@OnTheRoadAgain Oh nooo! This is a really good example of how things can end up going sideways, and reminds me why I started being a bit stricter on myself whilst sitting, even if there are no formal ‘rules’ in place…
A while back I did a (non-THS) sit in Spain for several weeks over winter. I was encouraged to sample some Manchego from a big wheel of cheese, and to cut a long story short it was delicious and there wasn’t much left of the wheel by the time the home owners returned. I was invited back, so I don’t think they were too bothered, but I now realise that for other homeowners this may well have been a sackable offence!
The differences in expectations from one individual to another, along with cultural differences, make it a difficult path to navigate. If in doubt, I tend to err on the side of caution now.
It baffles me how anyone can trust someone enough to give them the keys to their home and full responsibility to care for their beloved pets, but think a sniff of the drinks cabinet is a step too far!
BTW - The fact that your sitters were ‘younger’ was not relevant to your story.
You should ask them, and if they don’t reply immediately, deduct a star for communication. If they decline, deduct a star for hospitality…….. Seriously, leave those people alone! If they wanted you to help yourself to their liquor, they would have invited you to do so. Obviously they didn’t, so hands off! The same applies to their food supplies.
I generally do daily updates but I do ask during the zoom about their desires for communication. I specifically look for cute reactions or situations with their pet that I think they will like—no boring shots. I’m also a homeowner and it’s very important to me to get a photo or two per day.
I would never dream of using their alcohol or even ask. Some homeowners have bought us wine and or beer for us but I would never expect this. In all the sits I’ve done it has never been offered either.
I thought there was an unspoken rule amongst sitters to stay way from home owners alcohol unless they offer it up…. Alcohol can be expensive and some items could have sentimental value. I would never ask. I have had alcohol offered twice and even then I was careful with what I took…..
When this post first came up, I would have said (maybe I did?) that I would never use anything that wasn’t offered. But then, on what was supposed to be the last evening of my sit during an impressive thunder storm, the HOs return was delayed, extending my stay so I poured myself two fingers and settled in for the extra night.
I had 1 sit where ‘he’ showed me a massive beer fridge and said drink what you want, showed me a wine cellar…drink what you want and any that are in the kitchen wine rack. Do NOT touch the whiskey or ‘she’ will kill you. I had a couple of beers but went and bought my own.
I am a sitter, not an owner, but we also do Home Exchange, so I similarly host guests in my home when I am absent.
We always leave 1-2 bottles of wine as a gift, but we also have liquor, beer, and more wine around the house and in the fridge.
Exchange guests are typically 2 adults and stay for 7-10 nights. In my welcome note, I invite them to help themselves to “anything they can find.” Unless they really go nuts drinking our alcohol, I cannot imagine they would consume more than $100 USD of alcohol during their stay. I can live with that. Nobody has ever abused our offer.
HO here. We (try to!) make it very clear what is on offer when we show guests round, and this includes the contents of the drinks cupboard plus a chosen bottle or two of wine and some beer. Everything else is locked away so that the question needn’t arise. We’re lucky to have the space to do that, I guess.
If I were a HS, I would only use alcoholic beverages that I was invited to try, and then in moderation. Some can be really expensive and/or difficult to replace!
We always have a sundowner every evening, our own alchohol. I’m always wary about leaving empty bottles just in case the home owner objects to our alcholic consumption. I’ve been known to take empties to a supermarket waste disposal
When I had housemates* on a few occasions, the drinky-est among them availed themselves of my wine collection without asking, and then “replaced” the wine with an inferior product. For example, I had bought reserve-level wine at a winery, and said housemates tried replacing it with grocery store garbage from the same winery.
*I never had random housesitters appear and invade my housemates’ space b/c that would be beyond rude and unacceptable.
I wait for the host to offer. Several have. I would never open any unopened ones. If I saw a bottle of something really really interesting, I would text with “I always wanted to try this, would it be ok to have a snaps of it”. Some hosts have offered me wine, but I know nothin of it, so I would be too scared to have some, in case host forgot to mention that the bottle X is worth 300 coins or something. They need to give me the bottle they let me have, or I´d rather not. Luckily alcohol is one of those hospitable things where it is normal to reject it (while with others it is socially more difficult to say no).