[rousseau]

Do you take your shoes off when you get home? This is something that has perplexed me for a while. Americans definitely seem not to, but Canadians do. Or, some of us do.

It seems to be a class thing, as far as I can tell. If your house has wings, then you leave your shoes on because it's like walking into a museum. If you're part of the urban or rural economic underclass, then you leave your shoes on because you don't give a phuck. If you're middle-class, you take your shoes off, winter or summer, because otherwise the floors get filthy and it's unhygienic, besides.

I grew up with the shoes coming off. All of my relatives do the same. What do you do?

[rousseau]

Further to this:

1. I lived and travelled in Asia for six years. Shoes coming off at the threshold of the living environment (and putting on indoor slippers) is not just Japanese.

2. I grimace when I see someone jump onto a bed or lie down on a couch with shoes in an American film or TV show. I find the idea disgusting, and I'm not some fastidious busybody or anything. Europeans seem to leave their shoes on when they get home, but I don't think they would wear them into the bedroom. Would they?

[Bigtime]

Always been shoes off for me, that is how I was raised.

[Reesonov]

I have an indoor slipper policy. I think this is ideal.

[Ayreonaut]

No shoes inside for me.

[TonyAnderson]

From my experience as an American, it's the norm to take your shoes off at home - I don't think humans really like wearing shoes in general. Some people will even have a policy of no shoes in the house. At the same time, it's common just do whichever you'd like. America = freedom ;)

[habfanman]

Interesting..

For me, it's weather related. If it's a dry day I leave them on, wet or snowy I take them off. I have hardwood floors throughout and would take them off if I had carpeting. I always take them off at someone else's place unless they tell me not to.

[rousseau]

From my experience as an American, it's the norm to take your shoes off at home
Seriously? My experience and travels in the U.S. are probably not as extensive as some, but every single time I went to take off my shoes when entering someone's home I was greeted with jocular ribbing and the question: What are you, Japanese?

The Japanese comment came out every single time, without exception. We're talking probably seventy or eighty times in my life in American homes this has happened.

And yet you say taking off the shoes is normal in the U.S.? Not trying to be argumentative here, but...really? Honestly? I mean, I've never, ever seen it in an American film or TV show, and, well, aren't they supposed to be somewhat reflective of the culture?

So what gives?

[matt602]

I don't because I don't have carpet in the house and I clean my floors regularly. I only take my boots off if I'm not going back out for a long while. They take too long to put back on otherwise.

[drew]

There are hardwoods on the main floor of my house, so if it is dry out, and my shoes are clean, I'll leave them on.

Growing up in Winnipeg, being able to have a choice of leaving your shoes on or off is somewhat of a rarity because it can only happen on dry days in the summer or fall. During the winter and spring it's way too messy to even consider it.

[samne]

Shoes off for me. i dont like wearing shoes. I dont like socks either, but I save that for home.

I'll usually take the shoes off no matter at a buddy's "temporary" bachelor pad or my mother-in-law's.

I think house-parties are the exception. I'll follow protocol.

Perhaps Americans seem to keep their shoes on because otherwise the Huxtables or whatever sitcom family would look silly with socks on tv.

[Rathgrith]

I always take them off but whenever I have had exchange students from France come over... they always leave them on!

[Acajack]

Shoes off inside for me as well.

I too have heard that Americans find it odd that Canadians take off their shoes indoors all the time.

But I think it might be mostly a climate-related thing, and in warm (or at least warmer) climates like you have in much of the U.S., the line between indoors and outdoors is much more blurred, especially when it is also dry.

Even here in Canada, I find that at least in my household we are less fussy about taking shoes off in the house during hot and dry periods in the summer, and inside vs. outside doesn’t really matter so much.

[circle33]

Off. One can never be sure of what they stepped in while outdoors.

[1ajs]

depends what i am doing if i am runing in to grabsomthing no if i am just coming home i take em off

if i am visiting someones home i genraly take them off as they usualy are my big clod hoper work boots that are to big to drive with

[vid]

I take them off at the top of the stairs but sometimes will keep them on if I've just popped in for a few minutes or haven't gotten settled yet. On really snowy days, I take them off by the door, which is one floor below the actual apartment.

[Bigtime]

From my experience as an American, it's the norm to take your shoes off at home - I don't think humans really like wearing shoes in general. Some people will even have a policy of no shoes in the house. At the same time, it's common just do whichever you'd like. America = freedom ;)

Fuck yeah! (as you can tell I just watched Team America again recently)

[sammo]

i don't think i breaks down to americans -shoes on, canadians- shoes off. i think the divide is along cultural lines. for instance i think the more 'waspy' cultures (the ones that will have the dog snack from the dinner table, sleep in the their bed, lick their face...) would have less regard for a clean floor, spotless dishes, hence shoes on -ok.
i myself don't mind a strand or two of Mr.Darcy's (my attack cat's) hair in my morning espresso. - i kinda like it, infact. :)

[Ramako]

My family would usually leave our shoes on during the day, and take them off in the evening.

In the day you're going all over the place, in and out of the house, running errands, etc. It seemed like a hassle to take them on and off every time you would come and go.

It never really made the floors messy. If your shoes are muddy, then you take them off.

[240glt]

Normally shoes off, but due to recent construction activity and the corresponding mess it's been shoes on lately, except for one bedroom and my office, which are hoarded off with poly and I am really trying to keep clean.

[rousseau]

There are hardwoods on the main floor of my house, so if it is dry out, and my shoes are clean, I'll leave them on.
Ah, yes. Hardwood floors can be colder than carpet in the winter. I grew up with carpet everywhere, but as an adult I've only ever lived in places with either hardwood or tile floors.

But a large part of my adulthood was spent in Asia, so I got used to having slippers, especially since winters in Asia are so cold inside (no heating). So now, back in Canada, we wear slippers in the house, and set them out for guests.

I'd be curious to hear what people in northern parts of the U.S. do.

[Metro-One]

Always been shoes off in my family's house. If you ever wore your shoes inside, my mother would kill you!

I found the South Africans on average don't take their shoes off. I remember my friend getting so mad at our south African friend for he would always enter wearing his shoes on inside.

[raggedy13]

I definitely grew up with a shoes-off policy. I would like to say this was because my mother was a total neat-freak but I can't recall having any friends that didn't have the same policy in their house. Personally I'm a fan of the idea, because, as circle33 said, "one can never be sure of what they stepped in while outdoors." However, that said, while I lived in student housing at UBC I never took my shoes off. Not exactly sure what made the difference though. It probably came down to a few different factors such as the temporary nature of the setup as well as it being too hard to control with slovenly roommates and random people coming and going at all hours. Currently I have a shoes-off policy in my apartment.

[Ayreonaut]

Having people take their shoes off is not a neat freak thing. Forbidding people from walking on the carpet because it was recently vacuumed in a uniform direction is definitely a neat freak thing.

[sammo]

wall to wall carpet stinks! :yuck: -i'll put my shoes on in that case.

but disposable carpet, luxurious bearskin, leopardskin, a little pelt... now were talk'n. :tup:

[Coldrsx]

shoes off

at work i wear sandles, those addidas painful ones.

[kitchener-lrt]

Further to this:

2. I grimace when I see someone jump onto a bed or lie down on a couch with shoes in an American film or TV show. I find the idea disgusting, and I'm not some fastidious busybody or anything. Europeans seem to leave their shoes on when they get home, but I don't think they would wear them into the bedroom. Would they?

Ditto. That being said, it's shoes off for me.

[niwell]

Definitely shoes off. I hate wearing shoes indoors even though my regular pair are fairly comfortable vans slip-ons. Actually feel weird walking from my door inside to grab something I forgot, even though I have easy to clean laminate flooring.

American friends I've had thought it strange that the majority of Canadians were raised to take their shoes off indoors.

[Gordo]

I have no idea what's going on with American TV shows, but I was definitely raised to always take my shoes off indoors, by my immediate family, friends, and (even more so) by my extended family. This includes folks from Idaho, Montana, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama, so we're talking about a decent sampling of different regions. I'm pretty sure that either of my grandmothers would have shot me if I ever walked more than one step inside the house with my shoes on.

In California (lived four years in Los Angeles and seven years in the Bay Area), this is also pretty standard, though many times it's more of a "take your flip flops or sandals off at the door." Aside from some years in college, I've always lived places with hardwood floors and tile (including some ridiculously cold tile in Idaho and Montana), so in my experience that hasn't had much to do with it.

I can't imagine having shoes on a bed or a couch. That's just weird.

[rousseau]

I may need to take this poll global.

Actually, never mind American entertainment...can anyone think of a Canadian film or show where the characters routinely take their shoes off when going into someone's domicile?

I've recently finished two feature-length screenplays set in Canada. And it just occurred to me that I make no mention whatsoever of my characters' podiatric behaviour upon entering homes. Which means, by default, that they don't take off their shoes.

Is this a dramatic device by omission, then? Do the vast majority of North Americans remove their shoes when they get home, but showing them doing that in a story would be tedious and interrupt the flow?

[new.slang]

only leave them on when i forget something and am too lazy to take them off and put them on again...it just seems weird. getting dirt all over your house. my family usully wears slippers. ...

[vid]

Is this a dramatic device by omission, then? Do the vast majority of North Americans remove their shoes when they get home, but showing them doing that in a story would be tedious and interrupt the flow?

That's what I think when I see it. Something that they overlooked or didn't care about because it is easier to just leave them on then take them off and put them back on when you're doing takes. They're in a closed set anyway, chances are those shoes are only worn when they're inside and they have another pair of shoes for the outdoors.

[MonkeyRonin]

I was not aware that it was common anywhere to wear shoes indoors normally, all the time (aside from guests sometimes, or in situations where you might be going in/out frequently)...the only other different habit that I've been exposed to on a few occasions is taking shoes off before entering an apartment and leaving them outside in the hallway.

[roman]

I always leave my shoes on in the house, unless the shoes are wet from rain or snow outside.

[dsim249]

I found the South Africans on average don't take their shoes off. I remember my friend getting so mad at our south African friend for he would always enter wearing his shoes on inside.

That's odd. I have found quite the opposite, in regards to South Africans...

To me, it seems fairly clear that it is regional, rather than cultural. (With a few exceptions).
We've heard from one or two Americans. One saying they always take they're shoes off, and someone else saying they we're ridiculed for doing so in America. So which parts of the country was this taking place in?
I can attest to Americans living in the Southern states, that keeping shoes on is the norm. That being from experience.

As for me in SK, I always take my shoes off, unless I'm at a formal soirée. :cool:

[manny_santos]

At home in Canada, I always take my shoes off, no exceptions. We have carpets.

When I visited Mexico, I was staying in a house with tile flooring. Shoes always stayed on, particularly since in that country it is customary to leave your shoes on when entering someone's home. It really confused me the first time I entered, but really, it's more convenient to just leave them on :D

[MTLskyline]

Always remove my shoes in the house, no exception. I wear socks inside 90% of the time (except to bed or really humid days). Although I've experienced it a lot at people's houses where they tell me just to leave my shoes on after entering.

Growing up, my father had inside shoes (loafers of some sort) and outside shoes. First thing he'd do when he came in the house was change his shoes.

[Nicko999]

Shoes off...always. No matter what, no matter were!

[Aylmer]

I take my shoes off whenever I can... It feels better :)
In the summer, though, we will sometimes leave out shoes on if we don't plan on sstaying indoors long.
There is no strict rule.

[The Chemist]

Shoes off, slippers on. It's commonplace in China, and that's what I usually do (though sometimes I just go around barefoot or in socked feet)

[UrbanPlannerr]

shoes off for myself... America is a pretty big country, but considering the climate throughout I'd say the desert-like climates are more incline to keep their shoes on.

[entheosfog]

Shoes off indoors for me but I always need a pair of my cheap-ass Ikea slippers close at hand. I grew up with up with taking them off but when I would watch US sitcoms as a kid I found it strange everyone would be in their houses avec shoes.

[Metro-One]

The strangest I found was on American sitcoms where they went to bed with their shoes on!!!!!

I always hoped this was because of the fact it is a set and taking the shoes off would disrupt the comedy flow, but still, in bed?

[agent_imperial]

I'm definitely in the shoes off category. The only exception I can think of is big house parties.

To add to the international discussion... I lived for a while in Chile which was definitely a shoes on place. When visiting friend's homes I instinctively would always take my shoes off before realizing I was the only person doing so.

I had an apartment down there and I always took off my shoes off when I came home as a matter of habit even though all my floors were marble or hardwood. When people would come visit me they always laughed at my neat little row of shoes sitting by the front door... they really had never seen that before.

[Dylan Leblanc]

I refuse to participate in this poll because there is no third option.

[Architype]

^ Third option, like "sometimes".

Shoes generally come off when entering other people homes, depending on the condition of the flooring. Most people don't wear shoes in their own homes.

In Atlantic Canada most houses have airlocks, aka vestibules or enclosed front porches where the shoes are left, often because they are wet. In Vancouver, there are generally no airlocks or porches, but the shoes still come off. I've noticed that some people in apartment/condo buildings leave their shoes in the public corridor, maybe this is an oriental custom.

[sammo]

^logically, wouldn't the third option be 'one shoe on', 'one shoe off'?

-or perhaps, 'put on some shoes'. (the premise being you don't wear shoes out of doors then)

[Ayreonaut]

It's clear the third option is bacon, always has been and always will be.

[sammo]

bacon?!? impossible. never. -well perhaps as an insert like dr.scholls. really?

[Ayreonaut]

Bacon is always an option, it is the answer to the unanswerable.

[caltrane74]

my boots weigh in at about 7-10 pounds.. no way im wearing them indoors.

[JuelzJones]

Wearing shoes in the house is stupid. I only wear them inside if i have to make a quick getaway from the po po.

[The Jabroni]

Wearing shoes in the house is stupid. I only wear them inside if i have to make a quick getaway from the po po.

Or a quick getaway inside to POO POO!! :banana: :jester:

It's shoes OFF for me. I seriously don't understand how people can wear their shoes inside their house. Then again, it's their house, so why do we even give a f***? :shrug:

[theman23]

Wearing shoes in the house is stupid. I only wear them inside if i have to make a quick getaway from the po po.

What do you do, jump out one window and into the next?

[pegcity]

shoes off for sure, unless you forget your keys, phone, ipod, wallet then it's okay. 30 second limit before the alarm goes off.

[Nicko999]

shoes off for sure, unless you forget your keys, phone, ipod, wallet then it's okay. 30 second limit before the alarm goes off.

Just out of curiosity, do you put your alarm on if you go outside just for an hour or 2?

[vid]

Wearing shoes in the house is stupid. I only wear them inside if i have to make a quick getaway from the po po.

Gotta keep those homicide rates up, huh? :rolleyes:

[JuelzJones]

uh huh

[NLJP]

I've always taken my shoes off...

[Rumors]

Yes. ;)

[Scruff Bucket]

We (My wife and I) always had our shoes off (mostly bare feet!) in the house -- up until the time our friend needed us to dog-sit (Timber, a 14 yo German Shepherd cross mutt) for her for a few months, and then it was slippers on while Timber was here. Now Timber is gone (relocated), but we're renovating our basement, so it's still slippers-on until we get to clean and shampoo after reno's are done, hopefully before Christmas! :)

[Distill3d]

Following tradition of my parents and grandparents, shoes and hats aren't allowed to be worn in the house. Though, I'm not as strict as them. I'll let you keep your shoes on if you're in need of the bathroom prior to entering or exiting my apartment, however your hat comes off your head no matter what.

There was a point made about house parties and following the law of the land. I totally agree with that, but you can't mix it up. Shoes are either on or off and only because it hurts like hell if someone steps on your barefoot with their shoes on.