Where's Waldo?
I'm starting to become one of them.
Yes, I can still be picked out of a crowd, but I'm starting to acquire certain behaviors, the good as well as the bad. I have definitely acquired some favorable qualities, such as learning the transportation system and how to order certain dishes, but I also think I'm regrettably acquiring the insane pedestrian habits at which I scratched my head upon arrival.
By enlarge, one would assume that blending in to a culture is a good thing. However, I can give an example that would defy such a notion.
Today I found myself unconsciously doing something I would never have done a few weeks ago. While it's not a huge deal, it just goes to show how quickly things change.
At a crosswalk, I looked up to see that the flashing numbers were gone, but there was still a green person lit. That means you definitely shouldn't start crossing, and that the people who are currently in transit better hurry their butts up. As I took my first step, that person turned red. Now anyone with half a mind would retract that step and wait for the next signal.
So, what did I do? I kept going, acting like a cat that owned the street and expected people to stop for her. I acted like a native.
Halfway across, I heard the revving of engines and thought to myself, gee, these people are impatient. I looked up to find that their light was green and I was still in the middle of the street. And, seeing as the people here wait for no one, they all started to go.
Hmmm, quite a predicament.
I sprinted the last quarter to the sidewalk and then thought about what just happened. Did I consciously know better? Of course I did. Do I think what I did was not the brightest? Of course. The sad thing is it was all totally unconscious, as if the intangible pedestrian credo osmotically shifted itself into my being. It was almost like there were detectable levels of 'foreigner' in me and the universe thought the situation had to be rectified.
So if you cannot seem to find me when I’m back inSan Diego
Yes, I can still be picked out of a crowd, but I'm starting to acquire certain behaviors, the good as well as the bad. I have definitely acquired some favorable qualities, such as learning the transportation system and how to order certain dishes, but I also think I'm regrettably acquiring the insane pedestrian habits at which I scratched my head upon arrival.
By enlarge, one would assume that blending in to a culture is a good thing. However, I can give an example that would defy such a notion.
Today I found myself unconsciously doing something I would never have done a few weeks ago. While it's not a huge deal, it just goes to show how quickly things change.
At a crosswalk, I looked up to see that the flashing numbers were gone, but there was still a green person lit. That means you definitely shouldn't start crossing, and that the people who are currently in transit better hurry their butts up. As I took my first step, that person turned red. Now anyone with half a mind would retract that step and wait for the next signal.
So, what did I do? I kept going, acting like a cat that owned the street and expected people to stop for her. I acted like a native.
Halfway across, I heard the revving of engines and thought to myself, gee, these people are impatient. I looked up to find that their light was green and I was still in the middle of the street. And, seeing as the people here wait for no one, they all started to go.
Hmmm, quite a predicament.
I sprinted the last quarter to the sidewalk and then thought about what just happened. Did I consciously know better? Of course I did. Do I think what I did was not the brightest? Of course. The sad thing is it was all totally unconscious, as if the intangible pedestrian credo osmotically shifted itself into my being. It was almost like there were detectable levels of 'foreigner' in me and the universe thought the situation had to be rectified.
So if you cannot seem to find me when I’m back in
posted by Shannon @ 9:02 PM
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