Saturday's Question of the Day - May 10

Easy one today.

Do you wear shoes in the house? Why or why not?

I grew up in East Asia, so I've always taken off shoes in my own home. We were taught that the ground outside the house is nasty, and "evil spirits" tend to be attracted to nasty shoes, so we should always leave them outside. My shoes do tend to track through nasty stuff, so till today I leave my shoes at the door before I come in. 

However, if I visit someone, I ask the house owners if they prefer me to leave my shoes or wear them inside. Asian friends tend to say "leave", and Caucasian friends usually don't care one way or another. My landlady, whose office is really just a renovated apartment unit, wants us to wear shoes when we are in the office. 

I prefer to be barefoot in the house but when I have company I usually tell them I don't care.  Most people take them off anyway.  I think having small kids who play on the floor makes them think to remove them.  I just like to be barefoot.  I love wearing sandals and rarely wear even slippers or crocs in the house.  Growing up we always removed our shoes as well.

Shoes in the house? During the warm months, half the time I don't even wear shoes outdoors. Of course, I have no dogs or outdoor cats that will poop where I could step in it.

It's common in Germany for people to remove their shoes when entering their house or apartment, so it's a habit I've gotten into. I usually wear Crocs around the house.

I will wear them in when unloaded a large shopping trip but other wise I take them off at the door.  I have a thing about others feet and rather they keep them on.  I am a strange one  I am known to walk barefoot in all seasons and in light snow at times.  When I told neighbor I was pregnant in January first thing she said is you need to wear shoes!

My house is outdoor-shoe-free.  I do have 'house shoes' for the colder months. 

I have 'please remove your shoes' signs up at all the doors.  So it's a bit of a thing with me.

I also have been known to walk barefoot in the snow. Ii agree about making others keep their filthy feet covered in my house, but makee them clean their shoes..

In the house, I usually have a pair of socks on at the least. The reason for that is because, no matter how much I sweep, there is always cat litter in the bathroom and in the computer room. I really have a thing about stepping on cat litter; I hate it. I still step on it in my socks, but it's not quite as bad. I also have a pair of Dr. Sholl's sandals (the older ones....newer pair, but they look like the older ones) that I wear around the house.

I can walk outside barefoot, but I have found that as I get older, I don't do so much anymore. I worry now about getting stung (stepping on a bee) and although I do have an epi-pen, I'd prefer to avoid the whole thing if I can.

Visitors are more than welcome to keep their shoes on, if they like. It doesn't bother me. Keep them on or take them off, whatever makes them feel more comfortable.

Fhi09 said:

 
I grew up in East Asia, so I've always taken off shoes in my own home. We were taught that the ground outside the house is nasty, and "evil spirits" tend to be attracted to nasty shoes, so we should always leave them outside. My shoes do tend to track through nasty stuff, so till today I leave my shoes at the door before I come in. 

However, if I visit someone, I ask the house owners if they prefer me to leave my shoes or wear them inside. Asian friends tend to say "leave", and Caucasian friends usually don't care one way or another. My landlady, whose office is really just a renovated apartment unit, wants us to wear shoes when we are in the office. 

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This reminds me of a crude cartoon called Drawn Together where the Asian Pokemon-like character, Ling Ling, was facing a punishment and their threat was that a goon would "come into your house and walk around... without taking his shoes off" and Ling Ling's reaction was "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO~" And people laugh at that, but I really empathized!

I don't wear shoes in the house, and neither do most of my family. I vastly prefer to be barefoot. My mom and aunt have a separate pair of shoes to wear inside, which is reasonable because I visited the house they grew up in and it's a concrete farm house that's hard to keep as clean as, say, linoleum. Their feet always stay clean this way, and the floors stay relatively clean compared to outdoors. Plus, it's so super common in Asia to have separate indoor slipper/shoes to change into when you come inside.

When I had friends who came into my house with shoes on, even if it was just to run up and grab something before leaving, I would cringe. I had one friend whose mom told us to keep our shoes on when we were going inside because there was so much dog hair lying around, but I felt uneasy doing that. I was mortified when my boyfriend wore his slippers out of the apartment and all the way down into the laundry room of our apartment without a second thought. I was like "I clean these floors, and you bring home all the outside gross!"

l always take my shoes off in the foyer before walking into the house, and l expect that everyone who comes into the house will do the same.

lf l'm buying anything that will need delivery, l ask at the store if their delivery people wear over-booties to deliver. lf not, l buy elsewhere. Most do now, l must not be alone 

When someone takes their shoes off at the door and they're barefoot, l give them a pair of new ankle socks to wear in the house because my flooring is "cold".

We take off our shoes and leave them in the front room, but our guests are encouraged to do whatever makes them comfortable. We don't care, we just clean afterwards.

When we have dinner parties for my husband's work, our guests are from all over, and some people are VERY uncomfortable taking their shoes off. And sometimes the shoes are "part of the outfit" like Carrie on that one Sex and the City episode. 

I always wear some kind of slip on shoes when I am cooking dinner for guests. Cooking barefoot in the kitchen seems so... hillbilly.

I really dislike being told to take my shoes off when the floors are dirty, YUCK!  I don't want my clean feet / stockings on your sticky floor! 

I have a foot issue that really does not do better with shoes on or not but will play it up that I need shoes as that is a flair up day if I go to a dirty house.  My upstairs neighbor from 08-09 I still gag at the thought. It was so horrible.  I came down and used the tub scrubber brush and...we will leave it at that.

Originally Posted by SwampWitch
 
I always wear some kind of slip on shoes when I am cooking dinner for guests. Cooking barefoot in the kitchen seems so... hillbilly.

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Hey now! I resemble that remark. But since other than the ladies, I am the only one in my house, nobody minds me cooking barefoot. I just have to not drop anything sharp, heavy or hot.

catspaw66 said:

 
Hey now! I resemble that remark. But since other than the ladies, I am the only one in my house, nobody minds me cooking barefoot. I just have to not drop anything sharp, heavy or hot.

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Me too!  LOL!

I'm usually barefoot in the house.  I don't care of guests are barefoot or not. 

If I could never wear shoes again, I'd be SO happy.

So, the answer is shoes off the minute I hit the indoor floor.  My BF nearly always forgets to take his off and I have to remind him constantly.  

catspaw66 said:

 
Hey now! I resemble that remark. But since other than the ladies, I am the only one in my house, nobody minds me cooking barefoot. I just have to not drop anything sharp, heavy or hot.

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Haha same! I don't like the hard kitchen floor though, so I bought one of those bouncy mats.

Our shoes come off when we get in the door. Aimee usually runs into the house with her shoes on before I can catch her and take them off or she takes them off. Her shoes are so small and she doesn't get into much so they aren't dirty. In the winter, I wear slippers in the house but otherwise I am usually bare foot. I don't really care if guests take their shoes off or leave them on as long as they aren't really dirty.

catlover19 said:

 
Our shoes come off when we get in the door. Aimee usually runs into the house with her shoes on before I can catch her and take them off or she takes them off. Her shoes are so small and she doesn't get into much so they aren't dirty. In the winter, I wear slippers in the house but otherwise I am usually bare foot. I don't really care if guests take their shoes off or leave them on as long as they aren't really dirty.

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I think I've got my son trained on this one.  He will sometimes come in, sit on the little step stool and hold his feet up for me to help him get his shoes off.  Usually if he does this; it's before I've put down my purse, the diaper bag, or taken my coat off.  Sometimes DD ends up helping him!  Now if only I wouldn't have to tell her so many times!   At least they are both pretty good about putting them on the shoe rack once we get them off! 

Hmmm. I never ask guests to remove their shoes. That goes back to formerly having large dogs who were prone to stepping on feet. Jamie used to attack feet, too.

I wear slippers in the house.  They are called orthoheel orthotic slippers to keep your feet straight without them turning in as mine do.  I am also a diabetic and I have to protect my feet.  I was told by my foot dr. to never go barefoot and to not wear open toed shoes.  I never went barefoot anyway, it's not comfortable for me.