Decorating your door

[CapeCoralCruiser]

I wonder what percentage of cruisers live in HOA's. There seems to be a vast amount of people fixated on what others are doing. Forums

 

What is a HOA please for those of us who are non US citizens?

 

pullen, great observation, hadn't thought of this, but yeah, I would guess that those who cruise frequently (and belong to CC) would be over-represented in communities with strict HOA rules (solid middle class & up).

 

HOA: Home Owners Association. A governing group with a board of directors (typically homeowners themselves, elected by the homeowners within the designated neighborhood) within a planned community, which often has the legal power to set standards. Regarding this thread, HOAs often can limit the colors one paints their home (outside), regulate what decorations, fences, or structures can be placed on one's lot, what vehicles can be parked in one's driveway (i.e.: no commercial vehicles, including pick up trucks with business name on door)and even deem that all mailboxes must be exactly the same, to name just a few. The list of what the HOA has authority over can be quite exhaustive.

 

The result is a double edged sword.

 

1: Very clean, homogenous neighborhood, with no "that house" (in various stages of repaint, with the most recent partial coat so old it has faded 3 shades, with grass 2' high; rusted hulks of two, not one, lawnmowers languishing somewhere in said grass, but usually in the front yard, where they gasped their last breath; inoperable car, with obligatory multi-colored body panels, up on blocks in aforementioned grass, not in oil stained, crumbling concrete driveway, which has had a 25 year old derelict boat, covered by a tattered blue tarp, with the motor missing on a rusted trailer with two flat tires continuously sitting on it for the last 15 years; picket fence, last painted before ANY of the current cruise ships were built and looking like the mouth of someone who hasn't been to the dentist in the last 30 years, along with the similarly maintained shingle roof; and a dented, rust stained, door missing, mailbox whose post rotted away long ago and is currently propped up with a couple tire irons, duct tape and a broken off broom stick, approximately 23 inches above the ground, the top barely visible above the mean high tide of the grass...you get my point...:eek:)

 

2: Absolutely no individual expression or deviation from the community norms - don't you dare: Put that pink flamingo in your yard, even in your 6' stockade-fenced in back yard, where your neighbor might be able to see it from their second floor bathroom window while standing on their tub rim and stretching as far as they can to the left; allow bird poo to remain on your HOA approved, $400 mailbox (yes, you were required to buy that exact model) for more than twenty minutes - you will receive a registered mail, signed receipt required, cleaning mandate at minute twenty-one; leave your garage door open any longer than it takes to get your (HOA approved model) car in/out; and God forbid, you use anything but the absolutely latest ultra-efficient, expensive bulbs (LED is so last-year) in your HOA certified light fixtures, inside and out...:rolleyes:

 

For those who have read this whole post, I hope you have recognized my attempt to add a little humor to this thread, which, like many others I have read here, have the potential to start the next great war.;)

Edited December 1, 2016 by CapeCoralCruiser

[cruiserssandr]

What is a HOA please for those of us who are non US citizens?

Home Owners Association. Some communities have rules as to what can be done to the outside of your house. Color, whether you have a flag, front door decoration, etc

[PoppyandNana]

pullen, great observation, hadn't thought of this, but yeah, I would guess that those who cruise frequently (and belong to CC) would be over-represented in communities with strict HOA rules (middle class & up).

 

HOA: Home Owners Association. A governing group with a board of directors (typically homeowners themselves, elected by the homeowners within the designated neighborhood) within a planned community, which often has the legal power to set standards. Regarding this thread, HOAs often can limit the colors one paints their home (outside), regulate what decorations, fences, or structures can be placed on one's lot, what vehicles can be parked in one's driveway (i.e.: no commercial vehicles, including pick up trucks with business name on door)and even deem that all mailboxes must be exactly the same, to name just a few. The list of what the HOA has authority over can be quite exhaustive.

 

The result is a double edged sword.

 

1: Very clean, homogenous neighborhood, with no "that house" (in various stages of repaint, with the most recent partial coat so old it has faded 3 shades, with grass 2' high; rusted hulks of two, not one, lawnmowers languishing somewhere in said grass, but usually in the front yard, where they gasped their last breath; inoperable car, with obligatory multi-colored body panels, up on blocks in aforementioned grass, not in oil stained, crumbling concrete driveway, which has had a 25 year old derelict boat, covered by a tattered blue tarp, with the motor missing on a rusted trailer with two flat tires continuously sitting on it for the last 15 years; picket fence, last painted before ANY of the current cruise ships were built and looking like the mouth of someone who hasn't been to the dentist in the last 30 years, along with the similarly maintained shingle roof; and a dented, rust stained, door missing, mailbox whose post rotted away long ago and is currently propped up with a couple tire irons, duct tape and a broken off broom stick, approximately 23 inches above the ground, the top barely visible above the mean high tide of the grass...you get my point...:eek:)

 

2: Absolutely no individual expression or deviation from the community norms - don't you dare put that pink flamingo in your yard, even in your 6' stockade-fenced in back yard, where your neighbor might be able to see it from their second floor bathroom window when they are standing on their tub rim and stretching as far as they can to the left; allow bird poo to remain on your HOA approved, $400 mailbox (yes, you were required to buy that exact model) for more than twenty minutes - you will receive a registered mail, signed receipt required, cleaning mandate at minute twenty-one; leave your garage door open any longer than it takes to get your (HOA approved model) car in/out; and God forbid, you use anything but the absolutely latest ultra-efficient, expensive bulbs (LED is so last-year) in your HOA certified light fixtures, inside and out...:rolleyes:

 

For those who have read this whole post, I hope you have recognized my attempt to add a little humor to this thread, which, like many others I have read here, have the potential to start the next great war.;)

 

We lived in one such community where they gave summons for violations. Got a ticket, yes a ticket, for planting flowers not on the approved list. Every home has a water spigot in the garage for washing your car. Not allowed to wash cars in the driveway.

 

We moved within a year of buying and got the last laugh. There was a major error in one of the accruals. Maintenance fees jumped by $125 a month.

Edited December 1, 2016 by PoppyandNana

[pullen0]

Previous posters have explained HOA's really well. They're usually full of busybodies who have nothing better to do than worry about what everyone else is doing. Basically the collective has greater control of your own property than you do.

 

Then you have people like me who live 5 miles from the nearest gas station and speaking to a neighbor is an annual event. We go on about our lives and let everyone else worry about theirs. I think decorating your door would be stupid. But if the cruise line doesn't care, then it's none of my business.

[CapeCoralCruiser]

We lived in one such community where they gave summons for violations. Got a ticket, yes a ticket, for planting flowers not on the approved list. Every home has a water spigot in the garage for washing your car. Not allowed to wash cars in the driveway.

 

We moved within a year of buying and got the last laugh. There was a major error in one of the accruals. Maintenance fees jumped by $125 a month.

 

Your real-life examples are just as good as my imagined scenarios!

[CapeCoralCruiser]

...They're usually full of busybodies who have nothing better to do than worry about what everyone else is doing...

 

Don't know how I forgot these people. Everyone in the neighborhood knows who they are. Long ago, I had one deliver an open bag of dog poo to my front porch with a note attached, accusing my dog of leaving it near her house. My dog was a Min Pin, about ten pounds. What was in the bag could have come from a St. Bernard!!!

[81Cruise31]

If you want to decorate your door, just do it. As long as you don't damage it and the cruise line doesn't have a rule against it. People are never going to agree on anything.

 

The cruise line that has a lot of decorated doors is Disney. I used to be a member on a fb page for images for the doors, shirts, etc. Pretty neat stuff. After their cruise, people would post pictures of their doors , other people's doors. People really go all out on Disney cruises.

 

I will say it again. Do what u want. As long as it doesn't damage the door. And don't worry about what anybody else thinks. Its just their opinion. People will never agree on any issue.

 

 

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[Aquahound]

I wonder what percentage of cruisers live in HOA's. There seems to be a vast amount of people fixated on what others are doing.

 

Agreed! Personally, I would not decorate my door, but I don't see any cause whatsoever to call people derogatory names for doing this. My goodness...some of these people need to lighten up.

[pullen0]

Agreed! Personally, I would not decorate my door, but I don't see any cause whatsoever to call people derogatory names for doing this. My goodness...some of these people need to lighten up.

 

Until the cruise line pays me to enforce their rules, I'm not going to be a tattletale and do their jobs for them unless something is posing a threat to others. If one is threatened by door decorations, I don't know how they muster the courage to leave their house each day.

[sail7seas]

Do people really decorate their doors? This is only my second cruise and my first was years ago, and I can't honestly remember seeing decorated doors. I agree that it would make finding your room easier but Hubby thinks it's stupid. lol!

 

i' ve never been on a ship that did not have cabin numbers at each door. Assuming one knows how to count, it is not hard to find one's cabin. Look at the numbers so kindly provided by the ship builder/owners. They serve a useful purpose.

Edited December 1, 2016 by sail7seas

[logan25]

I had no idea that cabin door decorations are such a hot button issue. May I say some people seem poised to be offended. Life is short. Unless someone is placing decorations on a cabin other than the one they occupy, I may or may not admire the decorative effort, but it certainly does not detract my vacation experience.

[pullen0]

I had no idea that cabin door decorations are such a hot button issue. May I say some people seem poised to be offended. Life is short. Unless someone is placing decorations on a cabin other than the one they occupy, I may or may not admire the decorative effort, but it certainly does not detract my vacation experience.

 

 

The people policing door decorations are the same people policing the MDR dress code.

 

 

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[Cruisin'Christine]

Live and let live! If it is not on your door, don't worry about it. Some people like to decorate their doors and others do not. It shouldn't impact your vacation any, if people feel the need to let their artistic juices flow on THEIR OWN DOOR.

[gottagetgoing]

Do people really decorate their doors? This is only my second cruise and my first was years ago, and I can't honestly remember seeing decorated doors. I agree that it would make finding your room easier but Hubby thinks it's stupid. lol!

Yes indeed! It is just for fun!

My hubby loves helping with it though!

This year for xmas we're using window clings. They stick to doors too! It's going to be great!

 

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[gottagetgoing]

Also, when it's not a holiday we use a cool magnet of our state of VA on the door. We do it every cruise!

 

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[Viv0828]

DH and I often walk the halls of the ship when it's too cold to walk outside. We enjoy looking at the decorated room doors as we stroll by. I only have a problem when stuff sticks out into the hall and we have to squeeze by. Otherwise, decorate away!

 

 

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Edited December 1, 2016 by Viv0828

[Doug R.]

Sounds like we have a group of sourpusses on this thread who ate lemons for lunch and washed them down with dill pickle juice. Those who rail against door decorations definitely sound like the HOA board types.

 

While we do not choose to decorate our doors, or cabin for that matter, we have nothing against those who do. Some of the more garish tacky decorations make us laugh. Some special occasion door decorations are courtesy of the cruise line or are purchased through the cruise line.

 

It all comes down to two things:

 

1. Live and Let Live

 

2. How much time do you folks spend in the hallways?

[reedl]

As I said before, I only decorated the door once with some black paper cutouts of bats with magnets attached to them. We had three of them on the door.

 

I have never decorated the door before, and we only did it because it was halloween.

 

But to the people who consider it a personal affront to them when someone's door has something on it, I agree with a lot of people.... "Get A Life!"

 

If something attached to a door is something that causes your personal distress, you obviously cannot handle many issue in life.

[Sequim88]

Unless someone is placing decorations on a cabin other than the one they occupy

 

My SIL did this to our door. She put a picture (from a magazine) of George Clooney on the door. So I took a black Sharpee pen and put a mustache on him. The next day a pointy goatee. The next day an eye patch. The next day pirate George disappeared. :eek: Only to turn up on a deck chair SIL staked out on the end of a row (next to her and my brother) so my wife could park her folded wheelchair next to the chair. It's very hard for her to transfer to a chair in the middle of a row.

 

On same cruise same SIL decorated my parents door for their 60th anniversary which the cruise was in celebration of over Valentines day. Lots of "then & now" pictures.

 

Otherwise the only door decoration we've done (on purpose) was when we did Cruise Critic M&M signs. We see those from time to time still.

[MicCanberra]

Nope - still none the wiser!!

 

Here in Australia we call them Body corporates and there are usually an executive committee that makes decisions for the whole complex.

Some may take that power to new levels of control.:eek:

[MicCanberra]

Don't know how I forgot these people. Everyone in the neighborhood knows who they are. Long ago, I had one deliver an open bag of dog poo to my front porch with a note attached, accusing my dog of leaving it near her house. My dog was a Min Pin, about ten pounds. What was in the bag could have come from a St. Bernard!!!

 

Perhaps it was their's and not from a dog:eek:

[MicCanberra]

I don't care if others decorate their doors, I just prefer mine clean. Inside the cabin, I put up a flag (international sailings only) and add some other little touches to make the cabin feel like ours.:D

Edited December 1, 2016 by MicCanberra

[Athankfulheart]

We don't decorate our cabin doors but it simply doesn't bother me one way or another. I don't tend to do much lateral travel in cabin hallways, but saw lots of them while walking every deck looking for a missing bag on one embarkation night. I enjoy the celebratory atmosphere of cruising with happy, relaxing, carefree for the week people even when it includes thier personal story on thier cabin door :)

[navybankerteacher]

We lived in one such community where they gave summons for violations. Got a ticket, yes a ticket, for planting flowers not on the approved list. Every home has a water spigot in the garage for washing your car. Not allowed to wash cars in the driveway.

 

We moved within a year of buying and got the last laugh. There was a major error in one of the accruals. Maintenance fees jumped by $125 a month.

 

We live in a community of 22 houses - 6 different styles. Yes, we have rules, we also have a board which applies common sense and courtesy: with the result that people can have pretty much whatever color they want and pretty much whatever plantings they want. Changes need to be proposed, and the board must reply within a week. Some houses have added wooden decks, some have flagstone patios. We have no phosphorescent purple houses or cheap plastic tulips - we do have Christmas lights going up on some - some colored, some white, but no inflated plastic Rudolphs.

 

With civilized people, rational rules, intelligently applied, a homeowners' association works pretty well. I do not mind having to ask before re-painting, or adding a deck - because I have never seem a reasonable request turned down. It is also pretty good having grass cut, leaves raked, trash picked up, snow shoveled, etc. on a community rather than individual basis.

[GUT2407]

I don't care if others decorate their doors, I just prefer mine clean. Inside the cabin, I put up a flag (international sailings only) and add some other little touches to make the cabin feel like ours.:D

 

Hey we're flatters too, inside our balcony door, makes it easy to spot out cabin from from shore too.