Having been to NYC twice, with the 3rd trip 5 months away, and working towards moving there in April........the NY attitude & state of mind is simple.

New Yorkers do NOT let ANYTHING defeat them, get in their way, or bring them down. They're attitude is do it, do it now, whether you win or lose....
If you lose, do it until you win, which really means until you succeed.
This must be something thats worthwhile (or fun), nothing with bad intentions of course.

It's the lead, follow, or just get out of the way attitude.
If you got something to say, say it, get to the point, don't ramble, etc.

The rest of the world, especially southeners take this as being rude or cocky.
NY'ers just get to the point in a sentence of 2, instead of a paragraph.
Southeners take up to a half mile (or more) just to get up to the speed limit.
NY'ers get up to and beyond the speed limit before they hit the next light (if pedestrians allow it without running them over).

It's the NY pace......get it, catch it, do it..........It's NYC.....!!


Now........who loves NY ?!?!?!

Jeff
jeffreysmith@triad.rr.com

heyy im 17 born and raised in nyc mostly brooklyn and staten island . you know i never really cared or realized how us new yorkers are so much alike until a few months ago i left to arizona to live and i ended up coming back last week because i couldnt take it and i missed home so much . i mean when i was out there i felt so lost so alone so out of my comfort zone and i never felt like that before in my life .i mean im not the kind of person your use to you know im from the streets put here i kno what its all about and its honestly not a joke . you see when people think of new york they think of the pretty skyline the statue of liberty and lights cars buildings the people . but thats not what its about at all thats what the media hypes it up to be its alot more than that its about the struggle the hope and dedication to make it someday somewhere its the hurt and pain seing someone you love suffer and theirs nuthing you can do about it or maybe its seing things you never wanna see or hear about but you do anyways you see the thing that makes us new yorkers attitude so diffrent is because were alreddi from here so theres push you know no real american dream our dream is either to get out of ny and go somewhere else make alot of money there or be a gangbanger and rep it honestly thats the 3 choices you have as a ambition to strive for not i wanna be a model actress singer not at all and if you do its harder than if you were from somewhere else i love our attitude though lol we have so much swag we just walk around like we own everything but we know we dont honestly we just dont care what you think your mom thinks nobody can bring us down but then again nobody would try cuz we aint ever goin down without a fight lol . we get our touphness from our past though 90% of new yorkers have had a touph life the hurt and the pain is 10 times worst because it never ends u start to get numb after a while and dont let it phase you you get the mentality of lifee sucks but theres nuthing you can do about it which may come off like were mean but were relli not were just a bunch of hurt souls wandering around searching for new ways to let that anger out but it dosent cuz something else always makes it worst .but then on other hand we could be the nicest people you could ever meet because were very social and understanding your goin through yours im going through mind so not alot of judgment going on . were very loving and family orientated family and close friends come first and you would die for them honestly. were very trustworthy deny till we die is the moto lol. but the most amazing part of the city is the feeling you get when you see it wow man it relli could change a mood i see it at least 10 times a week and i could never get sick of it driving wit my friends listening to music not alot of people throughout the world has ever herd cuz they wouldnt be able to feel it like we do we roll down the windows take a deep breath a smile cuz were so blessed to live where we live . even though its rouph theres nuthing like it walking on the bordwalk just watchin the skyline wit your friends theres always that silence where u kno everyones just thinkin and taking in that deep breath like wow this is my home my life right here all i know is that us new yorkers have pried respect and love in our hearts and im telling you now everyone just go there enjoy it its amazing the best place in the world . ilny

i remember i went to Atlanta 1nce, madd ppl kept pointing out saying i talked funny as like i was touqh or what not..smh..im not tough but ive been through shit since i can remember..i do think im the shit and its cuz new yorkers we have a boss mentality "no1 is above me"...born and raised here, Wash Heightz all day baby!! ^-^..new york is not only Times square and wall St..its much more then you can even imaqine.. we struqqle and fight hard to overcome anything that tries to keep us from obtaining our qoal,,we think fast on our feet and we hustle to it..its not all Pretty lights and luxury, that's media bullshit..anyways wateva all i qotta say is love the new york attitude, its like no otha and jea im cocky with it cuz its what we're known for and im damn proud of who we are..and for the ppl from Atl who kept buqqin me, i know you diqq the way i "TAWK" Lmfaooo...i love My city..New york to me is simply the best and i wouldnt trade it for The universe..I love NYC <3

The New York attitude is something that cannot be taught or acquired at a later age in life. You get it when you're young. It's growing up in Queens and constantly hearing the roar of trucks, squeaky brakes, car horns, planes flying just a few thousand feet over your head that makes you feel at home and puts you to sleep at night. You get a New York attitude from growing up in such an ethnic neighborhood. New York is a melting pot, yet no other place in the country has neighborhoods that are so defined by one ethnicity. You don't want any other ethnicity moving into your neighborhood yet you have no problem with somebody else when you meet them at a club or bar. It's understood deep down that although you're both being friendly right now at the end of the night you have to head your separate ways so you can go back to what you consider a comfortable zone. It also comes from the rest of the country outside of the New York metropolitian area. People from other areas of this country are simply awestruck when they come to this city, yet they hate the people, their look, their attitude, and all the fine lines inbetween that make a person who they are. Although they love coming to visit they realize they wouldn't make able to make it here if they were to move here now. The thing that makes New York a great melting pot is the food from all over the world. Nowhere in this country will you get better pizza from an Italian, better bagels or pastrami from a Jew, better souvlaki from a Greek and so on. The New York attitude is thinking quick on your feet. Quicker then anywhere else. You make the same decisions everybody else makes only the make them twenty times more a day and do them five times quicker. When you bump into somebody on the street you don't say excuse me, you don't have the time. You're not being rude you simply have too much to do and accomplish in that day and that's understood between the two of you because he's probably having the same problem. Anywhere else in the country this would be looked and as an extremely rude and cocky gesture, in New York, it's life. The New York attitude comes from growing up and living in one of the greatest cities on earth. Everything from your road rage to your accent is from growing up and doing things quicker, faster, and more decisive then other places. Be proud of it it's who you are and what the place you call home made you.

I was raised in NY and NY will always be home..I am in virginia and it's so hard getting used to this over here...I have the NY mentality, I walk faster than others,I drive faster than others, I talk loud as if I dont care what others think of me, if you would stare at me, I would stare at you back until you change your face or even I would say hi to them so see why are they starin.....i go into the stores to buy stuff not to have a 5-10 min conversation with people...why is it that everybody wants to talk a lot ? i gotta get things done, i dont have time for conversations...loud music is normal for me, sirens and honking..heck, even talkin on the phone loud so that the whole room can hear me is normal...after all, im from new yawk and if you dont like it, get out of the way...............

limousines, expensive cars is a normal thing to see...seeing tall buildings is an everyday thing...hearing shots, people getting arrested happens often....as long as you mind your own business you are fine...after all, this is ny and wherever you go, you know that you are superior to everybody else...heck...nyc is the biggest city in the u.s. population wise...a lot of movies, tv shows are created in ny so why not be proud?

ugh i just had to let that out ...sorry guys! ive been in virginia for over a year and its not the same..i miss ny!

In few words: New Yorkers miss the hole point. they rude and new york sucks !

New York attitude is percieved at rude by everyone not from New York. Funny! Whether youre from Manhattan, Long Island, The Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens, or Staten Island, it doesnt matter. You have the New York attitude (with the exception of some people in Manhattan and some people on LI).

First of all, we dont care about anyone else. Our idea is screw them.
Example: Someone asks to borrow your cell phone to make a phone call
NYer answer: No! Get the f**k out here!
Out of State Answer: Sure! Is everything ok? Is there something I can do to help?

We dont speak weird, everyone else does!
Talk=tawk
Because=becawse
Coffee=cawfee and certainly not cahfee
Manhattan=the city
Sauce=sawce and never sahce
aunt=ant not ont

and so many more....

How about when people are handing out flyers or trying to sell you stuff?
A NYer walks right past them, completely ignores them, pretends they never heard them. Anyone from out of state has to stop and say, No thank you. hahahaha

Out of state people think its rude for you to ignore them, we think its rude for them to try and talk to us. We think, "Who the hell are you? Mind you own business! Leave me alone!" Thats what I love. We dont care if we're talking too loud or if the sign says dont cross or if someone is getting out of a cab. We hate double parkers but do it ourselves and say screw everyone else while doing it.

Theres no where else like NY. As much as you may hate taxes, tourists, and traffic on the LIE, BQE, or basically everywhere that you drive, its still great. Its just a distinct attitude we have that makes us stronger/tougher.

The fast paced life can be stressful but great at the same time. Although we always say theres nothing to do, there always is something to do. We live life by our own laws/rules. Live by the motto, time is money, want news for tomorrow yesterday, are always in a rush, and are some of the most impatient people around.

Couldnt live anywhere else! Love it! So much history and more to be made!

I'm looking to move to NYC for school and I ran into this thread - I'm cracking up over here! I love this shit. Certainly not cahfee. Hah!

Great thread. New York and NYC are great places and there are many great people. Being an ex new yorker and going to school in the south and now residing in the south west I really have to say that the fast and get to the point no time in a hurry rush hustle and bustle and seemingly cocky attitudes really do get in the way of some very fundamental experiences we can have as a human experience. Niceness and taking ones time is very appealing and it can give you warm great feelings of well being. As a native New Yorker who lived there for 33 years I only experienced this phenomenon a.k.a warm fuzzies when interacting with other people once while there. It was with a non native New Yorker. Today I get the warm fuzzies everyday, and I think most New Yorkers are probably missing out on the amazing feelings that niceness and genuineness can give rise to when one takes a true appreciation of another and takes the time to express and share in the pleasantries of unhurried exchanges. Being macho is a facade, and unfortunately that's what most of the "NY Attitude is", a big facade, and being guarded and aggressive too, and that robs one of the experience which I speak of. If you can, you should drop the macho and go live somewhere else out of the northeast for a couple of years. But you must be open to the new culture, drop the macho facade, and really want to find out if there are things you may be missing like I did. What you will discover out there will blow your mind. This is speaking to Native New Yorkers who have never left. And remember, I'm not putting down NY. I will always love NY for that time in my life when I lived there. Also, this of course is not for everyone, but I like palm trees, the sounds of the ocean and birds, and laying in a hammock more than I like the sounds of screeching tires, squeaky breaks, and planes right above my freakin head!

Be well.

there's nothing appealing about this city.. with it's overcrowded trains, noisy, impatient rude people.. there's no quality of life.. only hassling.. i love the country.. nice fresh air... great quality of life.. i can't stand the ghetto slangs... i grew up in a upper middle class luxurious lifestyle.. i hate the city...

I'm not a native of New York City but their attitude feels true to my soul. When I talk loud and just want to get things done here in Delaware I'm considered rude but I ain't being rude.

My mom is working in New York. Its a city of fast people according to her, if you want success you need to be fast, ambitious, and career driven. There's no time in slacking of. I remembered she bought my very first HP 15A from her first salary.

Hey there,
I was just wondering if anyone's had a similar experience to this.

I'm from Staten Island, lived there ~27 years, moved to Arizona, got married, then moved to Maryland and now live in upstate NY.

I have been going insane with all the culture shock.
Does anyone have exp. w/ living in upstate? I'm in Rochester and it seems like, (to me, at least) some of the people here seem really elitist and don't connect on a deep level - AT ALL. Maryland was the worst of them for me. The people would kind of get close to you, but they were super-focused on money. And they were yuppies. Volvos, Cape Cod houses, "naturey people"..

Arizona - The way it was described to me by someone who grew up there was, "It's a lot of small town mentality within a big city." And it seemed that way - the people were very very to themselves and wouldn't even talk to you.

Another thing that pisses me off so much is the "foot traffic." In NYC, we've got a great system of keeping to the right, keeping with a pace, not jumping in front of people and cutting them off. (because we know if we do, they're just going to run right into our asses - or better yet, punch us).. But people in all the places I've listed just CUT YOU OFF.. I mean, like you're walking.. you're in the store or ANYwhere at all... And they're all OVER the freaking place. They cut you right off.. you're just walking down the aisle, minding your own business.. and they approach from, say, your right side and walk right in front of you real quickly, even though you could bowl them over if you kept your pace. ERRRGH. It just kills me. B/c everyone does it and they do it repeatedly in one place.

Not to mention the slow pokes. Takin' their sweet time like they're in freaking Tennessee, sipping lemonade. Oh - and then the people who ride you're tail. And I'm not talking NYC ride your tail -like.. okay sucker get out of the way.. I'm talking literally 1 inch away from your butt.

I think nyc'ers (ny, ny) know not to come to close physically to people and it's perceived as an affront or an attack. That's what I'm thinkin.

Anyone experience the sense of segregation among groups and elitism that I am in Rochester???

New York is just New York, from the way we talk to the jokes we make.

New Yorkers are cruel. I am from Guyana and came to New York when i was 7, i moved when i was 12 to gay ass @#$%& florida -___- gay shit. then i loved to japan.... even more gay shit to be honest.

No where in the WORLD is new york. I am loud as hell and not because i try to be but just because i am. I am "rude" i dont think so, i think i tell you the truth and bitch i dont give a damn if you dont want to hear it, I guess that is a new york kind of attitutde.

My friends do dumb shit, i tell them, they say i sound like im their mother, i say oh well bitch, you doing shit, I will tell you. Nobody is going to shut me down, I will open my damn mouth when i @#$%& feel like, when the @#$%& i feel like, that is just me.

People say i make mean jokes, Nigga why you so soft? Like they cant handle jokes too soft.
Just the little things i never noticed and when i moved, i act a different way. I wne to tl florida and people want to say good morning to you, i ignore them, why the hell are you talkign to me? like i dont know your ass pedophile. thats just how new york is.

I love new york and i love who i am. I dont give a damn.

Anotnyernemore in Texas - you are obviously NOT from NYC - first off, New York and NYC are 2 separate animals. NYC has the attitude you call a facade - not New York. You must have missed experiencing this being where you were from. I grew up in queens and moved away in my 20s. I can not recall a buddy ever saying to me how their life wasn't complete because - warm and fuzzies.

I have been in California and Texas for over 20 years - most of that time my job had me traveling around most of the remaining states so I am familiar with many other cities. Almost everywhere I go, I feel like most of the people who posted here. I have a very thick NY accent so I have to work that much harder at not being unintentionally intimidating. Which I believe you interpret as a "macho facade" as opposed to what it really is, simply the way a NYCer accent sounds.

Where else can you barter like NYC?

I still have close connection to my NYC friends. These friends would lay their life down for me.

Where else in America do you find such diversity?

New Yorkers always joke that there is no racism; we all hate each other equally. But what other city can pull together during a tragedy as New York City has done? BTW: don't miss the point, we really do hate each other equally.

Great Food - Period.

Culture - and yes, growing up in NYC is a culture.

Most NY'ers can tell you every stone between the NY and AC. A lot can tell you every stone to Florida. Everything else is the mid-west and we have no f'ing idea.

I would rather a fast and honest environment then a slower environment all full of deception. I would rather people pointing out to my face that I screwed up, when I screwed up, rather than playing games and backstabbing.

Finally, I am curious, WTF in Texas, where I have now lived for over 9 years, are those Palm Trees - ocean - and bird sounds you refer to?

OMG!!! I am from Baltimore and I absolutely love NY. I am moving up there in another month or so because everytime I come up there I feel like its home. I think I might have been switched at birth because I definitely have the NY attitude.... just without the accent...lol!!

Coming into this city as a tourist from overseas I thought the city was rubbish. The people were rude, thought they were top shit.. Most of all walked around like they were tough and had their heads up their arses.. After a few days I worked out it was all bull shit and if you called them out on their "new yorker toughness" they just turn to water. One city I am happy to never return to. Much better places in the states to see..

I agree with you there. I've been in ATL for 3 years and I hate this place...I wake up everyday saying to myself "I wish I were back home in Brooklyn." The people in the south just don't get it and will never understand us. NY is second to no one...