# The 3 day guest rule **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [July 26, 2006, 12:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-3-day-guest-rule/366073 "2006-07-26T12:12:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![kittenblue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ba8739/32.png) [@kittenblue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kittenblue)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2006, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-3-day-guest-rule/366073/21 "2006-07-27T01:51:49Z")
Before my brother got married, he would come visiting during the winter (he’s a landscaper). He’s take a six week trip and split it up between my place and my sister’s. He’d stay with her about a week, week and a half…then come to my place for a month or more. I was not required to entertain him, he would do his own sightseeing, and occasionally we would do some stuff together. He knew where the washer and dryer were and how to use thm, and while I would generally make dinner for the family, the rest of the time he was on his own. I didn’t care if he spent days just reading. In fact, when we got our first computer (1984, a Tandy 1000EX) he spent about 15 hours sitting in front of it, changing every pixel in the bubbles we’d drawn with the paint program to black…one at a time. I did not think this was weird or unsociable ( and as soon as he got home he bought a matching computer of his own!) But it would have driven my sister crazy. When she visits me (by herself) it’s never long enough. But if she brings the kids and the husband I’m ready for them to leave the next day. ---
**Author:** ![Leaper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/4bbf92/32.png) [@Leaper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaper)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2006, 3:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-3-day-guest-rule/366073/22 "2006-07-27T03:18:41Z")
[QUOTE=ronincyberpunk] The rule is that a person can stay as long as they like so long as they only spend 3 days with me. So basically use my house as a base of operations and go travelling. Here are some examples: 1. Friend stays for six days. Days 1, 3, and 5 he goes off to the beach, thus 2, 4, and 6 (the day he departs) are with me. This is fine - he’s gone at sunrise and back in the evening, no problemo. 2. Friend stays for seven days, he’s gone from noon to the evening every day. Which means he’s spent 3.5 days with me. That was alright but I was ready to send him off. [/QUOTE] You have an interesting definition of “staying with me.” I’d count #'s 1 and 2 as staying with me six and seven days, respectively, because I’m interacting with him at least for entire evenings, and he’s sleeping under my roof. ---
**Author:** ![Hostile\_Dialect](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e495f1/32.png) [@Hostile\_Dialect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hostile_Dialect)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2006, 7:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-3-day-guest-rule/366073/23 "2006-07-27T07:06:51Z")
I’m about to _move in_ with my friend. Wish me luck! 😃 > [@Nava](#): > > Which, again, knowing that someone else would be using my kitchen, would be on top of the counter in its usual receptacle, a plastic box that says SALT in big orange letters and which looks a lot like the receptacles used by the two ladies in question. :mad: Liar! I bet it really says “SAL”. 😃 😉 ---
**Author:** ![InternetLegend](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/internetlegend/32/13154_2.png) [@InternetLegend](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/InternetLegend)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2006, 7:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-3-day-guest-rule/366073/24 "2006-07-27T07:10:55Z")
I’m apparently far too convincing when I tell people I’d be delighted to have them come and stay “as long as you’d like”. My brother stayed for _three freakin’ weeks_ last year, and I was ready to shoot him by the middle of the second week, although he’s a perfectly nice person and a reasonably considerate guest. On two separate occasions over the past year, two different acquaintances stayed for (respectively) five days and eight days. After that, I’ll tell you, three days sounds good to me. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2006, 7:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-3-day-guest-rule/366073/25 "2006-07-27T07:29:32Z")
[QUOTE=fetus] I’m about to _move in_ with my friend. Wish me luck! 😃 :mad: Liar! I bet it really says “SAL”. 😃 😉 [/QUOTE] Actually, it says SALT! I bought it in Philly, nyahnyah! But of course the ones owned by SIL and Mom say SAL 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Monkey\_Chews](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/65b543/32.png) [@Monkey\_Chews](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monkey_Chews)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2006, 8:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-3-day-guest-rule/366073/26 "2006-07-27T08:15:42Z")
[QUOTE=fetus] I’m about to _move in_ with my friend. Wish me luck! 😃 [/QUOTE] I’m about to move into my friend’s _bedroom_, which we are going to share for a month. Wish me luck! :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Hostile\_Dialect](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e495f1/32.png) [@Hostile\_Dialect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hostile_Dialect)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2006, 8:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-3-day-guest-rule/366073/27 "2006-07-27T08:41:01Z")
> [@Nava](#): > > Actually, it says SALT! > > I bought it in Philly, nyahnyah! Drat! Foiled again! Well, maybe that’s why mom and SIL can’t figure out what’s in it. 😃 > [@Monkey Chews](#): > > I’m about to move into my friend’s bedroom, which we are going to share for a month. Wish me luck! Me more like six months. And I’m also moving into his bedroom, although technically he’ll have moved into another one first. OK, fine, you got me beat. (I’m a little worried too, because same friend was trying really hard to avoid a particular person he knew when he came back to San Diego. I found out that they used to be friends, and then I found out very recently that the reason he hates the guy is because they lived together. Eep!) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-3-day-guest-rule/366073.md?page=1)