This week in my sociology class we were comparing lifestyles in different states. My professor told me that during her time in Chicago, she noticed that “time” moved differently. People were much calmer and less stressed out. Rent in Atlanta, (when she also lived in Atlanta) was cheaper and priorities were different. This led me to make a connection to Chronemics, (http://www.basicknowledge101.com/pdf/km/Chronemics.pdf). Time flies by much differently in other states than in New York because New York culture has taught us to always be in a rush. We run under a constant Polychronic time, where we do many things at once. We have to go to school, work, and follow our dreams. We have to keep ourselves busy and work extremely hard just to make a living. The streets are crowded as well as the MTA system. Pace is fast. In Chicago or Atlanta, the subway system is not as complex and most of the time people are in cars. The level of intimacy between you and the passenger in the method of transportation in Chicago makes you become more “friendly.” Simple gestures such as nodding your head to say hi, or smiling to a stranger is common over there. In New York however, since all of our streets are crowded, we learned to keep our heads down and not say anything. To remain expressionless and to ourselves.
