A spouse is the person you love; they’re the one you want to spend the rest of your life with. They’re also the only person you regularly want to strangle after seeing a sink loaded with unwashed dishes. Indeed, according to one informal survey, a third of Brits said their partner is the most annoying person they know.
Last week, author Maggie Eliot shared a humorous picture on her Threads account that quickly went viral. “My photo exhibit on married life continues. I call this one ‘He finished doing the dishes,'” she captioned the photograph of an unwashed sink littered with spaghetti.
Her post prompted other Threads users to come forward with their everyday life snippets about what infuriating things their partners do. Below, we have the funniest and most relatable ones for you to enjoy and, of course, to cringe at.
#1 I Call This One “He Finished Doing The Dishes”
Image source: maggieeliotauthor
#2 Presenting “I Made Dinner Tonight”
Image source: fsasvari
#3 Like A Raccoon Got Loose In The Dishwasher
Image source: tlorenzana
However bleak the picture of marriage painted by these posts may be, marriage is not all that bad. In fact, research shows that married people are actually happier than unmarried folks. A 2026 Pew Research Center poll showed that 43% of married Americans feel very happy, and only 24% of unmarrieds said the same.
Happiness levels are the same for married men and women, and only slightly higher for older people. Interestingly, having children doesn’t change much either. Married couples with children report similar happiness to married people without kids. Similarly, unmarried folks without children are slightly less happy, but at similar levels to single, childless folk.
#4 Of All The Counter Space In The Kitchen This Is Where He Makes His Over Night Oats And Always Leaves A Present For Me
Image source: logimommie
#5 This Was My Husband’s Idea Of Having Dinner Ready For Me After I Worked Late One Night!
Image source: khart810
#6 Married Life … I Only Just Walked In The Door From Work While My Wife And Kids Had 3 Days Off
Image source: buzz.crunch
More recent research by the Pew Research Center in 2019 also reveals that Americans aren’t that unhappy in their marriages. 58% of married respondents said that things are going very well in their marriage. In contrast, only 41% of unmarried couples said the same. Also, married couples trust each other more on things like infidelity, being truthful, and handling responsibility.
Despite how often we see complaints online, household chores don’t seem to be a topic of contention for many American couples. The things that married people are mostly unsatisfied with are a lack of intimacy, their partner’s poor communication skills, and how well their spouse manages to balance their work and personal life.
#7 I Call This One: “He Made Cream Of Wheat Again” AKA “Cement When Dry”
Image source: maryjane0196
#8 My Green Pan After I Returned From A Trip. After I Told Him So Many Times Not To Use High Heat. Or Metal Utensils. And Wait Until It Cools To Put It In The Sink
Image source: mdjensen01
#9 “He Mixed Bananas And Eggs For A Pie”
Image source: _stasenka
On the other hand, other surveys show that household chores can really drive a wedge between two married people. According to a 2019 poll by Yelp, for example, 80% of people living with a partner disagree about chores. The most common arguments are about when to do them, how they should be done, and who should do them.
#10 This Was The First Print In The Exhibit
Image source: maggieeliotauthor
#11 This Was 10 Minutes After He Ran This Empty Laundry Basket Upstairs
Image source: studioapottery
#12 Thanked Him For Washing The Dishes And Baby Bottles But…
Image source: maggieeliotauthor
Arguments about everyday things like chores are very common and normal for married couples. Even experts agree – there probably isn’t a couple in the world who hasn’t had a disagreement about doing dishes, laundry, or taking the trash out. Licensed clinical psychologist Dr. Sharone Weltfreid explained to NBC that women bring up this topic more often than men. “Typically, women are the ones to voice frustration regarding the allocation of household chores.”
#13 I’m Just Too Messy, He Could Never Keep Anything Clean With All My Junk Around
So I Left And Took Everything That Was Mine. This Has Been His Room For 4 Months Now All By Himself. He Finally Hired Someone To Do The Laundry And Sweep.
Image source: vitamin__a
#14 I Call This Crumbs Of Yesterdays Breakfast
Image source: artlifeaction
#15 Mine Is Called “ He Dropped A Bag Of Frozen Meatballs On The Floor – And Still Perplexed As To How These Two Got Here And Missed”
Image source: _lovemypoppy_
Weltfreid observes that tensions stem from how differently men and women approach household tasks. “[Women] express that they can’t rely on their partner to complete the requested household tasks or to do so in a timely manner. Consequently, they will do the tasks themselves and resentment will build.”
“Their partner, on the other hand, doesn’t see the significance or urgency of doing the laundry when people in the household still have clean clothing, the trash is not entirely full, having the house spotless when guests arrive, etc.,” she explains the other POV. “This partner can become defensive or shut down when [they] feel criticized, ‘not good enough,’ [or] accused when [their] other contributions are not acknowledged.”
#16 I Do Not Know How To Call This. And This Is Tidy
Image source: mariskalv
#17 Kitchen Floor Swept. Yep, That’s A Completely Finished Job
Image source: nellefarmer
#18 This. Always Just This. Like Did His Mom Walk Around After Him And Close Every Single Cabinet And Drawer Until He Was 18? I Know There Are Worse Things. But After 20 Years Of Living Together
Image source: isleofwhitesheps
Research also shows that women still carry more of the invisible load: the planning, organizing, and designating of tasks. According to a 2023 Pew study, in egalitarian marriages (where both spouses earn a similar amount), wives spend more time on caregiving and housework tasks. Husbands, on the other hand, spend three hours more on average doing paid work. However, it’s offset by the four hours more that they dedicate to leisure every week.
#19 The Only Way I Could Reconcile My Rage For This Is That I No Longer Work And He Pays For Everything
Image source: spilledmybeer
#20 Art
Image source: frberkley
#21 He Emptied The Dish Washer And Put The Utensils Away. Yes, They Were Still Dirty Because He Loaded The Dish Washer Wrong
Image source: lovelylysa
Very recent research also indicates that this gap is still present in 2026. Data from the U.S. Census Bureau shows that women spend 2:19 hours a day doing housework, and men only spend 1:34. This remains true throughout all ages, yet it needs to be said that as men get older, they contribute to household work more and more. By the time they reach their 70s, they spend 2:15 hours taking care of the house, while women spend 2:53.
#22 Apparently We’re All Married To The Same Manchild
He’s The Only Person That Uses This Toilet, The Toilet Has Black Mold Because He Refuses To Clean It Regularly. He Is Deathly Allergic To Black Mold. I Am Not. I Will Just Quietly Wait For The Divorce To Finish Processing, While He Coughs Around The House. He’d Literally Risk Death Rather Than Clean A Toilet
Image source: alecia.parks
#23 As An Experiment, I Left This Mug (Not Mine) In The Work Sink To See How Long It Would Sit There Before Someone Washed It
That Sink Was Used Pretty Much Daily. I Gave Up After Three Months (Yes, That Is A Tiny Plant Growing). I Was The Only Female In The Workplace.
Image source: craicmehappy
#24 “He Changed The Toilet Roll”
Image source: djbrain1965
It doesn’t help that there is also a perception issue. Women say they’re doing more housework, but only a majority of men agree. They’re more inclined to say that housework is shared more equally among both spouses. 59% of American women say they do more housework, while only 36% of men agree. Instead, the majority of husbands (42%) say that they and their wives do an equal amount of household chores, and only 32% of women say the same.
#25 Me Calling From The Grocery Store: “Can You Please Check If We Still Have Bread Crumbs?” Opens Pantry Door: “No We Don’t “
Image source: anythingbutflo
#26 It Fits!
Image source: the.millie.gram
#27 I Refused To Clean The Pan He Used For Steak Since I Wasn’t Home…it’s Been Sitting There For Three Days (Notice I’ve Cleaned All The Pans Around It!)
Image source: suzannelezotte
What’s the worst story of your spouse doing infuriating things, Pandas? Share it with us and fellow Pandas in the comments. Also, don’t forget to check out this list of ridiculous excuses women got from their partners about doing choresand read up more about the mental load right here!
#28 This One Is Why I Will Never Share My Home With A Man Again
Image source: msfarkelbrix
#29 Ohhh I Have One From This Acclaimed Series Too!
Image source: jenniebold75
#30 “The Tale Of Two Choccy Milk Jugs.” Both Were In Date, The Nearly Empty One Was In Front Of The Other One (That Was Unopened). I Reamed His Ass Over This
Image source: warlikepeace
#31 May I Submit My Latest :
Image source: mbboissonnault
#32 His Lugagge After Coming Back From A Trip. He Left It Here For 3 Days. I Love Him, But God Help Me
Image source: iamnubialima
#33 I Love My Husband Very Much But I Want To Participate. This Was When He Put The Dishes Away The Other Day
Image source: lindsayfic
#34 I Call This One Yin And Yang
Image source: liberallyspeaking
#35 Mine Is Afraid Of Utensils!!!! Infuriating. Imagine If I Did This Shit Everytime I Washed Dishes We Would Be Eating With Our Hands
Image source: sammiesossa88
#36 The Sister Exhibit To Mine – Living With Teenagers. Behold “Still Life With Granola Bar Wrapper”
Image source: lynnecaren
#37 He Told Me I Never Clean
Image source: 40.wax
#38 I Call This One “I Thought I Wanted That Shirt But Then I Changed My Mind”
Image source: 10thingsihate_
#39 Finished Roasting Beets
Image source: ginalynnveronica
#40 :|
Image source: nikkigraziano
#41 Ooh I Have One
Image source: rachellaranang
#42 A Long Time Ago I Worked For A Man Who Left His Coffee Cups Behind When He Would Travel, Sometimes For Weeks. I Documented Them For 8 Months And Made A Poster For The Office We Shared
Image source: berriesandpoppies
#43 Laundry. Clean, But Just Too Much To Bring Upstairs To Fold
Image source: jnancy0702
#44 He Changed The Roll
Image source: janieem3573
#45 Clothes
Image source: farbrestmalerei
#46 “Laundry Basket”
Image source: pearlschwegler
#47 I Call This One “I Can’t Find My Glasses. Have You Seen Them?” Sir, Not In The Kitchen Cabinets
Image source: inklingprintmaker
#48 I Also Have An Artist At Home
Image source: anyakuchugan
#49 This Is How My Husband Opens Boxes
Image source: lanagrushnik
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