It's Funny Cause It's True

Last week GQ announced that of 38 ranked US cities, Boston came out on top as the Worst-Dressed Place in America.  Which of course got a lot of cranky Bostonians mad.  My favorite part about the article is calling out the women of the area, reminding them that leggings aren't pants.  I think I've heard that before.  Is someone at GQ reading my blog?  Probably not.  It's just the prominence of leggings that's the problem.

Full story here, but this is the bit about Boston, from MSN Lifestyle/GQ, complete with photo of Boston frat boys who won't know why them being exciting about being #1 is funny:

1. Boston

Boston is like America's Bad-Taste Storm Sewer: all the worst fashion ideas from across the country flow there, stagnate, and putrefy. To be fair, it's hard to be a fashion capital when half of your population is made up of undergraduate hoodie monsters, including those unfortunate coeds who don't realize that leggings-as-pants were supposed to be paired with tops large enough to conceal their cameltoes. Yet when they graduate, they can wear their Uggs and still fit in at the country's largest frat party on Lansdowne behind Fenway, where they can take breaks between body shots to admire just how long boot-cut jeans can stay in style in one place. And any classy lady from Beantown is bound to be impressed by formal sportswear. "But Boston is the epicenter of prep style!," you say? That's true, but it's with a little extra that ends up ruining everything: Khakis!—with pleats. Boat shoes!—with socks. Knit ties!—actually, no one in Boston seems to have ever seen one of these. For the more proletarian-minded, there are the modest little burgs of Cambridge and Somerville, where everyone dresses like the proprietor of his or her very own meth lab. If you wonder how a people can live like this, well, it's Jurassic Park for fashion troglodytes: life finds a way.—John B. Thompson

Displaced, Part 1

Because I have a feeling there will be more on this topic...

There's this thing about being from Pittsburgh that makes you really proud of where you're from and really annoys other people when you infiltrate their perimeter. I'm not sure why it is, but most of the people I know who are born and raised in Pittsburgh, tend to be more nostalgic about where they are from and are either happy to stay where they have roots or very eager to get back. Not everyone, mind you, but many. And maybe that depends on where else you go and the demeanor of most people in your new town.

I'm not exactly thrilled to be living in Massachusetts. The weather is fickle and the winter's general stink (ok, so this year when dodged snowmageddon, but you just wait, I'll probably be reporting ice and snow in April). My family is pretty far away--serious planning is necessary to visit, rather than deciding on a Friday evening that I was going to see my parents that weekend when I lived in Central PA. But the worst part for me is that by and large, the people up here suck.

Ok, I'll admit, there are exceptions (and that is why I am friends with you), but generally speaking they suck. For reals. Now, it's definitely worse in Boston (where I work) than in Central Mass (where I live), but it really bothers me that people have such a disregard for other people around here. There is very much a "me-first" and mind over matter attitude (as in, I don't mind and you don't matter) with many people in this area. For example, today I was walking to work and a woman who had been behind me sped up, was walking next to me, and then passed me. So, you want to walk in front of me. Ok, no bigs. But then she cut in front of me and slowed down so that I tripped on her heels. Really? You are walking on a wide sidewalk. Is it really necessary to walk like you drive? And there was no apparent reason for it either. I hadn't passed her earlier and cut her off. No one was suddenly coming towards us and would have knocked her down had she not moved in front of me. She just wanted to be first. ??? WTH is wrong with people? And this is pretty typical behavior on a walk to work.

I work in a department with quite a few imports from all over the country. One of my close friends and coworkers is also from a Mid-Atlantic state and has commented on the same thing--that people in and around Boston are nothing like the people where we grew up. We both grew up saying hi to someone you passed on the sidewalk, even if you didn't know them. It might sound a little Mr. Roger's Neighborhood, but did the majority of Bostonians grow up without manners? It's not all about you, people!

Maybe it's because it's been raining for 2 days and yesterday we lost power before I left for work. Or maybe it's because some jerk woke me up on the train this morning and I have on my crankypants. But more likely, people in this area of the country are just asshats. Regardless, Boston, this one's for you:

(PS: Yes, I am disappointed at not being able to find an appropriate LOLcat. Thank you for noticing. And for that, I shall reward you):

(PPS: Yes, I know it's not a cat. So what? Please see yesterday's post regarding who does the judging. That also applied to who makes the rules around here.)