Wearing Shoes Inside - The Fuck?

[Daeggreth]

OK so I'm getting the sense that wearing shoes inside is really common and I'm assuming that most of you live in the US (unless otherwise stated). Being from Canada and having NEVER entered a household where outdoor footwear was worn inside it seems more than a little strange to me. I'm wondering if it's the same across Canada or merely this way in my region.

 

[generals3]

In multiple instances of US media, I've seen characters wear shoes inside a private home.It always struck me as odd; Why would one wear it? For comfort? Isn't it more comfortable without the shoes..Or with slippers?
And hey, don't you realize that it is DIRTY? What especially baffles me is that Sheldon and the others in Big Bang Theory wear shoes inside the apartment, even with Sheldon's extreme germ phobia. Isn't this exactly the sort of thing he would crack down on?

So, my question is; Is this really common-place in the US, and why? How do you feel about it?

I thought it was commonplace almost everywhere (except in Canada). I know no one who asks people to take their shoes off or do it themselves inside their house (not from the US btw).

 

[Legion]

In the UK it is generally seen as rude to leave shoes on unless you know the person well enough and they are okay with it. In the vast majority of cases though, shoes are taken off.

At home the only time I ever keep them on is if I am constantly in and out of the house over a short period of time, like bringing in the shopping or something, because I honestly can't be bothered to remove and replace them every 15-20 seconds.

 

[squidface]

i always thought shoes were supposed to be for outside, so i mainly take them off when I'm indoors. also what if you wanna put your feet up on the sofa or something? uncomfy with shoes on

 

[burningdragoon]

One person's polite removal of dirty shoes is another's rude exposure of dirty, smelly feet. There is no right action.

...I'm thinking that it would be dirty no matter what you do though. Your feet are never going to be clean, ...]

Fixed that >.>

No you didn't. You pointed something out. The original text is still up there. Unless you can change that you are not "fixing" anything.

You wanted to be technical about things, so do it yourself first. Set an example or don't bother.

Did a fun-gobbling demon pay you a visit today or am I just not allowed to have any myself?

 

[Trippy Turtle]

I wear them until I lie down because I hate having cold feet. I don't put them on if I get up though.

 

[Callate]

It varies a lot from city to city and even household to household. It also might vary by weather and flooring; most people would expect to remove muddy boots by the door after coming in from the rain, but if they're wearing dress shoes that have only gone from sidewalk to car to sidewalk to hardwood floor, they might not think much about it.

If you think about it, though, wearing shoes is only really unsanitary if it isn't consistent. If everyone wears shoes in the house, and no one, say, sits on the floor, there isn't anything particularly unclean about that (hopefully they sweep/vacuum at least sporadically.) Nor is everyone walking around in bare or stocking feet a guarantee of cleanliness.

 

[Vkmies]

Finnish here, shoes are for outside, and what goes on your feet outside, sure as hell doesn't go on your feet inside. Take your damn shoes off. Why would you ever wear them inside? That's what socks are for.

 

[concrete89]

Shoes drag in dirt and moisture, sand and stones, dogshit and all those unpleasant thing. Where I live, wearing shoes into someones home is to say that you barely consider it a home at all, or that your host keeps such a dirty home that it doesn't matter.
In Sweden, disrespecting someones home is kind of a big deal, especially in the more rural parts.

 

[game-lover]

My brother wears shoes inside our home. In fact, often he'll wear clothes where it looks like he's going to go somewhere. But he doesn't. He just chills.

I don't get it either. I've asked and he seems pretty comfortable that way. I'm not sure it has anything to do with how clean the house is.

For my part, I wear house shoes or slippers. Also nothing to do with cleaning and more with comfort. Back when I was younger, I was always bare foot. All the time. It bothered my mom, probably because the floors could get cold and she worried about sickness or whatever.

Anyway, due to a lot of negative reinforcement, I've gotten used to wearing them now as the floors feel cold or just uncomfortable to me. So she won that round.

 

[Winthrop]

In multiple instances of US media, I've seen characters wear shoes inside a private home.It always struck me as odd; Why would one wear it? For comfort? Isn't it more comfortable without the shoes..Or with slippers?
And hey, don't you realize that it is DIRTY?. What especially baffles me is that Sheldon and the others in Big Bang Theory wear shoes inside the apartment, even with Sheldon's extreme germ fobia. Isn't this exactly the sort of thing he would crack down on?

So, my question is; Is this really common-place in the US, and why? How do you feel about it?

I'm pretty sure it's commonplace in most Western nations. We're not Japanese, and we don't have a ritualistic point of view on wearing shoes indoors.

Yeah my mom's family is spread throughout Europe and they all do that.

OT: I wear shoes when I am in my basement because I feel like it would be easy for a nail or something to fall off a shelf, but the rest of the time I don't. Its just uncomfortable for my feet. I know some people who do it, but its not super common place. Its just something some people do. I can't tell you why any more than I could tell you why people do anything else.

 

[Dimitriov]

Yeah, I think it's just the Americans. We sure as hell take our shoes off up here in Canada, and we're like literally... less than a meter away from them... or directly adjacent.

It's always bothered me. Shoes are uncomfortable... what kind of jackass would choose to keep them on not only unnecessarily but inappropriately?

 

[charge52]

In multiple instances of US media, I've seen characters wear shoes inside a private home.It always struck me as odd; Why would one wear it? For comfort? Isn't it more comfortable without the shoes..Or with slippers?
And hey, don't you realize that it is DIRTY? What especially baffles me is that Sheldon and the others in Big Bang Theory wear shoes inside the apartment, even with Sheldon's extreme germ phobia. Isn't this exactly the sort of thing he would crack down on?

So, my question is; Is this really common-place in the US, and why? How do you feel about it?

Well I think it's quite obvious why Sheldon let's everyone walk around his apartment with shoes on. If everyone, including him, wore shoes than they would only be bringing in germs that they all have encountered previously, if there was a germ on the comic book store floor that would make him sick, he would catch it regardless of if they wore their shoes in the apartment. Not to mention the fact that sheldon probably finds bare skin much worse than shoes, I mean if someone brought a virus on their shoes the only foot contact would be against shoes. Sheldon probably sees them as a form of protection against the foot germs of Pasadena.

 

[lacktheknack]

Fun fact: Our (Canadian) family hosted a couple from South Africa who were hilariously offended when we asked them to take off their shoes.

It's a culture thing.

 

[maninahat]

In multiple instances of US media, I've seen characters wear shoes inside a private home.It always struck me as odd; Why would one wear it? For comfort? Isn't it more comfortable without the shoes..Or with slippers?
And hey, don't you realize that it is DIRTY? What especially baffles me is that Sheldon and the others in Big Bang Theory wear shoes inside the apartment, even with Sheldon's extreme germ phobia. Isn't this exactly the sort of thing he would crack down on?

So, my question is; Is this really common-place in the US, and why? How do you feel about it?

Sweet god, you're right.

I think its just how dramas and sitcoms are written. Houses are specifically set out so that a guy can walk straight in through the front door and into the living room, to instantly deliver a punch line. This means not taking off your shoes, which yes, now you mention it, is going to bother me every time I see it.

Who the hell leaves their shoes on around the house?

 

[DeadlyYellow]

Media eh?

Here's my return question then: Do you wear shoes at work?

 

[BleedingPride]

sometimes i wear shoes in the house cause by circulation is crap, so my hands and feet get cold a lot, and socks don't really do much so i just put my shoes on. i'd put on slippers if i had any but i dont.

 

[BrotherRool]

The shoe on/off thing is quite complicated in the UK. Every house does things differently and normally whether you're meant to take your shoes off needs to be established when you visit someones house.

Generally as a rule of thumb though, if an adult is visiting someone elses house they won't take their shoes off (unless asked to, to keep a particularly awkward carpet clean or something) whereas children and young adults will normally be expected to take their shoes off (unless it's a house where that doesn't happen, normally houses with hard surfaces).

In your own home, at least in my home, the children/young adults all are made by their parents to take their shoes off (enforcing this is less common in other houses I think) but it's normal for the parents to remain shoed if coming home from work. For a quiet evening or a lazy day the shoes come off and possibly slippers are employed.

Personally, I take my shoes off whenever I can, it feels much nicer to walk around in socks and it stops the feet from getting hot and sweaty. I'm in halls of residence at the moment but I won't even normally wear shoes in the communal kitchen or when going down to do the washing