t (occurrence number 2, again during my Monday open hours), I looked right at the wife and stated, "What a hassle to have the house you were renting suddenly sell out from under you." At this point, she averted her eyes, and sheepishly said, "well, actually, we are moving even though the house has not sold yet." Seeing his wife's apparent discomfort, the husband took over. He said, "The owner is letting us out of our lease with only thirty days' notice. We are moving because he is sending realtors to the house at all hours. My teenage son was alone one night, and a realtor actually entered the house without even ringing the bell."
I thought to myself, "Hey, it's certainly no crime to get out of a lease early." The husband went on to further explain that they were not paying rent only to end up showing real estate themselves. He didn't have to explain any further to me, but he no doubt thought that a lease-breaker would not be welcomed warmly by a new landlord. He boldly stepped into the earlier conversation when his wife had begun to falter. It would have been a violation of the norm of civil inattention for him to have done otherwise.
One older man who was by himself started to ask what I considered to be personal questions. He then had the gaul to start opening closets and cupboards throughout the house--violation of the norm number three. I have looked at many houses and apartments, and I would never look in someone else's closets. It is, of course, one thing when a place is empty, but quite another when someone's personal belongings are stashed away. Besides, everyone stuffs things in closets so that they won't be visible to the scrutinizing eye. My house was perfect for showing--as long as the closets weren't opened. Closets can be a lifesaver when one is picking things up at the last minute. I felt that this guy was violating my personal space. Did I say anything? No, again I stayed sociall
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