Am I a laughing stock?

[CovidHeadache]

I jokingly call my house “surname towers” so for example if my surname was Jackson, my house would be called Jackson Towers. I’ve called it this for years, it’s very very lighthearted as I’m sure everyone knows. We host a lot of social events and I use the name in invites for example “birthday party, Jackson towers”, “Strictly finale party, Jackson towers” etc
In Christmas/birthday cards “love from A, L and all at Jackson towers”

All my friends and family know I call the house this and some call it this name too either in replies or just in general.

Anyway, last night I’d popped to my mums and my sister was there, we were talking about taking the kids to a Halloween event tonight and I said “why don’t you bring them back to the towers afterward and we can have a little party?”

My sister then said “I’m sorry but can we stop with this towers bullshit, it’s so cringy”. I said “It’s a joke! And you’ve never complained before!” My mum then said “not to your face maybe”. They both started laughing and my sister then said “no I’m sorry, someone needs to say something, people have been ripping the piss out of you for years for it, just give it a rest now”.

so to cut a long story short, turns out almost my entire family have been slagging me off for it for years and my sister hinted that my friends have too.

When I got home I rang my friend and asked her if the towers name annoys her and she said “no course not” so I asked if she knew if it annoyed anyone else to which she hesitated and then said “not annoy as such”. She wouldn’t elaborate further.

Now I’m pretty thick skinned and can mostly laugh it off if I’ve been a dick but this time I’m a bit upset, I keep trying to tell myself I’m not bothered but I can’t stop thinking about it. Have I been a laughing stock for years? If so AIBU to think someone might have mentioned it before now?

Oh now. It Would be funny if she called it Flowery Twats.

or Mumsnet Towers 🫤

Haha you've reminded me of two friends who had one bed flats and they were nicknamed the mansion and the towers. That was funny because they were tiny.

Yours is kind of funny, but probably wearing thin a bit!

I'd think it funny, if that helps, and I've done similar from time to time.
A bit disconcerting that it's been an issue for criticism/piss taking behind your back, so maybe quietly drop it. Or start saying "chez moi" 🤣 Or start using variations of it randomly towers/mansion /estate/castle etc

If a guy called his house "the towers" it would give me an ick so bad i would probably never see another penis again in my life.

You’ve been making a joke about your house name for years. Other people are finding it funny but not in the way you’d like! I think if you use it all the time to refer to your house, it is a little cringey. Occasionally on a party invitation as a fun joke, fine. But in normal text messages referring to going back to your house? Saying it that often seems to imply you want other people to refer to your house this way too. And it’s a tall house - calling it “towers” is a way of referencing it being tall. It’s not like it’s an ironic name because it’s a single storey place. I think the three storey height of your house, plus your persistence referring to it like that ALL the time not just occasionally as a joke, suggests to people you really do think of your place as “the towers” which is an overblown way to refer to your normal house. Sorry!

I think using as a joke every now and then was fine. Making it into a “thing” probably turned it into cringe/twatty. That’s ok though, we all try to make something happen(that’s never going to happen) at some point or another. However, they (family/friends ) should’ve said something years ago , before it turned into a big thing, and somewhat part of your “identity”.

It sounds like something Hyacinth Bucket would have said in Keeping Up Appearances if you keep on doing it.

Once might sound like a not particularly funny joke, but keeping it going just sounds sad.

Op I think the world needs more lightheartedness and yes kookiness and in their mind cringiness. Who cares what other people think? As the poster above says I think it’s welcoming and to add I love the idea!!

eta not the person just above me- I’m quoting gagmewithaspoon !!

I've just read the signing it on cards part.... Oh dear OP you've definitely gone a bit far!

I don’t have a problem with it. I’d never thought if saying that myself but I like it. As long as you don’t say it every single time it’s fine.

If they are envious then that’s probably why they are bitching. Along the lines of thinking who does she think she is calling her house “towers”, hurrumph well really.

Id just stop calling it that so often. But honestly I’d take offence to them bitching behind my back. Whatever they were bitching about be it my style or car or anything. It’s not nice.

Cringey

agreed, the jokey thing every now and then fine.

The line from the of "bring them back to the towers" in the normal conversation i can see why sister snapped on that.

@CovidHeadache

You sound like a lovely fun person to be around. We make similar jokes like this in our friendship group and won’t stop. We binned the sister and her snidey comments 😊

We have friends whose house has a name. They always refer to the house by the name rather than just saying “our house”. So say the name was High Manor, they say “would you like to come for dinner at High Manor?” Instead of “would you like to come to ours for dinner?” It’s cringey and annoying and I roll my eyes every time they do it! But they are generous with their hospitality so I never joke about it with others behind their back!

I wouldn’t lose sleep over it OP, it’s probably just the sort of thing that your family and friends have rolled their eyes over rather than full blown laughing stock.

It’s the sort of joke that might have been funny on the odd party invite but to use it in everyday conversation like ‘we can go back to the towers’ is a bit overkill!

Mmm sorry OP, there's a line between signing off a card 'all at X towers' as a shorthand way of listing all names out, to verbally saying 'oh everyone come to the towers'.

God people can be so spiteful and joyless.

At worst its a bit of a cliche but who cares? Imagine expending that much of your energy bitching about something this innocuous.

Honestly if my family were this nasty I would probably double down on it all. But I am a contrary SOB.

It was your sister that mentioned it first? It’s a siblings job to point out when they think their sister or brother is behaving in a wanky way. I would if one of mine was. They’d do the same for me. Family innit.

It’s too Hyacinth Bucket. Keeping it going with Xmas cards etc just smacks of having notions but downplaying it by pretending its a joke whenever possible.

Saying it every now and then, fine. But constantly referring to your house with some cutesy “funny” nickname is cringe and annoying. It’s in the same vain that people say “elf and safety”, or when my Dad says you have to “read the destructions” instead of instructions. It’s just really not as funny as you think.

I have a friend who refers to her children as her monsters and it does my head in. But I just don’t find word play and cheesy nicknames very funny.

Harmless, but yeah it's a bit David Brent.

The difference is she/they let it go on for years and then snapped over it during a fairly harmless conversation. That’s a lot more twatty than OP and her towers.

It makes me think of those 3 bed semis and terraces in the 70s/80s that had ‘house names’ on plaques. Jimilda etc. I think in my mining town one long street had 3 with Owl Dene on the front and no owls to be seen. 🤪

So many strong opinions, about something so daft.

I know someone who calls his own house X Towers, and I always thought it was charming.

Your family have kinda ruined it for you now, and I’m sorry about that.