Why Free Hellos?

Although I've lived on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC for 21 years, I still haven't gotten used to walking past another person, on an empty street, and have them act like I'm invisible. I understand that people can have a lot on their minds and be absorbed in thought. I also understand that some young people have to be cautious about interacting with strangers. But I find too many cases where I'm just confused by the way people act! By my general appearence - I have gray hair - I am classified as an "old man." When another "old man" passes me by and looks blindly ahead like a zombie, I can't easily make sense out of that!

The basis for my complaint about the level of interactions I experience from day to day is that it's dystopian. If you made a sci-fi movie about a future where people walk around like zombies and don't have any interactions, that future would be cold and sad. Yet, that's my day to day reality here in DC. I can't say if my experience is typical of other parts of DC or other cities, but I suspect that it is.

I have a friend from Texas who's told me that when she lived there in her youth if you walked past someone and they didn't say hello, you would tell others, "I saw "So-and-so." AND THEY DIDN'T SPEAK." The norm was that some interaction was necessary when you happened on others, even to the extent that they should not just nod or smile, but they should say something. I'm not expecting that much change here in DC, but given the level of gentrification in this and many neighborhoods, pleasantries between nice folks, and even those experiencing hard times, could lift the level of friendliness for us all!

Now you've heard about the background for this "Free Hellos DC" blog. In the next entry, you can learn about what practical parts the Free Hellos will involve and how you can comment and offer ideas for future efforts.