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i just wanted say.....i live in south florida ......and I'm missing the DC area horribly....DC and the surrounding cities and states have everything to offer you...history, sightseeing, club scene, sexual orientation stuff, smart and intellectual people for the most part, racially mixed, fantastic schools (Thomas Jefferson HS in Fairfax), there's something for everybody...get out of the house and do something about your dislike or distaste for DC....really is not that bad....you got MARYLAND, VIRGINIA, B-MORE AREA, DC....make the most of your stay
Hey, I went to TJ too, class of '93. When did you graduate? The only thing about growing up around DC is that EVERYONE moves away after high school/college. But maybe we all come back eventually.
I have lived and worked in the District east of Rock Creek Park for 25 years and I've never been mugged, robbed, or assaulted.
That's funny -- I got mugged in Fairfax County (Huntington metro stop) at gunpoint in high school. And then sometime later (also in high school, early '90's) I went to some guy's birthday party in a nice neighborhood in NW to find out he'd been shot to death earlier that day -- caught a stray bullet while mowing the lawn. And I know people who claim to have been chased by muggers in Old Town, Alexandria of all places, and tons of the kids I grew up with in the suburbs (off Rt. 1 around Mount Vernon) were either on drugs or dealing drugs (or both), or their parents were (Arlington). So there's crime all over the place, even in the "good" parts. But what are you going to do? You can't stay locked up all day.
I think DC is a heaven for the ambitious driven people, but it is hell for the relationship centered people. I am a relational person and working in DC area feels like swimming in a pool of sharks as a dolphin.
Exactly! Could not have said it better myself. You described the problem with DC perfectly.
Also, many (but not all) people are quite rude. When I do gentlemanly things, like opening doors for people, and saying "pardon me" if I bump into them... women often say that I'm "too nice". Yeah, I'm too nice for THEM.
One girl even told me verbatim: "you need to be more mean." I mean, seriously...
Exactly! Could not have said it better myself. You described the problem with DC perfectly.
Also, many (but not all) people are quite rude. When I do gentlemanly things, like opening doors for people, and saying "pardon me" if I bump into them... women often say that I'm "too nice". Yeah, I'm too nice for THEM.
One girl even told me verbatim: "you need to be more mean." I mean, seriously...
You know, most women don't like guys that are obsequious. Its the whole bad boy appeal thing. Being too nice (in any city) is a bad idea. Just some women advice
You know, most women don't like guys that are obsequious. Its the whole bad boy appeal thing. Being too nice (in any city) is a bad idea. Just some women advice
I'm not even talking about being obsequious. I'm talking about things like holding the door open when there's a mother with a baby on a stroll... or giving my train seat to a senior citizen with a cane. Basic Tact 101.
Unless, of course, you really do think that IS obsequious? You'd be more attracted to some "bad boy" dude who would push his own grandmother into oncoming traffic if he'd benefit from it? ..... lol, I rest my case.
Exactly! Could not have said it better myself. You described the problem with DC perfectly.
Also, many (but not all) people are quite rude. When I do gentlemanly things, like opening doors for people, and saying "pardon me" if I bump into them... women often say that I'm "too nice". Yeah, I'm too nice for THEM.
One girl even told me verbatim: "you need to be more mean." I mean, seriously...
Agreed, I have the same issue. People look confused if I give them a strange look for not saying "excuse me" or something similar when they run into me, stand in front of the doors as I'm getting off the metro, etc.
I always open the doors for anyone behind me, hold the elevator, etc. as it's just good manners. I don't think it's really a DC thing though, rather that manners are just dead in general. I have noticed when I'm in the mid-west, people are at least a little more vocal about it all and acknowledge you more. Same goes for the west coast, but to a lesser degree.
When I was a kid, no one dared cut in front of you in line, now it happens every other day. If you were in the grocery store, people would let you go ahead if you had 2 items and they had 25. People in my office building, particularly women for some reason love to look directly at you as the elevator door shuts or let one of the heavy building doors hit you as you are carrying your bags or groceries. As they say, chivalry is dead. DC is very much a participant in the, "I am more important than you" game.
My biggest pet peeve is when people with kids automatically think they should get priority. I understand having a 3-year old at your feet can be stressful, but I don't pity anyone for it. Multiplying is a personal choice that I have no interest in undertaking. Apparently, everyone else thinks I should bear the burden of their choices. For instance, I have been at restaurants several times with a full party and a woman will walk-in 10 minutes later with kids, demanding that the hostess seat her family first because she has kids. Another of course is when you say something that they don't want their kid to hear. I wonder if these people really believe in these bubbles they think they have created for their kids. Your kid needs to be beat up and degraded a few times to grow up as a functional human being, it's just a fact of life.
Unfortunately, this is a symptom of society no matter where you go, but I will agree that DC sometimes feels worse than most places.
Well said Cookie Toaster. Now when I do something "nice" such as hold the door for someone and I receive no acknowledgement, I just say very loudly "Oh, you're welcome!"
I like checking out their reaction.
Well said Cookie Toaster. Now when I do something "nice" such as hold the door for someone and I receive no acknowledgement, I just say very loudly "Oh, you're welcome!"
I like checking out their reaction.
I do that sometimes too. I usually opt for the evil look instead, but if they are super rude I will drop the sarcastic comment. The sad thing is 99% of the time, I honestly believe they have no idea what they did wrong, so I probably seem completely nuts to them (I probably am, but so what).
Is DC really that bad? I had an interview there and the lady sitting next to me on the place HATED it there! She lived in Alexandria and said the 4-5 mile drive to the Pentagon took 45 minutes??! That seemed a little hard to believe. She also mentioned standoffish people and high COL. She said people kept going in and out of the city (with new political figures), so I equated it to Vegas. She kind of agreed, but say it was more like Vegas with 'people in suits.' Is the traffic really THAT bad??
yes, i believe her comment on the commute. there's alot of arteries that all weave together around the pentagon and get choked up trying to cross the river. It's a traffic mess down there, probably the most convoluted freeway system I have ever seen. DC consistently ranks 2nd/3rd behind LA for traffic.
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I mean, seriously...
