Most people hold the door for people most of the time in my part of CO. Not always. We do have quite a large contingent of ex-Californians here; maybe that’s part of the reason that it’s a sometimes thing.
The only time I’ve been given an “odd” look is in situations where there is a door that pulls out, a small vestibule, and then another large doorthat pulls toward you. If a man of a certain age holds the door for me on the first door, I will thank him and then I’ll hold the door for him on the second door. I mean, is that unfeminine to return the favor? Am I supposed to just walk through the second door and give him the hold-it-open-with-my-backwards-arm thing? That would feel rude of me to me. I don’t want to ruin the guys joy at doing a nice thing, I just think we should all hold doors for people when the opportunity arises.
I’m female, so I’ve never experienced female rage about having the door held open but I can imagine it. I’m just as likely to hold the door for anyone if the timing is that I’m there just before another person. I’ll hang around to help if there’s someone who may need some assistance but not just for random healthy looking people who are not burdened with packages or some such.
Yup. People hold doors for me, and I hold them for them.
My style is basically the same as StuffLikeThatThere’s. I was taught by my Dad to do so after letting the door swing back in his face one too many times. It always amuses me that we do this little dance where he holds the door, and I hold the next door but then he usually indicates to me to go first.
Unfortunately not many people are so polite. I’ve had doors swing back in my face, or when I had the stroller regularly I’d do the pull the door open and hold with a foot as I back the stroller in thing if there wasn’t a handicap button.
Female btw.
Also, just today I had a fellow comment to me (after I had given up my seat for him on the train as he had a cane) that only the women seemed to do that anymore.
Minnesota, and people often hold doors here. Many buildings have 2 sets of doors, to stop wind and cold, so you end up doing a little dance. First one there holds the first door, follower (who went through the first door first) holds the second.
Holding a door often turns into a reason for exchanging smiles and a little social chit chat.
I’m in St. Louis, and people usually hold doors open for me and others around me, though there is the occasional jerk who lets the door slam in your face or lets go just as you get to it. Ticks me off to no end. Anyway, I generally hold doors open for others.
To add to the frezied debate on this subject.
I work in a large factory/office complex, so fire doors, security doors and standard doors are common place.
All of us who dwell in it are by and large door holders. However given the number of doors this also becomes a bit of a pain, and socially awkward.
To this end some people just race through doors if someone is walking say 10 yards behind them as it means otherwise holding the door politly as the guy reaches the door.
In other instances, you have to run the 10 yards to the door because the guy you were following arbitrarily decides to hold it open for you.
In one instance I was criticised by the door holder for not speeding up as I walked through the office even though he had no idea I was going to carry on through or stop at one of the cubicles.
I find myself routinely speeding up or slowing down in corridors when I see approaching people through the partition doors to either make use of there generosity or exempt them from standing like a loon as I then do a Linford Christie towards them.
With regard to the holding the door open for women thing, I cover this in two ways.
If the woman is a stranger I will walk through the door then hold it open.
Always with my back to the person walking through. Removes gender threat and implies/infers literally nothing of the act
If the woman is a friend I will push open the door and allow her through first.
This is an unashamedly, purely sexist, men being chivilrous act.