It has probably happened to most of us, we have guests who we are delighted to see, and even more delighted when they leave!

Where I live it is considered by many to be a place to take holidays so most people living here have more than their fair share of 'staying guests'. Some are great and some are not far short of being a nightmare.

When I was married my ex's best friend came to stay with his wife. We got married at roughly the same time, well, within months of each other, and so far none of us had children. At the time I wasn't working so had all the day to myself and was looking forward to having a few days out with our visitors, perhaps on the beach. Forget that. Each morning they would finally surface, eat the breakfast which I prepared for them then immediately go out for the day (leaving the washing up to me) but never telling me at what time to expect them back, it could be early, mid or late afternoon or even in time for lunch.

At the time I didn't have any household help and when I checked their room and bathroom they had liberally sprinkled talcum powder so I had to vacuum both each day.

The only day they invited me to join them at the beach was the day when they had heard my husband and I talking about having to go to the health clinic to have travel vaccinations - so they knew in advance that I couldn't go with them.

One day I needed to go to the shop to buy some bread and finally gambled on going out for half an hour to go to the local shop. I got back and found they had returned in my absence, no they were not sitting in the car waiting for me, they were not in the garden either. No, the man had climbed through a window and let his wife into the house. I was furious, could they not have waited just a few minutes or even half an hour if it comes to that?

Once they were home they used to take it in turns to have a bath while I prepared the evening meal, never once did either offer to help me.

The final straw came when the woman asked me why I didn't take a bath and change my clothes in preparation for my husband returning from work!

After a week of them I was exhausted. The bouquet of flowers they sent me was no compensation.

My older brother probably has the right idea, he has a property in Spain and when purchasing the first one he said that he was not prepared to be used as a cheap holiday destination for people. I told him that I agreed and so far I have never visited him in Spain nor has he visited me here.

Anyone else have the visitors from hell?

Sue, I would just love to tell you about the antics of my cousin but what if she happens to be a FunTrivia member and I don't know it?

Perhaps, instead, I should tell you about my Japanese pen-pal and her husband. I love my pen-pal and have met her on several occasions. She married after me and we both have daughters the same age. When our girls were around two years of age, she and her husband and daughter came to stay with us for two weeks. I loved having her and her child. Her husband was another kettle of fish!

He was extremely rude and demanding. Because meat is so expensive in Japan, they rarely ate it at home, so while they were here he pigged out on meat. Each day he would demand meat for dinner and would complain bitterly if served anything else. Meat might be cheaper here but it's not that cheap.

One time he demanded lobster, which was very expensive, so my mother-in-law pointed across the street to the shopping centre and told him he could buy it at the fish and chip shop. So he did. He bought one lobster and ate it all to himself.

Another time, we went out sight-seeing and he bought three meals for himself and his family. He ate two and his wife and daughter had to share the other one.

And, after staying with us for two weeks, as they were leaving, he invited us to visit them in Japan and told us "In Japan, guests only stay three days". Needless to say, we haven't taken him up on the invitation.

My chin is on my chest! At least all our guests have taken us out for a meal by way of a thank you, even those mentioned above.

Really MG, this really is a story that's hard to beat!
I am lucky enough to never have had any long term guests who have been anywhere near that rude.
I have had people who have been so ignorant at parties that I've asked them to leave. And my mother-in-law has a regal, I will sit and wait while you wait on me hand and foot attitude, but fortunately she's never stayed for more than 2 nights. I remember one morning, when my husband had already left for work, and I was running around like a chicken, getting my kids ready for school and me ready for work, and she even commented on how busy I was. I made the pot of tea and told her to help herself while I went up to get dressed. When I came back down she was still sitting there, waiting to be served. Then she wondered why she wasn't invited back for about 3 years!
We have a rather large, unfinished basement with a backyard walkout. My neighbours on either side have apartments in their basements, which they have rented out. On the one side, it's his mother, an absolutely lovely woman, who lives in the basement.
I should never have mentioned this to my mother-in-law, because a visit never goes by without her bringing it up.
For 20 years this woman has made it perfectly clear that I am not a full member of the family, because I am not blood. If she thinks I'm going to spend the next 20 years waiting on her hand and foot, she's got another think coming!

If you think the above story is hard to beat, I'd love to tell you about my cousin - but I'm afraid of being "busted" if I do. Her parents are my favourite aunt and uncle and I'd never do anything to offend them. But if she ever suggests coming back for another visit, I'm going to tell her we've got SARS or avian 'flu or something. Mind you, it probably wouldn't stop her - she has the hide of an elephant.

On the positive side, we have lots of overseas and interstate visitors. Hardly a year goes by when we don't have people staying with us and the vast majority bring us happy times and wonderful memories.

Two bad visitors in 25 years ain't bad odds!

P.S. I've got a fridge magnet that I love - it says:
"All our visitors bring pleasure - some by coming, others by going".

Most of our visiters don`t stay overnight but the ones that have stayed have been perfect, except of course one.

A mate of mine was going through a divorse and had emerging mental health problems and as he was a mate I allowed him to stay for a week or so till he found somewhere else to live. He was drinking like beer was going out of fashion and emptying my cigarette packets like they were his own, he only smoked half the cigarette then stubbed it out. He was always in the place and never seemed to go out at all, his brooding presense was getting on our nerves but as he was a good mate I didn`t say a word.

After a few days he started insulting me and trying to get a reaction, not being the type to take it I blew up a few times and threatened eviction and worse, he was really insulting.

Things came to a head when he started walking around the place wearing only his underwear, that made Lily nervous and uncomfortable and made me realise that whatever was wrong with him wasn`t something I wanted to be exposed to.

I don`t know where he is living now or what he`s doing but couldn`t have him stay with us again. Sad really as before he was sick he was the greatest mate a bloke could have.

A very good friend, a really classy lady, is married to a total slimeball. They live in Sydney, but he is (among other questionable things) a wannabe politician, so comes to Canberra quite a lot. He often rings up out of the blue to request a bed for the night, and manages to catch me unawares, before I can think of an excuse. He is really sleazy, often making suggestive remarks and accusing you of being a prude and uptight if you don't think they are funny. My daughter has felt uneasy about him from the time she was quite small, saying "Mummy, I don't like '.....' - he tries to give me slobbery kisses". My husband has met him at the door and told him he is not to come near our daughter. He rings and asks to spend the night. One night I was quick off the mark and told him upfront I was going out. He said " Oh, that's ok. I'll wait on the doorstep until you get home". He did too; there he was at 11 pm waiting to be let in, as he's too stingy to spend money on a hotel room. He brought me food once - the remains of the lunch platters from the function he had just attended!

He is no longer welcome at his sister-in-law's home here in Canberra, because of the suggestive remarks he made to her daughter. So he cadges from his wife's friends as the relatives are able to say "no". I am very good friends with his wife (I have after all, known her longer than he has), but how can I say that she is always welcome but her slimeball husband is not? I'm not a shrinking violet, but this man has the hide of a rhinoceros and quite ignores remarks even of the "I'm sorry, it's not convenient for you to stay tomorrow" variety.

I always breathe a sigh of relief when he goes and hope that he does not ring again any time soon. I think he might be getting the message as he has not been here for a number of years. But I always cringe when I think of the possibility.

All my other guests over the years have been quite lovely, but unfortunately he's the one who sticks in my mind!

Makes mine seem tame. The following year they hinted at visiting us again and my husband told them that they were welcome BUT that I was pregnant and had some problems with the pregnancy so they would have to help in the house, with the shopping, cooking etc - strange but they decided not to come after all!

Go on MG, tell us. If your cousin should recognise herself then hopefully she will realise that her behaviour was not acceptable. I doubt that there is anyway she would make you aware that she has read about herself here, she would be too ashamed - I hope. So spill the beans, you have whetted our appetites.

My cousin has not had a very good life... my uncle and his wife divorced early on and he has had behavioural problems all his life. My family has always been wary of having him to visit in his adulthood and young adulthood; things have a tendency to "go missing" when he has been around.

Then one Thanksgiving several years ago, my cousin had been feeling unhappy because the family never invites him to functions. After a family discussion we decide he deserves another chance; he is, after all, family. We move some of the more valuable objects upstairs, although we hadn't heard of anything "going missing" in a little while.

At the end of the night when everybody was going home my cousin seemed a little bit agitated; stiffening when my mom went to put a bundle of leftovers in his coat pocket. She was suspicious, but hadn't noticed anything missing. It wasn't until about an hour later that I discovered that the graduation card that my grandfather had given me earlier that day was out in the living room, not where I had left it. The $50 our mutual grandfather had given me as a present for graduating secondary school was missing from it: my cousin had taken the card out, opened it, taken the money, refolded the card, replaced it in the envelope and put it back, sans money. It blew my mind that he had actually stolen from me, when my family is the only one who would give him another chance.

My father was very upset at the betrayal, and called my cousin up that same night to confront him about it. My cousin denied having taken the money, accusing our other aunt (his father and my mother's sister, who had offered up her home when his parents kicked him out, and suffers the most from items "going missing" on his account) of being the thief.

My cousin is no longer welcome in my parents' house, and now that I have my own place, he will not be welcome here.

Actually i got this person who used to come and buy stuff from our gaming store,I relized that he always like to talk with me in various subjects.
One day i invited him over for a drink
as we talked for many hours and i wanted to close the store,but i could'nt tell him to leave,so we went to my place and kept talking tell morning.
He expressed through our conversation that he likes me a lot and i am the best friend he found,well i was happy
cause i made him feel this way..
So he came the next day too,went to my place,talked,played some video games tell morning,but i relized that this time he make himself more like his home if you know what i mean,anyway this continues to happened everyday,and i began to get bothered more and more,i
dont like to stay awake tell morning,also i like privacy and to be alone sometimes but this person comes everyday to my house,says hi walk to the fridge and fix himself some food,drink,etc...Sometimes he uses my bath,and i cant say a thing because he
is so polite and that forces me to be polite with him too...
Lately he began to ask me to borrow some money,i lend him the first time
and the second time...
And now i dont know what to do,i am really bothered by his presence espiceally that he when wanted to know more about private stuff..very private
what can i do, i cant say to him go away
directly,i will feel very bad if i did..

Sometimes you just have to be rude, you cannot be intimidated in your owwn home.

Well, to cut a long story short, my cousin is the biggest freeloader you've ever met. She never pays her share or pays her own way anywhere if she can help it.

She came to stay with us for a month. She never once brought her wallet out for anything except to buy souvenirs for herself. We took her to all the tourist places - the wildlife park, the zoo, the beach, the wineries etc. Not once did she pay her own way or offer to do so. We paid her admission and meals everywhere we went.

She never once bought a meal, or even a cup of coffee, or brought any groceries into the house. She asked us to drive her everywhere she wanted to go. When I suggested she hire a car, catch a bus or taxi, she rejected the suggestion. She never once offered to put petrol in the car.

We paid for everything and I mean EVERYTHING. If she'd been hard up, I would not have minded so much, but she has a very well paid job and she could afford to pay her own way. And she was quite lavish with her money when she was buying things for herself.

In a way, she spoiled things for herself because there were lots of great places that we could have taken her to, but we didn't because of the expense involved. After we realised what she was like, we started looking for free or low-cost things to do while she was here - like going to the beach or taking "historical walks". Luckily she was into history.

I gave her the benefit of the doubt and thought maybe this is the way they do things in the country she is from. Since we were visiting her parents within the year, I figured she'd probably return the hospitality. Well, that didn't happen – when we visited there, we ended up paying for everything all over again whenever we went out with her. I said nothing because I did not want to upset or offend her parents. I might add that her parents are not like her in this regard.

Her parents took us out for a meal a few times and each time, she invited herself along for a free meal. (She did not live with them). I'm not sure how her parents felt about this but I did get the impression that they weren't happy about it. They are pensioners so I am sure it must have strained their budget. Of course, we also took them out to dinner too, as well as bringing groceries into the house. I cooked a few meals too and did the dishes every night, as well as the ironing and vacuuming. Needless to say, she never lifted a finger while she stayed at our house.

One time, we went to the museum. As usual, I bought lunch for everyone in the museum cafeteria. She loaded up her tray, not only with lunch, but also with THREE large bars of chocolate, which promptly disappeared into her bag, never to be seen again. I thought it was a bit rude to take advantage like that. If someone was paying for my lunch, I would only put lunch on my tray. I would not be rude or greedy enough to purchase candy for myself at their expense.

I probably should have discussed it with her but I just found it all too embarrassing. I just kept telling myself that it was a "once-in-a-lifetime" thing and it would be behind us soon enough. However, there is no way I am letting it happen again.

Definitely not one of our members MG, none are so mean. Sheesh, I have never had a guest like that and like you, would have been most upset if anyone treated me that way.