Your Friend’s Wife Breaks Something in Your House (1 Viewer)

[fantasycurse42]

What’s protocol here? Had a SB party and my friend’s wife broke my garbage can. It’s in an island that slides in and out. She was drunk and as everyone was leaving a bunch of people were standing around the island. It’s a big island, 15x5, so we weren’t in a tight space. Instead of simply pulling it out by the handle, she tried pulling it down. We all heard it snap. I’ve now wasted roughly an hour of my morning and I think a trip to Home Depot is at hand. Tbh, this fix is near the outer limits of my capabilities.

What’s fair protocol here? I kind of want to ask him to bring his toolbox and fix this, is that wrong?

 

[mr. furley]

this is the wife of your friend?

and he knows his wife broke your trash can? least he can do is come over and try to help you fix it.

 

[Da Guru]

What’s protocol here? Had a SB party and my friend’s wife broke my garbage can. It’s in an island that slides in and out. She was drunk and as everyone was leaving a bunch of people were standing around the island. It’s a big island, 15x5, so we weren’t in a tight space. Instead of simply pulling it out by the handle, she tried pulling it down. We all heard snap. I’ve now wasted roughly an hour of my morning and I think a trip to Home Depot is at hand. Tbh, this fix is near the outer limits of my capabilities.

What’s fair protocol here? I kind of want to ask him to bring his toolbox and fix this, is that wrong?

When we have parties more often than not something gets broken. Just the cost of doing business.

 

[AAABatteries]

Let your wife deal with anything involving the friend. Is the "him" above her husband? Are you friends?

If the answer to those are both yes then maybe invite him over for a beer and to help you fix it. If you aren't friends, then just chalk it up to hosting and fix it yourself.

 

[fantasycurse42]

this is the wife of your friend?

and he knows his wife broke your trash can? least he can do is come over and try to help you fix it.

Kind of where I am with this.

What’s protocol here? Had a SB party and my friend’s wife broke my garbage can. It’s in an island that slides in and out. She was drunk and as everyone was leaving a bunch of people were standing around the island. It’s a big island, 15x5, so we weren’t in a tight space. Instead of simply pulling it out by the handle, she tried pulling it down. We all heard snap. I’ve now wasted roughly an hour of my morning and I think a trip to Home Depot is at hand. Tbh, this fix is near the outer limits of my capabilities.

What’s fair protocol here? I kind of want to ask him to bring his toolbox and fix this, is that wrong?

When we have parties more often than not something gets broken. Just the cost of doing business.

Kind of disagree here. We’re not 16 year old kids. If I break something in someone’s house, I’m not like oops, good luck.

 

[fantasycurse42]

He’s my friend, it was his wife.

 

[gianmarco]

I was somewhat interested when I thought garbage can meant something else. Then you mentioned Home Depot.

Don't care now.

 

[Da Guru]

this is the wife of your friend?

and he knows his wife broke your trash can? least he can do is come over and try to help you fix it.

Kind of where I am with this.

What’s protocol here? Had a SB party and my friend’s wife broke my garbage can. It’s in an island that slides in and out. She was drunk and as everyone was leaving a bunch of people were standing around the island. It’s a big island, 15x5, so we weren’t in a tight space. Instead of simply pulling it out by the handle, she tried pulling it down. We all heard snap. I’ve now wasted roughly an hour of my morning and I think a trip to Home Depot is at hand. Tbh, this fix is near the outer limits of my capabilities.

What’s fair protocol here? I kind of want to ask him to bring his toolbox and fix this, is that wrong?

When we have parties more often than not something gets broken. Just the cost of doing business.

Kind of disagree here. We’re not 16 year old kids. If I break something in someone’s house, I’m not like oops, good luck.

I agree but we never push it at the time..my wife always says "Don`t worry about it" then the next day complains to me.

 

[Dezbelief]

I would fix it myself.

 

[fantasycurse42]

this is the wife of your friend?

and he knows his wife broke your trash can? least he can do is come over and try to help you fix it.

Kind of where I am with this.

What’s protocol here? Had a SB party and my friend’s wife broke my garbage can. It’s in an island that slides in and out. She was drunk and as everyone was leaving a bunch of people were standing around the island. It’s a big island, 15x5, so we weren’t in a tight space. Instead of simply pulling it out by the handle, she tried pulling it down. We all heard snap. I’ve now wasted roughly an hour of my morning and I think a trip to Home Depot is at hand. Tbh, this fix is near the outer limits of my capabilities.

What’s fair protocol here? I kind of want to ask him to bring his toolbox and fix this, is that wrong?

When we have parties more often than not something gets broken. Just the cost of doing business.

Kind of disagree here. We’re not 16 year old kids. If I break something in someone’s house, I’m not like oops, good luck.

I agree but we never push it at the time..my wife always says "Don`t worry about it" then the next day complains to me.

No pushing yesterday. But now I’ve spent an hour this morning and I’m frustrated.

 

[Grace Under Pressure]

 

[jvdesigns2002]

Definitely sucks—but as someone mentioned earlier—your party, you served alcohol, served enough to where she (and perhaps others) got drunk—it’s a cost of doing business that you should probably bear. Honestly, I’d recommend fixing it yourself or having a handyman take care of it—and use this incident as a moment to laugh about with your friend until the end of time. I think approaching him to fix it kinda comes across as being petty and it completely drains the future laughs/fun that could result from the incident.

 

[Da Guru]

this is the wife of your friend?

and he knows his wife broke your trash can? least he can do is come over and try to help you fix it.

Kind of where I am with this.

What’s protocol here? Had a SB party and my friend’s wife broke my garbage can. It’s in an island that slides in and out. She was drunk and as everyone was leaving a bunch of people were standing around the island. It’s a big island, 15x5, so we weren’t in a tight space. Instead of simply pulling it out by the handle, she tried pulling it down. We all heard snap. I’ve now wasted roughly an hour of my morning and I think a trip to Home Depot is at hand. Tbh, this fix is near the outer limits of my capabilities.

What’s fair protocol here? I kind of want to ask him to bring his toolbox and fix this, is that wrong?

When we have parties more often than not something gets broken. Just the cost of doing business.

Kind of disagree here. We’re not 16 year old kids. If I break something in someone’s house, I’m not like oops, good luck.

I agree but we never push it at the time..my wife always says "Don`t worry about it" then the next day complains to me.

No pushing yesterday. But now I’ve spent an hour this morning and I’m frustrated.

Been there..I get it.

We had a party last year and my buddy brought his 2 sons that were 13-14. I have a nice home gym in the lower level and they keep going down there and screwing around..I tell my friend it is not a playroom they can get hurt as I have a whole gym type setup with an 8ft mirror from ground up on one wall. Next day when I go to work out there is a 10 inch crack in the lower mirror starting at ground level. I can tell one of them let a weight roll into the mirror.

I am the only one that works out there and never come close to that mirror. But a day had passed and I really can`t prove it was them. Had to replace the mirror and the piece was going to eventually collapse.

 

[belljr]

If I broke something at my friend's house I would offer to try and fix it or at least pay for it but that's how I roll. Get better friends?

 

[AAABatteries]

He’s my friend, it was his wife.

And you know for certain that he knows she broke it? If so, that's crappy as he should offer to fix it and/or pay to fix it. But I wouldn't bring it up to him.

 

[arrow1]

need pics of said wife

 

[fantasycurse42]

He’s my friend, it was his wife.

And you know for certain that he knows she broke it? If so, that's crappy as he should offer to fix it and/or pay to fix it. But I wouldn't bring it up to him.

Yes, we were all standing there and heard it break, and then saw the can dangling after. There’s no question as to when it broke or who broke it.

 

[JohnnyU]

Don’t create any friction. Just deal with it yourself.

 

[ChiefD]

I would fix it myself and not say anything.

But I would also take the old one that was broken and make some kind of trophy out of it and make a presentation and hand it to her at the next big gathering.

 

[massraider]

If I broke something at my friend's house I would offer to try and fix it or at least pay for it but that's how I roll. Get better friends?

Maybe.

Maybe wait longer than 12 hours to start ranting into the ether.

 

[Anarchy99]

Your friend should offer to either help fix it or pay for it to be fixed (or reimburse you for the costs). However, if he fails to do so, you're kind of on your own. If that happened with me, I wouldn't even want you to try to repair it. I would want you to replace the subassembly that got broken, and if that was too difficult, would just find a handyman and have it done for you.

Only other thing I could suggest is to bring it up with your friend and ask him WTF was his wife thinking. Mention you tried tinkering with it, and it's broken and can't be repaired (or above your skill level). Thus giving your friend a second chance to make good. If that doesn't work, maybe don't invite him over for parties anymore.

 

[need2know]

cost of hosting. but they should have stepped forward and paid for a new trash can for you.
if you arent that friendly with them that would be grounds to not invite them over again if its me

 

[Mister CIA]

Can we not come together and fix this? Maybe post a picture so that we can see the damage and propose a solution. I'm puzzled that it would break so easily from pulling down.

 

[3C's]

need pics of said wife

can't believe it took this long to get here; guys are slipping..

 

[fruity pebbles]

I’m not creating drama over a broken trash can. I’d just fix it and move on

 

[TripItUp]

There is only one form of payment/retribution that is acceptable in these situations...

 

[NewlyRetired]

if I am the breakee, I offer to either help fix it or offer to pay for the fix

if I am the host, and it is not something super expensive, I put my guests immediately at ease, and tell them not to worry about, **** happens.

 

[DJackson10]

He’s my friend, it was his wife.

if it’s at the point of needing to call someone I’d bring it to his attention. Don’t be an ******* about it but casually bring it up and and see what he says. If he’s apologetic and offers to fix it or pay for it cool. If he gets defensive and you still want to continue to be friends I’d let it go and not ruin a good friendship. Especially if this was a one time incident. People get drunk at parties unfortunately things break sometimes. It wasn’t intentional.

I’d call him up and see how he reacts before going further on the issue first

 

[Nugget]

Can you fix it your self? I would not strain a friendship for a couple hours and less than $500. I would also wait 48 hours and see if he reaches out. Does the repair need to be completed this morning?

 

[zamboni]

As others said, if it's not expensive, I'd probably just do it myself or have a handyman do it. If it's expensive, I might just call him up and say matter-of-factly (without confrontation) the fact that you had to pay to have it fixed.

Without knowing the full circumstances, he honestly doesn't sound like a very standup guy if everyone heard the snap as you said, knew that his wife did it, and never offered to fix it.

 

[jvdesigns2002]

He’s my friend, it was his wife.

And you know for certain that he knows she broke it? If so, that's crappy as he should offer to fix it and/or pay to fix it. But I wouldn't bring it up to him.

I’m in this camp. The question is not whether his friend should offer some physical or monetary help to fix the break. Certainly seems like most members here would proactively volunteer either of these solutions. The question being asked here is if the OP should reach out or bring it up to the friend being that there was no proactive offer. I’m in the camp that says “no” under these circumstances.

 

[SWC]

what was said right when she broke it like did she know she did it did people discuss it and so on take that to the bank brohan

 

[Mookie]

Throw a brick through their kitchen window with a note attached inviting them for pizza and cards.

 

[Fat Nick]

If it were me, I wouldn't push the issue if you KNOW they KNOW that she broke it - but it would completely change my opinion of them if I were in your shoes. If I or anyone in my family broke anything at anyone's house while visiting, I'd immediately offer to pay whatever it took to fix it. That's the moral thing to do in my opinion.

Over the holidays, we had a neighborhood party at our house. The kids (~8 of them) were having a nerf gun war in the basement while the parents were upstairs. One slightly older kid was picking on a younger kid and shooting him from pretty close range while he was out of ammo. The younger kid has some anger management issues, and threw his nerf gun (the whole gun) at the other kid as he was running away. He missed the kid, and hit my 72" TV, shattering it. My son, horrified that I was going to kill him and every kid down there, ran up and told me what happened. The offending kid's Dad walked downstairs briefly, came back up, and said, "Well, I guess you got yourself a new TV. Get whatever you want and let me know what I owe you." That was that. It was an accident. He could've blamed the other kid, he could've shirked responsibility, but they just accepted it and we all moved on.

I will add that if it is really expensive, homeowner's insurance will likely cover repairs. In my case, the neighbor's homeowner policy actually covered the cost to replace my TV (depreciated, but still over $1,500).

 

[General Malaise]

Hire a handyman for a couple hundred bucks and ask your buddy if he wants to split the cost or just take you out to dinner or something. If he doesn't, the friendship wasn't meant to be and you move on in life.

 

[JohnnyU]

Now if she fell through my TV she will be paying for it. Those mentioning homeowners insurance, don’t forget the deductible, that is if something like that is even covered.

 

[3C's]

Pics please!

Of the wife and/or the damage.

 

[Major]

Is this some sort of super expensive, limited edition trash can? Seems odd to get bent out of a shape over a trash can. Even if they offered to replace it, I'd do it on my own and keep it moving.

 

[General Malaise]

Is this some sort of super expensive, limited edition trash can? Seems odd to get bent out of a shape over a trash can. Even if they offered to replace it, I'd do it on my own and keep it moving.

He needs to replace a bracket most likely. It's like....$60 plus labor. A handyman should be be able to get it down for $200 including the part. wahaaaawwwwwwwaaaaaaaaaawahawwwwwwwwwwaaa

 

[msudaisy26]

if I am the breakee, I offer to either help fix it or offer to pay for the fix

if I am the host, and it is not something super expensive, I put my guests immediately at ease, and tell them not to worry about, **** happens.

This especially if it was accidental. If this really bothers the OP then you shouldn't be hosting events in the future.

 

[Dr. Octopus]

Without knowing the full circumstances, he honestly doesn't sound like a very standup guy if everyone heard the snap as you said, knew that his wife did it, and never offered to fix it.

This is what I don't get. How can the guy be there when his wife breaks something at his friends house and not offer to pay right away?

 

[Anarchy99]

Without knowing the full circumstances, he honestly doesn't sound like a very standup guy if everyone heard the snap as you said, knew that his wife did it, and never offered to fix it.

This is what I don't get. How can the guy be there when his wife breaks something at his friends house and not offer to pay right away? Sounds like a guy I would not want to be friends with in the first place. Only a weasel would act like nothing happened.

I try to look at the good side of people. Maybe the friend doesn't know the extent of the damage and thought that it could just snap back into place. Similarly, maybe the friend has no idea his buddy is struggling to fix it. That's why I suggested bringing it up again to see how the friend reacts.

I remember when my son broke a lamp at a birthday party. When I went to pick him up, When I asked one of the parents if he was well-behaved, they didn't know about the lamp yet and said he was fine. Jump ahead two weeks, and I was out with my son and ran into the parents. They thought I had a lot of nerve approaching them like nothing had happened and indicated they didn't want to have my son over anymore because he was wild and broke their lamp (which was news to me). My son confirmed that he broke the lamp, and I immediately apologized and gave them a signed blank check and told them to go get a new lamp. They still didn't invite my kid over again, but so be it.

 

[fantasycurse42]

I fixed it.

 

[Mister CIA]

I fixed it.

I am not entertained.

 

[belljr]

I fixed it.

LIESSSS

 

[Mrs. Rannous]

I wouldn't invite anyone who would get s***faced at my house over again.

 

[Grahamburn]

I wouldn't invite anyone who would get s***faced at my house over again.

These are the only people I invite over. I always make sure to warm up the spa just in case. Ya know?

 

[IvanKaramazov]

I wouldn't invite anyone who would get s***faced at my house over again.

I tried enforcing this rule once, but my wife has a key and I was too lazy to get the locks changed.

 

[Leroy Hoard]

Is this some sort of super expensive, limited edition trash can?

Some of us spare no expense when it comes to our garbage.

 

[Grahamburn]

LOOK AT ME I HAVE A KITCHEN ISLAND!!!