Here in the snow belt, we always take off our shoes at the door. We don't have carpet anywhere in the house, but rather, finished wood floors. Some areas have linoleum, like the bathrooms and kitchen. If we track in the snow with our shoes, puddles of water tend to stick around on the wood floors and looks like crap once it dries - leaves a nice little whitish stain. For one, it is not very safe as it is running around the house in socks without sliding all over the place. Add water and it only amplifies the situation. Plus, once you are either barefooted or in socks, it sucks big time to step into a puddle. Nothing like having wet spots on the bottom of your socks.
We have signs on our doors asking people to remove their shoes when they come in. But in this area, most people are already accustomed to doing that, so its no big deal.
I cannot believe this post has gone to 3 pages. This was covered a while ago....but it is still funny.
Xander hit the nail on the head. It depends on where you live. As was mentioned earlier, it is totally unacceptable where we live, to come in our door and walk into the house with your shoes on. SNOW, SALT, then spring creeps along, and then its MUD, GRAVEL, and of course..... everbody's favourite........DOG SHIT !
You are welcome at my house.....anytime...BUT THE SHOES STAY AT THE DOOR ! ( porch )
I don't care much either way...not really common here for people to take their shoes off at someone elses house...unless you are real friendly and gonna get cozy and all....but if someone wants me to take my shoes off I will...
odd though I had to take my shoes off at the airport to go thru the metal detector....lol that was a first...glad I wore the matching socks with no holes in them that day!
It has been requested of me twice in my life to remove my shoes before entering someone's home.
When I was visiting Michigan and there was snow on the ground. I was an adult, and having been raised in southern California (i.e. No snow), I had never heard of such a thing. But, I thought about it and it made sense for keeping the mud and filth out of the house.
The lady that babysat my daughter. She had just spent a ton of money to recarpet her house and all the kids had to remove their shoes while there. Mud and snow were not an issue.
I have lived in the desert for years and have been in some very expensive, extremely fancy homes and not one person has ever requested that I remove my shoes before entering their home. It's just not done here. If I were asked, however, I would honor their request.
