed the collection had grown somewhat and was quite surprised and then annoyed. She doesn't paint stones and leave them for others herself, just collects everyone elses!

AIBU??

Keep or rehide we keep

Tryingtodobetter82 · 09/04/2024 15:10

MeMyCatsAndMyBooks · 09/04/2024 00:10

Because there all at OPs SM house. Grin

Show quote history

😂😂😂

StarbucksQueen1 · 09/04/2024 15:05

We find and rehide.
Why don’t you rehide hers for her!

Molonty · 09/04/2024 15:04

Well this is a bit pathetic. You're making an issue over stones? Stones Fgs??
They aren't even yours to begin with and I have never heard of this silly game. Do you realise you can buy rock painting kits for Kids?

TeaWithHobnobs · 09/04/2024 14:58

TeaWithHobnobs · 09/04/2024 13:41

You mentioned your children enjoy finding painted stones and then hiding them again for others so maybe they might enjoy painting stones and leaving them for others to find in the area that your MIL finds hers, everyone is happy then.

Sorry, that should say SM not MIL. I blame my cold for my fuzzy head

AppleDumplingWithCustard · 09/04/2024 14:53

Surely you can find something else to hate your SM for? This is a bit desperate.

PeopleAreWeird · 09/04/2024 14:52

Flossflower · 09/04/2024 14:38

Really that is just as bad. You should not introduce stones that are non native. The varnish and paint will eventually chip off after being rubbed against other stones, rained and snowed on. You are just polluting.

Show quote history

Should not introduce stones that are not native 😂

People need to get a grip

Lucytheloose · 09/04/2024 14:51

Flossflower · 09/04/2024 14:25

What a load of nonsense. I can’t bear people who put tosh in the countryside.
You should follow the code: ‘Leave only footprints. Take only photographs’.

If I find anything like this - painted stones, peace flags, bits of fabric etc, I remove them to the nearest bin.

Agreed. If people like painting stones and sharing them with other like-minded people, that's fine, but leaving them lying around is just being a litterbug.

Flossflower · 09/04/2024 14:38

PeopleAreWeird · 09/04/2024 14:26

The rocks are bought especially for this. From a building merchant or similar
They arent taken from the floor or the beach etc
They are then varnished sealed so completely safe for animals etc

Show quote history

Really that is just as bad. You should not introduce stones that are non native. The varnish and paint will eventually chip off after being rubbed against other stones, rained and snowed on. You are just polluting.

PeopleAreWeird · 09/04/2024 14:26

KoolKookaburra · 09/04/2024 07:16

I'm actually quite upset by some of these pictures. It's awful. Just leave the rocks alone.

The rocks are bought especially for this. From a building merchant or similar
They arent taken from the floor or the beach etc
They are then varnished sealed so completely safe for animals etc

Flossflower · 09/04/2024 14:25

What a load of nonsense. I can’t bear people who put tosh in the countryside.
You should follow the code: ‘Leave only footprints. Take only photographs’.

If I find anything like this - painted stones, peace flags, bits of fabric etc, I remove them to the nearest bin.

Dagnabit · 09/04/2024 14:10

Every time you visit, just surreptitiously pick one or two up and hide them 😂

RaraRachael · 09/04/2024 13:43

I've never found a painted stone but if I did, I wouldn't now there was some sort of secret game with unwritten rules about it. Do people spend their walks looking for hidden stones?

TeaWithHobnobs · 09/04/2024 13:41

You mentioned your children enjoy finding painted stones and then hiding them again for others so maybe they might enjoy painting stones and leaving them for others to find in the area that your MIL finds hers, everyone is happy then.

MuscariFan · 09/04/2024 13:39

SussexBonfireViking · 09/04/2024 09:04

I did halloween and easter and valentine themes

Beautiful - that owl would have stayed with me, for sure!

I have to say, I think this is a great little 'game'. In the spirit of what will wreck our environment, I'm sure it's very low down the list.

MuscariFan · 09/04/2024 13:32

We have an 'X Town Rocks' Facebook group - and some very talented artists on there too, some I've seen posted I'd have been hard pushed not to keep. Our group says keep or re-hide too, although post appreciated.

As others have said though - you can't expect people to know the rules of a game they don't know exists.