Random Questions

jym626 · March 2016

Thanks!

mom60 · March 2016

Jym626- i would say cake over cupcakes. I bet the bakery cakes aren't made fresh everyday, depending where you're buying it might have a sell by date. I think certain types might also last longer.

HImom · March 2016

Why not ask the bakery for suggestions. I'm sure it's an issue they've encountered before.

jym626 · March 2016

Ended up with a which chocolate cake with raspberry filling and butter rede icing. I asked for a small layer (they pointed to the second of the 4 layer wedding cake sample they had displayed and I said fine) it was $$$$$$. Hope I got the right size and all.

Consolation · March 2016

My H has a seersucker suit that I'm fairly sure he acquired in the late 80s. I love it. He tends to wear it with suspenders and bowtie.

Cake: I'd go for the cake instead of the cupcakes. Cake is usually moister in the first place, and the area exposed to air is much, much smaller.

Eggs: just about everything is good for longer than it is labelled. An older egg is lighter because the fluid inside gradually evaporates, leaving a larger air gap, which is why older eggs are easier to peel and better for deviled eggs. And I just looked at the time and realized that I MUST get off CC and get to the feed store to buy chicken food.

alh · March 2016

If the fireplace flue is closed, can something stuck in the chimney open it somehow to get into the house?

MotherOfDragons · March 2016

Ok I have a random question about ducks.

I have this fantasy of raising some baby ducks in my very tiny (about 50 feet deep by 60 feet long) fenced back yard, and then letting them fly away and go be ducks in the world before the HOA drops the hammer on me for having livestock in my backyard.

Since I'm a conscientious animal person, this has remained a fantasy until I can find some concrete evidence of this being

A. do-able.

B. ludicrous

Thoughts?

comeonpeeps · March 2016

My friend had a squirrel come into her fireplace with a closed flue so I think it is possible alh.

Why do people wear outdoor shoes inside their homes? As a guest, I've noticed more shoes off requests, which I am happy to oblige; however, I frequently go to homes where it is common to keep shoes on. Common sense tells me that it is not sanitary to spread all the nastiness of the outside world into my personal space at home. Why do others not have a problem with it? I am also assuming that homeowners routinely vacuum and mop their floors and yet have no problem messing up their clean floors by wearing their outdoor shoes. How come? Not trying to judge. Just trying to understand something that makes no sense to me.

shellfell · March 2016

We had a bat come in with a closed flue, but, fortunately, the fireplace doors kept it inside the fireplace.

alh · March 2016

Usually I wear inside slippers in my house. However, when I have company I don't want them to feel obliged to take off their shoes, so I will put on "regular" shoes. I live in the country and have lots of drop-in company. Sometimes people will take off muddy boots and, for that, I am grateful My wood floors are more than a hundred years old, with very old paint/patina and a little outdoor dirt isn't going to hurt them. My rugs are also old and I like them worn looking. I clean regularly. I would rather clean than make a guest uncomfortable. It's a country house. There will be some country dirt inside it.

I am pretty sure it is a duck in my fireplace. Our house is such that squirrels and raccoons really aren't able to get on the roof. We did have a duck come down the chimney before; and I noticed some flying around the back garden early this morning.

Motherofdragons: a friend raised ducks in her yard. They did not fly away. When they moved, they bought a place with a pond for the ducks.

MotherOfDragons · March 2016

@alh the ducks didn't leave? Hmm. (see, I know little about ducks other than being irrationally attracted to how cute and funny they are, and that they'd eat the bugs in my garden).

comeonpeeps · March 2016

Right, it's not nice to make a guest feel uncomfortable. So when a visitor asks, "should I take off my shoes?", I always say no even though I'm secretly wishing they would. I am just wondering why it is not the norm for everyone to take off their outdoor shoes when entering a home?

I was questioning this the other day when my sister accidentally stepped in overlooked dog poo in our yard. She was unaware and proceeded to walk throughout my house while helping to unload groceries. I spent all morning scrubbing my floors and was thinking it could have been completely avoided if she had taken her shoes off at the entrance. Who knows how many times I've stepped in something and walked into someone else's home and contaminated it. I don't like to keep my shoes on when I'm a visitor because it seems unsanitary; at the same time, I don't want to be shoeless if it's a shoes on home.

All this to say, doesn't it just make sense for the common practice to be that you don't wear outdoor shoes inside homes?

ClaremontMom · March 2016

We usually don't wear shoes in our house, but it's more a matter of comfort for our feet than concern for the floor. Any guest is welcome to take off their shoes or leave them on. It doesn't matter to me. I've never noticed any issues really (except perhaps with very muddy shoes which doesn't really happen much in SoCal). We do have Pergo flooring so maybe that is why (or maybe I'm just not a very picky housekeeper, which is true too)

greenwitch · March 2016

I feel like all - I change into slippers or indoor sandals when I come in the house but I don't want guests to feel uncomfortable, and barefoot, when they come in. The ones who come from a shoes-off culture always take their shoes off anyway. Maybe I'll have a stash of little slippers by the door for guests. Flip flops or little cloth slippers that can be washed.

I think there is more awareness these days. If you had friends with a strong Japanese culture, your shoes would be off. Similarly, my D's future MIL lives in Vermont and everyone changes shoes when they come in there. Everyone has a mudroom to deal with snow, ice, and mud. She said that children grow up always removing their shoes after they come in.

alh · March 2016

If it is messy out, I put a clean pair of ballet flats (or something similar) in my handbag and, as unobtrusively as possible, change into them as I give up my coat, etc.

Motherofdragons: I am not a duck expert. I have exactly one data point.

jym626 · March 2016

Count me as one who has a doormat both outside and inside the door. I guess perhaps it is a cultural thing, but if my feet are dirty and I don't want to mess up the floors, I wipe my feet. Inside, outside or both. My feet get cold so I tend to keep shoes on. I might eventually go find a warm pair of slippers but I don't keep them at the door. I don't have many people over who walk around barefoot, but I might find myself worrying if someone had a fungus or athletes foot or something that I' prefer not to get.

alh · March 2016

inside and outside doormats - yep

mom60 · March 2016

I think the shoe thing is cultural. Growing up I had a lot of friends who at least one parent was Japanese. We always took shoes off at the door. My BIL and SIL lived in Japan for 2 years, when they returned they purchased a house that had white carpet. They had guests remove shoes athletic front door and kept a supply of flip flops at their back patio door.
Where I live now everyone I know leaves shoes on. I'm odd in that I feel most comfortable in shoes. I put slippers on after my bath but otherwise I wear shoes inside. Obviously if shoes were muddy I would remove them as would any guest.

jym626 · March 2016

My DH grew up in Japan. He never takes his shoes off, nor do any of his sibs. Just saying....

Now, when we were over there and visiting people in their homes,we took our shoes off.

comeonpeeps · March 2016

An article on the topic:
http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/Consumer/story?id=5177409&page=1

I also feel comfortable in shoes. I take old running shoes that are no longer effective for running and give them a thorough wash. I take a sharpie and mark them as "Indoor" so I don't confuse myself. I wear them exclusively indoors and change out of them when going outside.

Random Questions

Replies to: Random Questions

Recent Activity