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Original poster

Mens Little Habits

100 replies

Tigger · 25/06/2001 15:17

Ok then, lets lighten up the conversation girls and moan about the little things that men do. Like farting on command, completely wrecking their pants, their wind problems etc and their complete incapacity to see dishes that are needing washed.

Now keep it clean and lets have some fun!!!!!

OP posts:

PamT · 26/07/2002 10:00

Chiara, there's a lot of truth in your paragraph about men being spoilt by their mothers. DH was the baby of the family and it shows, his mother was very old fashioned and believed that it was the woman's job to do everything for the husband and I think this is still at the forefront of DHs brain. Being the SAHM I do feel that much of the housework is my responsibility but I do sometimes feel that I am caring for 4 children and the 36 yr old is the most difficult!

I also get wet towels on the bed (my side) and almost empty bottles left stood on end (to make them easier to empty) but then they are left there and he starts a new bottle of shampoo, brown sauce, salad cream etc. The kids leave their clothes wherever they take them off, so instead of putting them away DH will take his socks off and leave them on the pile for me to clear up. Then he goes off on one and has a tantrum about the state of the house and makes out it is all my fault. I give in!

Oh and his tidying up is stick everything in boxes or carrier bags and put them in our bedroom/the loft. He hasn't got a clue what is where so he always ends up having to go through the whole lot when he needs anything and is in a worse mess and even worse temper because its all in such a mess again. If I tidy up I normally put things in a logical place or where they belong and I can find them next time I look, if he tidies up there is no hope!

slug · 26/07/2002 10:31

LOL Rhubarb. The sluglet and her daddy have farting and burping contests. He has more resonance, but she has follow through!

DH has this inability to throw anything out. When I moved in with him, he kindly cleared out ONE drawer for me to put all my clothes in. His T shirt collection is so extensive I have now insisted that he must throw out one every time he buys a new one. Of course he can't bear to do this (But I bought this when I saw The Clash/Neil Young/some dodgy goth band etc...)To top it all there is a decrepid box of books sitting on the bedroom floor from when he bought the flat 6 years ago. I'm not allowed to throw them out, so it sits there, getting more and more tatty, gathering dust.

Snugs · 26/07/2002 10:53

PamT - I thought I was the only one married to a carrier bag stuffer. Dh is sooo guilty of this and at least half of the bags are filled with junk mail and rubbish which could have gone straight in the bin.

Fancy · 26/07/2002 11:33

Does anyone else have a husband who smells? Even though he does wash quite often, in the morning, I hardly dare venture to his side of the bed to say hello for fear of fainting. Is this a normal male thing? Or is it just my poor old dh stressing and sweating as he sleeps?! Nice.

Mopsy · 26/07/2002 11:37

LOL Fancy (sorry!) Is it his breath or his body (or both)?

Men who are very dark-haired do get smelly very easily and IME definitely need to shower or bathe every day. What's his diet like? As well as the classics like garlic and onions, lots of processed food and not enough fresh fruit and vegetables mean that sweat smells bad quickly.

Rhubarb · 26/07/2002 12:16

I have to admit that I'm the one who suddenly wants a pee just when dh has got into the bath! Even better is when dd saves up her stinkers until daddy is in the bath, then we have to go up and change her - ha!

It is funny though how some men will just happen to do a runner whenever you say the words: vomit, poo, or even worse, diahoerra! Whilst dd was filling up the bath with slimey poo dh suddenly decided to go the shop, leaving me to disinfect the bath and her toys as well as giving her another bath to wash all the poo off. Then he'll come bouncing up the stairs after it's all done to see if I want any help!

GRMUM · 26/07/2002 12:22

I've got a carrier bag stuffer too!!I thought i was the only one - my hall way into the house is full of bags -he tidies the car when he has work colleagues visiting from abroad by emptying all rubbish and junk from the car into a bag and leaving it in the entrance hall.Then he starts getting uppity about the state of the house.I am VERY patient though and I'm quite capable of waiting months until he removes all the bags.I do the same with his wet towels - leave them there all day.....His explanation is that hes an only child of a very doting,typical greek mum (of boys)but thats no excuse.......

WideWebWitch · 26/07/2002 13:13

It occurs to me that all mothers of boys have a duty to ensure they can look after themselves and others once they're grown men.

ionesmum · 26/07/2002 15:16

My dh (love him) is such a fussy eater it drives me mad. He loves processed junk whereas I'm a salady sort of a girl.

He's also the captain of the local cricket team and he spends hours on the phone. Not only do they spend hours making arrangements that should take five minutes', they moan about the other chaps who aren't pulling their weight, or reminisce about triumphant matches past (on one memorable occaision dh actually found last year's scorebook to check a batting average in the middle of the call!)

In his defence, he is fab around the house. In fact I'm far more untidy than he is!

SofiaAmes · 27/07/2002 00:12

well, my dh is guilty of all bad habits mentioned below and lots more invented by him alone....today's "achievement" was teaching our 20 mo. old son to stamp his foot and say "where's my dinner." ha ha ha (not)
Anyway, I think it is our duty to make sure that our sons are better trained than our hopeless husbands and spare future women the troubles we have. (my mother is still trying to get my dad to put his socks in the dirty laundry and they've been married for 45 years)

chinchilla · 27/07/2002 00:23

Slug LOL - Love the 'follow though' comment!

My dh is trying to teach ds that the remote control is the domain of 'the men' first, then the sons, and lastly the mummies!

I think that men are born proud of their farts. My ds always thinks that it is hilarious when I say 'Ooh, pardon you' when he farts or burps. My dh then has great joy in saying, 'see, I told you it is natural to fart'. I think that I need a dd to even the odds in my house

ks · 27/07/2002 00:25

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn

SimonHoward · 27/07/2002 07:29

SofiaAmes

Do I detect just a hint of aggression and stress in your posts?

DH not been properly house trained then?

PamT · 27/07/2002 08:32

Chinchilla, I have a DD who is training to be an honorary man, she can make a mess, be demanding and even fart like the males in the household. I only hope that she grows up more feminine.

sobernow · 27/07/2002 12:47

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Indie · 27/07/2002 22:28

this had made me laugh and also cry as my dh seems to do all of this and if possible more . . .

never makes the bed (why, when we just have to get back into it again tonight?)
refuses to use the bathmat (I like the freedom of shaking the water off me on to the floor!!!)
uses MY razor and leaves hair everywhere and he removes hair from everywhere as he is an elite triathlete and it supposedly makes him go faster!!!
takes his clothes off and leaves then through out the house as he makes his way to bed.
takes at least 4 dumps a day due to exercise (at 4 x 15 minutes = 60 minutes a day!)
leaves every cupboard door open - as in, why we will just have to open them again!
drinks milk and juice straight from the container and taught my dd to drink the left over milk straight from her cereal bowl!
looses wedding ring, keys and wallet everyday!
can not use washing machine / vacuum cleaner or toilet brush for that matter.
and many, many, many others!

Have come to accept the way that he is to a degree and not sweat the small stuff but if he asks one more time, what days do you work (when I have worked the same 3 days for the last 2 years) I will . . . . .!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

LiamsMum · 28/07/2002 08:32

Just thought I'd share this bit of male-ness with you. DH and I were out in our rather large garden this afternoon, doing our own respective chores. DS (24 months) was outside with us, following us around from the front to the back and was generally playing on his own. DH walked past me at one stage and informed me that ds was playing with the hose. "He's very wet, all his clothes are soaked," dh said to me. So I turned around and said, "Did you turn it off?" to which he said "No," and just walked away!! This was obviously meant to mean that he expected me to leave what I was doing, go and turn off the hose, pick up ds, take him inside, strip off his wet clothes and put some dry ones on him. WHAT IS IT with men sometimes?! It's like whatever they are doing is 100 times more important than what you are doing!! I guess it's just all too hard for them...

chinchilla · 28/07/2002 10:54

My dh does help with ds, but I always have to do half the job. For example, if he gets ds ready for the day at the w/end, I have to get the water ready for his wash, and choose an outfit. When I do a job, I do the whole thing, even if it means putting ds in his travel cot/playpen for a couple of minutes.

I made a stand this morning, and got in the shower. My dh moaned, but I reminded him that he would have to cope when I have my weekend away soon, so it wouldn't do him any harm to get used to doing a whole job now!

He is a good guy, just likes to try it on a bit!

janh · 28/07/2002 20:01

SofiaAmes, re your mum and your dad's socks after 45 years...if she just, quietly and neatly, put them into a bag day after day, eventually he would run out of socks. And then what would happen...????
Much the same applies to many of the men's bad habits featured on this thread.
Natural consequences, girls! "Take your wind out of their sails!" Forget exactly where that comes from but it's good!

Rhubarb · 28/07/2002 22:30

Janh - good advice!!! Mine had to cope with the diarroah - tough poo (no pun intended!) as I had to for the past 5 days! If you let them get away with these things then of course they are going to try it on, wouldn't you? Do you really do your dh's washing? Would he do yours? Does he know how to operate the washing machine? If not, why not? Sometimes we women are just as much to blame, you can't moan about them not doing the washing if you've never shown them how it works. Leave them instructions and then let them do it themselves, if they run out of clean clothes then tough poo! I honestly get fed up of women who moan about their partners not pulling their weight when they themselves let them get away with it! What are you - a doormat??? C'mon, do you really think it would be the same if the roles were reversed?

SofiaAmes · 29/07/2002 00:48

SimonHoward, actually I find it rather amusing, sorry that you detected aggression and strain. My dh has lots of virtues (otherwise I wouldn't have married him), but picking up socks isn't one of them. There are many things that need to take place in a functioning household and since we both work full time, we try to divide them by what we are naturally good at and enjoy and hire someone to do the rest . My husband wouldn't notice a three foot pile of dishes in the sink, but he always keeps the bathroom and toilet spotless clean. I don't mind putting dishes in the dishwasher, but hate doing bathrooms. etc. etc.
I personally think "house training" has to begin at a very young age and is therefore a parent's responsibility, not a spouse's.
Janh, I think my mother feels much the same as I do...my father has other virtues/abilities than tidying socks and although she teases him about it, she has decided that it's not the battle she wants to fight.

Mooma · 29/07/2002 16:11

SophiaAmes, I think SimonHoward had probably read your posting about 'passive-aggressive' behaviour and was trying to be funny...

susanmt · 30/07/2002 00:40

My dh is wonderful at housework, brilliant at looking after the kids, really caring and romantic and can use the washing machine, always does the hoovering, etc etc etc .....
BUT he sits on the edge of the bed every night and picks at his toeanils!!!
AAAAAAAAAAAAAArrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrghhhhhhhh!!
It is going to drive me insane, if it hasn't already, we have been married for 7 1/2 yrs!

Azzie · 30/07/2002 09:52

I too have a wonderful dh but.... he is so energy-saving-conscious that he turns all the lights off when he leaves the room - even if I'm still sitting in there. Drives me WILD.

Rhubarb · 30/07/2002 14:21

LOL Azzie! Just pictured you sitting there all alone in the dark! Maybe you should try it on him!

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