A phrase we hear a lot up here, "We will swing around to see you," is shorthand for 'we will come over whenever we get to it and when we want.' We hear this phrase uttered by friends, professionals, service personnel - and we find it a little maddening! We call up to get a repair for our hot water heater (which is new, but has taken a fit) and we explain to the manager/scheduler/wife that we need the plumber to come by at certain times so he can review the situation with my husband, who works evenings. So we get a phone call, after my husband has gone to work, that the plumber was going to swing by to assess the situation - now/today! So we call the manager/scheduler/wife, since we cannot call the plumber directly (cell phone service out here is another story) about the importance of seeing this guy at a certain time frames. "He is very busy," she says " putting in new tubs in condos, etc." That is very good and speaks highly of his abilities, but just 'swing around' anytime!
It is the culture up here, more relaxed and laid back. We got used to service people giving time frames in NJ, albeit very broad time frames, which they did not always adhere to. And it explains so much - why some places are open when they want, why you cannot reach individuals, why we have a veterinarian who comes to your house ('swings around') instead of you bringing the animal in. We have been late for appointments, not often, but a few times, and nobody gets upset. Worried, but not upset. In NJ, I was late for a Doctor appointment due to traffic and my Doctor was enraged! She lectured me about how it messed up her whole appointment schedule and never asked if I was okay. I apologized profusely, reminded her of how I have waited for her, but she was still incensed.
Our previous repair guy, a young man who has recently passed away, was always punctual, or I should say, always early! If he said 8 am, he was here at 7:30 - so he caught us in our night clothes more than once! He was from NY and had moved to escape as well. He had seen the 9/11 attacks from a roof in NYC, and that event and vision wore on him. His work was a personal mission, so everything had to be perfect - he would be heartbroken to know our water heater is acting up, since he installed it. But he often remarked about how people never kept appointments up here, or just showed up. We thought it was funny - now we understand.
Some of this 'swing around' stuff is charming. Our power/telephone pole is next to our garage, 400+ feet from the road, and I never thought about it until I looked out and saw a man climbing up the side of that pole early one morning. Of course, it belongs to the power company and they have every right to examine it, but I was getting dressed at the time! We are so far out, I do not have curtains in all the windows, especially if all they face is the woods, which is the side of the house where the pole is! After getting dressed and talking to the gentleman, I am pleased that they only certify the pole every five years. So he will not be swinging around for awhile.
And yes, some of our friends 'swing around' - we don't mind that. One of our friends yells at the house when he drives up "Are you dressed yet?" Charming...
Showing posts with label NYC. Show all posts
Showing posts with label NYC. Show all posts
Monday, February 2, 2009
Sunday, October 5, 2008
Crime is Relative
It is inherently peaceful in the Poconos, at least our part in the northern tier, but we are seeing an increase in crime in the more tourist-oriented areas. Still, the amount of crime is relative, based on the reporting we see and hear on the local news. In the "If it bleeds, It leads" journalism, murders and fires lead the newscasts. However, in comparison the sheer number of reports, we still are feeling pretty safe.
Our local cable allows us access to the New York, New Jersey and Philadelphia broadcasts; and we still watch those in order to maintain our perspective. Which leads me to a recent couple of crimes lately that hit too close to home. There was a murder in one of the towns on the other side of the lake and the murderer has not been found yet. And there was the child pornography ring that was found working out of our town. This says to me that there are many places to hide up here and we live out in those woods!
Being a large place with a relatively small full-time population, differences are noted immediately. After all, not to make a characterisation, but there is a large contingent of hunters up here; in other words, people who make it a point to notice the things around them. I believe that is why the fugitives who try to 'hide' up here in plain sight tend to be noticed and reported, such as the terrorists who were in training up here to attack Ft Dix in NJ. However, a source of concern is the increase in gang activity. The gang graffiti symbols are prevalent in the areas young people congregate, marking territory. It scares me that kids still think it is a cool thing - to be in a gang - when their parents moved to the Poconos to get their kids away from the violence. Pity.
So do we feel safe? Relatively, as we still have our defences up from all the years we spend in the metropolitan area. We still lock our doors whenever we walk outside, still look immediately whenever one of our motion-sensor lights go on (just the fact that we felt we needed to add those on the house is a clue to our mentality), still eyeball the parking lot when we bring our purchases to the car. We still behave defensively, but it is getting relaxed and we are becoming more open. I still want to hold on to some of the defensiveness, but I feel safe leaving stuff outside that would have gotten lifted where we lived in NJ.
Our local cable allows us access to the New York, New Jersey and Philadelphia broadcasts; and we still watch those in order to maintain our perspective. Which leads me to a recent couple of crimes lately that hit too close to home. There was a murder in one of the towns on the other side of the lake and the murderer has not been found yet. And there was the child pornography ring that was found working out of our town. This says to me that there are many places to hide up here and we live out in those woods!
Being a large place with a relatively small full-time population, differences are noted immediately. After all, not to make a characterisation, but there is a large contingent of hunters up here; in other words, people who make it a point to notice the things around them. I believe that is why the fugitives who try to 'hide' up here in plain sight tend to be noticed and reported, such as the terrorists who were in training up here to attack Ft Dix in NJ. However, a source of concern is the increase in gang activity. The gang graffiti symbols are prevalent in the areas young people congregate, marking territory. It scares me that kids still think it is a cool thing - to be in a gang - when their parents moved to the Poconos to get their kids away from the violence. Pity.
So do we feel safe? Relatively, as we still have our defences up from all the years we spend in the metropolitan area. We still lock our doors whenever we walk outside, still look immediately whenever one of our motion-sensor lights go on (just the fact that we felt we needed to add those on the house is a clue to our mentality), still eyeball the parking lot when we bring our purchases to the car. We still behave defensively, but it is getting relaxed and we are becoming more open. I still want to hold on to some of the defensiveness, but I feel safe leaving stuff outside that would have gotten lifted where we lived in NJ.
Saturday, July 5, 2008
Holidays
Living with someone who works in the 'service industry' often means that you do not get to celebrate holidays with that person, as those are the days when employees are needed most at work. This means holidays like Independence Day, Memorial Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving, New Years, etc. have to celebrated on alternate days. That is okay, as we are not big on the 'big day' celebrations and the togetherness can be celebrated on another day - besides, most of the stuff you need for commemorating a holiday go on sale the day after!
This year something different occurred. Somehow my husband had the 4th of July evening off - the planets must have misaligned or something. We did not know what to do, so we thought we could go out to dinner. You would think people who work in restaurants would figure out that you need a reservation! Okay, so we'll get some 'to - go' food and picnic out by Lake Wallenpaupack and watch the fireworks.
A note here - I have not gone to see fireworks since I was a kid at the Jersey Shore, so I forgot how crowded the area gets prior to the display. These crowds were professionals! They must have been camped out at the lake all day! And park - where? People were parking practically on the road, not next to the road. Then my husband and I remembered why we never go out on the holiday, besides having to work. The crowds and the yelling and the general mayhem is very stress inducing. We looked at each other and I said that there are the fireworks from DC and NYC and Boston being broadcast this evening and he said, lovingly, "get the heck out of here!"
On a positive note, in spite of the gas prices and the food prices and the economy, the fact that there were crowds at the lake was good to see. Maybe the advertising to the NYC market about the Poconos being close by has worked. At least some of the local businesses should be happy.
We enjoyed our meal at home, set off some sparklers, and watched fireworks on TV. Togetherness...
This year something different occurred. Somehow my husband had the 4th of July evening off - the planets must have misaligned or something. We did not know what to do, so we thought we could go out to dinner. You would think people who work in restaurants would figure out that you need a reservation! Okay, so we'll get some 'to - go' food and picnic out by Lake Wallenpaupack and watch the fireworks.
A note here - I have not gone to see fireworks since I was a kid at the Jersey Shore, so I forgot how crowded the area gets prior to the display. These crowds were professionals! They must have been camped out at the lake all day! And park - where? People were parking practically on the road, not next to the road. Then my husband and I remembered why we never go out on the holiday, besides having to work. The crowds and the yelling and the general mayhem is very stress inducing. We looked at each other and I said that there are the fireworks from DC and NYC and Boston being broadcast this evening and he said, lovingly, "get the heck out of here!"
On a positive note, in spite of the gas prices and the food prices and the economy, the fact that there were crowds at the lake was good to see. Maybe the advertising to the NYC market about the Poconos being close by has worked. At least some of the local businesses should be happy.
We enjoyed our meal at home, set off some sparklers, and watched fireworks on TV. Togetherness...
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