Rudeness in Winter
I've been on a tear lately with regards to my negativity about this town and its inhabitants. In a few simple words, people here are incredibly rude, rude beyond belief, rude to the point of aggression. I don't know how to explain it, but there seems to be a plethora of people out and about these days, weather notwithstanding, that have little or no regard for their fellow man. The lack of social niceties is obvious to anyone with a shred of common courtesy and decency. What's most troubling, or maybe comforting to some, is that this behavior seems to transcend racial and economic classes. Everyone here is rude, equally. The phrases, "excuse me" and "thank you" are about as nonexistent here as dinosaurs.

It's apparent that there's something amiss when you encounter people in various locales, and the types of personalities encountered remains the same, a disgruntled lot of workers, wanderers, and the other numerous groups of miscontent citizens that populate this town. It doesn't matter where you're at be it the grocery store, a coffeeshop, a diner, a record store, people here specialize in being assholes. Since my bubble world only extends to the city limits, I have to rely on what I've heard, and I've heard, read, and absorbed from numerous sources that New Yorkers are, without a doubt, the rudest people in the country, if not the entire planet. For the most part, I believe these are exaggerations, a stereotype that's been adopted as scripture with some truth, but not all that much. However, I'd have to say that here is where you encounter the rudest people around, or at least in this part of Pennsylvania.

Some would blame this behavior on the weather, but I think there's something else going on. I'm fascinated by watching people, and I truly believe that you can tell by just looking at someone what type of personality you're dealing with. One of the most disturbing traits I've encountered here is, what I call, a "blank look or stare," a variation on what's termed the "thousand yard stare". People just look at you, but they don't see you. If you'd told me that I could, in effect, be invisible around people, I would have called you crazy, but it's a phenomenon that's real, and I see it all the time. It's this look that troubles me more than anything else. That stare produces a sense of fear and unease in me faster than any other implied or overt threat.

Others would blame the economy, and here I have to both agree and disagree. Employees at various businesses are incredibly rude. It's almost as if you're doing them a disservice by frequenting their establishments. I have to say that I'm not alone in this feeling. Benedict has related to me several tales regarding these disgruntled employees and their constant state of discontent and aggravation baffles me to no end. If you're frustrated by your place in life, fine, but isn't it obvious that there's little out there right now? Upward mobility is a dying phrase reserved for only a few people. Being thankful for a steady job seems to be the least some of these people can do in life. I don't understand this at all.

I could go on, but there's really no point. However, to relate one final tale, last night while conversing with Benedict in his car after a trip to the local 24-hour diner, I heard a noise. It sounded like a dog barking, but I couldn't be sure. So, I turn around and look to see someone cross the street behind us. He, this guy, walks along then coughs a cough that clearly indicates that this man is suffering from either the black plague or he's been exposed to some biological contagion. If this isn't odd enough, he stares at us as he's walking, stops, turns around, and gives us the finger. Why? Well, before I could answer that, he does it again, and again until he's out of the light. What can explain this behavior? It's not rudeness, per say, but it's definitely an outward manifestation of some form of anger and rage, and I'm willing to bet that this guy, this drunken schmuck, is as rude as anyone here in Pittsburgh. How do I know this? Well, when 95% of a population subscribes to the ideology of being an asshole all the time, then you're pretty much guaranteed a pretty good chance of labeling correctly the type of person you're dealing with. Chances are he wouldn't say "excuse me" in the grocery store either.