Always in a Hurry

I have heard numerous times, and have in fact noticed it when I have visited, that NYCers always seem to be in a hurry.  Everyone is always walking so fast.  You can easily spot a tourist when you see someone walking and looking at the sky (as they are looking at all of the tall buildings).  Tonight when I was walking home from work, I was trying to get past this couple who was leisurely walking down the street.  I said excuse me, and they let me pass.  They also commented to me that "they weren't from here."  I quickly clarified that I was not from here either, but had lived here for 7 months and that it is easy to get into the fast walking mode.

As I was thinking about that encounter on the subway on my way home, I have concluded that walking fast here is the same as driving fast in cities where you have a car.  If I am running late to work in the morning, how quickly I get to work is partly dependent on how fast I walk (as well as how long the train takes to come at the subway station).  In Arizona, if I am running late, I tend to be in a hurry on the freeway.  When I leave work at night, I just want to get home, and again, that is dependent on how fast I walk.  It just comes natural then to be in that fast walking mode even if you are not in a hurry to get anywhere.

If you have a trip planned to come visit me, you better keep up :)