"They were tiny gestures that said: I see you. I recognize you. I will make a little room for you here." YES! and Thank you! I was just thinking about this very same social (anti-social?) behavior the other day, when I had an entire conversation about cars with my Lyft driver, only to learn that he was ACTUALLY TALKING TO SOMEONE ELSE THROUGH HIS EARPHONES! It was so crazy, I just started laughing my head off when I finally figured it out. He must have thought that I was also talking to someone on my headphones (except I wasn't wearing any and I didn't have my phone out). I felt like I was in some sort of rom-com movie!
I love this article and I completely agree. My students (here they are again!) regularly act like the world is their living room, expecting to put their feet up, put their head down, wander around my classroom whenever the impulse strikes, and apply their makeup during class. It's beyond annoying and I have no idea how this became remotely acceptable. 🙄
Leslie — how did it feel to take these photos of you in the world with your devices, without jumping into the simulacrum of “look at me I’m in a cafe being reflective”
I have double downed on talking to every cashier and delivery person and anyone with whom I make eye contact. Yesterday at CVS, some awful cover of “Only Wanna Be with You,” and I looked at the Coke delivery guy and said, “Why’d they do Hootie like this? “
There was a brief moment of confusion — like why is this woman talking to me — and then a big ol grin. “Yeah, this can’t be Hootie.”
We are the exact same person! I now talk to everybody and sometimes think that I'm coming off like an older lonely person who needs human interaction however she can get it. But I'm actually just interested in all of them and the situations and want to talk to all of them about the situations. It's amazing how close you can get with someone in a two sentence exchange!
I think Covid made our inside voices/actions acceptable outside. Did not the world… betray us, many thought?
But grouped with the rift in this country where both sides seemingly jump at the chance to out piss-off the other, younger generations who’ve grown up watching the people who instruct them to mind their manners regularly all-cap eviscerate strangers on the internet in full keyboard combat gear.. kids are being raised by hypocrites who tell them to do one thing, while blatantly doing another.
** not all people for clarity and common sense.
The world is rude now because there’s not much left that isn’t rude. GenX and millennials see we’ve been bamboozled - it was never study hard and work hard and you’ll be rich and successful. And so we’re angry that the weak have inherited the earth. The younger generations perhaps have decided to not even buy into our rhetoric, because look at what idiots that made us:
"They were tiny gestures that said: I see you. I recognize you. I will make a little room for you here." YES! and Thank you! I was just thinking about this very same social (anti-social?) behavior the other day, when I had an entire conversation about cars with my Lyft driver, only to learn that he was ACTUALLY TALKING TO SOMEONE ELSE THROUGH HIS EARPHONES! It was so crazy, I just started laughing my head off when I finally figured it out. He must have thought that I was also talking to someone on my headphones (except I wasn't wearing any and I didn't have my phone out). I felt like I was in some sort of rom-com movie!
I love this article and I completely agree. My students (here they are again!) regularly act like the world is their living room, expecting to put their feet up, put their head down, wander around my classroom whenever the impulse strikes, and apply their makeup during class. It's beyond annoying and I have no idea how this became remotely acceptable. 🙄
My immigrant mom had me drop a little curtsy (really just a knee dip) and shake hands with her Swedish friends. She had great manners!
Leslie — how did it feel to take these photos of you in the world with your devices, without jumping into the simulacrum of “look at me I’m in a cafe being reflective”
I have double downed on talking to every cashier and delivery person and anyone with whom I make eye contact. Yesterday at CVS, some awful cover of “Only Wanna Be with You,” and I looked at the Coke delivery guy and said, “Why’d they do Hootie like this? “
There was a brief moment of confusion — like why is this woman talking to me — and then a big ol grin. “Yeah, this can’t be Hootie.”
We are the exact same person! I now talk to everybody and sometimes think that I'm coming off like an older lonely person who needs human interaction however she can get it. But I'm actually just interested in all of them and the situations and want to talk to all of them about the situations. It's amazing how close you can get with someone in a two sentence exchange!
🤣
We love and. need you too. Yes, you and you too.
OH THANK YOU I will take it. And you too!!
💯
I think Covid made our inside voices/actions acceptable outside. Did not the world… betray us, many thought?
But grouped with the rift in this country where both sides seemingly jump at the chance to out piss-off the other, younger generations who’ve grown up watching the people who instruct them to mind their manners regularly all-cap eviscerate strangers on the internet in full keyboard combat gear.. kids are being raised by hypocrites who tell them to do one thing, while blatantly doing another.
** not all people for clarity and common sense.
The world is rude now because there’s not much left that isn’t rude. GenX and millennials see we’ve been bamboozled - it was never study hard and work hard and you’ll be rich and successful. And so we’re angry that the weak have inherited the earth. The younger generations perhaps have decided to not even buy into our rhetoric, because look at what idiots that made us:
Truth. Justice. The American Way.
🥲