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<p>And the mosquitoes?</p>
<p>We just held a recent bbq and someone brought 2 dozen unschucked (sp) corn. Not to be ungrateful, but I was a bit annoyed because it meant more work for me. I had done a lot of prep work early that day so that we didn’t have to spend time too much time cooking and more time mingling with the guests. DH went off to shuck the corn. I was relieved but I wonder if one should think about what you bring to a dinner or bbq/cookout.</p>
<p>Lia_b, I would think that the guest bringing the corn should do the shucking. Usually when you bring food to a gathering, you prepare it at home, so it would follow that if you want to keep the corn fresh, and shuck it immediately before cooking, that the guest would do that.</p>
<p>I don’t blame you for being annoyed. As much as I love eating corn on the cob, I’m always glad when I’m finished cleaning it.</p>
<p>Some people grill corn in the husks on the grill. But if that wasn’t the plan, I agree you should have politely invited the person who brought it to shuck it with you.</p>
<p>I don’t even like to bring flowers without a vase for the host because last thing they want to do when they are busy preparing food is to put fresh flowers in a vase. </p>
<p>I do ask my guests to take off their shoes when they come to my house because we do not wear shoes in the house. A lot of my friends also do the same at home, so no one is ever offended. They wear shoes if we have more of a formal event, but more often than not, a lot of them would take off their shoes anyway, especially later in the evening.</p>
<p>Are we allowed to link to YouTube videos now? The thing about the toothbrush and germs from the toilet reminded me of this one, one of my favorites:</p>
<p>[HappySlip</a> - Morning Meest - YouTube](<a href=“Morning Meest - YouTube”>Morning Meest - YouTube)</p>
<p>If the link has to be removed, search YouTube for “Morning Meest”</p>
<p>Well they had a small toddler that was in hyperactive mode so they had their hands full. I realize they probably had no time to prepare anything, so they probably just picked this up on the way. The corn turned out good but I would have been happy with a store bought pie or anything I could just throw on the table.</p>
<p>*
*If you must go inside to use the bathroom, take your shoes off</p>
<p>*</p>
<p>“if you must go inside to use the bathroom”??? As opposed to what…peeing behind a bush? </p>
<p>Really!!!</p>
<p>
Some people don’t wear shoes in the house at all, and request that guests do the same. It’s partly a cultural thing. The wording of this particular request is the problem, I think.</p>
<p>Where I live it is normal for people to remove their shoes at the door during the winter and mud seasons. Most people either offer to remove their shoes, or just do so. It took me aback a bit at first when visitors would immediately slip off their shoes, but I grew to appreciate it. I can see how people would have the same custom in beach areas, because of the sand. </p>
<p>Around here, it’s usually a clue if the hosts have one of those trays for shows by the door. :)</p>
<p>I must say that the request was worded ungraciously, though. </p>
<p>It is amazing to me how little some people are willing to do to entertain others. My church had a committee that was supposed to organize social activities to bring members together, with no work or fundraising involved. Just fellowship. They decided not to have potlucks because it was “too much work”! If a potluck is too much work, what can you do?</p>
<p>This references my piece of lousy guest behavior. We take our shoes off when entering the house for the most part, though don’t enforce with guests. A male guest who is becoming increasingly irritable with age, angrily kicked my shoes (set to the side) by the back door out of the way when entering. It was a back yard party, and I was running back and forth to the kitchen, slipping shoes on and off with each pass. He of course, was keeping his shoes on. </p>
<p>We have a collection of shoes by the front door, usually lined up when guests come, rather than the sometimes jumbled heap. Some make depreciating comments about the collection, which I find tiring, as it is just a cultural/lifestyle issue.</p>
<p>We always take shoes off at the door, everyone has their own basket or shelf in the mudroom. I tried asking my inlaw’s early on but my MIL was so offended I gave up. With babies constantly crawling on the floor in the early years who wants people tracking stuff in from the street…ewww! We lived for 5yrs in the mountains of western PA where you have snow on the ground from Halloween until Easter with little melting. It’s too cold to use ice on the roads so they use coal ash…very dirty to be tracking into houses, most of which are old and built with vestibules. It’s common practice to take your boots off before coming into the main part of the house. My kids don’t know any different now and wouldn’t think of stepping past the entryway in someone’s home in their shoes unless it was a formal event. I can’t think of anyone (save my inlaw’s) that regularly comes to our home that doesn’t instinctively slip off their shoes at the door, and no, we’ve never asked.</p>
<p>I think we were invited to the same party, Skewlcounselor. Only our invitation instructed us to also bring $10 (per guest, incuding children) towards the karaoke machine (which they had borrowed from us), a gift for the birthday boy (registry kindly provided), and a bottle of wine to add to the “wine cellar.” Like you, we (un)regrettably were not available to spend several hundred dollars to attend a backyard BBQ for a guy whose first name we did not know. We still laugh about that party – wish we’d have stayed home to spy and see if anyone actually attended.</p>
<p>$10 toward the karaoke machine that you know for a fact didn’t cost them anything anyway? Since when did a party become a profit-making event??</p>
<p>Miss Manners would be turning in her grave, if she were dead.</p>
<p>^^ Post of the day.</p>
<p>"…our invitation instructed us to also bring $10 (per guest, incuding children) towards the karaoke machine (which they had borrowed from us)…"</p>
<p>This takes the cake!</p>
<p>You’d think they’d have the brainpower to at least leave that little detail off the invitation of the family they borrowed the karaoke machine. You can’t buy class (or have your guests contribute $10/pp towards it). Sheesh!!</p>
<p>SoccrPlayr - seems you would have been justified in sending them a bill.</p>
<p>^ ^</p>
<p>IMHO, you’d be well within your rights to taking back the karaoke machine or demand a cut of the take unless you knew about & agreed to this arrangement beforehand.</p>