Are people in the DC area just a different kind of rude?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I just don't find this to be my reality at all. I've lived in Glover Park, DC for many years and this neighborhood is very friendly. Of course when I'm downtown I don't smile at everyone on the sidewalk... I mean, get real. But if I'm dealing with or meeting someone directly I smile, look them in the eye, greet them pleasantly, and generally receive the same in return. I certainly don't find DC ruder than any other place I've lived.

Glover Park is a special place. Friendliest neighborhood in DC.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don’t think dc is at all that bad it’s just got a ton of unattractive people I guess this is due to the professions that are popular in this area (law, non-profits)

Also, there are many fugly stay at home and working moms in the NOVA suburbs.

[Anonymous]

I grew up in NYC and spent part of my adult life in Wisconsin. DC is somewhere in between.

My time in WI taught me to be more outgoing and kind with strangers and neighbors (and made me realize why folks from other parts of the country find New Yorkers rude). Like others, I really enjoy my neighborhood/neighbors and being part of my community.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The whole no eye contact or acknowledgement when passing by people on the sidewalk drives me crazy.

This is not my experience at all in DC, but then most of my neighbors are longtime residents who have been here at least a couple generations. We acknowledge each other and say hi, even if we don't know each other. It's one of my favorite things about DC.

But the transplants, not so much.

You say hi to all the homeless and beggars you pass by on the street? And that works out well for you?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:These "I hate DC" threads always have two things that are true, but unsaid:

1. The people who most vehemently hate DC people are insecure and unhappy with themselves - what they see in those around them is in fact a reflection of themselves.

2. The people that are unhappy and thing DC has nothing to do and that all people are obsessed with work and status are inevitably from some far-off suburb. Of course they hate their life and the people around them - they are exhausting themselves with their commutes and between their jobs and their commutes, they have no time for fun.

Way to deflect.

I think you are on the wrong thread.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Move to a Black neighborhood, OP. Much friendlier. You'll see the difference right away.

+1

That is true, actually - people are civil.

Coming from another city as a transplant, D.C. is very different since there are no older ethnic neighborhoods like in most other cities.

+1

Valid point!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I feel like there's a certain brand of obnoxiousness that is generally present in a lot of DC-area people, notably those who are originally from outside the area.

It's hard to describe.

They "made it" by living here now. And they are so proud, bless their hearts. Tear falling.

What about those of us who feel that they have gone backward by moving here?

I am a transplant. I don't feel I made it by living here. However, I enjoyed traveling along the East coast. I had never been to RI, Maine, NYC, Boston, so I spent many weekends traveling just for fun to explore. I also really enjoyed the touristy sightseeing in DC.

I realized though, that not everyone I worked with was happy to see me so happy. The people who are from DC and surrounding area don't have anywhere else to go to work. They don't like transplants. I get it, now. I have a real hometown I can move back to whenever I want. I can live closer in the my job in downtown DC. I can enjoy a lot of what makes DC great, while people from here go through the drudgery of a long commute back to the burbs.

+1

I agree whole heartedly. I would be miserable too, if I had no where else to go, to get away from this place. It's not all bad, but the locals (who oddly claim to be "happy") don't seem very content with their lives, and don't seem to know how to find happiness. That is the common thread that I have seen, over the decades. The part about not wanting other people to be happy is spot on, thank you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The people FROM here, who grew up here, are normal.

The people from other places are generally the worst. Its the most annoying kid from every small-town high school in America, and they all move here.

HAHAHAHA keep telling yourself that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don’t think it’s rudeness necessarily. Instead, DC simply isn’t a fun place to live.

I lived in NW for 10+ years and I realized how little fun anyone has compared to people living in other cities or locations in the US. Most people here seem to have very few friends. Kids have birthday parties and there are work functions and charity events occasionally. Besides that, most people are dual income and busy working. At first I thought I was doing something wrong but then I started paying attention and it was obvious that most people have few friends.

DC is fun after college but then people start moving away. Then it’s an endless slog of work and taking care of kids. There isn’t a leisure class in DC and DC lacks what a lot of other cities have. There isn’t anywhere really fun to go and there isn’t a single upscale department store downtown. An exciting weekend is going to le diplomat. I mean cmon. Most people aren’t being rude on purpose. They are just bored, tired and unhappy with their lives. They have likely not had any fun in a very long time.

I moved to another large city and was shocked how much fun people have. I am now frequently attending parties and have more social plans than I ever did after ten years of living in NW DC.

Perhaps it is different in Bethesda or Arlington but I don’t think so.

+1

Totally agree.

You can only go to the museums or hear about how great their 70's gogo scene was so many times before you just don't care about either.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I feel like there's a certain brand of obnoxiousness that is generally present in a lot of DC-area people, notably those who are originally from outside the area.

It's hard to describe.

It's not actually hard to describe OP: Misery loves company. Period. End of story.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I find DC super hostile.
I'm an unpolished white person.
Power-ragey white people look at me like I'm a piece of trash, and black people look at me like I am personally holding them down right now.

Now that I'm mommy/covid-tracked out of my dreams, I resent and regret this whole thing a lot more. I was probably on the track to mommy track anyway, because this shitty world, and the unpolished thing.

I can relate. Although black people seem to give me more of a pass. Or maybe they're just more polite... Which seems entirely possible.

The story I always tell is the time my child's HRCS had a fundraiser where they wanted the classes to compete against each other. Never mind that the younger classes had 30 kids and the upper grades had like, 12. Never mind that all the affluent families were in the lower grades. I remember the time a six-year old, beaming mom in tow told me my child's classroom was "losing" because they'd only fundraised $50 to his classes' $4,000. I said many things then, as I watched the smile slowly fade from his mother's face, and I do not regret them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The whole no eye contact or acknowledgement when passing by people on the sidewalk drives me crazy.

This is not my experience at all in DC, but then most of my neighbors are longtime residents who have been here at least a couple generations. We acknowledge each other and say hi, even if we don't know each other. It's one of my favorite things about DC.

But the transplants, not so much.

You say hi to all the homeless and beggars you pass by on the street? And that works out well for you?

DP here. Uh, yes, and the guys who may or may not be drug dealers in addition to everyone else. It works out great! Because that's what you do in this neighborhood - you say hi - whether you're rich or poor. It's a real community.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The whole no eye contact or acknowledgement when passing by people on the sidewalk drives me crazy.

This is not my experience at all in DC, but then most of my neighbors are longtime residents who have been here at least a couple generations. We acknowledge each other and say hi, even if we don't know each other. It's one of my favorite things about DC.

But the transplants, not so much.

You say hi to all the homeless and beggars you pass by on the street? And that works out well for you?

DP here. Uh, yes, and the guys who may or may not be drug dealers in addition to everyone else. It works out great! Because that's what you do in this neighborhood - you say hi - whether you're rich or poor. It's a real community.

Wow. Your panhandlers must be nicer than ours. Ours can get aggressive if you don’t give them money. But sounds like yours are just happy to exchange greetings. How nice! Can we trade?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The whole no eye contact or acknowledgement when passing by people on the sidewalk drives me crazy.

This is not my experience at all in DC, but then most of my neighbors are longtime residents who have been here at least a couple generations. We acknowledge each other and say hi, even if we don't know each other. It's one of my favorite things about DC.

But the transplants, not so much.

You say hi to all the homeless and beggars you pass by on the street? And that works out well for you?

DP here. Uh, yes, and the guys who may or may not be drug dealers in addition to everyone else. It works out great! Because that's what you do in this neighborhood - you say hi - whether you're rich or poor. It's a real community.

I'm the PP who said I say hi to the people in my neighborhood, and this. Some of the young men can be punks and are rude, but most people are friendly and nice. I'm often out with my kid and people are always really kind to her, in particular, including the panhandlers and homeless folks and yes, even the maybe/probably drug dealers (I see things...). No one is violent and while I don't like drug activity in my neighborhood, I don't think being rude to people is the way to handle it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The whole no eye contact or acknowledgement when passing by people on the sidewalk drives me crazy.

This is not my experience at all in DC, but then most of my neighbors are longtime residents who have been here at least a couple generations. We acknowledge each other and say hi, even if we don't know each other. It's one of my favorite things about DC.

But the transplants, not so much.

You say hi to all the homeless and beggars you pass by on the street? And that works out well for you?

DP here. Uh, yes, and the guys who may or may not be drug dealers in addition to everyone else. It works out great! Because that's what you do in this neighborhood - you say hi - whether you're rich or poor. It's a real community.

I'm the PP who said I say hi to the people in my neighborhood, and this. Some of the young men can be punks and are rude, but most people are friendly and nice. I'm often out with my kid and people are always really kind to her, in particular, including the panhandlers and homeless folks and yes, even the maybe/probably drug dealers (I see things...). No one is violent and while I don't like drug activity in my neighborhood, I don't think being rude to people is the way to handle it.

Do you say hi to the homeless who are passed out on the sidewalk? Or do you just say hi to the conscious ones?