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Early Addition
Before people flee the city for Buffalo, they enter it with wide eyes and big hopes. The NY Times looks at what it's like for newbies, who will either be crushed by the city, or embrace it. Just how many fresh transplants are amongst us? The Census for 2006 showed "nearly 77,000 people in their 20s had been in the city for a year or less" -- a number that's likely doubled since the Sex and the City movie came out (unsubstantiated!). While many newcomers find comfort in the skyline they've seen in countless tv shows and movies, others are defeated by a lack of funds and friends. And then there's the rudeness; one claimed he "is still trying to stomach what feels to him like a whole new brand of rude." The same fella has a childhood fear of taxis, and says “I always thought any time I got into taxis they were going to kidnap me, and I was going to die."
Newcomers Brave New York
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Spaniard gored to death during the Running of the Bulls in Pamplona
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Welcome to the NYC, bitch!
Welcome To NY, Now Duck Motherfucker!
Welcome To NY, It Aint Kansas!
ahh...love those shirts...
NYC is a like living in Rome before the fall of the empire. Post 911 NYC is wonderful because it scared much of the weakness away. Now we have a materialistic liberal society trying to live in the moment.
How beastly! I do apologize by the ghastly behavior of my fellow constituents. I only talk to other individuals with the utmost respect and politeness from such an outstanding gentleman as myself.
"is still trying to stomach what feels to him like a whole new brand of rude."
Shut the fuck up. I aint got time for this bullshit. If you act stupid and get in peoples way of course people are gonna be rude to you. Walk at a New York pace, if you have to wait for someone, step to the side. Read a god damn map before you stop onto the subway, and mind your own damn business. Then you should be fine.
I remember back in 1922 when shit was real. Fuck these newcomers.
I got your goddamn map right here!
either spread those fresh cheeks or get on the bus back to Omaha babe, I ain't got time to waste on your shit.
NYers aren't rude, we're busy. We don't have time to say "Welcome to our fair city, why of course I'd be happy to escort you to the Winter Garden theatre and where are you from by the by?" If you're not happy with "3 blocks down, the one with the sign that says Winter Garden" perhaps you should reconsider moving here.
“I always thought any time I got into taxis they were going to kidnap me, and I was going to die."
I'm sorry, but that's just precious. Sink or swim, baby.
It's really just the nature of the city. More stress = less patience, which some people perceive as rudeness.
I'm glad it chases some people away. I wish it chased away more. We're overcrowded as it is.
“I always thought any time I got into taxis they were going to kidnap me, and I was going to die."
Ummm...what? Sounds like that dude's got some issues he needs to work out. I'd bet rudeness from strangers is the least of his problems.
Since when does living in Union City, NJ qualify someone as a "true New Yorker?"
Can someone please tell me how that made it past the fact checking dept????? wtf
Yeah obviously the rudeness doesn't bother people very much judging by the insane overcrowdedness of Manhattan. Full disclosure: I'm a native Midwesterner. I'm one of those 77000 people who had been living here less than a year.
The pushy impatience is my favorite part of New York. I love being able to tell people to fuck off and if they don't like it they can kiss my ass. The "politeness" you find elsewhere is just fake. The people there will say nasty things behind your back as soon as you walk away. At least here they tell you right to your face! I love it.
The non-stop crowds of tools and tourists are my least favorite part. I would leave here SO FAST if my job existed anywhere else. It's like my entire life now consists of trying to get places and having to literally shove slack-jawed morons out of my way.
ummm how does living in union city nj = being a ny'er? i mean could they have at least found someone who lives in a borough??
these whiners who upon moving here cry about how it's not as warm and cozy as "back home" are exactly what is ruining our city!!
wah wah wah...is anyone else sick of hearing about how "rude" we are?? travel to a place like vegas where you'll see a ton of people from other places in the us behaving like barnyard animals; treating clerks/servers/hotel staff etc like garbage. that's what i find "rude!"
New York for newcomers is survival of the fittest: if you can't take the heat get out of the boiling cauldron AKA the melting pot. There's not enough room, time or money here for any whiney pussies.
lol, it's like they're all in an S&M relationship.
Welcome to New York, the safety word is Knickerbocker. Now Get on your knees piggy while I drip hot wax on you! What did I tell you about touching yourself before you get here! Did I give you permission to speak? DID I!?
Guys, I was having a crap day until I read these comments. I love you so much!
I don't know where this "rude" critique comes from. I really don't. Most NYers are patient and helpful with the ARMY of tourists that inundate the city. Newcomers who come to live here... well. It takes time to acclimate to NY. But if you perceive NYers as rude, man, you are not gonna make it here.
I am so glad I was mostly raised and have been living here since I was 9 years old. I know how the city works, these newbies comes here to follow their dreams but have *no idea* how it works.
Those who are swift and driven will survive, those who just bask in their dreams and do nothing will NOT!
As someone said upthread, you're not in Kansas anymore! Welcome to ROME 2008!
OK, I stopped reading at the "Union City, NJ" part. Calling Union City a part of New York City is like calling Juicy Couture designer. It's only designer to those who don't know better. Or people in Staten Island.
“I always thought any time I got into taxis they were going to kidnap me, and I was going to die."
They are.
“I always thought any time I got into taxis they were going to kidnap me, and I was going to die."
The kidnapping part is going overboard. But, with the way they drive, the odds of death greatly increase.
Re: [18]
Que the city's anthem.
If they think NYC is tough now, imagine if they arrived 15-20 years ago or even during the 70s?
I'm so sick of people who weren't born and raised here that complain about NYC. If you think it sucks that bad, then why are you still here????
I always rushed and was impatient before I moved here a year ago. Now I'm just glad to have an excuse!
I was home last weekend (southeast US) and the niceness completely freaked me out. Everyone was so pleasant and smiling - even the post office workers were jovial!
The taxicab guy is just f'ed up. Does he really think that each taxi driver goes around picking up people and then killing them? And that perhaps it was so common it just never made the news? WTF?
People are busy but that doesn't mean they are rude or mean. I think the reality is that the people who come here and can't hack it are too pussy to actually speak up and ask questions. They've been spoon fed their entire lives and think people can read their minds.
If you want help - ask for it. My first winter here was tough but a majority of the strangers I've approached have always been helpful and willing to help. We're people, too.
However, those who I have found to be rude are the NEW people who think they have to be in order to fit in.
LEAVE.
#23, but it's a different kind of tough. 70's and 80's New York was about physically surviving (high crime rate, almost apocalyptic!).
These days, people have to survive through *information,* If you're not in the know then you lose!
"However, those who I have found to be rude are the NEW people who think they have to be in order to fit in.
LEAVE."
Oh, word to this shit right here.
I on the other hand go out of my way to help the tourists. When I see a befuddled individual with a map on the street corner, I go up to them and say, "Are you lost?" They reply, "Soho?" I point them on their way and I have a smiley face the rest of the day. In fact just today I ran into a group of Italians and then later some German tourists that needed my assistance and I happily sent them on their way.
Have a nice day everyone here.
ITA with Slappy (17). I moved here from the midwest quite a few years ago, and I'm still constantly amazed at how polite and patient the average NYer is. LOL, they're constantly apologizing. The vast majority of rude people I encounter in my daily life are TOURISTS!
"Travel to a place like vegas where you'll see a ton of people from other places in the us behaving like barnyard animals; treating clerks/servers/hotel staff etc like garbage. that's what i find "rude!""
This is an amazing point. I don't find 'New Yorker's' rude at all. Plenty are, but at least most know how to get by in the world. They treat people with respect. Pushing does not equate rudeness.
It's the middle of nowhere Midwest, think they're big shots cause they drive a hummer, fat ass tourists that treat everyone like shit when they leave their hick town because they think it makes them seem 'important' or 'wealthy' or some shit. Fuck them.
Now Now Now There are plenty of Midwestern people from the other side of the Hudson that are nice and very amicable. Unfortunately they don't visit New York City unless to go to Williamsburg to visit their children.
I'm wagering that more than half of these kids in their 20's go to NYU. And how many are living along the first 10 L stops out of Manhattan?
I don't appreciate the NYT advertising that NYC can "belong" to any naive dingus within 8 months.
Rest assured that we here denizens find you "Newly New Yorkers" absolutely obnoxious, not to mention entirely conspicuous. You're not blending in as well as you may think.
Please go back and trendify wherever the hell you came from.
This new breed of transplants makes me want to hurl. This city is much nicer than it was during the early 70s. If you walked down the wrong block on the upper east side, you were gonna get mugged. This was during the day. I recall a tenement on east 94th between Madison and Park avenues that was inhabited by bongo drum playing drug addicts. My brother used to get mugged once a week on Park Avenue of all places. Now when I listen to the news and hear about some mugger on the Upper East Side the locals are all out of towners who say, "I thought this part of town was safe!" It's the wanna be natives from out of town who are the biggest idiots-fuck them.
i'm a proud product of Union City, NJ, the most densely populated city in the country, just ten minutes from midtown manhattan and don't worry we don't want to be lumped in with NYC...it's bad enough we're getting the overflow of all the midwest transplants who can't afford nyc, hoboken or jersey city..it annoys me how these people live in NJ but yet claim NY
There are many people that live in the outer boros that say they live in NYC also. Not to mention Suffolk and Nassau counties.
Everywhere in the US is now safe. Everyone in my generation has lived perfectly protected lives. We're babies, and the idea of being mugged or raped is horrifying. I could never even imagine what it's like to live in the Middle East.
GBA!
Re: [36]
You cite an interesting suburban phenomenon (of identifying oneself with a nearby Metropolis as much or more than their local community) but you need to get your examples straight.
"There are many people that live in the outer boros that say they live in NYC also."
Of course they would, they're still inside the city limits.
Yes haterz, that means native Staten Islanders are waaay more genuine New Yorker than some carpetbagger from Pocatello, ID who just popped his survived-in-NYC-for-one-year cherry.
Alphabet City in the Eighties was "rude", what we gots here is just a certain 'fluidity', as in get the fuck outta of my face, or fluids gonna leak outta ya. There's too many people on this godamn earth to try to acknowlege everybody. We pick and choose: "You I like, so have a nice day; you I don't like, so go fuck yourself; and who the fuck are you?"
"You I like, so have a nice day; you I don't like, so go fuck yourself; and who the fuck are you?"
HA!
My only, and I mean ONLY, problem with out of towners typically come from the 22-24 year olds who are fresh out of college, fresh to NYC, and have the nerve to try to:
a) Tell me about the latest, coolest, hippest spot, while still unable to navigate town.
2) Convince me that Manhattan = NYC. There are so many good times in Brooklyn, I dont even come into Manhattan on weekends unless something very special is going down.
To the rest of the new arrivals - welcome!
I think moving to any new city is hard when you're younger--it's not like college where you're meeting like people in classes or at events all the time. You need to go out and do things you're interested in and hope to meet people that way.
Maybe you'll meet people through your job and hopefully there will be one or two cool (as in common interest) people you can hang out with. But there will be lonely times, and it's good to enjoy strolls through neighborhoods on your own.
Above all, you should exercise caution always, but don't live in fear. There's too much to explore and try to be governed by that.
Right you are Jen. Perhaps the city can organize orientation weeks once a month and have some senior advisors take the newbies around showing where they could and should eat and play safely. Happy happy happy. Smile kids we are growing up now and if you want to play right smile.
Balloons anyone? Another cupcake?
Re: #36
The outer boroughs ARE a part of New York City. Most people who insist otherwise are just trying to justify some ridiculous notion born from their view of "The City" as a status symbol. A real New Yorker craves not these things.
#36 must be a transplant. I've never met a native New Yorker that considered only Manhattan to be NYC. And trust me I've met plenty of natives, I myself was born and raised here.
#36, who the fuck doesn't think the boroughs aren't part of NYC? They teach you that shit in NEW YORK CITY SCHOOLS. Get the fuck back to palookaville dickwad.
this entire thread just makes me wanna go check it out even more! :P
#37
"Everywhere in the US is now safe. Everyone in my generation has lived perfectly protected lives. We're babies, and the idea of being mugged or raped is horrifying. I could never even imagine what it's like to live in the Middle East."
I don't think most of the middle east is that bad except for the war-stricken countries. Try Latin America, there's a culture of violence. Muggings in many of those countries are commonplace.
I think a lot of crime (where I live) in the US is premeditated, resulting from a dispute between two parties. I consider random muggings and robberies worse since they mostly affect totally innocent people.