I usually react to a polite wave or “hiya” about 2-3 seconds late, so I guess I’m the unfriendly one. And unless I perceive a deliberate snub, I don’t think much about someone not responding to me.
On another point:
There are five different stores around me where I can pick up a whole cooked chicken for dinner. Only one of them offers a package with handles.
I only do it for gallons of milk no matter the time of year - they’re cold and the handles can be slippery…pails of ice cream (there’s no ice cream in the handle), vinegar, water, laundry detergent, etc., those I carry by the handle…
The bag thing also helps with spills. Any of those liquid items could leak and I’d rather it was in a bag than directly onto my car upholstery.
In fact, there’s a big funny looking mark on my car seat right now. A few days after I got my car, I was bringing home milk. When I got home I noticed it left a perfect milk crate design on the seat. I’m sure the milk crate it was in was dirty, it got on the bottom of the gallon and transferred to my seat. That was a few years ago and it’s still there. It doesn’t brush/wipe off and any time someone goes to sit in my car I get this stink eyed ‘what’s that on your seat’ look.
Just as a data point - I make it a point to studiously ignore any beeps or honks when I’m taking a walk. (This is much harder for me than it sounds because I have a startle reflex like you’d expect from a traumatized or PTSD soldier instead of a sheltered chick from the suburbs.) Anyway my ideal “response” is to not break stride or twitch a muscle in their direction.
YMMV but as a woman who’s bounced from house to house a lot, anyone honking at me ain’t a neighbor, and doesn’t have neighborly intentions towards me.
I hate it when people - especially complete strangers - expect me to greet them if I don’t know them. I’ve had people get offended if I don’t say hello/good morning to them, and I don’t even know who they are.
So, fuck all of those people who get offended by this.
I’ve been known to spontaneously greet people I don’t know and will never see again as I’m walking along - often they’re only going to have a second to reply, since we’re both walking and will pass each other and that will be that.
I presume that as long as they don’t walk straight into me and knock me down that’s sufficient acknowledgement of my existence. I don’t toss these greetings out expecting a Relationship For The Ages to start, after all.
Huh, I quite enjoy wishing strangers a good day or saying hello. But I also don’t take offense when there’s nothing in return.
The one thing that really gets my goat regarding greetings, is the cruiser motorcycle riders who won’t return my wave because I’m on a sport bike. Some of them make a production of sticking their noses in the air and doing a harrumph like a Disney princess.
Yeah - a stranger presuming a greeting is odd. But we’ve had threads before where folk have differed as to situations in which it is appropriate/desirable to acknowledge another human being, if only through eye contact and a possible nod of the head.
If it’s causing this much a problem for you, don’t worry about it at all. I generally find the way I experience the least amount of upset is to make some sort of subtle eye-contact and wait for the other person to wave or say hi. Less risk that way of feeling dumb. Easier to shrug it off when you didn’t make the first move.
Me and the lil’wrekker were at dairy-queen yesterday when I drove over to her college to bring her a check. A weird guy all dressed in star spangled glory with a stunning amount of gold (ish) chains and rings bowed to us ceremoniosly. I swear, I almost curtsied. He said,and I quote " have a blessed day ladies". How are people supposed to respond to that kind of buffoonery? You tell me.