simple solution: "fix" it by breaking it more and tell her u tried... she'll think u more incompetent than ever but respect u for trying and u want be using a volatile lawnmower

YouTube has a lot of walk through solutions for millions of problems. YDI for not even poking around. You don't get engine repair knowledge by not tinkering with them.

How many times has she thought you were incompetent before? maybe I found weren't in earlier years, she'd have helped you

Comments 1 and 2 are EXACT opposites of people. The like ratio will be interesting. As for OP, I'm sorry you have a parent like that! I hope you find a way to either fix things with your mom, or get the hell out

I think both arguments are fair. As a mom myself, I'd be scared of my child, teen or not, hurting themselves on a repair they are not prepared to execute successfully. Then again, teens will sometimes say and do anything to get out of any chores asked of them. It's never our place to judge a situation from that stand point alone. That said, she obviously has reasons why she would say that.... They may be good or bad depending on who asks her. Now. You can YouTube all the ways to repair it, or you can break beyond repair. Either way, she's not gonna be pleased. So... Pick one. Go with it. Learn what you will from her response. Me personally, I'd break it. Then offer opinions on a ride on one so I can listen to music while riding it.

OP here! this FML was posted after years of frustration of dealing with my mom and her antics. there have been so many instances so much more severe than this admittedly mild one that have caused me to resent her so much. we have always had a complicated relationship. I have discovered through therapy and counsel with mental health professionals that I am a grown child of narcissistic parents. my mother has always been more involved in my life than my dad but my mom is also very volatile. there were so many complicated situations in my childhood to cause tension between us, everything from me being abused by another family member and her not doing anything to help me even though I was too young to help myself at the time. only making sure that my abuser couldn't abuse me anymore once I had a mental breakdown. but even then refusing to take me to any sort of professional that could help me get through what happened ( doctor, shrink etc.) watching idly by as what had happened started to fester and rot into irrational fears of almost everything and depression so severe I barely talked enough to get through school. I learned early on that I couldn't talk to her about my feelings because she would react one of two ways a) take it as an attack on her mothering skills and give me the silent treatment for days or B) launch into rant about how bad she had it when she was my age completely invalidating my feelings and experiences. she used my fears from the earlier experiences in my life to manipulate and control what I did and who i hung out with (ex. "I don't know if you should hang out with that person, they might rape you.") when I was in junior high I was suicidal and was failing most of my classes because I was so depressed I couldn't focus, when she saw my report card she started yelling about how she was going to voluntarily turn me over to the state because "she couldn't handle having such a problem child" I had to wait until I turned 18 to get help on my own. when she saw the manipulative fear controlled grip she had on me unraveling, she got even worse becoming extremely passive aggressive constantly trying to shake down my newly built foundation. there was this whole separate thing of her trying to convince me throughout my life that there is no such thing as a faithful partner. that no one will ever care about my thoughts, feelings, wants, and needs. that all I am to a man is a wet tight hole they can use. and also that in order to be accepted by society I must allow myself to be used and abused by these bad partners. but also that I could never enjoy sex and intimacy because only tramps and ***** enjoy sex. I realize now that I am a grown child of an extremely narcissistic parent. working towards being independent of her and being able to cut her toxicity out of my life.

I thought everyone these days just googled or YouTube these things? Google it then fix it and dont even say anything. Just walk away like a boss.