Do you find Bostonians to be friendly-or cold people? (Holland: universities, to live in)

[Geography Freak]

Count me among those who prefer blunt and straight-forward to sugar sweet and passive-agressive, and in that respect Boston is my kind of town. That said, I did notice the coldness and the no eye contact thing, which is funny if you consider the ethnic makeup of the city: Irish, Italian, African-American and Hispanic, non of which can be said to be culturally introverted. On the other hand I find New Yorkers to be more extroverted, and they have similar climate and ethnic makeup. I refuse to think the Puritan influence can be so pervasive 400 years later.

[TomDot]

Originally Posted by Geography Freak

and the no eye contact thing, which is funny if you consider the ethnic makeup of the city: Irish, Italian, African-American and Hispanic, non of which can be said to be culturally introverted. On the other hand I find New Yorkers to be more extroverted, and they have similar climate and ethnic makeup. I refuse to think the Puritan influence can be so pervasive 400 years later.

Well, are you staring at people? Are you ugly? Does this "no eye contact" thing occur during conversations or when walking down the street? Personally I only try to make eye contact with pretty girls, who are you trying to make eye contact with?

[Geography Freak]

It's not that I try to make eye contact, it's that I don't avoid it. I was brought up that way. But then again it was just a passing comment, I don't cry myself to sleep over it.

[ConceivedinKY51]

Originally Posted by TomDot

LOL!!!
Do you realize that you have just passive/aggressively insulted about 4 million people? You sound like the heroine in a science fiction movie.
My wife moved here from Michigan 14 years ago and she has just as many friends as I do, which is a lot.
The problem is yours.

"A heroine in a science fiction movie?" My, what a drama queen statement that SCREAMS with passive aggressiveness. I'm glad you and your wife have lots of friends but i suggest it might be kinder if you don't castigate people who have not had the same experience as you.

I'm not the only person who has lived through what I have. My best (and only) friend here has lost LOTS of friends who he met while in college who moved away or back home when college was over because they couldn't make friends, either (except for him).

I was speaking about the city AS A WHOLE; the emotional attitudes. And being friendless has hurt, as I am a friendly person. It wasn't necessary for you to insult someone who has been insulted themself.

[dem3456]

Originally Posted by ConceivedinKY51

WHY would you like being "cold and unfriendly?" What in the world...

I've been brought up here in southern New England where I am used to seeing people who are rude, people who ignore others, and people who can be described as snobs. And sometimes I fit into these categories, depending on the situation.

The point is that coldness and lack of friendliness are a part of the way I live. If someone I don't know tries to strike up a conversation with me on the T, I am not going to be very reciprocating. If someone is walking down the street too slowly for me, I'm going to be irritated and rush past them. And if someone tries to approach me and tell me about some sort of promotional offer or some charity donation that I have no interest in, I am going to flat-out ignore them and keep walking.

If that makes me a "M***hole," then so be it. Its not really a big deal to me.

[Jeff Jarrett]

Boston is definitely not the city for a person that likes to smile alot, make eye contact, and start conversations with complete strangers. A person like that would feel alot more at home in the South, the Midwest, or Hawaii for example. However if a person has the personality of an ice queen or a cyborg than they would feel right at home in Boston.

[clevedark]

I can't understand the pathology of using ugly behavior as a personal identifier.

And the way some of these people attack and mock people who are brave enough to share their social disappointments here so that maybe someone else wouldn't have the same experience is heartless and bullying.

Ack. I swore I'd skip these threads. Let's see if I can. It's like a car accident by the side of the road.

Carry on.

[TomDot]

Originally Posted by clevedark

I can't understand the pathology of using ugly behavior as a personal identifier.

And the way some of these people attack and mock people who are brave enough to share their social disappointments here so that maybe someone else wouldn't have the same experience is heartless and bullying.

Ack. I swore I'd skip these threads. Let's see if I can. It's like a car accident by the side of the road.

Carry on.

Brave enough?
You are on an anonymous message board. Let's try to get some perspective here!
The way we are acting can only be described as defensive.
When someone comes onto this board making ridiculous generalizations and lumps 4.5 million people into some kind of weird cabal of social bullys, they need to expect to have their prejudices called out.
Some of you "victims of Boston" are hilarious.

[JHG722]

Originally Posted by TomDot

Brave enough?
You are on an anonymous message board. Let's try to get some perspective here!
The way we are acting can only be described as defensive.
When someone comes onto this board making ridiculous generalizations and lumps 4.5 million people into some kind of weird cabal of social bullys, they need to expect to have their prejudices called out.
Some of you "victims of Boston" are hilarious.

It would be ridiculous if it were not true. As I said, I love the Sox and the city, but the people are downright ruthless, and I live in Philadelphia...

[TomDot]

Originally Posted by JHG722

It would be ridiculous if it were not true. As I said, I love the Sox and the city, but the people are downright ruthless, and I live in Philadelphia...

LOL!
More hilarity. Keep it coming!