Way back when I was about 10 years old, about 50 years ago, we had some neighbors/friends who had 2 kids the same age as my brother and me, and a collie that looked like Lassie. They went on vacation one time, and asked me to feed the dog while they were gone. They agreed to pay me a reasonable amount, $10 or $20 or so.
The dog was sociable and friendly, but it turned out that it was only sociable and friendly while they were around. The first time I went to feed her, I discovered that she was aggressively defensive of her space - so much so that as careful as I was, she bit me. I finished out the job as best I could, and I told my parents what happened.
When the neighbors got back and heard what happened, they were very apologetic, and in addition to the money, they gave me one of those big Hershey's chocolate bars (the one about the size of an iPhone) with a note on it "from the dog" apologizing for biting me. It was totally satisfactory to me, and I thought the matter was closed. My parents had some hangup, though, and apparently a big Hershey bar was just too much, certainly more than I deserved, and they said I couldn't have both it and the money. I had to give one back. This was typical for my parents - making up ad hoc, arbitrary rules on the spot and moving goalposts for no apparent reason other than to remind me that they called the shots. My brother was the favorite, and I have no doubt that a lot of this was prompted by him. He used to say things like, "Gosh, that's a big chocolate bar. Seems like quite a windfall for just a little nip", and our parents would take the cue.
Yes, I should get over it, but it not only bothers me that it happened, it also bothers me that my parents have "selective amnesia" - they'd say they don't remember any such thing. I had fotgotten, too, except that I saw a stack of those Hershey bars at a store the other day, and it came back just as raw as it was then.
Was I justified in being pissed off about it?