Jen & Jeff's Adventures

 
 

Attempt number two… Grr!

I would politely ask that if you ever make your way over to my house (and you are very welcome) that you remove your shoes before entering. I don’t like to vacuum, and taking off your shoes means that there is less dirt flying around my house (or in this case, apartment…)

Koreans believe the same thing. Many restaurants require that patrons remove their shoes (and sometimes even don sandals) before entering. Every morning I make my way through the children who have stopped at the front of the school to remove their outer shoes and put on their indoor shoes. I too am expected to remove my outdoor shoes (unfortunately I rarely do… I like my shoes to match my outfits and can’t be bothered to carry a different pair of shoes to school every day…. Shhh!)

Lesson 14 for my grade sixes utilizes the phrase “Don’t take off your shoes”. Now, I don’t know about you, but most of the people that I know (in fact, all of the people that I know…) request that their visitors remove their shoes before wandering around their homes. Upon teaching this lesson I proceed to tell my students that if they ever come over to my house they are required to take off their shoes. I try to instill in my students the idea that almost all “Westerners” will require that they remove their shoes when they visit – just like they are expected to do so in Korean culture. My co-teacher, however, doesn’t agree. She lived in Seattle for a year. During that time, her landlord came over to her condo and entered the house without removing his shoes. She also mentioned that there is no spot to leave your shoes in a “Western” home. In Korea there is a step down in the front hall, a spot for people to leave their shoes.I tried to explain to her that often times service people don’t remove their shoes, but everyone else does. Still, my co-teacher would proceed to tell the students that it depends on the family.

Now, I know that not everyone removes their shoes before entering their homes, but my feeling is that the majority of people do. So, I’m conducting a poll. Please leave a comment to tell me whether or not you (and your family… friends…) remove your shoes before (or upon) entering your home. Am I crazy (well, don’t answer that…)? Do Westerners really NOT remove their shoes upon entering their homes… ? Am I really not the norm?

~Jen

[edit: The girl who says "Oh, don't take off your shoes, we don't take off our shoes in the house" is white. She is clearly from America or Canada, hence my co-teacher's belief that this statement is true of all North Americans...]

 


Comments

Kelly

Wed, 28 Nov 2007 13:39:00

I remove my shoes too! In fact I feel totally awkward when someone tells me to leave them on. The only time I consistently have worn my shoes in a house is when I was doing catering, but then I had a pair of indoor shoes. Serving food barefoot isn't exactly kosher.

Ooooo - and look at your cluster map! Someone in the east of Canada/States sure loves you! I"m jealous!

 

Rachel Olson

Fri, 30 Nov 2007 16:13:16

We remove our shoes in our home as does every one in our family and extended family. In fact I think I have been to maybe 2 houses in my life where people do not remove their shoes and they were just grubby people.

I would agree with you Jen. We asked Nate and Jess and our American pastor if Americans tend to leave their shoes on and they said only in specific locations in the states. So even in the states I don't think that it is as widespread as some Asians might believe.

Good blog.

 

maja

Fri, 30 Nov 2007 20:52:52

I think I'm going to skew the results ...
I always take off my shoes - i do agree that it's the norm (at least in my circles). However, my mother always INSISTS that people leave their shoes on at her house. As kids, we were supposed to leave our shoes on all the time, unless they were really muddy (which was likely the majority of the time!). Her theory is that it actually keeps the carpet cleaner that way- she says that she'd rather clean dirt that she can see than foot-sweat-grossness that she can't. Stranger still - she will often put her shoes back on after putting on her pyjammas. Seriously.

 

Yaacov

Sat, 01 Dec 2007 18:21:26

I don't think I've ever been in a house where I was supposed to keep my shoes on. If there are wood floors or long carpet anywhere in the house, shoes will either damage or dirty the floor quite a bit. I would think it very rude if someone entered my house and didn't take their shoes off at the front door.
However, at most public buildings this is not the case. At school and at work, it would be weird to take off my shoes. But floors there are not made of wood or long carpet.

 

Jackie

Sun, 02 Dec 2007 14:11:52

I always take my shoes off too (as does everyone else that I know)! The only times when I've been told that it was ok to keep my shoes on were at some dinner parties or an open house. It was strange to keep them on but everyone else had their shoes on and I'm going not going to lie, sometimes nice shoes make the posh frock! hahaha

 



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