Annoying FSU habits/superstitions

[possum]

I'm curious if there are any FSU habits that you find annoying or just plain weird.. I can think of a few that have bothered me ever since I got exposed to Western culture, mainly because they stopped making sense to me..

Number one on my list of pet peeves would be wearing slippers around the apartment.. Now, I can understand having a pair of slippers at home for when your floors get dirty and you need to get something from the kitchen without ruining your socks.. But if you invite me to your home and demand that I put on a pair of slippers to walk around in, forget it!. I don't know whose feet have gone in them, so I won't wear them and if that bothers you then don't invite me anymore.. Or clean your floors next time..

Or how about the "no greeting over a threshold" rule?. What's going to happen if you shake someone's hand over a threshold?. Some people are really paranoid about that one.. Like, what if there is no actual threshold in your door frame, what do you do?.

Then there is the whole idea of sleeping on a pull-out couch.. It seems like there's one in every apartment, and it's not reserved for guests either.. Every night they pull it out, turning it into a bed, and then in the morning they push it back in, and it's a couch again.. All I have to say to these people is, if you don't have a living room/den, don't pretend you have one by using a pullout couch.. Buy a bed, for Christ's sake!. It doesn't have to be a king sized one, just big enough for you to sleep in comfortably..

And last but not least, carpets with bright colored patterns haging on walls.. Nothing like a huge carpet on the wall to make you feel like a Mongolian nomadic tribe leader!.

OK, I've shown you mine, now you show me yours..

[Ade]

Number one on my list of pet peeves would be wearing slippers around the apartment.. Now, I can understand having a pair of slippers at home for when your floors get dirty and you need to get something from the kitchen without ruining your socks.. But if you invite me to your home and demand that I put on a pair of slippers to walk around in, forget it!. I don't know whose feet have gone in them, so I won't wear them and if that bothers you then don't invite me anymore.. Or clean your floors next time..

Maybe they don't want your feet on their floor. Who knows where they've been?

Then there is the whole idea of sleeping on a pull-out couch.. It seems like there's one in every apartment, and it's not reserved for guests either.. Every night they pull it out, turning it into a bed, and then in the morning they push it back in, and it's a couch again.. All I have to say to these people is, if you don't have a living room/den, don't pretend you have one by using a pullout couch.. Buy a bed, for Christ's sake!. It doesn't have to be a king sized one, just big enough for you to sleep in comfortably..

Um, you think it's strange/annoying that they are trying optimize the small amount of space as best they can?

[possum]

Maybe they don't want your feet on their floor. Who knows where they've been?

In my shoes, mostly, it's not like I walk the streets in my socks..

Um, you think it's strange/annoying that they are trying optimize the small amount of space as best they can?

Having a pullout couch is not optimizing anything.. A small or mid-sized bed would serve that purpose much better, IMO.. Not to mention, most of those couches are terrible to sleep on..

[Ade]

In my shoes, mostly, it's not like I walk the streets in my socks..

But you may walk in your apartment with only your socks and who knows what state that's in...

Having a pullout couch is not optimizing anything.. A small or mid-sized bed would serve that purpose much better, IMO.. Not to mention, most of those couches are terrible to sleep on..

If it's the choice of having a usable living room which converts to a bedroom or not having a usable living room because it's full of bed I know what I'd be doing.

[possum]

But you may walk in your apartment with only your socks and who knows what state that's in...

Probably in better state than the flora in those 'guest' slippers.. You have a much better chance of contracting foot fungus by wearing those than your hosts do by letting you walk around in your socks..

If it's the choice of having a usable living room which converts to a bedroom or not having a usable living room because it's full of bed I know what I'd be doing.

Again, no need to buy a king size bed, a small comfy bed will take care of everything.. True, you're not going to have a couch, but then again if the room is too tiny for both a (small) bed and a couch, it's probably not big enough to be a living room anyway.. That's just how I see it..

[Missouri-Hunter]

Why are the guests removing their shoes?  ???

[possum]

Why are the guests removing their shoes?  ???

That's a good question.. Because the streets are generally dirtier in the FSU than in the West, sidewalks are not always present and the hallways in tenements are filthy..

[kievstar]

My mother always made us remove our shoes in America.  So did my grand parents.  Why - shoes are dirty.  However if they had a large party of 100 plus people in the house than my mother let them keep the shoes on as she had to clean the next day anyways.  

[I/O]

Possum: I differ on the sofa / bed thing. For the most part I think it is a practical approach and works fairly well.

Shoes off? They're OFF in my place too, always have been and always will be. If you don't want to be embarrassed by your stinking feet, take a shower before you come. I won't provide you with slippers, your socks are fine (if they don't stink and if they do, don't come again) and nor will my in laws in Russia or any of their friends for that matter. I haven't struck the slippers insisted upon inside thing in Russia but I have struck it in other countries and yes it annoys me too. I usually don't bother visiting again unless it is someone very special and I DO have an ace up my sleeve. I always carry a pair of knitted woollen slippers when travelling, mainly for use on the plane. They fold up in my jacket pocket quite well and only come out during a visit if I sense the "you should wear these (something everyone else has worn) things" coming.

Superstitions, indeed!!!!!! Lots of BS there but I have learned to ignore it for the most part. Shaking hands through a door, going through the whole exit routine if you happen to go back to get something, not demonstrating an injury, throwing money in the river as you cross a bridge, not whistling, cold drinks giving you a cold and.............there is a thousand of them with no basis. It's simply the baggage which comes with being or knowing Russian/s.

[Ade]

Why are the guests removing their shoes?  ???

The FSU is not the only place in the world where it's considered common courtesy to remove ones shoes on entering a house, yours and others. In Norway it's a practice just about everyone follows. FWIW, I think it's a very good thing not to have crap dragged all over the house from shoes with who knows what on the bottom.

[Doll]

Do you guys really think there are no annoying habits here, in the US?
You are just used to it, that's all.

[Aloe]

i have to wear special open type sneakers in my house, not because of habit, but because the floor is way too cold, and the rubber bottom provides good grip on our stairs that are not wide enough (even for my nearly childrens size feet, let alone bigger feet) and kinda dangerous if you wear something that slides, like socks; Our guests just have to tough it out without anything haha

[SANDRO43]

The FSU is not the only place in the world where it's considered common courtesy to remove ones shoes on entering a house, yours and others. In Norway it's a practice just about everyone follows. FWIW, I think it's a very good thing not to have crap dragged all over the house from shoes with who knows what on the bottom.

Not a custom here, besides a door mat is usually available to remove what little dirt may have accumulated on one's shoe soles from our streets. I remember seeing U-shaped iron scrapers outside the entrance to countryside houses, to remove any attached clogs of soil/mud/snow.

Once some fussy housewives insisted on everybody using pattine (sort of felt rectangles) inside so as not to spoil their freshly waxed floors. Rather awkward to manage, not unlike skating on ice .

For us, changing into slippers or similar is more a question of personal comfort when one is at home, but not when people are visiting - they are not offered anything to change into, either, that'd be considered rude here, a throwback to pattine days.

As for bed sofas/couches, I slept in one for some years as a kid for the reason given below - our house was too small, and a fixed bed would have been a major inconvenience in our less-than-ample living room. They are a convenient solution for unexpected guests, too, unless your manor has guest rooms available . 

[ECOCKS]

Oh yeah those sofas, I would think that the FSU would be a gold mine for a chiropractor's association if they ever get their mass economy in gear.

I switched us to a real bed as soon as I reupped my lease on the first place over there. Now we have a pretty good mattress and box springs set and sleeping is like heaven.

I have to agree though that the sofa-beds are a practical answer to the realities of living so tightly, especially in the last few years as families discover the difficulties in obtaining new housing.

As for the shoes, that really does hold down the dirt in the house and makes sense if inconvenient in houses with multiple doors, garage entries and such. My outside and house shoes are always at another door it seems. I did put benches next to all three house doorways so you could sit and get them changed though.

You left off indoor clothes and outdoor clothes.

Then there is the lack of ice for drinks, but that only seems to bug me at restaurants over there these days. We eventually got a real refrigerator with an ice bin. No ice-maker but plenty of trays and babushka keeps them stocked for me.

The "most annoying" kudo (for me anyway) goes to the fear of drafts. This whole thing of thinking that fans, open window breezes or AC vents are deathtraps is killing me. All ties back to construction and health standards though.

Personally I suspect the government was behind this draft thing as a way to make the people unconcerned about getting fans or AC.

[SANDRO43]

Then there is the lack of ice for drinks, but that only seems to bug me at restaurants over there these days.

Goes to show how relative things are . I found it an "Annoying US habit" being served an iced glass of water on sitting down at restaurants - I don't think that brusquely lowering your stomach temperature prior to eating is a particularly bright idea .

[janic]

Ок, this 'No shoes' thing annoys me too. I don't wear shoes at my home but would never-ever request from a visitor that he takes his shoes off. Personally I feel very uncomfortable with using the offered slippers exactly because I who all the people were who wore them before. Yuck! When it's inevitable to visit people at home most of the time I settle for wearing just my socks. It's the way I walk around at home.
Some (most?) of my the people I was acquainted with in UA pretty grabbed pretty fast the level of discomfort I was in and offered me to keep my shoes on; a thing that bothered me because I was aware that it was a courtesy that could make them feeling uncomfortable...
Well, there's no elegant way out and so socks are my choice...

Additionally the need of most of the UW I met to be in a picture, hugging trees, statues, jumping into flower-beds, etc. is smth I've trouble coping with.

[myrddin]

Goes to show how relative things are . I found it an "Annoying US habit" being served an iced glass of water on sitting down at restaurants - I don't think that brusquely lowering your stomach temperature prior to eating is a particularly bright idea .

I'm pretty sure just about every US habit is annoying to just about everyone in the world.     I've never been in a restaurant in the US where they'd blink an eye at a request for "no ice", though I can see it'd be annoying to always have to ask. (I put ice in most of my drinks, it's slightly annoying that often the option is not available overseas.)

My big annoyance in the FSU comes from the treatment of lines ("queues" in British), especially at the airport.  When I landed in Boryspil in April, lines formed spontaneously at Passport Control and there was little cutting.  If it weren't for the odors, I might've worried I was in the wrong place.     

It's not that I can't or won't "fight" for position in those lines (and I understand why it's a part of the culture), it's just ... well, annoying.

[BC]

My big annoyance in the FSU comes from the treatment of lines ("queues" in British), especially at the airport.  When I landed in Boryspil in April, lines formed spontaneously at Passport Control and there was little cutting.  If it weren't for the odors, I might've worried I was in the wrong place.     

It's not that I can't or won't "fight" for position in those lines (and I understand why it's a part of the culture), it's just ... well, annoying.

[youtube=425,350]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nQWNGLv8w74[/youtube]

[janic]

My big annoyance in the FSU comes from the treatment of lines ("queues" in British), especially at the airport.

If you've problems with FSU lines then pls have a visit to Poland. Here cutting the lines is part of the culture. I never experienced smth similar in UA.

[groovlstk]

My big annoyance in the FSU comes from the treatment of lines ("queues" in British), especially at the airport.  When I landed in Boryspil in April, lines formed spontaneously at Passport Control and there was little cutting.  If it weren't for the odors, I might've worried I was in the wrong place.     

It's not that I can't or won't "fight" for position in those lines (and I understand why it's a part of the culture), it's just ... well, annoying.

This is as good a time as any to re-post an Exile classic:

Ivan Tikhonov's Line-Cutting Tips

[possum]

You left off indoor clothes and outdoor clothes.

That's because I still do that one.. :angel:

The "most annoying" kudo (for me anyway) goes to the fear of drafts. This whole thing of thinking that fans, open window breezes or AC vents are deathtraps is killing me. All ties back to construction and health standards though.

I agree, there's no rational explanation for this mass draftophobia.. Most people will be ok with open windows in the summer, but crack open the small pane in the winter and you'll be accused of trying to kill everyone..

[groovlstk]

I agree, there's no rational explanation for this mass draftophobia.. Most people will be ok with open windows in the summer, but crack open the small pane in the winter and you'll be accused of trying to kill everyone..

Yeah, or try to open a window on a sweltering marshrutka - the babushki will howl at you even if the temperature is high enough to bake bread 

[Gator]

BC,

Hilarious clip.  It is easy to substitute Russia for Italy especially the pedestrian crossing the street. 

My first day in the FSU was in Kiev.  My date and I had to cross a road.  She grabbed my hand as if I were a child and ran across the road, dragging me with her.

The most difficult crossing in all of the FSU is the third ring road in Moscow where there is no underpass.  Very wide road and the traffic lights do not give abundant time to cross.  The babushkas had to move their short legs at a sprinter's pace, all the time looking for cars that might run through the red light.  Even the dogs scurried across.  The image still makes me chuckle.

The Italy bureaucrat would be like Russia if the Italian left a few lyre at each window.

[Sculpto]

I was told that removing the shoes is a sign of respect to the woman of the house because she is the one who will clean the floors.

If people had bigger houses they wouldn't have pullout couches.

Ice water is weird.

How about the Americans who will tell you their entire life story in the mere 35 seconds of an elevator ride?  

How about Americans that will drive three blocks instead of walking?

LOL Possum, you really have to get over here and see for yourself.  Let me take you to a large part of Oakland and then you can decide if the west is so great.    I am not saying it is all bad.. just that every place has its positives and negatives.

[Sculpto]

Same thing in Mexico.. its 100 degrees and humid but absolutely dont open the window on the bus.. why?  Bad air will come in and you will get sick.