On a billionaire's desk, a 2,500-year-old Athenian chalice stood full of chewed gum, spare change, and paper clips. An art handler who spotted it there shared the detail in a viral Reddit discussion that asked what ultra-wealthy habits seemed out-of-touch to them.
Reading through the top answers on r/AskReddit, here are some accounts that are worth noting, that include mansions nobody slept in, staffed kitchens waiting for one jet, and cloned dogs.
One user described a friend who managed properties for "a VERY famous individual." The employee kept massive houses in full operation, none of them ever occupied. Finding the famous person asleep on the couch one afternoon, the friend realized the entire visit was just for a nap.
"$20 million house used for a nap once," the user wrote.
Five Kitchens Waiting for One Private Jet
Another user recalled, "I know a guy who was a private chef for the ultra wealthy. He said that he worked at one of five nearby houses that all had to have an elaborate dinner ready just in case the owner hopped in his jet and decided to fly to that particular house."
The owner never stated which house they would visit. Five kitchens, five full dinners, and five manned families all waiting for one visit.
Working as a cleaner for a wealthy family, one user stated that they joined them at a holiday home for a weekend, changing the bed and cleaning throughout while they stayed Saturday and Sunday.
The husband lit a cigarette in a local taxi on the way home. Reaching into his wife's Hermès bag for a thick pile of cash, the husband put $1,000 on the dashboard. The driver warned him he would receive a fine; the husband said "it's fine, I got you covered," and kept smoking.
Another user shared a story of a police friend from the Bay Area. When the police pulled over a billionaire without a license, the man said, "You know who I am," and drove away. The officer was instructed to leave it alone because he was new to the position.
Cloned Dogs and Ancient Trash Cans
Working as a private chef for a family worth more than $10 billion, one user found both dogs on the job were clones of the original dog, which had died when it was 18.
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The only pet cloning company in the United States, ViaGen Pets, currently charges $50,000 for dog cloning, making two clones a $100,000 decision, barring staff, food, and care. Due to the dogs' persistent health problems, the staff had to cut their food to a certain grammage per serving.
Handling antiquities reserved for museums, one user worked as an art handler for an ultra-wealthy client in a major city. On the client's desk sat a small Athenian chalice painted in the orange-figure-black-background style, developed around 500 BCE. Inside it were paper clips, spare change, and chewed gum.
Each story came from someone who worked for the extremely wealthy. Redditors noted that at a certain level of wealth, things stop carrying the same weight and only exist to serve a function.
