Most of us are happy to take our shoes off when we enter someone’s home, but this house-proud man’s request was a step too far for some of his friends.
Seeking perspectives on Reddit, the 20-year-old who lives alone described himself as a ‘very neat person’ whose mother kept their home ‘pristine’ while he was growing up.
After moving into his own place, he began to think about the amount of germs that come into our houses from the clothes we’ve worn outside.
Although he changes his clothes immediately after getting home, he began to worry about guests, saying: ‘I have no idea where they’ve been or what their clothes have been exposed to.’
The man explained: ‘About a month ago, I bought a bunch of those clear disposable rain coats and I started telling people who I invited over that they could bring a change of fresh clothes to change into or wear one of the coats before they sit on my furniture.
‘I also offer to wash the clothes that they change out of, if they want to.’
Apparently his girlfriend ‘doesn’t have a problem’ with this setup, and his mum and sister were both fine with it too. His friends, however, felt differently.
His post continued: ‘I told them about the clothes thing before they came, but when they got here they were surprised that I actually enforced it and said “You’ve got to f***ing with me”.
‘I told them no, I’m serious, and then they left. They haven’t been answering my messages either.’
After talking over the issue with his mother, she said ‘it was pretty excessive and unreasonable’ to expect every guest to comply with his demand, leaving the man questioning his house rules.
Many Redditors agreed with his mother, with one saying: ‘You’re in the wrong and need therapy. I don’t say that disparagingly at all – I sincerely think you would benefit from professional help.’
‘Yes there are germs out there, but the likelihood of them doing harm to you is near zero,’ added another. ‘This type of thing gets worse over time, so get help now.’
A third commented: ‘Wow…. just wow. Words cannot describe how socially unaware this post is.
‘You can go with the “my house/my rules” mentality, but don’t expect any friends to visit, ever. Who the hell regularly visits a friend with a change of clothes in hand?’
Yet some supported his requirement, including one person who said: ‘I wish I could enforce this at my house. Outside clothes are gross!’
‘You’re entitled to have whatever rules in your home that you wish,’ added another, while a third said: ‘This is normal, outside clothes are dirty and should be removed inside house. It’s akin to wearing outside shoes indoors.’
According to clinical pharmacist Nyrah Saleem, the most dangerous bacteria in our homes are actually in the bathroom vents and washing machines.
She told Metro.co.uk: ‘While many yeast, species are harmless or even beneficial, some can cause infections, particularly in individuals with weakened immune systems.
‘If your washing machine contains yeasts, there is a chance that they can transfer to your clothes during the washing process.’
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First appear at Man makes guests change clothes or wear plastic rain ponchos before sitting on his couch
