I remeber when I was getting ready to move to New York everyone telling me how mean people would be. That finding a smile would be impossible. My favorite warning was to be ready to be mugged at least once a week Well I have found that sentament is wrong. Or is it?
My first days in the great NYC was maddness. Every direction I turned was a road block of some kind. My world was upside down, nothing made sense. Every stranger a frown and a few sarcastic grunts and no answers. Waking up my first morning in my brand new barren apartment frozen solid and hungry. Arwen was curled up at my side glaring at me for moving. I scrambled to jump into the shower hoping that the hot water would warm me up. Soaking the heat into my icy bones I realized the attitude I was getting from the people around me was a reflection of my own, an image of my own predetermined state of the world around me. So I smiled.
So what have I noticed? New Yorkers are really no worse than people anywere else. What they are is busy, impatient, and stressed. Why the apparent difference? Everywhere else I have lived I was buffered. Most of my time was spent driving in a car, as did most everyone else. Factoring in the larger degree of personal contact due to crowding and the prevelance of walking and mass transit the populace is not as bad as what I was told to expect. Even when I was a bus rider, this was not the norm for most of the average citizens.
I have found that in all places and dealing with any person, it is all about a smile, a friendly tone, and a helping hand; well maybe sometimes a big stick.
