Jobs that require visiting the homes of strangers don't pay enough money.
Sometimes I still have Mormons knocking on the door and I just want to yell...
"Don't you know it's 2024 and people are crazy?! Don't knock on strange doors!"
But visiting home jobs are inevitable.
Repair men, the cable people, the census takers... that's all footwork.
And most often, people aren't going to overdo it by cleaning up their messes and secrets when letting people in.
In fact I think some people enjoy the scandal of it all.
What's a dead body or two?
Who is the Comcast guy gonna tell?
Danger is everywhere.
Knock at your own risk.
Redditor pete6531 wanted to hear about the strange things they've seen in people's homes when on the job, so they asked:
"People who go to other's homes for work what is the weirdest thing you have seen?"
Got Honey?
"Large bee hive in a bedroom. It was inside the home and on the outside. The bedroom door was closed and the owner said it’s the bee’s room now."
- Eathessentialhorror
Get To Work Bees GIF by Super SimpleGiphy
House Pet
"I used to do on-site tech support for an internet service provider. Both of my instances involved animals. One was a goat that was a 'house pet' and chewed up the hem of my pants as I worked. The other was 2 pet chinchillas, which I was encouraged to interact with (they were so soft!). On the drive home, my eyes started pouring water and eventually swelled shut. I had to pull over, flush them with water, and wait it out. Turns out I’m extremely allergic to chinchillas."
- simplecocktails
The Chamber
"Went to a house to evaluate it for residential solar. A very nice lady says 'Want to see my grow chamber?' It was a very professional setup, with a small number of marijuana plants. She was going to expand."
"It wasn't legal at the time. I pointed out that after the solar was installed a city inspector would be stopping by to inspect the connection at her electrical service panel, which was in the grow room."
- darkest_irish_lass
Going Wild
"A pet Racoon but it wasn't exactly a pet more like a wild animal they forced to live with them. They even said as much- he showed up on their porch and they let him in and decided he was cute enough to stay... it was mean and I wouldn't go anywhere near it."
- Some-Philly-Dude
"When my husband and I were shopping for houses we looked at one that had a large cage in the garage with a cover over it and weird noises coming from it. We lifted the cover to see a raccoon. It did not look friendly or happy. I love the idea of a pet raccoon but I know that it is not a good idea in reality."
- Obstacle_Illusion
Jars & Jars
"EMS here. Responded to a local physician’s home. Jars of pee EVERYWHERE; "
- classless_classic
"I would not be surprised if this was my neighbor. the profession is the same and from the state of his garage the rest would fit as well."
- worksafereads
Mr Bean Thumbs Up GIFGiphy
Normal
"I nannied for a family who was going through some serious sh*t behind the scenes, and it got weird for me so often. They had 2 kids, a 1.5-year-old girl, and a 3-year-old boy. The mom, a doctor, would come home from work and lock herself in her room for hours while the kids banged on the door and cried for her. The dad, also a doctor, also locked himself in his office a lot and would make me be the go-between for his wife and himself."
"There was one morning he asked her what was for dinner tonight, and she burst into tears, pulled him behind a door and furiously started whispering stuff, came back in the room, flung something out of the freezer, and stormed out. Nothing was normal in that house. The secret lives of rich people, eh?"
- MPD1987
OMG!!
"A huge home with absolutely nothing in it except a small desk and computer, and a queen-sized bed. Must have been a $900k-million dollar home, and it had a Jaguar in the garage. I was there to babysit their dog, a lovely Ascob Cocker Spaniel who adored tennis balls, and I only roamed the house on the last day of their vacation to report that the pup was indeed a very good girl who left no messes."
"On the flip side, I also babysat a Golden Retriever and Golden Doodle in a home to hoarders. It was beyond awful."
- LilSis279
Sundown
"When I did a home visit for a lady with dementia with her husband, I noted their bedroom door was very unusual. It was split in half horizontally so that you could shut the door fully, or just the bottom half on separate hinges. He explained that she would become more confused in the evenings ('sundowning'). It was to stop her from wandering out of the house while he was making dinner, but she would still be able to see out and talk to the family, and he could keep an eye on her. It reminded me of a horse stable door, never knew what to think of it."
- manlikerealities
Tested
"I'm a window cleaner, it's a luxury service so most of our clients are fairly well off. I don't know if it is weird but people like to test us. I've seen a literal chest full of cash open on someone's bed. They knew we were coming, it had to be intentional. I ignored it, but some might be tempted."
- Less_Department8396
Runaway
"Taxidermy tiger."
"Or the hoarder house with stacks of paper to the ceiling and rats the size of beagles."
- mahhhhhh
In the Bathroom
"We are auctioneers. We went to a house once where there was no water. The back porch was filled with five-gallon buckets that were what he used as a toilet. The house was going to be put on the market. I have no idea what they did with all those buckets. We did not do an auction."
- Happy-Sherbert8737
Is this the Ark?
"The owners of the house were big game hunters. As soon as you walked through the door you were greeted by two giraffe shoulder mounts. And all throughout the house, they had taxidermy everywhere. Walking across zebra skin rugs into a room with a whole pride of lions. Going up the stairs that were lined with ducks a bobcat posed to try and catch one. All of that and they couldn’t figure out a way to get the squirrel out of their attic."
- Red_blue_tiger
Hellcat
"Service Technician here. Been to this guy’s apartment unit where the carpet has been torn off, revealing the plywood. Windows were covered up by old cardboard that looked to be years old and breaking apart. The drywall behind the kitchen sink was torn down. Sink filled with dirty moldy dishes. 5-gallon buckets filled with grease/mold. The stove pulled out and was in the middle of the kitchen. Feces on the floor. Kitty litter box…. This dude has no pet and the unit smelled like a**.
"Drove by the unit a few months later to see that it’s getting remodeled. Looks like that tenant got evicted. The crazy thing is, he drove a Hell Cat when it was first introduced and also had a Harley. He seems pretty sane and dressed casually. Would never imagined someone like that living in a dump… wait… I’ve seen dumpsters cleaner than this guy’s apartment."
- vcc17
Movie Moments
"Locked bedroom of wall-to-wall shelves and bins full of a large collection of dolls. Mainly the kind that they make horror movies about."
- Sideways_sunset
horror movies GIF by absurdnoiseGiphy
This is why I would never do delivery. I barely like to visit the homes of acquaintances.
I don't need to know everybody's secrets.
And I don't need a reason to be subpoenaed for who knows what.
I always try to have tunnel vision in new homes.
Look forward and make no sudden movements, until you really know somebody.
And collections of weird dolls are often a sign that something is up.
In half of these homes I'd be worried I'd end up on a Dateline NBC episode.
