Venmo requesting your parents for anything under $50 is just embarrassing.
By @elliekindof · Family
My younger sister (24) just requested my mom $18 for 'her share of pizza' from a family dinner last weekend. To me, if you're an adult with a job, you just cover that stuff. Sending your mom an invoice is wild.
The full story
Here’s my hot take: once you move out and are financially independent, you lose the right to nickel-and-dime your parents. My sister, who has a decent job, sent my mom a Venmo request for $18 because she picked up pizzas for a family get-together at my parents' house. My mom just laughed it off, but it bugged me. It's not about the money, it's about the gesture. Your parents raised you. They paid for literally everything for at least 18 years. You can't spot them a pizza without needing to be reimbursed? It just comes across as tacky and ungrateful. My sister says it's 'the principle' and about 'being fair' since our brother and I didn't chip in. But the principle is that you're an adult now. Part of being an adult is buying a pizza for your family sometimes without expecting anything back. If you're genuinely broke, that's a phone call, not a passive-aggressive Venmo request. Am I the only one who thinks this way? It feels like a generational shift in etiquette or something, and I'm not on board.
How people voted
- Valid Take — 27% (28 votes)
- I’m Torn — 44% (45 votes)
- Bad Take — 29% (30 votes)
Readers say “I’m Torn” (44%) — 103 votes and 5 comments so far.
What people are saying
@hollylol — nah do it back request your parents for your share of the gas you used to drive there
@kirasorta — Next family dinner, bring a pie and then send a Venmo request to just her for one single slice.
@jess — I'm with you completely. When you become an adult, the joy is being able to treat your parents, not the other way around. It's a small way of saying thank you.
@ian — Your sister is just establishing financial boundaries with family, which is actually pretty healthy.
@sortaright — This reminds me of my cousin asking my aunt to pay for the one beer she had at her own birthday party.
Keep reading
- My boyfriend has a new rule: if you use the last of something, you Venmo the house for it.
- My roommate sent me a Venmo request for $2.74 for 'over-consumption of shared milk'.
- My coworker is sending me Venmo requests for the office coffee.
- My boyfriend's family has a 'Championship Belt' for family game night and it's ruining my life.
- My wife wants us to pay $4,000 to fly home for my father-in-law's 65th birthday.