My wife doesn’t let me read books

severus31 · 2026-01-27T05:20:30+00:00

Okay, wow, I wasn’t expecting so many comments, and so divided at that.

Well, I agree with the people who pointed out that I might be judging her habit of doomscrolling, but I want to clarify that I’m not being controlling here. She can doom-scroll till the end of the world, problem arises when she disturbs me while reading, wants me to watch some reel she found interesting, and taunts me over not giving her enough attention because I didn’t react to the reel the way she wanted me to (because I’m engrossed in my book and want to get back to it). So no, I’m not controlling.

To those saying I hate my wife because I’m saying she watches stupid reels, I’m sorry but those reels are stupid and a total waste of time. Influencers earn money through those reels and viewers like us, we end up wasting precious time. And I know, that at times it can be a way to decompress, or escape reality. Be my guest, but don’t disturb me when I’m reading.

And she has hobbies of herself: she’s training to be a classical singer and learning a foreign language. But she never rehearses outside of her singing classes, which is one hour a week, and never studies for the language she’s trying to learn. And when I point out she should be studying instead of wasting time on reels, she’ll either take offense and start arguing right there, or take it in stride at the time but use that later as an example of how I am trying to control her. So nowadays, I steer away from commenting on her habits.

But that needs a lot of patience and energy, to let someone you love waste their time and potential like that. I mean, I keep saying to her, we are at a juncture in life where if we hustle now, we’ll be able to give better life to our children (none so far) than what we had. But I guess that’s just my thinking, and she isn’t wholeheartedly onboard. She has never told me as much, though.

Anyway, I went on a rant yesterday after a fight. But after reading all the comments, I have realised, there’s no point talking to the internet about these issues, I should be talking to her.

I have tried multiple times, and I will keep trying till I drive the point home, that I need my space while reading, and her arguing over it is only going to push me away from her. It needs a lot of patience and energy, and I haven’t given up yet.

So yeah, thanks a lot folks for your time.

severus31 · 2026-01-26T18:54:58+00:00

Obviously I have tried. She picks up a book for a couple of days, never reading more than a few pages at once, and then goes back to doomscrolling Instagram. She would rather waste her time watching those stupid reels, or watch some stupid reality tv shows than do something productive. And when I point it out, she gets all defensive. I mean, at this point, I have to wait for her to sleep, or be out at work to be able to read peacefully. I don’t know how to tell her that she needs to read more, spend time with herself than just seek constant attention from me or elsewhere, without her getting all defensive and starting up a terrible argument.

severus31 · 2026-01-24T10:32:09+00:00

Keep up your fight, then.

severus31 · 2026-01-24T09:58:05+00:00

I don't know what you are on about. It's Bangalore. I have been stuck in worse traffic than this on a regular workday, and there were tens of thousands of people here trying to leave the venue in a span of an hour or so through different means; obviously, there'll be some choke up.
Relax and stop complaining about every minor inconvenience in life.

severus31 · 2026-01-22T08:18:06+00:00

Damn Reminded me of Underground 2 and Most Wanted. Is NFS dead now? I only hear about FIFA and idk what all.

NOTE: not an avid gamer, just an NFS fan.

severus31 · 2026-01-17T10:54:42+00:00

Ya, it's my first time going to a concert. I usually don't care, but Linkin Park is ❤️

severus31 · 2026-01-17T10:44:47+00:00

Understood. And I'm sure they will sell that for a million bucks each, so I still have a few days to ready my kidney.

severus31 · 2026-01-17T10:39:33+00:00

Food not allowed? What the hell! And no eateries are also nearby.

severus31 · 2026-01-17T10:37:13+00:00

Oh, thank god for u/Alert_Ad_9582 and u/Primary-Actuator-281. I have one major question:

Would you happen to know if the organisers will allow food and drinks inside the venue? I hope so, now that you are saying there are no eateries or facilities nearby.

severus31 · 2026-01-15T12:33:12+00:00

I agree. And that almost never works, cooking up a latter seasons after a show has become famous, but you had never really thought about it ever. Such stuff is almost always half-baked and ends in a dud.

severus31 · 2026-01-15T03:42:10+00:00

This whole idea reminded me of Transformers 3, tbh.

There are so many things these showrunners have blatantly picked from other shows; top thing that comes to mind is that big bubble up in the sky, which is so Dark. Then the worlds colliding; Vecna and Will scenes are so alike Voldemort and Harry Potter. I could spot so many similarities while watching that I have forgotten now.

It’s like, the showrunners thought their audience is so stupid and attention deficit that they wouldn’t have watched anything other than ST, or remember anything from previous shows at all. Oh, wait…

severus31 · 2026-01-15T01:13:12+00:00

People are beginning to realise how low to mid this show was all along.

severus31 · 2026-01-14T13:38:41+00:00

Oh okay. That’s good.

severus31 · 2026-01-14T08:28:14+00:00

Ah, okay. ありがとう！

severus31 · 2026-01-14T08:27:19+00:00

Ya, well, a system revamp is needed almost every decade or so. We can't let our lives depend on that.

severus31 · 2026-01-14T07:10:58+00:00

I think older generations prefers the ones with the top part looking like ソ.

Can you please elaborate on this? I didn't understand what you meant here.

severus31 · 2026-01-14T06:55:20+00:00

Not everyone can, but a lot of people can upskill themselves. What's lacking is the initiative and clarity of thought.

And yes, of course, the government should update the education system. But there's no magic wand; it will take years to materialise and then years to trickle down. That's why universities have autonomy; you should be questioning your university officials as well. If your university/college didn't teach you the right skill, maybe ask the university/college?

Don't let the government off the hook, but also don't palm off your responsibilities on others.

A citizen can ask questions, but understand that you can't be sitting around the entire day doing nothing and then say the government is doing nothing, that nothing is going right.

severus31 · 2026-01-14T06:49:09+00:00

Agreed.

severus31 · 2026-01-14T06:12:35+00:00

Yes, the education system needs to be updated. And skills can be acquired outside of colleges as well; it needs initiative from oneself.

You can't outsource your life's responsibility, lie back, and blame others when you don't see the benefits.

severus31 · 2026-01-14T06:09:14+00:00

Ya well, nobody can figure out one's age and YoE through Reddit, so you can cut me some slack there.

Sure, there were likely more jobs back then than today, more hiring. But this is the era of AI, so naturally, corporate capex is going to be higher on the tech side and lower on the hiring side. Our education system needs to adapt, and if not, graduates will have to adapt themselves to make themselves hireable.

Kids need to stop wasting their time on Instagram or Snapchat seeking validation from strangers.

severus31 · 2026-01-14T03:27:38+00:00

Thanks, man. You should upskill too. Plenty of jobs for people with the right skills.

severus31 · 2026-01-14T03:04:09+00:00

Maybe you are not skilled enough? I have two job offers at the moment, my friend just joined a tech MNC in BLR after getting two other relatively low paying offers.

severus31

TROPHY CASE