AITA for shouting at my sibling for not specifying what length they're measuring?
Sorry for the length.
Last week, my sibling [18 they/them] and I [21F] were measuring our mother's car to see if furniture would fit or if we needed it delivered. My sibling was listing measurements we needed to take and I wrote them down. They said to write down 'height' and I said we should measure height in the boot section and height in the back-seat section (with the seats removed). The height in the boot section and the height in the back section are significantly different, which has been an issue in the past. They refused to measure both and said to just write down 'height'. After some back and forth, I said I could just note whether this was measured in 'the boot' or 'the back,' and they insisted I just write 'height.' When I said I'd measure and they could write it down, they refused.
Up until this point we'd been disagreeing but no raised voices. Well, I snapped at them that it was useless to not note which length. They laughed at me and I started shouting at them. I said they were an "idiot" if they couldn't tell the difference between the two lengths, and that they were "lazy" for not bothering to measure both. They kept laughing at me and calling me "a joke." I shoved the pen at them and told them they could do it themselves. They walked away, and I ripped up the paper and threw it away. This escalation lasted a couple of minutes.
Since then, they've been particularly cold towards me. They've called me "full of myself," "a crazy bitch," "an asshole," etc. As well as snapping, "roughhousing," and generally snapping at me. The couple times I've objected they said "I have to put up with you screaming, so it's fair," or "I may be rude, but you're just a crazy bitch."
To be clear, neither of us have shouted since, and the last time we argued was at least six months ago.
From my view point, I know I shouldn't have shouted or called them names - and ripping up the paper was dramatic at best. But, they just kept blocking me from making useful notes without telling me why. I'd suggested a solution where they didn't need to do anything differently, just tell me where they measured it for a modicum of usefulness, and they still refused. I'm still not sure what I should've done. Watch to see where they measure it and write it in secret? Wait until they're done and do the extra measurements myself? Just do it all myself? I know shouting wasn't the right option, but I was trying to do something well so it wouldn't cause problems later/so we wouldn't have to do it again, and they wouldn't let me.
On the other hand, maybe have the measurements didn't need to be that detailed, and less-clear measurements may have sufficed. I have issues with things being 'right' and people 'following the rules,' when 'right' and 'the rules' are arbitrary to other people. And I have a mood disorder, so my reaction may have been over-the-top - though, that usually manifests as anxiety instead of anger.
So, AITA for shouting at my sibling?
Posted Jul 6, 2025, 7:33 PM UTC