Putting cups back into cupboard upside down

[Duggeeismysaviour]

When they stay at ours (live abroad) , my in laws insist on putting cups and mugs back in the cupboard upside down, despite everything else in there being upright.

When I help out in any friend or relatives house, I go with the system they have.

Every time I open the cupboard and see one or two lone cups upside down, I have to quell the rage. It's like a passive aggressive "our way is the right way". Trust me, it's deliberate as they are extremely organised tidy people, who don't do things unthinkingly, like throwing a few cups into the cupboard.

This is sort of light hearted! And I know, many people will be along shortly to point out that I should be grateful for the help I get, and I truly am. But I cannot get past it, and I think it's because of the way they are and their personalities, which are quite unintentionally domineering. I honestly start to feel a little like a child in my own home when they are here. This, without further long explanation regarding their personalities, is perhaps why it gets to me so much.

Would this bother anyone else? How can I let it go before I snap in a pregnant hormonal rage?!!!

We use a mug tree.

Spider willies in your mug?
Seriously , spiders like to scuttle round an upside down mug , four legs on the shelf , four legs on the rim of the mug , their willy dangling onto the cup , and away they go.
Like those devices that paint the lines on a football pitch .

I've never seen anyone store cups/mugs with the rim up - I just thought there was some weird upside down etiquette 😳

The responses have made me smile, snaga you totally get it!

@MonstranceClock, you certainly have missed the point with your semi aggressive post, that they are in fact almost certainly doing this deliberately

Now I am thinking that upside with a little mesh mat would be better, but sadly I cannot, not now, not ever.... because they will always then think that they have won. And that is not happening

My in laws do this. It drives me mad! Just follow the convention of the cupboard, what’s hard about that?

At least they're putting them in the right cupboard! I'm always looking for things in our kitchen because when DH unloads the dishwasher he seems to just put things in random cupboards! We've lived here 2 years so it infuriates me that he STILL doesn't know where things go!!

Laughing at "the convention of the cupboard"

Thats it exactly

Can you get cup hooks or a cup tree? It frees up cupboard space too.

And yes, it would irritate me. But if you think they're doing it on purpose, the most satisfying thing is to poke their eyes out to ignore them. And if you don't think they're doing it on purpose, ask them politely to put them the other way. That'll make them the petty ones when they don't.

The phrase and concept of 'spider willies' is hilarious

If it's a control thing then turn them all upside down just before the next visit and see if they put them the right way up.

Upside down... better stacking and no dust

Ha ha Duggeeismysaviour - my mum does exactly this! And she’s not Australian! Which is why I don’t like her emptying my dishwasher ever (I also have to search where she’s put everything). I can’t say anything to her though as she’d get offended so I just grit my teeth and turn the ups and glasses up the right way

Upside down risks causing chips and is just wrong. That said I would always go with the convention of the hostess. YANBU.

*cups and glasses

I’m with you OP. Upright all the way. If a glass hasn’t been used in a while I’ll give it a slosh with the water tap.

Well, I suppose this is a change from the shoes on/off debate.

So, those that stack cups upside down, which way do you stack your plates? Surely they must also be stacked upside for the same reasons?

Upside down*

I just googled it because I realise I put cups and mugs upright so I can stack 2 together but my glasses are upside down and singles, so stacking.

Good Housekeeping says either is acceptable. Pick a side GH pick a side!

This would drive me mad. I think it's gross to put them upside down - keep the bit you put your mouth to clean!

But if they're upright things can crawl into them.

So, those that stack cups upside down, which way do you stack your plates? Surely they must also be stacked upside for the same reasons? @Greatorb, my plates and bowls are stacked upright. I refuse to make sense.

I put my cups & mugs upside down. I have those mats that go under washing up bowls on the shelf surface to keep the rims clean. Putting cups upside down means that if any water from dishwasher is left, it drains away & also stops cups getting dust & bits inside. I also have a plate rack so all plates & bowls are stored vertically for the same reason.

My late mother stacked upside down. She was from Huddersfield so maybe it’s a northern thing. I agree that politeness dictates that you should adopt the host’s method. It is not hard to be ambimugstrous.

Upside down is wrong. It traps the air inside which then smells nasty.

Well in the best part of 53 years of stacking my cups the right way up (inside a cupboard with the door closed) I can confirm I have never once found a spider nor any other crawling thing inside one. Have I got miraculous insect repelling cupboard doors or something?

It sounds to me that they are simply washing and putting away the cups/mugs they have used in the way that they normally do it, probably unconsciously. If it were a passive aggressive thing then surely they would 'correct' all the cups in the cupboard? I don't think it's something worth getting the rage over.