The Great Painting Fiasco: When Gifts Go Awry and Friends Turn Fiends
Gather ’round, folks, because Uncle Roger has got a story for you that’s juicier than a summer watermelon and as dramatic as a telenovela marathon. Based on a real Reddit post, no less! You might want to sit down for this one—it’s a rollercoaster of emotions, betrayal, and a dash of homophobia. Buckle up!
The Stranger-than-Fiction Creation
Picture this: Our protagonist, who we’ll call Ms. Van Gogh (yes, she’s a woman), is a pretty talented painter. Her magnum opus? A sprawling, majestic painting of a scene from The Hobbit—you know, the one where Gandalf and Bilbo are kicking back, puffing away on their pipes. Let’s call this masterpiece, “Pipe Dreams.” And let’s not overlook the additional scenes Ms. Van Gogh included: a dragon, a mountain with an elf army, and a bleeding Thorin. You’ve got to admit, the woman has flair.
The Gift That Keeps on Giving… Away
Enter Kenny, the so-called best friend. If “disaster waiting to happen” had a face, it’d be his. Kenny loves the painting almost as much as he loves breathing. So, when his birthday rolls around, Van Gogh, feeling generous and brimming with artistic pride, gifts him the painting with a heartfelt note on the back.
Fast forward to the Great Betrayal. Kenny sells “Pipe Dreams” to his girlfriend’s cousin without so much as a heads-up to the artist. When Lady Luck takes a day off, she really commits, doesn’t she? Adding salt to the wound, Kenny assures everyone that Ms. Van Gogh was absolutely cool with it.
Ms. Van Gogh Goes Ballistic
Did she see red? Absolutely. Did she contemplate a heist to retrieve her creation? You betcha. But legal avenues were a bust, and the jury of Reddit weighed in with a frustratingly unanimous
Original story
A while ago, I posted a story( in different subreddit) asking if I was the asshole for wanting my art piece back that I gave to my friend as a birthday gift. Well, it turned out I was the asshole.
Now, I want to share this story here and add an update here.
Anyway, I’m an artist, a painter to be exact, and it’s one of my favorite things to do. One day, I started working on a huge painting from The Hobbit.
Growing up, I always loved The Lord of the Rings. My dad and I used to watch it together all the time, along with The Hobbit.
I always had a desire to paint one particular scene from The Hobbit: at the end, when Gandalf and Bilbo are sitting together smoking. So, I painted it.
I also added some other scenes from the movie, like a dragon, a mountain with an army of elves, and Thorin as he was bleeding in the foreground. It is a beautiful painting, and I was so proud of it.
I put it on the entrance wall of my home.
Well, my friend Kenny started showing his liking towards my painting. We were very close; we grew up as neighbors and our fathers were friends.
He’s also a huge nerd and loves The Hobbit. So, I decided to give it to him on his birthday.
I wrote a little note on the back about how much I love and appreciate him, wrapped it up, and gave him the painting. He loved it and was literally so funny around it.
During the whole party, he was yelling at everyone to not get close to it with a glass of water.
A little while later, Kenny’s girlfriend, who is also from our friend group, asked me to hang out with her. We went to a café, and after some talking, she thanked me for letting Kenny sell my painting to her cousin.
Apparently, her cousin showed interest and offered money to Kenny, who took the money and gave my painting away without asking me. When his girlfriend showed concern, he lied to her, saying I knew and was okay with it.
I was really angry about it. So angry that I decided to get it back, and I was willing to do anything to retrieve it.
But legally, I couldn’t do much, which made me even angrier. That’s why I posted the story, to know if it would be an asshole move to ask for my painting back or to pay for it.
Everyone told me it was.
To be honest, I was getting more angry with every “yeah, you are the asshole” comment. Sometimes I have trouble controlling my anger, but then I thought it through and decided to give up on it.
Even if it was not in good hands or would get sold again, I could do nothing about it. So, I just gave up.
Though, I did stop being friends with Kenny.
Two months after the post, the guy who bought my painting asked me if I could paint something else for him. I agreed.
He wanted another scene, this time from Naruto. He wanted me to paint the moment when Hinata and Naruto kiss for the first time.
I completed the painting in one week, as it was easy, and gave it to him. He offered me money, but I refused because it didn’t take much time, and I enjoyed the process.
Plus, I had no need for the money.
Then, he asked me to go to dinner with him. I asked if he was asking me on a date, and he said yes, that he had feelings for me.
It was tragic because I’m a lesbian, and I do give off vibes, but I guess he didn’t notice. He looked super pissed and said that I was disgusting.
Well, my homophobe alert went off, and I left immediately. Guess what he did?
He DESTROYED MY F***ING PAINTING.
Honestly, now I’m angry at all of you who talked me out of getting it back. NEVER WILL I EVER LISTEN TO ADVICE FROM REDDIT AGAIN.
Anyway, I painted it again, but I just want to tell you redditors: I’m not angry; I’m disappointed.