Then don't ask me in...

[bigwheelzip]

Well, folks, I am not your guest, I am your mailman. More importantly, we do not enter homes.

Your statement brought back a memory and a chuckle.

We were visiting with my husbands uncle in College Point NY, when there's a couple of lite knocks at the side door, and then it opens, out of our sight. His uncle casually calls out, "you know where it is" to the unseen visitor. Then the sound of the refrigerator door opening, and the pop-hiss of a beverage can opening.

A moment later, his mail carrier comes in to the living room and greets us with a beer in his hand, puts the mail in the uncles hand, chugs his beer, and leaves.

They'd had this casual arrangement for many years. His uncle was quite a character.

In front of his home.

 

[rwsmith]

Some yuppie couple.....

They walked around the house with shoes and you could walk around the house with shoes but if you stepped on a certain rug they'd start panicking and squawking like chickens where you didn't even know what they were talking about. By the time you understood what they were 'saying' you were thoroughly humiliated. Actually the daughter was the only one that could speak plainly while the mother and father were bouncing off the ceiling.

Some other cultures have slippers to wear indoors. I don't have a problem with that.

 

[Salty RI]

When my Nephew and his wife bought their first house, they bought it from a old couple that were moving south, the house had white wool rug's wall to wall in every room, my Nephew managed a Michelin dealership and came in with greasy work boots and they had 3 dogs, those rugs didn't last long.

 

[Inusuit]

My house, my rules. If you don't like my house, my rules, it's fine with me if you don't come back.

BTW, I have wood floors and don't ask guests to remove their shoes.

 

[Mule Packer]

Several years ago, we were invited over to some friends' to see their brand new house. I was already made aware of this woman's penchant for shoe removal because she had a beautiful, plush, white carpet.

Being the jerk that I am, I decided I was going to have a little fun.

So, when we arrived at the new home, this woman adamantly announced that we would have to take off our shoes. I calmly removed my boots, walked onto the carpet with my stocking feet and proceeded to lovingly flex my toes into her thick, white carpet, closing my eyes and softly making sounds of pleasure and enjoyment as I enthusiastically rubbed my feet back and forth.

"Thank you so much," I gushed. "My doctor doesn't want me removing my boots because I have a severe case of hook worm and this feels so-o-o-o good!"

You could've knocked her over with a feather. I know, I know....that was mean of me, but it sure was funny at the time!

 

[30-30remchester]

A couple of times a year I take off my boots before entering a restaurant. In 50 years of doing this I was only challenged once. I showed the owner my boots and her reply was leave them outside and do you want gravy on your biscuits.

 

[Salty RI]

Whata mean funny at the time, it's still funny.

 

[dmar]

I always ask if I should take off my shoes when I enter someone's house for the first time. Just seems like the polite thing to do because it's their house, and everyone is different like that...

 

[Mexican Kerry]

As erics said, its customary in Canada (at least everywhere I've been). Not sure if its based on politeness or practicality due to mud, snow, rain, etc. I have oak floors or tile throughout my entire house, with the exception of some area rugs.

My dad and my wife's aunt never remove their footwear when they come over, THAT drives me nuts! Wouldn't be an issue except she always roots through the front garden to see what's new before she comes inside, and he likes to put his feet up on the end of my sofa. They are the only people I've ever asked to remove their shoes.

If your shoes are obviously dirty or snowy or wet, I may ask you to remove them if you saunter across the living room with them on. I don't think that's insulting, just common sense. If you take offense to that, you're probably more than welcome to turn around and get back in your vehicle.

I know customs are different depending on where you are, that's how it is here.

 

[Absalom]

...
(You guessed it, happened tonight, after the person had the guts to ask me to come over to do them a favor.)

I don't get the hostility either, mountain and molehill come to mind, but this last sentence at least puts you in the right. If they want something from you, they got to take you the way you come.

 

[chaparrito]

My New Year's resolution is to get all puffed up and offended by every little thing.

 

[HKB]

Why the hostility?
Everyone does understand that when you go to someone else's house it's their rules, right? Why is that not expected?

Exactly, while in Rome do as the Romans do.

 

[Muss Muggins]

So long as everybody keeps their pants on, I'm good . . .

 

[walkinghorse]

So far only seen mention of snow, wet , mud, leaves, and animal droppings. No mention of gravel and rocks so far. If you live in an area of gravel driveways, or just gravel in its various forms, you know that many types of footwear, including smooth soles like leather often end up embedded with small pieces of rock. Is it OK to scratch someone's wood, linoleum, or tile floors? Is it OK to leave small rocks in someone's carpet?
Almost all of the workmen around here put covers on their footwear before entering a clients house. Some choose to remove their shoes instead. Why not the same for guests.
Of course if one has to go down into the basement and walk across the concrete floor it can be a cold experience, hence the shoe covers. As with many things in life politeness is a two way street.

 

[THE PILGRIM]

Once in Okinawa I was invited to the home of Marine Raider Gordon Warner.
Gordon was the most Japanese of any American that I ever knew.
He also had killed more Japanese than anybody I ever met, but that's another thread.
So I stomped shod into his home.
He says, have you got your shoes on?
This is a Japanese house! Take off your shoes!
Sorry Sir!

 

[pawngal]

Seems to me somebody has their tidy whities in a bunch over something quite minor in the scheme of worldly things.

I've never asked any one to remove their shoes at the door but it seems that at least 75% do it any way.

But at my store........ I have asked guys to remove their shoes/boots when they smell and look like they just did hog chores in the rain. I'm not Walmart.

 

[Class III]

I've had several customers over the years ask me to remove my safety toe work boots before entering their house and a couple before I enter their office/workplace. I explain to them the equipment I'm going to be using and why I won't be removing my boots. I also explain why I won't be using the slippery shoe/boot covers or working in my socks while working on a ladder or scaffolding.

A few have had a problem with me not removing my boots or using shoe covers. I've simply told them here is the phone number of my competition. Call them and have them come out. My safety is worth a lot more to me than you not wanting me to walk on your carpet/rugs with my work boots.

Blood is a lot harder to get out of most carpeting than dirt. Don't ask how I know.

And yes, I carry a BBQ grill scrub brush in my work vans. Works great for removing crud from the lug soles.


Class III

 

[GaryS]

I have a cousin, whom I have not seen in close to 30 years, who had all white carpets in home. So, I was told, although I was never in that house.

She insisted that people take their shoes off if they came to visit.
She insisted that people not bring their small children if they came to visit.

Those were her house rules, and the choices were follow them or don't come to visit.

Did I mention that I was never in her house?

Those are your choices.

The same choices apply if someone says "Guns are not welcome in my house."

 

[Tom S.]

From the other side:

When I worked in the auto industry, where I was 18 years old, I followed my dad's habit of always removing my shoes when I entered the back door of the house. The reason was obvious if you looked at our shoes. The auto plants were pretty nasty places to work, and shoes lasted less than a year from two causes - cut from metal on the floor and soaked in oil and who knows what else. We would also end up with metal chips in the soles of the shoes, which could cut the heck out linoleum, let alone carpet or wood floors. Trust me, no amount of cleaning would have helped those shoes. To this day, even though I've been retired for over 10 years and spent the last 10 years of my working life outside of that environment, I take my shoes off when entering someone's home. Just force of habit.

Nevertheless, I never ask people to remove their shoes, but I don't mind if they do.

 

[NCW Ray]

When I was "Hookin" (installing ankle bracelets on the bad boys and girls who had trouble complying with the laws) I carried the slip-on disposable booties that went over my shoes. They weren't to protect their carpets and floors either...they were to protect my shoes from the filth on their floors!


I had ran out of them one time and had to hook a guy in a single wide mobile home. Good thing he was my last hook of the day because when I got back to my car I removed my shoes, put them in a plastic bag and drove home in my stocking feet. When I got home I threw the shoes in the trash! Filthiest home I have ever been in...he had swept me a path through all the cat poop on the floor, it was inches deep in some places...I was a cop for 33 years prior to that and thought I'd seen filthy houses!