Life in Slow Motion

My rant:

Why does everything in this town have to take three times as long as it does anywhere else in the world? Why does every local here think it’s ok to talk to the cashier/pharmacist/bank teller for 20 minutes, when there is a line a mile long, and you are trying to get back to the apartment before your son needs to be fed? Why is every car on the road occupied by a Sunday Driver?

There are days during which I strongly dislike living in such a small town. Everyone knows each other. They all talk to each other in their slow southern drawls about the most mundane subject matter, during the most inappropriate times, such as in line at the post office, in line at the grocery store, in line at the pharmacy. Are you noticing a theme?

I went out this morning while the little tambourine was playing with Mr. Tambourine, and what should have only taken about 30 minutes ended up taking an hour longer. Unbelievable. By the fourth line I was very close to saying something, although, I didn’t, because I do not like conflict.

I think one thing that bothers me so much about the whole situation is that all the locals expect the same conversational behavior from me. They expect me to chat up the cashiers while checking out. There have been times when I’ve been sucked into their warped little world, but today was just not one of those days. I could feel the eyes in the back of my skull as I made my way out of the grocery store/post office/pharmacy/bank, and their judgmental thoughts rang quite loudly: She thinks she’s too good to talk to us.

Well, NO, not on a regular basis, I don’t think I’m too good to talk to you. However, if I did think that it certainly would not be too far from the truth. The only people of intelligence who live in this town are the law students. All the smart people leave town after they graduate from highschool, and never look back. What’s left is a population of barely highschool graduates who have no concept of the outside world. They all live in this closed off community, choosing not to leave or experience anything outside of the town limits.

I’d like to think that I’m an open minded person, but on days like today, when I feel like I’m being judged because I’m an “outsider”, I look at these people and I want nothing more than to tell them how truly ignorant and close minded they truly are.

But that’s just me.