Should I feel bad? Or be mad!

[Luvchefmic]

I see what you're saying. This mother, in a fit of anger, cracked the screen herself and has now come up with this very public "cover" story to hide what she really did. Then, realizing her awful deed, she placed it under the very part of her mattress that she knows her daughter to frequent. She would have gotten away with it also if not for the due diligence of all of us on the Disboards. Bravo to all of us here for another mystery solved.

p.s. - I'm warming the tar right now. Does anyone have feathers?

 

[Wall-E1]

Perfect! Start plucking!!!

 

[Luvchefmic]

would have had that chicken for you sooner but was looking at other posts you made...better than anything I could be watching

the pic of the rabbit in the sideview mirror & what you proposed doing to the kid the 3rd time with the computer (not this kid) Can I start a fan club for you ..too much

 

[Hollywoodhaha]

are you always this funny or is this one of your drinking binges I am going to have to remeber your user ID I'll have to not have any liquid in my mouth at the time though or I will end up as OP DD..computerless

He is always this funny. I met him during the great tagging of New Years Eve!
That is where he got all his tags trust me, many stories on there.. which resulted in his banning for a while

 

[Luvchefmic]

He is always this funny. I met him during the great tagging of New Years Eve!
That is where he got all his tags trust me, many stories on there.. which resulted in his banning for a while

Well I gotta follow a guy that would be banned I can't believe I haven't run into him before


Bet if the OP comes cback she'll be laughing so hard she won't even care about being mad or sad !

 

[Jennasis]

If I had gone looking for something my parents confiscated, my mother would have broken it in front of me as an extra punishment for my insolence.

The kid's fault.

 

[AlleyKat]

As to why the op would need to hide the computer from her teen in the first place, I don't know. I do know that I am in a similar situation with my teen. If I confiscate something, it must be hidden. If he is banned from the tv or computer, I need to put a passcode in. He's very sneaky that way. In my case, I think it just boils down to bad parenting on my part. When not in a drunken haze, I sometimes sadly think back to what might have been. Unfortunately, I did not stumble upon the treasure trove of knowledgable and perfect parents of the Disboards until it was too late. If so, things surely would have turned out much differently. But, alas, the kid was already set in his ways and I had already lost my desire to do right by him. Perhaps the op is in a similar situation. If so, don't feel bad. I truly believe with all my heart that there are more bad parents and kids out there than good. And that gives me hope for our future and the future of our kids.

Touche'!

 

[AlleyKat]

Have we established the type of mattress that the op has? Was it a pillow top? Was it a Temper-Pedic? Also, we will need to know the weight of the daughter. Only then can we definitively plug in the numbers to determine who was truly at fault here. Although, I have to be honest... I am leaning towards believing that the op may be entirely at fault here. As such, I have begun lighting the torches and hope to see all of you in the town square in one hour.

O.M.G., you are a breath of fresh air!

 

[AlleyKat]

Well I gotta follow a guy that would be banned I can't believe I haven't run into him before

I'm with you on this one!

 

[AlleyKat]

If I had gone looking for something my parents confiscated, my mother would have broken it in front of me as an extra punishment for my insolence.

The kid's fault.

This about sums it up!

 

[laurie31]

I am curious as to how the DD was searching for the laptop while seated on the bed. LOL. Did she just plop down to think of where to search next?

Our experiences with laptops have been that simply breathing heavily on them will damage them. We have a netbook now that seems fairly sturdy, though.

OP - next time, remember - hide it in plain sight. I hid DH's Christmas present in HIS closet one year and he never found it! He even asked where I'd managed to hide it. However, when next seeking out obtuse hiding places, do NOT hide it in the oven.

 

[MoniqueU]

I take laptops and cell phones away from one of my kids alot since that really gets her. She has yet to go looking for it as she knows if she did it would be that much longer. I do hide them in more secure places then a bed. But your daughter should of sucked it up and dealt with her punishment. Next time be more careful where you put it and also explain to her if she finds it and uses it it will be gone twice as long and give it to a friend to hold.

 

[sunshine1178]

We had to buy a desktop safe to put the cell phone and laptop in because I was tired of having my room ransacked as she tried to reclaim her "reposessed" items.

Sad, but effective.

 

[Wall-E1]

Good news! After a long and arduous investigation, I was able to uncover a photo of the mattress in question. And here it is...

Armed with this vital visual evidence, we should now definitively be able to ascertain who truly was at fault here. The op has kindly marked off important areas of the bed to assist us in our investigation. The dark stain nearest to us is where the op generally sleeps. If you look towards the far right(where the blood stain is), that is where the laptop was hidden. The stain to the far left is where the teenage daughter claims to have been sitting. Finally, the burn mark that we see towards the back portion of the mattress is simply there from when the op fell asleep with a lit cigarette in her mouth(not to worry - she extinguished the flames with a can of beer). After seeing this detailed photograph, I am now confident in declaring that the damage was caused by a manufacturing defect in Dell computers.

And to the op - Teens are terrible creatures and cause much damage and heartache. In situations such as yours, you just have to tell yourself, "it was only a thing". Remember, a teen's sole purpose in life is to slowly strip away all layers of our sanity. Just hold on to this thought - one day she will have a teen.

 

[DISdreamin']

When not in a drunken haze, I sometimes sadly think back to what might have been. Unfortunately, I did not stumble upon the treasure trove of knowledgable and perfect parents of the Disboards until it was too late.

After a night of heavy drinking (and driving, of course - we should try to hit all the buttons possible) I often get on the Dis to see what might have been...if only I had discovered this forum sooner.

OP, in all seriousness, I am torn. No, in retrospect the hiding place wasn't the best but, since the computer should/would have been safe had your daughter not gone looking for it, in my opinion she is at fault for the damage. Had you been the one to do the damage, totally different story, of course! Were it me, I'd give her the opportunity to earn the money to replace the screen or computer, depending on what makes more sense, assuming you have the cash to spare.

 

[Luvchefmic]

Good news! After a long and arduous investigation, I was able to uncover a photo of the mattress in question. And here it is...

Armed with this vital visual evidence, we should now definitively be able to ascertain who truly was at fault here. The op has kindly marked off important areas of the bed to assist us in our investigation. The dark stain nearest to us is where the op generally sleeps. If you look towards the far right(where the blood stain is), that is where the laptop was hidden. The stain to the far left is where the teenage daughter claims to have been sitting. Finally, the burn mark that we see towards the back portion of the mattress is simply there from when the op fell asleep with a lit cigarette in her mouth(not to worry - she extinguished the flames with a can of beer). After seeing this detailed photograph, I am now confident in declaring that the damage was caused by a manufacturing defect in Dell computers.

And to the op - Teens are terrible creatures and cause much damage and heartache. In situations such as yours, you just have to tell yourself, "it was only a thing". Remember, a teen's sole purpose in life is to slowly strip away all layers of our sanity. Just hold on to this thought - one day she will have a teen.

Impressive work on this case Horatio

 

[LiberalPrincess]

Impressive work on this case Horatio

Somehow, without the dramatic removal of the sunglasses and the background music it just doesn't have the same effect.

 

[Luvchefmic]

Somehow, without the dramatic removal of the sunglasses and the background music it just doesn't have the same effect.

hey its 101 in the morning best I can do

 

[Tweevil]

Yeah, mattresses are for dirty magazines. Any self respecting teen knows that.

an angry Momma !

YEP!

Uh Oh! I guess I have bigger problems than I thought! I'm not a reasonable person!

Of course hindsight is 20/20 vision but my hiding spot did not seem to be a risky location. It was carefully placed far from where anyone would normally sit or lay.

I think-ith we need a club, I will join!

When not in a drunken haze, I sometimes sadly think back to what might have been. Unfortunately, I did not stumble upon the treasure trove of knowledgable and perfect parents of the Disboards until it was too late. If so, things surely would have turned out much differently. But, alas, the kid was already set in his ways and I had already lost my desire to do right by him. Perhaps the op is in a similar situation. If so, don't feel bad. I truly believe with all my heart that there are more bad parents and kids out there than good. And that gives me hope for our future and the future of our kids.

Alas, I too was one mis-guided by parenting via old school methods until the divine wisdom here was imparted to me. Wall-E1 you crack me up.

Hiccup.... -

Pfft..... I don't hide things (not kicking anyone who does here) I prefer to leave it in the open - makes things more torturous that way. And, if the behavior doesn't improve and/or it is taken during the time frame the kid loses it. And, if I feel like putting it away, giving it away, or stomping on it then it is my business since I usually am the one who pays for it.
I don't think I am ever going to belong to the snowflake parenting club. sniff.... ok, I am over it

Anyhoo... different styles for different parents. OP if you truly in your heart feel bad then help to repair/replace/use the warranty on it. Ultimately you have to know you did what you thought was best.

 

[Disneyadore]

I think "taking away" a lap top,cell phone or car is not the solution to resolve a problem with a sixteen year old.There almost grown up so taking away something is just a short time solution.

I would have tried to resolve a problem with other methods but hey that's just me.
So seeing this problem from that angel yes I would feel bad and hurry to buy a new one.