I was in this thread before, and it inspired me to tell my tale... but I didn't want to hijack the thread.
http://www.318ti.org/forum/showthread.php?t=10553 Friend or Foe?
I come from a town in New Jersey called Wallington, commonly referred to as "Poland on the Passaic." Nearly HALF of the town's population is half polish, and 25% are immigrants. Stereotypically, Polish people have staring problems. I completely agree with that stereotype.
So I'm half Polish, but I'm not accepted in my town because I don't speak the language, I eat steak instead of stuffed cabbage, and I don't like to rudely stare at people.
The largest concentration of "starers" is at the local park, which is quite large in comparison to my town. They all sit on the curb, with their cars blasting Polish Rap Music (HILARIOUS), smoke their cigarettes, and they grill every car that passes by. If it's someone that's old or not of interest to them, they'll simply stare them down. If it's someone like me that makes a scene just to be an ass, or stares back at them... they'll actually turn their WHOLE BODIES around to stare at you as you pass by. It's really really un-nerving at first, since it really portrays hostility to the maximum, and I've had outsider friends complain to me about it, but I think it's one of the funniest things in the world.
Ok, so now that the background has been established and you'll all know what I'm talking about...
When I had my old car, my Hyundai Accent, I would drive by blasting something either cool to me, or really stupid just to piss them off and disrupt their conversations. One time, I was with a friend, and I took out my air filter just to rip by the park in that Hyundai Accent sounding like a really loud go-kart. Needless to say, they didn't like me. I occasionally heard obscenities being thrown at me from the curb. I laughed.
When I got my 318ti a year and a half ago, on a nice, rather mild day, I decided to drive by the park. This time, I didn't blast music, I didn't revv my engine, I didn't speed... I just drove by as anyone normally would.
As I passed, I got looks that you could PHYSICALLY feel from a mile away. Their eyes were CHOKING me. Or trying to. I actually had them all "booing" and cursing at me in polish. (a polish boo is the same as an american boo, just so you know... lol) They were just jealous.
All these kids/people have souped up Civics, Eclipses, Lancers, and CRXs and junk. Sure, they may be faster than my ti, but they look like pieces of colorful ridiculous piles of puke.
Since the park is on my direct path from home to work, and work to home, I drive past it every single day. They aren't always out there, but sometimes they are. I really don't know their patterns... except for the fact that they always come out on a day like today that's beautiful after a rainstorm. As I pass by, their girlfriends/groupies, who are very hot I must say, always stare with them, as expected. I decided to wave to them, and they waved back. Sure, the guys were pissed, but I was all happy.
This went on for about a year. A month or so ago, I was victim of a hit and run that left a big unsightly dent on my rear passenger side fender. It happened in the rain, after a snowstorm. Nothing huge, just cosmetic. The next day, it was beautiful outside, and I was still bummed from the accident, so I didn't get a car wash, in fact I didn't even remember that all of the polocks would be sitting at the park, as I was about to pass by. When they all stared me down, they saw the dent on my car, and it seemed as though they were almost sad. Even though it seemed as though they hated me with a passion, their eyebrows lifted, their jaws dropped, and the girls' hands went over their mouths, as if they were stunned by my beautiful car being marred.
The next day, I passed by and a few of them came up to my window and asked what had happened in broken english. I said some SUV came, hit me, and took off. They asked what it looked like, etc. Then they started asking about my car. Is the engine stock, what kind of exhaust do I have, what's my gear ratio, etc. One kid offered me 6,000 for the car on the spot, but I didn't sell it since I love it to death, and I kinda need a car to get from place to place.
Ever since then, they still stare at me, but not with malice...
It's almost like taking a safari through the African Bush, and having animals stare at you. Friend or foe? You really can't tell until point blank confrontation.
----I just felt like writing a story today guys, enjoy. But it was a true story.