I noticed a funny thing yesterday when we were flying back from Florida. To be precise I noticed it when I climbed on the plane that was going to Milwaukee. The problem was: I wasn't quite sure what I was noticing.
"Something's different... what is it?"I thought.
The plane was smaller than anything else we'd traveled in this trip, It was very small and crowded full of a bunch of normal people.
"People... ummm."
By nature I am a people watcher. You may thinks weird and rude but I don't think it's weird and I try not to be rude. I do it because people, God's greatest creation, fascinate me. The different personalities, opinions and looks, most of all I wonder about what makes people think the way they do? What makes them tick? Now I'm not into psychology, I'm just into people. And when I climbed onto the plane yesterday my inner "Person Identification Meter" went off. I was now dealing with an entirely different group of people than I had been in the last week.
We'd been in Florida, Palm Beach to be precise. We passed by Donald Trump's gate house, I saw Tiger Wood's residence from a distance. It's a snazzy, high-class part of the country. Everywhere we went the majority of the people were fit, fashionable dressed, good-looking people. To tell the truth it's a bit daunting. When I was packing last week I was in a tither over my clothes. I lamented to several of my sisters "I have nothing to wear." (NOTE: If you haven't seen my closet I should let you know I'm not destitute in that arena, I have plenty of articles of clothing.) It wasn't that I didn't have clothes, it was that I didn't have clothes that I thought would make me look up to the Palm Beach standard. I finally had to decide I didn't have time to buy a whole new wardrobe so I just wore my normal clothes, which haven't in a while been (or never were) fashionable.
At the airport the morning we left someone asked:
"Why are you going to Wisconsin?" Translation: Who on earth would visit Wisconsin for fun??? We answered that we were going home.
They said "Oh!" Translation: Oh! They're Hicks, that explains it!
Half-way through the flight home I realized why my "Person Indenification Meter" had gone off. These people were going home to, because, honestly, who does visit Wisconsin for fun? My fellow passengers were much different from the Palm Beach crowd, most of them were not quite what you'd call "fit" or "in shape" their clothes were nice enough, but not what you'd call "fashionable" mostly sturdy jeans and comfortable shirts. A couple of the ladies seemed to have forgotten the 60's and the 80's are over. These people are the down-to-earth, hard-working type. They can't believe the enormous amount congress is rapidly spending and they think that 50 degrees in March is "beautiful". (NOTE: Both of these examples are from conversations I actually overheard on the plane.)
When we disembark in Milwaukee the atmosphere was so startling different that I dropped my suitcase. (Okay, that might have resulted from me being a klutz.) Besides the fact that it was 30 degrees cooler than Palm Beach and there was no salty sea air, it was just different, less hurried, and, dare I say, happier. Right away I saw a guy in a pair of overalls. (I prefer them to the skinny jeans *gag* I was seeing in Palm Beach.) Then a total stranger and I shared a laugh over a towel dispenser, (I got too used to the eclectic kind while on vacation, and was violently waving my hand at a hand operated one until the stranger pointed my mistake of to me.) nothing like that happened to me on our trip.
I had been a little annoyed at the tone the person at the airport had used earlier when speaking of my home state. When we touched down in my I was appalled to realize how many people seem to agree with that person. The souvenir t-shirts in the airport gift shop all had to do with cow-tipping! For goodness sakes, Cow-tipping is a myth! It doesn't exist!We're not all red-necks!
Maybe it's just because Wisconsin is my home now, but I have decided I will always try to live here, in a small Midwest town, where old-fashioned values still have a place, and life is slow, where people are down-to-earth and good-natured. They're not millionaires and big sport celebrities, but I'll take them over the millionaires any day.
It's good to be home.
I think that there are wonderful people in every part of the U.S.A., including Pam Beach
(I know some absolutely wonderful people who live there.
I just prefer Midwesterners to Millionaires.
6 comments:
I totally agree with you.
I noticed a difference the second we got off the plane. Not only was the airport less hectic, but people actually took half a sec to smile at people walking by them, or mention that the handicap stall was open and I could take the baby in there for more room. People stop to help one another. I missed that. I missed people caring about a stranger. People with down to earth qualities. I love my state!
To voice my opinion, I agree with the skinny jean comment!
and if I were to ever get one wish from my jeanie in its little lamp it would be to move to a smaller town, with a library close by. Also, your towel dispenser moment has me in tithers!
I am not at ALL offended by this post, because I feel the same way about my home state! I've never flown, but I have a friend who is currently in southern California, and he said when a direct flight from upstate- NY landed and all the people came off the plane, he was amazed and relieved to see so many 'normal' people. Lol! So, that must be like what you experienced.
When we went to Los Angeles for an afternoon (during our trip to San Diego) we got out of the car and took a look around and then someone said "This sure is right next to Hollywood" because you could feel a HUGE difference. Everybody was moving faster and out to get where they were going. They didn't even smile at you, much less ask you how your day was going. My Mom took a minute to talk to our waiter at Rubios, and he started telling her about how his brother lived in Nebraska.
"Apparently," he says "When you get a good bargain on clothes or something where you're from, people are excited for you and think that's cool. Out here, if you buy clothes for a cheaper price, everbody looks down their nose at you. I'd like to go to the midwest..."
yeah, no kidding!
Welcome home, Lydia!! :D
I used to live in FL, and I much prefer GA, where I live now. People are just nicer, in general, in the south than they are in FL (Where all the yankee transplants live...) LOL! :D
Of course I think it's like that in small towns versus places like say, Palm Beach. :P
Blessings!
Julia
I ain't one bit offended by this post, I'm a Bible thumpin, gun toatin redneck, hick, and hillbilly, all rolled into one! Y'all take care of yourself now.
I like that bit about Yankee transplants. :)
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