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Esteemed Contributor
Posts: 7,748
Registered: ‎05-09-2010

Re: Friendly and Polite People

I live in a small "ruralish" township in central FL.  Everyone here is very nice.  We are close to a small town famous for its antique and other festivals.  That city is experiencing growing pains, and frankly, I wish that the city council would stop trying to accomadate anyone and everyone who wants to come here.  Nothing wrong with staying small.  Yet all the builders want every square inch of space for new homes. 

 

Thankfully, my township fights off development and had won most of their arguments.  The rural feel of my our township neighborhoods is why most people moved there in the first place.

 

There is no perfect place to live ~ good points and bad points no matter where you go.

Always remember that you are absolutely unique. Just like everyone else. Margaret Mead
Honored Contributor
Posts: 8,736
Registered: ‎02-19-2014

Re: Friendly and Polite People


@magicmoodz wrote:

@Porcelain wrote:

No such thing on Earth as a place where everyone is polite and kind all the time. We all have our moods and our habits. And of course, wherever you go, there you are. You get back what you put out, magnified.

 

I'm from the Midwest originally, and Midwestern Nice is a real thing. The standard is to act nice all the time. But sometimes the niceness is only a facade. You can't always trust whether the person means it or not. That can be even worse than having them curse at you at times.

 

I've found that people in different parts of the country demonstrate friendliness and warmth in different ways. It's like understanding the local dialect to know what to look for. If you just assume it isn't there because you instinctively do it differently, you're missing out.

 

When you find you feel more at home in a certain area, that is great. It feels great to discover "your people." But if you lived there, you would eventually see the other side of it as well. Everywhere is like that, there's always a positive and a negative angle to any strength.


@Porcelain 

 

I'm not sure if that Midwest niceness is a facade, but rather a reserved or more formal friendliness so as not to be perceived as intrusive (especially in a big city where autonomy can be a good thing).


I agree. I'd also say that most of the time I really do think it's sincere.

 

And you can always know a person's intent by their actions. If you get your car stuck in the snow in a residential area in the Midwest, everyone runs out their door with shovels to help you. There are a lot of wonderful aspects to the people of the Midwest. Some of the best people I know are from there and live there. I just enjoy almost all of the different interpersonal styles from other areas as well.

When you’re accustomed to privilege, equality feels like oppression.
"Power without love is reckless and abusive, and love without power is sentimental and anemic." - Dr. Martin Luther King Jr
Honored Contributor
Posts: 9,237
Registered: ‎06-10-2010

Re: Friendly and Polite People

[ Edited ]

@Jaspersmom   We live in rural Indiana just a couple of miles from a quaint and thriving beautiful little town. While I agree that there are all kinds of people everywhere, I have always felt that most people here in our midwest area are down to earth, kind and thoughtful people.  I don't think I would want to live anywhere else as I love the bit of a slower pace here and the way neighbors help neighbors.  That is a big thing where we live.  

Esteemed Contributor
Posts: 5,892
Registered: ‎03-11-2010

Re: Friendly and Polite People

I live in one of those lake areas in upstate ny and the OP is right. Whenever I visit family downstate, I feel anxious behind the wheel. Yes,people drive like maniacs. Everyone seems to be in a rush. The traffic is abominable. When my daughter returned to our town for two years of graduate work after living in urban areas she remarked that she had forgotten how polite people are in our home town. We have several four-way stop intersections, where people have to let others go through when it's their turn. My daughter said that in the cities where she lived, there'd be fatalities at those intersections, with everyone wanting to go first.

Honored Contributor
Posts: 10,620
Registered: ‎09-22-2010

Re: Friendly and Polite People

I currently live in Washington State via Southern California.  I have always found people on the West Coast friendly.  

Trusted Contributor
Posts: 1,892
Registered: ‎07-16-2021

Re: Friendly and Polite People

I do see more rude and impolite people with the huge melting pot our county has become. We have huge numbers of people moving from the crowded downtown area to suburban areas. They take their fast-paced, hurried lifestyle and driving with them. Some cultures simply don't speak, make eye contact or interact with others; they disregard others and it isn't intended to be rude, but it is how they were raised and are accustomed to from their area. 

Honored Contributor
Posts: 12,111
Registered: ‎03-09-2010

Re: Friendly and Polite People


@godi wrote:

No matter where you live there is alway a butt munch to contend with. 


 

I worked in Customer Service of a grocery store for a few years after I retired. I understand why anyone in retail might have a bad day.

 

You would be shocked at what customers demand. Imagine ....

 

  • people paying with sweat-soaked money and checks puled out of their bras and underpants
  • racist comments
  • people trying to return cans/bottles with urine, leftover drugs, feces, and who knows what in them
  • customers telling other customers not to buy something because Dr Oz said it's bad for them
  • reactions when refusing to sell alcohol to drunk people
  • finding bullets that fell out of someone's pockets
  • being invited to sex parties
  • sexist comments
  • seeing kids and animals locked in cars when it's 100 degrees and when it's 20 degrees below zero
  • people expecting discounts just because they are there
  • customers leaving feces all over the restroom floor
  • people returning rotten, expired food
  • customers stealing
  • getting hit or slapped by a customer 
  • customers throwing food at you
  • customers intentionally coughing on you

This is the tip of the iceberg.

 

 

Honored Contributor
Posts: 44,347
Registered: ‎01-08-2011

Re: Friendly and Polite People

I live in a popular NC vacation area, the "Land Of The Sky".  Most people are very warm here.  I have met many who have moved in and most are warm.

Honored Contributor
Posts: 10,357
Registered: ‎03-21-2010

Re: Friendly and Polite People

[ Edited ]

@beckyb1012 wrote:

Yes we are.  Texas people are the worst drivers, myself included.  However, we are so friendly to everyone.   My city as about 100,000 citizens.


Isn't the motto of the state Friendship?  I was only in Dallas once.  And most everyone I met was pretty nice. Everyone was so nice and all the men walked around in those Stetson hats, which made each man kind of....handsome. 

Trusted Contributor
Posts: 1,515
Registered: ‎06-26-2011

Re: Friendly and Polite People

I live in Dallas-Ft. Worth. Metro population of 7.8 milliion. Some very nice people, some not so nice, some really evil. Very diverse with cultures from all over the world. My county is 2.9 million people. Have seen many changes. Signs are still along the roadway which read "Drive Friendly" but it's not the norm anymore.

 

@songbird  The days of seeing men in Dallas wearing Stetsons as daily attire are long gone. I agree they looked good!