Growing up, my mother did it all the time. She'd come whine to my sisters and I about how everything was horrible. She resented the fact that we went to college, treated us horribly whenever we visited, and her "apology" was along the lines of "I'm just upset because you have so many more opportunities than me."
Whenever we tried to talk about something that was bothering us, of course, we'd be snapped at. "Just offer it up! Stop complaining!"
I have a tendency to play the martyr sometimes, when I feel backed into a corner with things. It's something I've been working on, and I'm getting better at, but still lots of work to go.
XABF was really good at this too, always complaining about everything and everyone, but never doing anything about it. Also, he was very good at taking everything personally - I mean, I thought I was bad at this, but with him if it was raining outside it was somehow an affront against him.