ahermitt, our Lawrenceville Blogger AKA Nosy Neighbor, had this recent post about people coming to the door. She talked about evangelists talking to her 13 year old son while she was in the shower!
How do you feel about strangers coming to your door? I agree with ahermitt, that there was a time when I felt more comfortable opening my door, but now if someone comes to the door that I'm not expecting, I talk to them through the window of my door. I can see and hear them fine, and vice versa, so it may seem overly paranoid, but there's no reason to open the door really.
I will never hire someone to do home repair who comes up to my door. To me, it's too much of a risk. I don't care how good the "deal" is. I prefer to pay full price for a quality job by an insured person or company. The guy always talks a good spin "we just wanted you to know that we'll be doing some work in your neighborhood...." and, "oh no, we're not trying to SELL anything....we're just trying to let you know about our services..."
My standard answer is, I don't buy anything door to door. If you would like to mail me some of your materials, I'll be glad to look it over.
ahermitt's article talks about the door to door evangelists. They can be a pain sometimes, and if you do take a publication, it's kind of like feeding a cat - they'll be at your door again and again.
My aunt was a Jehovah's Witness, so I know the point of view they have - their belief is that, if your neighbor's house was on fire, you would do anything you could to tell them to save them, even if they shut you out. So that is part of the reason they are so insistant, and let's face it - if you are not a Jehovah's Witness, it can be irritating, but once I understood the reasoning, it made it less irritating to me.
If you want to repel visitors from your doorstep, a "Shh...Baby's Sleeping" sign is more effective and kinder than a "No Soliciting" sign, and a No Soliciting sign means nothing to people who are evangelizing. I will probably have my "Shhh...Baby's Sleeping" sign on my door even when my baby is 45 years old!
