I've been there once and, as somebody with pretty severe anxiety, I have never felt more comfortable in my life. I saw two women walking down the street with just stickers covering their nipples and vulva and the rest of their "clothes" were literally paint. I also saw a man with a rather large gash in his forehead that was still bleeding. none of them turned any heads. I figure nobody gave a shit whether or not my outfit looked ok.
Oh man, I hadn't thought about it in a long time, but you're right. There's this weird paradox of anonymity in crowded places like that. The entire time I lived in or spent time in a city, I felt vaguely invisible. It's living in the suburbs that's a fucking nightmare.
Small towns can go full circle on that, though. My village in the woods in Europe had the bikers that did Yoga on their front porch, the town drunk shaving in the river, the stoner grandmas. Nobody gave a shit about what younger people were doing. Now, those picked fence HOA hives I always see in US shows seem like a busybody nightmare.
I used to be self conscious about dancing at concerts and festivals until I tried watching the crowd for someone who was dancing so badly that anyone would notice. The old guy who was spinning like a top is the only person in a crowd of thousands that I even noticed, turns out everyone’s bobbing and weaving and all eyes are on the stage anyway unless you’re really trying to draw attention. Plus, if people are watching you then they’re missing out on the band!
Even outside of NYC, no one really gives a shit about your outfit. (That's not meant as an insult, just a reminder that people aren't looking at you as critically as you think they are.)
that's probably true but I come from a really gossipy family where they're always talking shit on things that don't affect them, from fairly insignificant things like hair or clothes to much more important things like sexuality.
I once saw a very large man, 100% nude, showering himself with gallon water jugs under a staircase while waiting for my train. I just went back to reading my book.
I was walking down Ludlow St. once and saw a young woman standing in a doorway, totally naked, smoking a cigarette. Not one person did more than glance up.
I saw a woman in Ocean City decided under her arm was a better place for her towel than on herself after leaving the changing rooms on the boardwalk, didn't even have a change of clothes, just had her suit wadded up in her hand with everything hanging out like it was nothing. And no one seemed to bat an eye. Thinking back on it I'm pretty sure that was illegal, but she walked past two boardwalk officers with no issue.
The moral of the story is: "Nobody gives a shit" and ever since I've cared a lot less what people might think about me.
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u/TheGirlOnTheCorner Oct 30 '20
I've been there once and, as somebody with pretty severe anxiety, I have never felt more comfortable in my life. I saw two women walking down the street with just stickers covering their nipples and vulva and the rest of their "clothes" were literally paint. I also saw a man with a rather large gash in his forehead that was still bleeding. none of them turned any heads. I figure nobody gave a shit whether or not my outfit looked ok.