Sitting around in New York City, a midwesterner notices this:
New Yorkers talk about their lives in front of everyone.
There must be a certain comfort with the anonymity of millions. It's particularly ironic as I write this because there is a guy complaining to his mom (they are both sitting next to me) about someone who is getting into his personal affairs, and should stay out of it. So, he wants to keep things private, but he's talking in a public area -- at a normal-to-loud volume.
Yet, I'm sure he expects that the people near him will never see him again. So really, he's not exposing his life to anyone -- because it's not anyone he knows or will know.
This is exactly how people talk on cell phones. As if no one around them will ever see them again, so why not talk as if they are not there.
I still find the cell phone half-conversations rude. I guess I don't find the guy next to me rude, as long as he's fully aware that he and his mom are being overheard. In a city, this may be typical, because it's so hard to find privacy.
No comments:
Post a Comment