To ask what the weirdest thing you experienced or saw at someone else's house when you were a child?

[BillHadersNewWife]

Inspired by a Reddit thread...there were some absolutely weird things that people experienced or saw at their mates' houses as children.

There was a man who said he hated eating at his friend's house because they weren't allowed to drink water with a meal.

There was someone who said their friend wasn't allowed in any other room but the kitchen and their bedroom.

That kind of thing! I'm thinking myself and can't really dredge much up. There was one friend who lived in a huge mansion...think National Trust style place...and it was empty!

Just room after room with less furniture in the place than in an average semi!

Normal-ish family...I think they were broke due to having 5 kids and privately educating them all!

[Mintjulia]

My parents didn’t get on and I was used to angry bad-tempered rows that simmered on for days.

I was about 6, at a friend’s house, and her parents started an argument. But their arguing involved my friend (and me) taking cover under the coffee table while her parents threw shoes at each other above us, called each other silly names and laughed a lot. It was a revelation to me. I loved it.

[tiredmedic]

@ Shplot......this stands out as much as any other post here. Have some flowers and I really hope things are better now.

[Camphillgirl]

My granny used to give us “port wine” in warmed egg cups at bedtime. We drank hot milk with a big knob of butter in it and a good pinch of black pepper. We ate thick sliced bread which she cut from a whole loaf with a huge carving knife, she spread “dripping” from the beef joint and sprinkled salt on it. We loved it.

All the kids in our neighbourhood knew who the odd men were and we avoided them. We didn’t know what they did but our native cunning told us to steer clear.

However we also knew the kind old ladies who gave us sweets or coins when we did errands for them. They’d make is lovely hot chocolate with Jersey Islands milk that had about 4inches of thick yellow cream on the top of the milk.

We must have been hardy we had no warm anoraks or fleeces, just gabardine raincoats in winter. My friend’s dad had been lost in the war and she only had a hand knitted cardigan gloves and knitted scarf to keep her warm going to school. We didn’t really notice or feel sorry for these children there were lots of them.

[ColdCottage]

In the 90's I went to a friends house at secondary school. Friend asked if I'd like a snack, yes please.... she went to the fridge and took out cold - plain pasta and offered me either salt or grated cheese on it. Cold

[ColdCottage]

I've read most of the thread now as some parts are just harrowing. So so sad that anybody had to live through these things. Feel very lucky to have the childhood I did.

[Ddot]

Called round my friends to go play, her dad had just come in from work. Presented with two slices of toast with pot noddle on top. I was maybe ten and thought wow the wall would have been wearing that if my mam gave that to my pa

[PandemicAtTheDisco]

Weirdest things at another child's house?

Extremely odd furniture arrangements, all children's bedroom doors removed. Lock on door at top of stairs to keep children locked upstairs. Locks on windows that were never opened. Lock to keep people out of the kitchen.

No one talked much when we went inside their house when the father was there. We had been playing outside and I urgently needed to use the toilet. No lock on the bathroom door. Door wouldn't close properly and the father followed me up the stairs and waited outside whilst I used the toilet. He yelled at me to wash my hands so had been watching.

Another time we were watching TV and the father was out, the atmosphere was much better but no one could sit on their parents sofa and we had to sit on the sofa that wasn't facing the TV so we had to watch at an angle.

Years later the father went to prison for raping his daughters. He used to lock the mother and other children upstairs and then rape whichever child on the parent's sofa.

[Athrawes]

All those people reminiscing about the coal deliveries in the 1960's and 70's.... Welcome to New Zealand in 2020! Except you have to drive your trailer to the coal mine and get it filled, before you take it home and fill your own coal shed. Makes for lovely heat and water so hot it bubbles up the overflow and into the roof. On a cold night when the fire is really roaring you can step out your back door and have scalding hot water raining down off the roof.
No central heating, insulation is hit and miss and double glazing is considered a modern invention.

[Bearnecessity]

An open coffin on the stairs landing, utterly terrifying when the child I was babysitting started crying and I had to go past the coffin to see to the child.Never went back...

[Needsomethingtoread]

Was invited for a sleepover at my friends and told to bring my pillow and a blanket. Fine. However we slept in front of the fire with only my pillow and blanket. This was early 90s and I thought it was a little strange.

[MumDad1958]

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[Mags5Bia]

I don't remember anything strange at other folk's houses.

I did have one very strange thing take place on a day trip with a friend and his dad. I would have been about 6, I think and we went to visit my friend's granny who lived near the coast. It was October and she had her Christmas tree and decorations up which was odd to me at least. That's not the odd bit though, the weird thing was that my friend's dad asked me to pretend that his family had adopted me and I was part of the family as she had always wanted a granddaughter and only had grandsons. I felt uncomfortable doing this but at that age you do as adults tell you so I went along with it. The granny seemed very confused throughout and looking back she must have had some sort of dementia. She died not too long after and the charitable side of me wonders if I was asked to pretend to be a granddaughter to fulfil a dying wish, the other side of worries that I was unwittingly part of a prank on a confused elderly lady.

[RevolvingPivot]

Ah I didn't want this thread to end.

@PandemicAtTheDisco that is horrific