Old man asks me to paint my house yellow?

Question

At about 8 this morning an older man rang my doorbell to ask for yellow paint. I was confused, even more so when he started miming painting my walls and saying it would look pretty.

Thinking he might have the wrong address, I explained that we rented the house, then he apologised and rang the next house's doorbell, and then the next all the way down the street.

Am I missing something, or was that just a bit weird? This all took place in Japanese, so it's possible I misheard cause I'm hardly fluent.

ilona · Answer

yeah that's just a thing sometimes. we've got a guy in my part of setagaya who goes door to door offering to paint people's storm shutters in "sakura pink" every spring. he's been doing it for years.

if he's polite and not pushy it's prob harmless. could be he's just bored or trying to feel useful. if he comes back just say "moushiwake arimasen ga, iro wa kore de ii desu" and he'll move on quick. the miming thing is pretty standard for when they're not sure about your japanese level tbh.

reginehager · Answer

honestly sounds like your standard neighborhood ojisan who's got too much time and a mission. there's a guy in my neighborhood who goes around with a bucket and brush offering to "freshen up" people's mailboxes in whatever color he found on sale at the home center that week. he hit our whole block in about twenty minutes last summer.

it's prob just his way of being social or feeling useful, not a scam or anything. if he comes back just say "iie, daijoubu desu" and he'll move on. happens more than you'd think in the quieter wards.

antonie · Answer

That was probably just an old neighborhood character. There's a guy in my ward who goes around offering to repaint people's fences or gates in whatever color he's fixated on that week. Sometimes they're just lonely and looking for an excuse to chat with neighbors, and the paint thing is a conversation starter that doesn't really go anywhere. If he comes back, a firm "kekkou desu" usually does the trick.

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