Entitled Mom never let her son eat fish growing up, he gets even when she pays him a visit to Japan: 'All the food was fish, and mum just had to eat it'

Author image for Ben Weiss
Ben Weiss • Writer and Editor
Apr 20, 2025 8:00 AM EDT

Being a strict parent can come at a price. Some parents decide that the best way to run their household is by creating an atmosphere that completely revolves around the parents' ideal lifestyle: the food they enjoy, the schedule they prefer, etc. Of course, structure is important when raising children, and that applies to everything from providing balanced meals to bedtime. However, at a certain point, it can become obvious as to whether or not a parent is running their household in a way that truly benefits their child's wellbeing or if it's just the way they like things. 

For the kids in these situations, it can take a while for them to realize that the environment in which they grew up was not exactly ordinary. For instance, a friend of mine did not realize until well after college that his parents' nocturnal schedule was profoundly bizarre to any other person. In this case, we have a kid who knew that his mother was, shall we say, particular about many things. This meant that he could not wait until the day he could pursue a different way of life and even force his mother to confront her own biases. 

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    Cheezburger Image 10495388416
    via Tim Wilson

    The image does not depict the actual subjects of the story. Subjects are models.

  • It's as if this author moved to Japan just to spite his mother, considering how much she hated raw fish. When she finally visited him, he made sure she had to deal with the consequences of all those years in which he was not allowed to eat fish of any kind growing up (he did, however, have to eat macaroni for dinner again and again). 

    The fish, however, wasn't even half of it. It turns out that Japan moves at an entirely different speed than the lifestyle the author's mother was accustomed to at home. Throughout her visit, the author watched on as his mother experienced major culture shock regarding cooking, cleaning, and even driving.

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    This might me a soft one but every time I remember it it still makes me chuckle. So I don't hate my parents they're actually pretty nice. However during my upbringing there were a few annoyances I'm still a bit sour about.
    via Kl**zyEnd3
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    . My mom loved macaroni, which I hate, but she hates fish, which I love. She used to make macaroni every week and I just had to take it. but whenever me and my dad made fish, we had to make something else for her. I didn't like this double standard.
    via Kl**zyEnd3
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    • Mom would always buy bread with chewy crusts. I couldn't get off the table before I ate all of it because "if you don't eat the crusts you'll never become able to whistle"
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    • Mum refused to buy a dishwasher, because "then you all complain about filling the dishwasher instead of doing the dishes"
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    • Mom hates it when she isn't in control, so she has to drive the car. if she doesn't she "drives together with you" e.g. "look left, did you see that car? you know the pedestrian has priority here right?" -- yes yes.
    via Kl**zyEnd3
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    Cheezburger Image 10495387904
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    So fast forward 15 years and I was living in Japan for a year for work and my parents came to visit. I toured them around Japan for 3 weeks which was awesome, but I couldn't help being super petty:
    via Kl**zyEnd3
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    . • I deliberately booked ryokans (traditional Japanese hotels) which serve food in your room. All the food was fish, and mum just had to eat it. just like I had to eat the macaroni.
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    . I showed her that bread in Japanese convenience stores had no crusts. I kept rubbing that in.
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    Japan has a workaholic culture. People don't have time to cook, so there's restaurants everywhere where you get healthy food for cheap. I kept rubbing in how we don't have to do the dishes....
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    • I rented a campervan for a . few days. Mom doesn't have an international driver's license so she was not allowed to drive. Also in Japan they drive on the left,
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    which isn't super difficult, but she couldn't school me on the rules because she has no experience with driving on the left whatsoever. Now I was the one explaining the rules!
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    FilmYak Well played! Reminds me of my youth, the days before the internet was ubiquitous. And if I ever asked my mom how to spell something, she had the same stock answer: "look it up in the dictionary."
    via Kl**zyEnd3
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    You'd better believe that years later, when I was visiting home from college, and she asked me how something was spelled, I gave the same answer to her.
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    I was quite proud of myself at that moment. H I, I still am.
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    StoneAgeSkillz My mom insists on "please and thank you". I have no issue with it. Sometime you forget to say please, its normal. She will remind you,
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    that you forgot. So now, if she forgets, i just sit and wait. Then she asks if I'm deaf, and i answer with: "May be, i didnt hear you say please."
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    bishopredline • I know it is an old joke but I actually used it as a kid. Mom and I were oil and water. Even if we agreed, we would disagree. She once call me a son of a b which without hesitation I said, we finally agree on something... my dad lost it, he howled like never before.
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    glenmarshall I took my parents to a fancy restaurants when they visited. While I was a child they would never have gone to such a place.
    via Kl**zyEnd3

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