[Donna2]

I'm with Boomer on this one. I bet the squatters are lousy tippers too. Rude is rude is rude.

[Boomer]

Originally Posted by quill

As much as I wnted to let this go I just could not. Boomer your quote

"People waiting in those lines are not considered in the least by those squatters. But also, they never even remotely consider the server who is trying to make a living while a bunch of clueless, rude, self-important weenies sit around at the table long after they are finished and keep that table from turning."

After having lived in Europe for over 15 years of my life I find the American attitude to eating out extremely strange. In Europe if you have a table it is yours for the evening, there is no expectation from the restaurant or server that you will be leaving any time soon. And in fact one of the biggest complaints I used to hear from Americans was that they could not get served and service was slow. After living this for a while I cherished getting together and going out to dinner and talking and having a nice multi course meal. Instead of having my food thrown at me and having the check put on the table before I was done with my food. And we did tip on top of the fact that the tip is built into the bill over there. We have found the easy way to avoid waiting is to eat when the crowd is not. Been in restaurants in Sumpter when 7PM rolled around and we were the only ones there. Big difference and it is difficult to understand unless you have actually lived it, is that Europeans like to live life on another plane of existence. They seem to enjoy life more than we do. We run around with our hair on fire. I do not consider myself self important, clueless or rude. When I eat out with friends, I do it to enjoy their company and the meal. And again I tip well.

Hi quill,

I love to have dinner like that. I am sure you are not clueless or rude. You are talking about a completely different attitude all around. And I bet you know when and where to find that kind of dining. And I guess in TV during the busy season, when becomes the operative word in that one.(But the fact remains that the stuff I got into my little snit over happens all the time.)

You are so right about the European way of dining. Many years ago, I was crossing from England to NY on the QEII and in the cabin was a little booklet that gave Europeans a heads-up about our habits here. I remember reading it aloud and rolling on the floor laughing. I may still have that booklet stashed away somewhere. But I vaguely remember a line that said something about how we dash around from appointment to appointment, snatching hamburgers from stalls to wolf down on the run -- or some such wording. I loved it. And I knew it was true sometimes. But not of everybody and not all the time. It was a stereotyping, but still fun to read. .

I really do understand what you are saying here. And I agree that dining like that is lovely. That is not the kind of situation that I meant when I got started on the squatters. I like to look at things from different perspectives. Thank you for sharing your thoughts here.

And I knew when I was reading your post that you are a good tipper. I could just tell, even before I read the last sentence. So....Happy Dining!

Boomer

[Barefoot]

Originally Posted by SwampCreature

My complaint on rushing is when there is no need for it, or nothing that could reasonably be done about it.

Sometimes chilling out is the best alternative.

[otherbruddaDarrell]

Ok...........rude is rude and fast is fast........which part of the country are most of these types coming from I wonder...............

[islandgal]

quill - this article (published in 1998) confirms your post. I miss the leisurely dining out I remember in my
youth - still didn't compare to European, but it was much more enjoyable without the rush there is today.

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/m...g=content;col1

[Talk Host]

I've spent lots of time in East and West Europe. Dining out in Europe is a pleasure. Many many times in Russia, our restaurant dinners started at 7 p.m. and ended at 11 p.m. (best as I can remember, that is)

I have never seen anyone jam their brakes on in a traffic circle and wave a pedestrian across while saying, "go ahead, I'm in no hurry, I'm European."

[l2ridehd]

In Europe, the wait staff is paid a salary and do not require tips to make a living. So they don't care about table turn rate. When you go out you do get the table for the evening. Tipping in Europe, especially by the locals, is smaller then the US, usually 5% to 10% or less. Here when you tie up a table so you can dine in leisure, you are impacting the staffs income. So if you do chose to take 3 to 4 hours to dine, please make sure you tip an extra amount to compensate the lost income. Probably 30% or more.

[GatbTester]

Who among us has not seen impatient drivers on Buena Vista and Morse Blvds? More than we care to remember I am sure. The sheer safety issues are staggering. Is it a question of the need for speed or excitement? What possible excitement can one achieve by passing one of us at 50MPH in a posted 35MPH zone, and then have to brake down quickly for a round a bout? I think it reflects upon the individuals who do not give a tinkers damn of anyone else around them, they are the same selfish older people they were twenty five years ago or more.

In my humble opinion, as stated before, it has a lot to do with CLASS and how one interacts here in TV and from what I have seen there are a large number of classless individuals living here.

[spk7951]

Originally Posted by GatbTester

In my humble opinion, as stated before, it has a lot to do with CLASS and how one interacts here in TV and from what I have seen there are a large number of classless individuals living here.

I would respectfully disagree with you on this point. While I do agree that the issue has a lot to do with class and consideration for others, I think you are making an assumption that every poor driver lives in TV. That is not necessarily true. Probably a fair number of them do live here but there are a lot of visitors along with workers of various TV establishments driving in TV. My point is that I have seen drivers of all ages being inconsiderate while driving in TV and I doubt all of them live here.

[Sally Jo]

Boomer, I agree 100%. Quill I've lived in Europe, also. It is completely different. As stated before you are expected to spend the evening. I know we seemed strange to people, because we ate and left.
One thing that really bugs me is going to a show at the Savannah Center. I think it is rude that people can't wait until the show is over to leave. People start filing out the second the last song is started. In my opinion this is disrespectful to the entertainers.

[quill]

Boomer Thanks for your words. As you are one of the senior members, I was not trying to start anything. The rest for this post is just to say I have tried to take a different view since coming down here. I ran the fast pace a lot of my life not because of wanting rather because that was the pace of my job and environment. Down here it changed and my blood pressure has dropped. I refuse to let anyone dictate to me the pace of my life and I can do nothing to change someone that does not know how to slow down or better yet act with civility. I will not wait in line for a restaurant no matter how good it is. There are so many around here I feel no need to wait. I have taken to just pulling over if someone is tail gating me, etc etc. I am working on my other half that likes to drive the speed limit and then some. With all the Sheriffs around and the number of tickets that they seem to be giving around the Villages it is just not worth it. Goes back to the Serenity prayer about giving me the ability to accept the things I can not change. And there are lots of things I can not change and not worth worrying about. And finally I must compliment this forum. We got our lot January 09 and moved in last fall. This place has been a wealth of info and very helpful in our transition to Florida.

[jojo]

My mother is an example of someone who is retired but is not slow. She jumps out of the car before I even get it parked. She dashes through the supermarket at break neck speed - sometimes almost running her cart into other people. She is 97. (Don't tell I told)

[GatbTester]

I would respectfully disagree with you as well SPK, and agree that quite a bit of the speeding involves people who work in TV, or sub contract their work here. Who has not seen a work vehicle speeding at one time or another, and I can vouch for some even being pulled over to the curb by the police. For the most part, outside of the roads most villagers are courteous, concerned, and helpful. That being said it only takes a few bad apples to change an opinion. I believe over all being more than civil is the rule here, but there are always exceptions. Would you not agree?

[NJblue]

For the most part, I'm not all that concerned about people driving faster than the speed limit. If I'm driving the speed limit on a 4-lane road like Morse or BV and someone passes me, it doesn't concern me at all. I figure that that's why they have multiple lanes. I don't think it necessarily leads to unsafe conditions (unless the person is also driving recklessly).

As far as being "retired" and therefore no longer being in need to rush, I don't think one's work status has really much to do with it. Other than going to and from work which no longer needs to be done, not much is different from a driving perspective (or anyhing else) whether one is retired or not. If you are running late for a tee time, movie or dinner reservation, your work status is not going to change that.

[Talk Host]

Did somebody set me up for this??????????????

I was in Radio Shack this morning at 11 a.m. to purchase a pack of rechargeable batteries. There were two clerks and each was setting up cell phone service for separate customers.

At 11:18, I was still standing behind those customers. I said to the clerk, do you have any idea how much longer this is going to take? (That's 18 minutes standing behind two other customers) One of the ladies turned around to me and said, "What's your big rush, we're retired, we don't have any schedule."


ARRGGGGGGHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!: