How are people in Massachusetts? (Boston: established neighborhood, subdivisions, live)

[495neighbor]

Originally Posted by brightdoglover

I think urban areas in any region are going to be "less friendly" than non-urban areas. Every state has its busiest urban spots and areas that are less so. Witness the chatty man in coffee shop- retired- didn't have to be in a hurry to get back to work or whatever. Hey, when I'm retired, I plan to talk to people as much as I do now, but I'll be out in the world more, because I won't be working third shift and spending most of my off time sleeping or trying to sleep.
The art of conversation with strangers is an art. Too many people launch into an "I-I'I" or "My son... my grandchildren" yammer because they have no one to talk to. No fun for a stranger (or for a friend).
I often talk to people standing in line or whatever. Responses vary because I think most people aren't used to it. I guess I'm a rather informal person.

I think suburban areas are friendlier than urban or rural areas. In rural New England, especially wooded areas, people hide in their houses. They prefer to live solitary lives or just use these bedroom communities as a place to sleep and send their children to school. In urban areas, people are on top of one another and competing for every inch of privacy and space. I find moderate density towns from affluent Andover to more blue collar Woburn to be the friendliest.

[495neighbor]

Originally Posted by Bamtown

G-fused is right. That's probably the most accurate description of how we are. I enjoy our culture of being direct, because it ensures that I don't waste time. However, this can be perceived as being rude or cold depending on where you come from (i.e. the South or the Mid-West). No one here cares how your day is going or wants to chat. I often ask myself why am I in such a rush to go nowhere? It makes me laugh sometimes, because we all think we don't have the time of day for anything. Even when driving, people will cut you off just so they can get to a stop sign or a red light. They might even honk at you for not driving 10MPH over the speed limit. That's just how it is.

The pace of life in NYC or Boston is light-years faster than the South. The cost of living is high as well, so you may want to visit a few times before you make your decision.

By to the point, I think you mean when you need to find something in the grocery store you go over to the clerk and say, "Where's cereal?" Whereas someone else might stop the same clerk say "Hi, excuse me could you point me to the cereal aisle." make a little small talk with them and then thank them. Your definition of "To the point" strikes me as "more cut and dry, exchanging of facts only communication." I'd define that as rank and file behavior. Direct is a flattering word for what you are talking about.

[ogre]

Originally Posted by brightdoglover

I think urban areas in any region are going to be "less friendly" than non-urban areas. Every state has its busiest urban spots and areas that are less so. Witness the chatty man in coffee shop- retired- didn't have to be in a hurry to get back to work or whatever.

This is a good point. People will be more talkative when they aren't in a hurry. Not only was the retired man I met in the coffee shop presumably not in a great hurry, since he didn't have to get to work, but I had just gotten done with some work I'd been doing, so I had some time to relax. This allowed me to be more open to an extended conversation than I would have been if I had been pressed for time and had wanted to just gulp my coffee and go. It's still an example of the fact that it's more generally the case that Bostonians have a certain tendency to be a bit reserved than something you'll find to be absolutely true with any individual in any situation.

[bostonbarney]

Originally Posted by Blackscorpion

I was just wondering how people were up north? I live in the deep south and I have always been told that northerners were cold and rude..well I met a girl from up there and she seems very nice and I LOVE the accent and the way people talk up there, they also seem more educated to me. So I was just wondering, how people were up there in Massachusetts? I read somewhere that it's hard to make friends in places like Boston if you just moved because everyone is just doing their own thing..is there any truth to that statement?

Just this morning, out of the blue, I met the wife of a man with whom I had had a City-Data and lengthy email correspondence because he was thinking of moving from Texas to Boston. (I talked them out of Boston but they did move to Massachusetts, close to the city.)

I discovered this because we were just talking as I was checking into an appointment...one thing led to another and she realized I was the person that had helped them in their decision and move. She took a picture of us together and sent it to her husband.

Before I left I asked her if she thought Bostonians were unfriendly and cold...her response was that they felt right at home and loves everything about Boston, the city where her husband works, and the town where they live.

So don't believe a word! We're great, and we will love YOUR accent.

[measured1]

Fine, thank you. How are you?

[mmaf25]

I think people misconstrue especially when there from another part of the country where life is much more slow paced and people tend to make artificial connections with others just to kill time. Coming from the west coast myself, at a first glance it would seem that people in MA are "less friendly" as many have judged, but only because east coast life is so much more fast paced, and people are more serious and blunt, but in a good way. Once I allowed people to get to know me more around here, they opened up and turned out to be some of the best friends I could ever ask for. Back west, social connections were more joking and at first did seem to process a lot faster, but were much more superficial and deceiving. That's just my opinion though. People here tend to make much better use of their time and seem like their always in a hurry, so maybe that's where the "less friendly" idea comes from.

[jerseycity1]

I am originally from NYC and currently live in Jersey City, NJ. However, I am looking for an Admin., Assistant job, or Legal Secretary and I am having a tough time as most people in U.S. since the downfall of the economy. They say it is picking up. However, I am not too patient. Regardless, I am starting to post in the Boston area and hopefully get lucky and I am also searching in Baltimore, MD but the crime rate scares me. I live alone therefore relocating alone with my belongings and my Cat. I think I might stand a better chance in Boston because of the major firms and hospitals. I know the Massachusetts area in terms of rentals are very expensive. Therefore, I have to live outside of it and commute. I hear public transit is a joke. I guess like most places public transit is not perfect. Any suggestions on what type of firms I should be going after in Massachusetts. I know they have good hospitals and Universities. I did some temp work at an Ivy League University in NY. I have it on my resume maybe that will give me a foot in the door.

Any suggestions, leads will be appreciate. Thank you,

[DerFarm]

Moved here from AL 4 years ago. I spent 40+ of my 62 years in the Deep South (TX, MS, AL, NC/SC, GA ...). From my experience the people in MA are much nicer than in general in the South.

The South IS much more formal which translates to "mannerly". The observation of common civilities is more practiced, especially in the young to the old. This is only the surface, however.

In the South, if you are a stranger in casual conversation, talk as you will, you get the distinct feeling that the other person is simply marking time until they can get away. In MA, the person is engaged until they decide the conversation is over ... then they walk away. Which can be quite off putting if you're used to Southern Manners. However, WHILE they are talking you they are talking to YOU!

Now, if they could just do SOMETHING about that accent ...

[dysgenic]

The biggest difference is that people talk faster here and things move quicker here. I always find it frustrating how slow people talk in the south.

[ogre]

Originally Posted by jerseycity1

I am originally from NYC and currently live in Jersey City, NJ. However, I am looking for an Admin., Assistant job, or Legal Secretary and I am having a tough time as most people in U.S. since the downfall of the economy. They say it is picking up. However, I am not too patient. Regardless, I am starting to post in the Boston area and hopefully get lucky and I am also searching in Baltimore, MD but the crime rate scares me. I live alone therefore relocating alone with my belongings and my Cat. I think I might stand a better chance in Boston because of the major firms and hospitals. I know the Massachusetts area in terms of rentals are very expensive. Therefore, I have to live outside of it and commute. I hear public transit is a joke. I guess like most places public transit is not perfect. Any suggestions on what type of firms I should be going after in Massachusetts. I know they have good hospitals and Universities. I did some temp work at an Ivy League University in NY. I have it on my resume maybe that will give me a foot in the door.

Any suggestions, leads will be appreciate. Thank you,

You might get more responses if you started a new thread with these questions. People may tend to pass over your post on this thread, since it's some way into the thread, as well as the fact that it's not really related to the thread topic, so people may skip past your post to get to the ones that return to the thread's topic.