In our house, we have a rule called “I have a cat.” If one of our two cats sits on your lap, you are automatically exempt from everything. Everyone else in the house must serve you until the cat decides to leave the spot.

This rule is not written anywhere and we never actively decided that it was a rule. It just became one because no one would dare to disturb Princess Nala when she was comfortable and cozy.

We’re apparently not the only family with such a rule. Most families have unwritten household rules that others might find odd to “enforce.” That’s why when people on Reddit asked, “What unwritten rule do you have in your household that would seem bizarre to outsiders?”, they provided some adorable, hilarious, and sometimes even helpful examples.

Here are some of the best:

The rules “volume” and “I’m fine”

If you know you are going to make a loud noise, such as throwing a heavy bag down the stairs, you need to shout “loud noise” to warn everyone that the noise was coming and planned

If you accidentally made a loud noise, you had to shout ‘I’m fine’ so no one would come running or come running because you were NOT fine. Side note: This rule was instituted when Grandpa dropped a toilet on his finger.”

“Any loud noise from the shower/bathtub must be quickly followed by an audible ‘Oh shit’/’damn’/’crap!’ and transition into the sound of a shower spray to prove movement.

Failure to confirm this will result in an “Is everything in there?” response from the external party.”

Rules to avoid doing the dishes

“My mom says: If you wear long-sleeved shirts, you’re exempt from doing the dishes.”

“We simply had a rule that once the dishwasher (one of us kids – the actual dishwasher was used as a place to store take-out cups since Mom was convinced they were bad at washing dishes) had finished with all the dishes that had been cleared from the table and the water was turned off, no more dishes were his responsibility. This resulted in the dishwasher in charge clearing dishes quickly and slower eaters having to finish their food quickly. ‘Haha, chump – the water’s turned off!’ was a common refrain growing up.”

“If we don’t feel like cleaning up the kitchen completely after dinner, or if we leave trash in the living room, whatever the reason, we have to exclaim, ‘Who closed last night?’ And then we blame the baby.”

The empty kitchen roll goes to the dog – appropriately announced

“When you use up the last paper towel on the roll, you have to take the cardboard tube and shout ‘Do-ta-do’ into it and then give it to the dog when he comes running so he can tear it up!”

“We call them cardboard bones and some sort of announcement is also required from them before they are given to the dog.”

“When we were little, we would blow into it like we were blowing a trumpet because the dog would go crazy. Then you would ‘hit’ the dog on the back with it, which would make him even more upset, and then you would give it to him to destroy.”

Must pay dog ​​tax.Photo by Karolina Kaboompics/Pexels

Dog tax must be paid

“Anyone who takes ice cream out of the freezer for any reason must pay the ice cream tax to the dogs.”

“We have to pay ice cream tax AND cheese tax. Brutal.”

“In my house, it’s about the peanut butter tax and the cheese tax. My dog ​​is so excited about the cheese tax that he practically comes running from anywhere in the house when he hears what sounds like plastic crackling in the refrigerator.”

“We have an ice cream tax, a cheese tax, a popcorn tax, a pepper tax. These puppies are merciless!”

Meow always back

“When a cat meows, you meow back. It is rude not to respond.”

“I have long conversations with my boyfriend’s cat and you can tell by his tone of voice that he is actually talking to you, lol, it’s hilarious and I never get tired of it. I usually just meow back and forth until I realize he’s had enough chatting 😆”

“This is the only way I can get my cat to stop meowing. If I ignore her, she keeps going. If I get up to see what she wants, she just looks at me. If I meow back a few times, she comes into the room I’m in and chills with me.”

If I have to look for it for you, even though I just told you exactly where it is…

“If you tell me you can’t find something after I’ve told you EXACTLY WHERE IT IS, and I go there and find it EXACTLY WHERE I TOLD YOU WHERE IT IS, then I get to hit you with it.”

“That is also a rule in my house that led to this exchange –

“Mom, I need help finding something!”

“Okay, but if I find it right away, I can hit you with it!”

“Never mind, I’ll find the scissors myself.”

“I started charging my kids a $5 finder’s fee each time.”

The winner takes the prize!Photo by Pixabay/Pexels

The winner of the game cleans up

“The winner of a board game is responsible for putting said game away.”

“My family did this too! It’s a great way to minimize the drama surrounding the competition because the winner can brag about their victory while cleaning up and the rest can be happy that they don’t have to clean up.”

“This is so much better than the tradition my siblings and I have of actively making a mess while singing ‘The Loser Takes It!’

We have grown up to be civilized people, but this rule would have put us on the right path.”

“The real competition is making it clear that you COULD win, but instead you force someone else to clean up.”

Do you complain or give unsolicited advice? The job is yours

“If someone does a job voluntarily, no one can tell him how to do it differently, unless it causes harm. If unsolicited advice Is When advice is given without the intention of actively rolling up one’s sleeves and helping, the onus is on the giver of the unsolicited advice.”

“If more people adopted even a fraction of that attitude, many households would be much happier. Yes, weaponizing incompetence is one thing and it’s bad when people do it, but often it’s just different priorities and preferences. My spouse folds towels differently than I do. In our case, it has no effect, so why should I get on their nerves and cause them stress for no reason over something so harmless?”

The “cat lap” rule seems to be universal.Photo by Andrew Kota/Pexels

Sorry, that’s not possible. I have a cat.

“If you have a cat on your lap and want something from the kitchen, someone else has to get it for you. Cats must not be disturbed.”

“I would add that when we were growing up we had up to seven cats at the same time, so often everyone had a cat on their lap and the youngest cat was chosen for the move. Older cats had great privileges.”

“We call it the ‘cat rule’ and over the years we have added sub-rules. For example, you can’t apply the cat rule more than three times in a lap seat 😂”

“We call it ‘catatonic.'”

“We call it the ‘prime directive’ – a sleeping cat must not be disturbed.”

“We call it ‘the holy law’ 😂 Our cat only shows affection when she imagines her conditions, so when she cuddles with us, it’s a very special moment.”

“We call this cat paralysis. I’m excited to see the names of others who follow this rule!”

And these extras, just for fun…

“Bandit, our old Great Dane, gets the cushion on the far right of the orange sofa. No exceptions, no requests to move, that’s his place.”

“Sometimes my cat carries a ball toy into the room and meows loudly. As soon as she drops the ball, every person in the house has to clap and shout ‘Yippee!’ That’s the law.”

“If you want to use the kitchen tongs, you must perform an OSHA-approved test to make sure they are functional.”

“It’s an unwritten rule in our household that you have to perform a complete dance routine to earn the right to use the remote control. It ensures peace and quiet and evening entertainment.”

“You must choose the theme of your fortune cookie before reading it. “This is about my new job.” Many a big life decision has been made this way.

The spiders inside are called Franklin. The spiders outside are called Fronklin. They’re all good guys.”