Reddit can be intense, perplexing and hilarious
Here are some of the craziest Reddit stories of 2021.
1. Lobster Diver Swallowed by Whale
In June 2021, after entering the water for the second dive of the day, lobster diver Michael Packard was swallowed by a whale.
He was convinced he was going to die but survived to tell his epic story.
His son posted in the Reddit AMAs (Ask Me Anything) his dad’s responses to the experience and the story became one of Reedit’s most popular.
Michael Packard’s response to a much-asked question of what the whale’s tongue felt like, was that he “couldn’t really tell” because he was in a dry suit, and the whale’s mouth was filled with water that surrounded him.
2. Dodging a Cash-in-Transit Robbery
A video of an attempted armed robbery in South Africa went viral on Reddit when drivers, Leo Prinsloo and Lloyd Mtombeni, of a cash-in-transit vehicle managed to escape the planned robbery—”Mission Impossible” style.
Leo Prinsloo, a former police sniper-turned-private security escort, was praised on Reddit after the viral video showed his nonchalant reaction to the attack.
The car drove straight through gunfire but for Prinsloo, it looked like business as usual.
3. Worker Text Resignation
A worker’s text resignation went viral on Reddit after being shared to the popular “Anti Work: Unemployment for all, not just the rich!” subreddit.
The post read: “Quit my job last night, it was nice to be home to make the kids breakfast and take them to school today! Off to hunt for a new opportunity, wish me luck”
The Redditor said he was an employee of a healthy living fulfillment warehouse. “I packed orders, just as simple as that. Pay was ok for the area (16/hr), although the COL [cost of living] is fairly high here”, he wrote
The shared text messages showed the interaction between the the worker and his boss, who criticized him for the “unacceptable behavior” of sitting down for most of the shift, even when the worker had to sit because of his two broken bones.
4. 60 Frappuccinos Costing $279, But No Tip
A Starbucks barista shared to the Starbucks subreddit an order of 60 Frappuccinos costing $279, and noted the client left no tip.
The image of the Frappuccinos became one of the most popular food-related post of 2021, with Reddit users shocked at the customer’s behavior and supportive of the workers making the five dozen drinks.
5. Wall Street Bets’ GameStop
Spencer Platt/Getty Images/Getty
The story of how a bunch of Redditor day traders pretty much played the big guys at Wall Street.
Amateur investor Subreddit r/WallStreetBets helped GameStop’s stock price soar when the community decided GameStop was undervalued.
Market Insider reported that as of January “GameStop short-sellers had lost $5 billion as Reddit’s day-trader army squeezed their bearish bets.”
6. Worker Whose Boss Shamed Him for Tight Pants
Username “TransparentVoices” took to Reddit’s “True Off My Chest” forum to tell how his boss had called him into her office and asked him to wear “less revealing” pants to work.
He wrote, “apparently, my ‘bulge’ is inappropriate for the workplace.” His manager said to him “just go buy something looser or get a bigger size,” he said.
When he posted an update on the pants incident, the user wrote, “I contacted two well-known lawyers in my area and got a consultation from them about my situation.
“They both thought that while I was sexually harassed, the case wasn’t bulletproof as there was little evidence, and no pattern of abuse,” he said.
“They then also warned me about going to HR without any evidence, as it can cascade into me losing my job in unexpected ways. fine.”
7. HR to Employee With Disability: ‘Be a Functioning Member of Society’
User “Sleep_Logic” wrote on Reddit’s “Antiwork” forum: “I have a mental health disability (bipolar) that I was up front about when I got hired and have done the proper ADA paperwork. HR is aware of it and I work hard to keep pushing and keep them in the loop if I trip up.
“So far they’ve been a blessing. It got so bad earlier this year I took FMLA leave and they were gracious about my return and accommodations. I’ve had a lingering feeling that kindness was running low.. until today when it was confirmed.”
The woman noted that HR put her on notice for using vacation time or occasionally working from home adding that they now want her to come into the office all the time.
“Barbara said I need to be more serious about my self care so that I can be a ‘functioning member of society’ (Implying I’m not already??).”
The woman asked Reddit if she was “being too sensitive,” to which she received overwhelming support, with thousands of upvotes and comments
8. Redditor Written Up for Discussing Salary
In a now-viral post, one Redditor said she was written up by her employer for discussing pay with her coworkers.
Posting to Reddit’s “Anti Work” forum, username u/spicymemories19 shared a photo of the employee warning report she received.
It showed the Redditor was written up for “insubordination,” “policy violations” and for “discussing salary with co-workers.” The Redditor stated that this never happened.
9. Redditor Texts From Boss Demanding They Cover Shift Last Minute
A Redditor went viral after sharing an interaction with his boss that left users discussing about how much an employee owes their employer, specially on days off.
Redditor, YoloCowboy, shared a screenshot on the subreddit “r/antiwork,” showing the text exchange between him and his manager.
“Hey I know you live kinda far but a couple people called out today—could you come in,” the text exchange began.
The Redditor explained that arriving in 48 minutes would be difficult because he lives out of state and it was such short notice on a Sunday, “surely you understand?” they wrote.
“I understand nothing,” the manager responded back. The Redditor decided not to go into work and the next morning, a call from HR confirmed his resignation and asked where to send his final check.
10. Worker Docked 15 Mins Pay for Running 1 Min Late
A Redditor by the username “MrEktidd” took to the “Am I the A**hole (AITA)” forum to tell his own experience with docked pay.
“I come in to work every day an hour early(paid OT). A few times I was literally less than a minute late and had 15 minutes docked from my pay,” the Redditor wrote. “So now I refuse to work if it’s not being paid. Task is going to take me 2 minutes after the home bell? Guess I’m stretching it for 15. Clock in at 5:46? Guess I’ll sit and wait til 6. If you’re gonna take my money, I’m gonna take your minutes. Simple as that.”
The story went viral after many users shared their own experiences of unfair working conditions in regards to money and time worked.
11. Bridesmaid Got ‘Cold Shoulders’ for Not Giving Bride Her Necklace
A bridesmaid claimed in a viral Reddit post that she received “cold shoulders” at a wedding ceremony for refusing to let the bride, Mary, wear her necklace.
She shared her story in Reddit’s “Am I The A**hole” forum under the username u/BlueRoses95.The bridesmaid explained that her fiancé gifted her the necklace. “I asked Mary in our bridal party group chat if she was alright with us wearing our own jewelry to the wedding, she said no problem,” she continued.
The bridesmaid claimed that when Mary saw the necklace, she loved it so much, she asked the bridesmaid if they could “switch” necklaces. However, the bridesmaid refused. She asked Reddit: “[Am I the a**hole] for refusing to remove a piece of jewelry at the request of my friend on her wedding day?”
She received plenty of support for saying no to the bride.
12. Bride’s Expensive ‘Requests’ After Bridesmaids ‘Step Down’
A soon-to-be bride took to Reddit after a conflict over money with several of her bridesmaids.
A Redditor, known as u/Otherwise_Ad_8188, wrote that the the bride had a destination wedding planned for July 2022 and had begun planning with her bridal party.
The bride notes that her initial “requests” to her bridal party “seemed reasonable at first,” but her bridesmaids started stepping down from the role.
The requests included paying for their own hotel rooms at the resort where the bride, groom, and their families will be staying and covering the costs of their own bridesmaid dresses. Additionally, the bridesmaids were responsible for “[finding] their own hairstylists and makeup artists” for the big day.
On top of the wedding itself, the bride’s maid-of-honor is planning the bachelorette party—”a weekend getaway” that each bridesmaid has to cover their own costs for. “After my requests were made clear I had a couple of my bridesmaids…saying that sadly they’ll have to step down because they can’t afford all this,” wrote the bride.
13. Convinced To Break Off Engagement Because Fiancé Is Poor
A man received praise online after his advice encouraged his teenage niece to not only break off her engagement, but break up with her fiance for good.
In a post published to Reddit’s “Am I The A**hole” forum, the man explained that his niece, 19, got engaged after dating her fiance for four months.
This angered her father, who threatened to “stop funding her life” if she married him.
He explained that his niece is “pretty spoiled” and not yet financially independent from her parents. He managed to convince her by simply crunching the numbers to show how difficult her life with her fiance would be financially.
14. Wife Refuses To Cook After Husband Binned Her ‘Horrible’ Cooking
In a Reddit post, a woman revealed she had stopped cooking for her husband because he binned her “horrible Asian cooking.”
She explained she had been been married for only a few months, after a long-distance relationship. Her spouse is American, while her family is originally from Asia.
When her relatives visit she always whips up a feast of their home-cooked favorites, much to her husband’s disapproval, although she stated she always offers to include his favorite meals in the spread as well.
The woman received plenty of support for her decision not to cook for her husband anymore.
15. Childless Woman: ‘I Prefer Sushi’ Over Having Kids
One woman without children divided opinion online after revealing she would “prefer sushi” over having kids.
User Noswellin posted in Reddit’s Am I The A***** forum, that she made the remark in response to yet another question over when she and her husband were having children.
16. Babysitter Who Called Cops When the Mom Was Late
A babysitter called the cops after the mom of the child she was looking after didn’t come at the agreed time, and could not even be reached on the phone.
She shared a post to Reddit “Am I The A****** ” forum, wondering if she did the right thing.
The dilemma, sparked a passionate debate and the babysitter received widespread support online.
17. Bride Who Won’t Let Fiancé’s Friend Be Bridesmaid
A bride-to-be took to Reddit to share that her fiancé asked her to include one of his close female friends as a bridesmaid. However, the bride-to-be doesn’t like her fiancé’s friend and vice versa.
“They’re fairly close but she doesn’t like me much,” explained the bride. “It’s usually not an issue, some people just don’t mesh. We don’t mesh.”
She added that while they “don’t actively hate each other,” they “prefer not to hang out together.”
18. Man Proposing to Girlfriend at Friend’s Wedding
A young man proposed to his girlfriend but for the special occasion he chose his close friend’s wedding. Not the time, not the place? tacky?, egotistical?
Users were divided.
19. Woman Kicks Out Dad, Stepmom Who Want Kids Named After Her Deceased Siblings
A woman took to Reddit’s “Am I the A**hole” forum after she kicked out her father and his wife when they announced they planned to name their future twins after the Redditor’s deceased siblings.
In her post, user No-Importance8463 explained her younger brother, sister and mother died eight years ago. She and her father subsequently drifted apart since their deaths.
She wrote that her father and his wife are expecting a boy and a girl. At the couple’s gender reveal party, her father announced they plan to name the twins after the Redditor’s siblings.
20. Woman Wants Relatives To Move Out After 3-Year Stay
Another post on Reddit’s “Am I the A**hole” forum sparked a debate about how to deal with close family after a huge loss.
“About 3 years ago, my sister and her husband lost their three young children in a really bad car accident. My sister barely survived but pulled through,” user u/dearlyohwow wrote. “They had two daughters who were 8 and 6 and a 3 year old son.”
The woman said she offered as much emotional and financial support as possible but things changed as the years went by and she had to confront her sister about moving out. The sitter got upset and called her mum who called the woman “an a**hole.”