Mention "August People" to any islander and you will get at least the eye roll. There is definitely a difference between the visitors who arrive here earlier in the summer and the dreaded "August People". It's not just that our inconvenience threshold has been reached - no parking places, can't get to the groceries, the mail, the bank... The tourists who arrive for the last month of summer seem to have a frantic attitude: Out of my way, I'm on vacation! They drive too fast, cut in front of us in line, talk about the stupid islanders as if we weren't standing behind them in line. They'll tell you that they come to the island for the peace and quiet and then blast down Main Street with the bass so loud it vibrates the plate glass windows. They step off the curb in front of your car without even a glance - oops! This is not Disney World people, this is not a virtual car. They say they have come for the laid back, rural atmosphere and then they complain that they can't get everything they left home to get away from. "Can you believe the prices here?" Yup, we pay them year-round. You can cut the air of entitlement with a knife.
My friend who writes a gardening column in our weekly newspaper says that the cranky attitude has an anthropological basis. Back in the cave days, people knew that a long cold winter was fast approaching and they became anxious and irritated. That may explain the behavior of the August People. Me, I can't wait for September; see my earlier blog entry titled Our Secret Summer.
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How is Felipe?
ReplyDeleteI live in a tourist community too. We are counting the days until Labor Day when we get everything back.
ReplyDeleteIt is hard, because our area depends on the tourists, it is our main "industry"...however fall means that winter is not far behind, and sometimes our winter here lasts until May....so....
Jimmy Buffett has a song titled "When the Coast is Clear" that speaks to the feeling we all get when they go back home.
That being said...I would love to visit your island sometime. Friends of ours who lived there for many years told us to come in the off-season.
I think we will probably do just that, knowing what we know.
Hold on tight...it's almost over :)
While our situation isn't as extreme as yours, we get alot of weekenders. there are 2 lakes here in town & many people have 2nd homes here. And they stay thru leaf peeping season! September will be here soon!
ReplyDeleteDeGeo: Felipe starts at the Universidad on Wednesday!
ReplyDeleteSalome: September is the best time to come - but don't tell anyone...
Ann: 15,000 population in the winter, sometimes 150,000 (counting daytrippers) in the summer. How many August People does it take to screw in a lightbulb? Just one to hold it while the world revolves around him.