Dare To Ask Talk And News About Our Differences
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Why do Americans wear outdoor shoes at home? People seem to hop on their couches and beds wearing the (often grubby) shoes they’ve just used outside. Doesn’t that equal extra cleaning? I haven’t yet met with a person who loves additional housework…
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Name : Hanna21412, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Lutheran, Age : 16, City : Tampere, State : NA, Country : Finland, Education level : Less than High School Diploma,In our household, the shoes come off as soon as we enter the house and are lined up Japanese-style. Personally, I find it unsanitary to wear street shoes inside the house; think of all the spitting, bathroom soiling, bird droppings, etc., that one walks through in the course of a day. We never put the sole of a shoe on a chair, bed, or any piece of furniture. When I go outside to water the garden, empty the trash, and so on, I put on either slippers or sandals. I find it very strange and unpleasant to wear shoes inside a house; if I am visiting a close friend or family member, I ask if I can slip my shoes off. Also, I have chronic foot pain and only wear shoes when absolutely necessary, but I’ve come to find barefootedness as normal. Doctors say not to do this, but they don’t have to live with my feet and I have to wonder if they’ve ever considered how unclean a shoe can be.
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Name : Augustine23410, Gender : M, Race : White/Caucasian, Age : 40, City : Columbia, State : SC, Country : United States, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class,Sometimes I’ll come home tired as can be, and hunching over to pull off my shoes isn’t my top priority. I’ll just flop on the nearest piece of furniture big enough for me to stretch out on and vegetate until I garner enough energy to get up again. By the time I’m up, the thought of taking off my shoes may or may not have slipped my mind. Other times I’m in and out, going from one place to another, or anticipating heading out in several hours, so with that mindset I’d keep my shoes on. Otherwise, when I get home and I don’t have to be anywhere else that day, I’ll take them off and lounge around in my socks.
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Name : Dan27194, Gender : M, Race : Hispanic/Latino (may be any race), Religion : Pentecostal, Age : 22, City : L.A., State : CA, Country : United States, Occupation : Student, Education level : 2 Years of College, Social class : Lower middle class,Wearing shoes all the time is just customary for some people. It is not considered polite to put your feet on furniture, whether you have on shoes or not – this is something most people would not do when they are not at home. But at home, I think most people will take off their shoes and put their feet on the furniture (with or without socks, or with indoor-use only shoes – we call those bedroom slippers). I don’t wear shoes at home, indoors or out, because I grew up on a farm and children just didn’t wear shoes there except to go to school or church or town. So I really hate wearing shoes now – my favorite shoes are Birkenstocks because they are the most like having bare feet. But this gives me an alternate problem – when I come in the house, my feet are dirty from the outside.
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Name : Nancy, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Lesbian, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Episcopalian, Age : 36, City : Atlanta, State : GA, Country : United States, Occupation : Administrative, Education level : 2 Years of College, Social class : Middle class,I’ve found that the people who do the cleaning often take their shoes off but that others (especially kids and visitors) don’t unless you ask.
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Name : Mike20439, City : Greendale, State : WI, Country : United States,I don’t think this is an American thing to do by any means. Most people I know take their shoes off when entering their homes or anyone else’s out of respect. It is respectful to their host or to their parents who have to clean the home. I know personally if I don’t take my shoes off on the entryway tile, my mother will have a heart attack (we have white carpeting- try cleaning stains off that!). There is only one case that I can think of where someone does not take his or her shoes off in someone’s house and that is my aunt. She is self-conscious of any foot odor she might have, so she usually tries to keep her shoes on if they are clean. Her reasoning is for personal comfort, but she would never put her feet on any furniture with the shoes on. I think you will be hard pressed to find a majority of Americans that do leave their shoes on in the house.
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Name : Katie, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Catholic, Age : 20, City : Chicago, State : IL, Country : United States, Occupation : Student, Education level : 2 Years of College, Social class : Middle class,
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