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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

To want to reestablish this friendship sorry this is long

87 replies

vacantStation · 30/06/2013 19:50

DH had a horrible surgical procedure earlier this year. We didn't want to tell anyone about it as 'twas intimate surgery. We did tell a couple, close friends of ours who were quite supportive.

Above friends were having a party for birthday. (Meal and drinks/dancing) which we planned to possibly shuffle along to for a few hours. This was about 4 days after DH was discharged from 3rd hospital admission.

Due to this surgery we basically went into hiding for what ended up being a couple of months! To avoid questions.

Friends knew that this was really private and we were avoiding people.

There was only one mutual set of friends going but above friends were short of numbers so invited a couple, friends of OURS that they have only met socially a handful of times... with us.

I was absolutely furious as we had not seen these friends for ages and were kind of avoiding seeing them until DH had recovered and above friends had not had the sensitivity to think about this,. To add to this

above friend had told them he was 10 years younger than he actually is. When we became aware of this, it was really a bit embarrassing. We told them that he had been dating a 16 year old girl (quite a few years before) and that he had lied about his age for about 3 years while this was going on. We didn't know he had actually decided to contiue this!

The disturbing thing was he has also continued this lie into his marriage with his lovely wife who became a great friend.

He told lovely wife that he wanted to be 27 as he had 'lost years' of his life to being depressed. She accepted this though all her family now believe him to be 27.

DH and i used to worry about him visiting this 16 yo girl who lived with this huge (and somewhat hard) family in rural wales. i.e if they ever found out he would get a pasting at best, at worst chucked in a hole never to be seen again.

The most uncomfortable think about this scenario is that at their wedding, the father of the 16 year old girl he was dating (he remained in contact with the family for years) got up and gave a speech about what a lovely 'young' man he was. (Friend and the 16 year old (now 21) are no longer in contact. 16 year old didn't want anything more to do with him. This was before the expensive wedding.

So anyway, i absolutely lost my rag with this bloke .. so did dh and said that we were really pissed off that he had put us in an awkward situation with our friends following dh surgery, Then this whole barrage of 'what the fuck do you think your playing at' re the age thing and lying and stuff came out....(which I know was a bit nasty and perhaps none of my business) I just feel that we were being brought into this rabbit hole of lies..(there were quite a few more too)

I am really glad to be away from it all. The guy was really controlling and hard work at times. Would walk around our houe like he owned the place and would be really aggrieved when we socialised with other people. He also turned up when we were on a date and would expect to be invited to family occasions.

It's our own bloody fault really . I think over years that the friendship needed to change as our lives were changing.

Me and DH both feel alot happier without the pressure and lies of this friendship but i really really miss this guys wife and feel years of friendship with both of them have been chucked away.

For all his flaws. (were all flawed right?) They were still people we cared about.

I regret not setting boundaries better and losing my temper. WIBU ? Shall i try and patch it up?

I have been in contact via text with wife and saw her briefly, it was lovely to see her and we rammed alot of talking into about 5 minutes but her H isn't comfortable for us to see each other or get a coffee or whatever. ~She says she needs to respect his feelings. She looked upset. I fee really sad. I don't want to harrass them but at the same time years of friendship are hard to erase. What would you do?

OP posts:
Pobblewhohasnotoes · 01/07/2013 11:36

EarlyInTheMorning Mon 01-Jul-13 10:53:03
Castration. It's castration isn't it? You DH is now your DW. No shame in that

Pah hahahaha!

I think you've got it!

BaronessBomburst · 01/07/2013 11:47

Is your friend Sharon? And was there red wine at the party? Did someone spill it? Grin

LookMaw · 01/07/2013 11:58

I could not follow what you were on about in regards to the whole age thing.

However YABVVU in regards to thinking you can dictate who someone invites to their own party just because your DH had an operation. The world doesn't revolve around your husbands crotch, and if you really didn't wanna be seen then you should have stayed at home.

PopiusTartius · 01/07/2013 12:33

Oh thank goodness no-one else understood it, I thought I was drinking in the daytime without realising again Grin

Pigsmummy · 01/07/2013 12:51

YABU or maybe YABNU? Who can tell?

MollyBerry · 01/07/2013 15:06

Ok, now I'm more awake this morning I've read it again and I think I've got it.

-Husband had mystery embarrassing procedure so they went into hiding they only told a few close friends (lets call them Mr and Mrs A)

-Mr and Mrs A were having a party and as they were close friends they decided to show their faces for a little bit, OP thought it would be a small birthday gathering BUT oh no, that wasn't to be! Mr and Mrs A had also invited Mr and Mrs B (OP thought this was most inconsiderate and Mr and Mrs B shouldn't have been invited as she thought it was only a small gathering and 1. Mr and Mrs A don't really know Mr and Mrs B and 2. Mr and Mrs A knew that OP and her DH wanted to be in hiding)

Background info on Mr A (his flaws):
-Before he was married to Mrs A he went out with a 16 year old girl and lied about his age so it didn't seem so weird. OP and DH were worried about this as she had a rough family who might hurt him if they'd found out about this lie.
-Relationship with 16yo ended but he continued this age lie into his marriage with Mrs A, claiming he was 27 when he was in fact 37.
(- Extra fact: Father of 16 year old came to Mr and Mrs A's wedding and gave a speech saying how nice he is. Kind of irrelevant to the story...)

SO, at the party OP had a bust up with Mr A because

  1. OP was cross about the fact couple A hadn't respected their wishes not to see anyone they hadn't told
  2. OP didn't think he should be lying about his age (and it does mention other lies but i'm not sure what). OP didn't want to be drawn into the lies ie helping make others think he was 10 years less than he is.
  3. OP also states that he is controlling and hard work

Result of bust-up: "Me and DH both feel alot happier without the pressure and lies of this friendship but i really really miss this guys wife and feel years of friendship with both of them have been chucked away"

So the Q is, is OP BU to want to be friends with only Mrs A?

That post was just as long as the OP and probably not any clearer...

MollyBerry · 01/07/2013 15:07

and I'm clearly not awake as Polka has done a much better more succinct summary further up the page!

Hullygully · 01/07/2013 15:10

I thought it was Mr B who had knocked years off his age?

DarkWinter · 01/07/2013 15:12

My brain is itchy.

MollyBerry · 01/07/2013 15:17

Well she keeps referring to above couple and I assumed it was always talking about couple A, that couple B were only referred to to explain couple A's inconsiderate behaviour in inviting them

AngryGnome · 01/07/2013 15:26

I though mr B was the aging masquerader? And op is angry because mr and mrs a did not know his real age, op felt awkward that mr b was lying to mr and mrs A, and so had a barney with mr B.

Maybe.

Hullygully · 01/07/2013 15:27

that's what I thought gnome

unobtanium · 01/07/2013 15:27

Extremely confusing story, though I have really enjoyed the helpful summaries/clarifications from Molly and Polka.

I can understand not wanting to talk about the mystery op, but why not just do what everyone does in those circs if actually questioned... say nothing/change subject/make up a more palatable ailment (eg groin strain, if you're still walking funny)

(Quite possibly nobody would ask anyway)

I agree that YABU

unobtanium · 01/07/2013 15:34

Yes sorry, missing the point of the qn which is can OP continue friendship with one half of a couple only. Of course that would not BU (if you can find a way...)

What is BU is all this going underground for months after operation when in fact DH seemed well enough to be "shuffling" off to parties just 4 days after leaving hospital... all in order to avoid qns, and expecting people to manage their party lists so as to avoid any potentially embarrassing encounters.

CalamityKate · 01/07/2013 15:36

YABU.

CalamityKate · 01/07/2013 15:36

YANBU.

CalamityKate · 01/07/2013 15:37

YABABU.

CalamityKate · 01/07/2013 15:37

YAallBU.

MonParapluie · 01/07/2013 15:40

Maybe you could have forgiven him if it wasn't for the t-rexing

YouStayClassySanDiego · 01/07/2013 15:41

Has your dh had a penis enlargement, hence the secrecy? Hmm

MollyBerry · 01/07/2013 15:48

Oh Gnome, you might be right, but then why would she not want to be friends with Mr A anymor eand only Mrs A

JellyBelly10 · 01/07/2013 15:59

This sounds like the plot of an episode of Fawlty Towers but with none of the laughs! Couple go into hiding because of husband's embarrassing 'nether regions' surgery. They decide to break the boredom of this recuperative isolation by attending a small, intimate soiree with friends only to discover that some other friends (who know nothing about 'operation pecker') are there too. Some scoundrel who once pretended to be younger than he actually was in order to win the heart of a school-girl kept up the pretense for so long that he had to pretend to the woman who later became his wife that he was 27. So some people in the room know about the operation and some don't, and some people in the room know that the man is actually 92 and not 27. Meanwhile they all make polite conversation, sip chardonnay and nibble on Twiglets. And then someone's trousers fell down and a maid saw someone's bottom. Probably.

AngryGnome · 01/07/2013 15:59

Good point Molly berry! Hmm maybe mr a was unimpressed with the barney and with the party turning into a big shouty night and so now does not want to speak to op. mrs A feels that me A is overreacting and so wants to carry on being friends with op, even though mr a feels his nose has been put out of joint????

AngryGnome · 01/07/2013 16:00

Actually, I think jellybean has it spot on!

Thisisaeuphemism · 02/07/2013 09:20

Thanks jellybelly, I'm taking notes. It's a brilliant satire on modern life, it's a comedy of errors without the errors, it's a bedroom farce without the bedroom etc, etc.

I agree with calamitykate.