For the past week I've been wondering about yelling. 1. I've been wondering if people really are angry when they yell. 2. I've been wondering if people from Boston even notice when someone is yelling. 3. I've been wondering how personally I should take it, if and when I am yelled at.
A few days ago I was sitting on a bench waiting for the bus to arrive (only about 2 blocks west of where the previous yelling incident happened) when I saw a lady stop her bicycle beside a car. The two men in the car were talking to two men on the sidewalk. They weren't parked, they had just stopped for a moment. Then the lady began to pound really hard on the driver's side window and I could tell she was furious because she was screaming. (I'm really sad I was out of earshot because I think I would have found this entire situation even more entertaining if I could have heard everything exchanged. But then again, maybe it was more entertaining for me to just read the actions and body language and imagine their conversation in my own head.) Apparently, from what I could tell, the car must have cut her off when they pulled in to talk to the men they had seen walking, and she was furious to the point of wanting to make a scene.
After no more than 30 seconds the car continued on its way leaving the woman on her bicycle. Clearly she had not satisfied her wrath by screaming at the rolled up window so she decided to continue conversing with the other men who had continued on down the sidewalk. She rode up behind them, they turned around and I could tell that she was still screaming because of all of her angry, jerky, body motions. They appeared to listen for about 5 seconds before turning again and continuing on their way. But she was not done! She continued yelling, they turned around again after walking 40 feet away, said something back and continued walking. This must have just provoked more anger because she rode up to them on her bicycle again and the same routine ensued. After two more sessions of them walking away, her riding up behind them again, and them appearing to not really care about what she had to say, she gave up, parked her bike, and entered a building.
This story, with another occurrence yesterday of someone bellowing out, "WHAT ARE YOU BLIND?!!" in the middle of a public street, makes me begin to think that making a scene here--by raising your voice to a very angry sounding scream--might actually not be considered making a scene. The yelling that people do definitely seems to have a greater affect on me than other Boston dwellers. I suppose I'll get used to it soon enough. So don't be surprised if the next time I'm in California I'm a little louder than you previously remember me to be.
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2 comments:
What? Are you crazy! You yelling?! I worked for a family pizza shop when I was in college. It was a Chicago family. I quit after 2 days of all members of the family yelling instructions to me simultaneously. I don't think it occured to them that they were all demanding my limited attention and that it was too much for a simple girl like me. Culture shock is fascinating isn't it?
I think I know that Chicago family Robin is talking about! I experience this same "yelling" thing when I go to San Francisco. It doesn't seem to mean the same thing or be taken the same way that it would here. Maybe it's a big city thing. L.A. is big, but it's really just a huge bunch of linked up suburbs.
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