“I was crying in front of everyone in that mall.”

"In addition, she would try to talk over the movie. Mom would occasionally have to yell to make sure she was heard over the action scenes. Imagine, if you will, watching the aftermath of the stampede scene from The Lion King and the person next to you yelling, 'SIMBA IS SAD BECAUSE HIS DAD DIED.'"

"How my father found out still boggles my mind, but when my supervisor told me that my dad called him, it was probably the most embarrassing thing either of my parents has done. I spoke to my parents a few months after it happened, and the only thing they considered wrong with the situation was that my supervisor told me my dad called."

"The girls whispered to each other and giggled, and one even waved at me. Then my mom reached her damn hand in my face and popped a pimple right there publicly. The girls were aghast. I was humiliated. I have never forgiven her."

"So I took the guy and myself to my mom's school and went to her classroom. I open the door, and it is packed. She sees me and yells, 'Everyone! Everyone! This is my daughter. And this is my daughter's special friend.' I melted into the floor."

"I had several coats on my pile, and when the friend came to get them, she commented on that. My mom says, 'Oh, he just has a coat fetish.' Everyone was super uncomfortable, and I tried explaining that I just liked them. It wasn't a fetish. My mom apparently thought a fetish just meant you really liked something. Didn't understand or believe when it was explained that it was sexual. She then told me she'd mentioned my 'coat fetish' to multiple people before. Thanks, Mom. People probably think I creep around Burlington Coat Factory now."

"The date was canceled due to the hospital trip, and I became known as the girl with the batshit insane father. 'Don't concuss yourself this time' became the running joke once I was able to get a date again."

"Momma drove all the way up to that mall (this was before cell phones), went into every store screaming out my Christian name, and when she finally found me, she took her shoe off and walloped the shit out of me in front of my girlfriend. My mother is 4'11", and I was 6' and a lineman. I was crying in front of everyone in that mall. I took my education a little more seriously after that."

"Fast-forward: the night of the play. I’m frantically scanning the audience because my dad is ALWAYS late. He finally shows up and brings me a life jacket. I had to stand up there with all the kids in their little raincoats in a life jacket. I was really embarrassed. Dad’s defense was that I was the only kid who would have survived the flood. I can laugh now, but I sure wasn’t laughing then!"

"Thinking, at the age of 15, that it would be awesome to get a ride to school in one, I readily accept his offer of a lift (which he wasn't supposed to do, but who cares.) It was all smiles and gloats as he pulled into the car park, watching my peers and enemies gape their jaws at such a majestic vehicle. I jump out, try and pass off a blasé 'Cheers, Dad', slam the door, and nochalantly stride off towards my comrades. Five seconds later, the sirens blurt out a high-pitched squeal: I turn to look at the departing van and see on the LED board 'DADDY LOVES YOU TOO XXX.' You simply cannot imagine the shit I put up with at school for the next three years. All policemen are bastards."

Note: Submissions have been edited for length and/or clarity.