I didn't really know what to call this thread but I'm curious what others think/do. I was home alone with the girls and the doorbell rang. Of course the dog starts barking as usual. There are windows at the top of our door and there's also a bay window right next to the front door so I can easily see who is there but they can also see me as well. I opened the door while holding the dog back and it was just a man asking if I needed help clearing the snow from the driveway. I told him my husband would be home any minute (true) and he said ok great and left. But when I closed the door, all of these law & order type scenarios went through my head and I was just thinking how foolish it was for me to open the door. I've done this before and thought the same thing as well.
So, do you open the door when you're alone or just with the kids? If you don't, how do you handle the awkwardness of the person clearly seeing you in the house and then not opening the door?
I usually don't open the door. Until we replaced the front door, there was no way to really see who was there. Even now, there's a window in the door, but it's textured glass and I have to go on tip toes to kind of see. Sometimes I'll pop into the front bedroom and look out the window to see if there's a vehicle or anyone I can see in the driveway. Sometimes in the summer though we have the front door open, in which case I'd talk to the person because they'd either see me, or I'd have to stay out of sight, in which case empty looking house with the door open isn't any better.
We get a lot of aggressive sales people selling windows or siding and such. I answered the door once and a guy would not leave until I scheduled an appointment for an estimate. I was 40 weeks pregnant with dd. Last summer our house was being painted so of course I answered when the doorbell rang, but it wasn't the painters, it was some guy trying to sell me cheaper electricity and he wanted to come into the house to review our bill. I'd rather not deal with those people at all.
In your case where they can see you, I'd probably hide, or pretend to be on the phone or something and yell out no thanks, not interested.
Yeah I hate our front door because of the sidelights whoever is outside can see me. I either don't open it and try to stay away from the door or I yell through the door that I'm not interested.
We have a giant window as well, so I can't really hide. However, if I'm not near the window, I won't answer. It's always the Jehovah witnesses at my door. I did have a random guy looking through my window after he knocked. I caught him while I was in the kitchen, where he can't really see me. So I just don't answer anymore. I'm not missing anything. If it's a neighbor, they'll announce themselves.
Post by rainbowsockmonkey on Feb 9, 2017 21:05:54 GMT -5
I answer the door when the bell rings. I always peek out one of our windows and see who it is. I always have my phone in my hand, and must give of a "a don't have time for this crap" vibe, because people don't stick around long. Either that or they hear my kids crying, and see that I'm still in my pjs with my hair not brushed and really don't want to stick around.
I've only had 2 incidents in our current town that have weirded me out. 1 shortly after we moved in when a weird guy came to our back door and asked if some guy lived in our house, and if I was sure when I said no. The other was when the weird guy came to our house this past summer.
Post by Susan0utLoud on Feb 9, 2017 21:07:28 GMT -5
I live in the middle of a big city. I can see the front porch from the couch and they can see me. I usually answer unless a neighbor calls to tell me someone sketchy is going door to door. We don't get sales people, mostly just people trying to gather signatures or asking us to try a new service in the area. When Dh is out of town, I keep the screen door locked so if I do open the front door, I talk to them through that.
I live in the middle of a big city. I can see the front porch from the couch and they can see me. I usually answer unless a neighbor calls to tell me someone sketchy is going door to door. We don't get sales people, mostly just people trying to gather signatures or asking us to try a new service in the area. When Dh is out of town, I keep the screen door locked so if I do open the front door, I talk to them through that.
My old neighbor and I used to text back and forth about sales people going door to door. Also about a crazy lady that comes around asking for money. We don't really get too many sales people or JW's in my town. I guess thats one of the perks of living in a small town.
We have an entry way so no one can see me. But i usually go answer, there's always some package we're expecting and all the delivery people ring the bell. I haven't really thought about it being dangerous. We live in a small town and not much happens here.
Ok so clearly I watch too much SVU and other crime shows and I'm the only one who imagines men posing as a delivery person or salesman only to get into the homes of unsuspecting women. I'll go back to my Criminal Minds marathon now.
Post by sstwinklinglites on Feb 9, 2017 22:13:29 GMT -5
I always answer. But I have a window I can look out of and they don't really see me. It's always a delivery anyway. I've never had a salesperson or a JW come to my door.
If I'm in the back part of the house (kitchen or living room) you can't see me by the front door. I had 3 teenage girls come by when I was on maternity leave and ask for a ride to school because it was raining and they were lost. I called the police and sent an email to the neighborhood group list. That was so odd. I'm still afraid they were casing my house. I live on a cul de sac and the high school is at the end of the neighborhood. I don't care if it's weird I don't like to answer the door when I'm alone with the kids. ETA: one of my neighbors has the doorbell with a camera on it. I think I want that.
We sell eggs from our chickens and ducks so we have a lot of people coming to our door. Last summer I put a mini fridge on the front porch where people can pay and take what they would like. Our dogs go crazy when people knock so this just works better for everyone and they don't need to know if we are home. I don't hesitate to open the door if someone does knock though.
If I'm in the back part of the house (kitchen or living room) you can't see me by the front door. I had 3 teenage girls come by when I was on maternity leave and ask for a ride to school because it was raining and they were lost. I called the police and sent an email to the neighborhood group list. That was so odd. I'm still afraid they were casing my house. I live on a cul de sac and the high school is at the end of the neighborhood. I don't care if it's weird I don't like to answer the door when I'm alone with the kids. ETA: one of my neighbors has the doorbell with a camera on it. I think I want that.
My ILs have a doorbell cam, the app also alerts them if someone is outside the door even if they haven't rung the bell. We have a Nest thermostat and have thought about getting some nest cams to add to the setup
I don't answer unless it's someone that I know. We've had a lot of break ins in our area and a lot of reports of people posing as someone selling something so they can scout your house and come back later.
Ok so clearly I watch too much SVU and other crime shows and I'm the only one who imagines men posing as a delivery person or salesman only to get into the homes of unsuspecting women. I'll go back to my Criminal Minds marathon now.
No I'm with you. I think it depends on where you live and your perception of safety. Im close to an interstate and people sell things and someone stole my wallet out of my car in the driveway. And just this past week, all the neighbors were posting that they could see footprints in the snow overnight going from car to car. They don't break the windows, just check for if it's unlocked. I don't open the door whether they can see me or not.
I generally don't answer the door unless I'm expecting someone. It's usually JW or people looking to mow the lawn or shovel snow. UPS rings the bell but they'll just leave the package so no need to answer. It's more because I don't want to be bothered rather than safety. DH will open the door and then always regrets it when he does.
I don't answer unless it's someone that I know. We've had a lot of break ins in our area and a lot of reports of people posing as someone selling something so they can scout your house and come back later.
My mom had something like this happen this past spring while I was staying with her. Some lady came to the door and asked to come in so she could talk about a new laundry product. My mom didn't let her in, and after she told me about it I went out and drove down the street and got the plate number and vehicle description and called it in. I'm not sure what happened to the people in the can (there was a big heavy set guy that was doing the driving).
We have the same layout window wise. From our couch, we can look out the big window and see our driveway. Not quite the front step area, but usually someone has a vehicle that we can tell who it is by peeking. Also, when we go to our door, it has the top half that is windows. So if it looks suspicious I could see it before I open.
However, I usually open the door. I live in a relatively smaller town and have never had anything fishy happen. It's usually fund raising, the Schwans man, or the delivery guy dropping off a package. If I felt off after that, I would probably lock the door and go to the garage and lock that door.
3 out of his 4 victims in the past week were random women that he had no connection to, so I'll stick to being paranoid for now. There are bad people in the world!
You guys can continue to open your door to everyone though
Also i used to work for CPS and everyone let me in their homes without questioning it. WTF if some random showed up at my house claiming to be CPS I would be making some phone calls to verify it before letting this person inside my whole house and letting them interview my child even if they had a badge.
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