College Towns

Each August or September, I am reminded that I live in a college town - while in Gainesville, it was the University of Florida; here in Boulder, it's the University of Colorado.  I lived a couple of miles from campus in Gainesville; married housing here in Boulder is across a two-lane street.  We moved to Gainesville when I was 5, and I lived there until I was 39;  I moved to Boulder 9 years ago, when I was 48, and for the past 7 years have lived immediately across the street from the CU campus.  I ought to be used to new students arriving and acting like, well, new students - away from home and on their own for the first time.
  Maybe I expect a little more from college students than most people do.  Being a Navy brat, I was raised to respect my elders, and call them "Sir" or "Ma'am."  Being polite to everyone, including strangers, was a habit, or you stayed at home.  Maybe I'm just getting old and cranky.  I know that I deplore the use of quite a few usual technological advances out in public, which I supposed makes me an old fuddy-duddy.
  Here are a few of my most disliked happenings that I've observed so far this year  (classes started three days ago, on Monday):
  1.  There are paved, clean, open bike paths beside the roadway.  Why must students ride their bikes on the sidewalk; they do not have a bell, nor do they ring it, as they approach pedestrians from behind.  (I've been hit 6 times in two days by handlebars.)
  2.  Stopping and talking while in a group of 4 or more people, blocking sidewalks, walk ways, aisles in grocery stores, parking spaces, etc.
  3.  Talking in their loudest speaking voice on cell phones or ear phone devices - everywhere.  In a park, in the library, in the bathroom, walking down the street, in the grocery store, on the bus...  There is no place where one can get away from people talking loudly at all times.
  4.   Texting while driving, talking on the phone while driving, putting on make-up while driving, reading while driving, flossing teeth while driving  -  no wonder there are so many accidents happening these days.  It used to be you'd only get distracted if you were searching for a good station on the radio....

Oh, well.  Enough grousing.  No.   Wait a minute.  I must tell you about the man, about my age, who stepped out of the automatic door at the grocery store, up-ended his soda bottle, and proceeded to stand there, drinking, until he had finished the drink.  He did not step aside, and I counted 16 people waiting for him to move aside so they could leave the store.  When he moved, he stepped in front of the "in" door, and stood there, while taking his time to toss the bottle in the can that was on the other side of the door railing.  He then turned around, to step into the parking area, and seemed surprised to find 6 people standing behind him, waiting to go inside.  (I was waiting for a friend to pick me up, so I was just observing.)  He stepped around the corner, leaned against the building, and belched loudly - not bothering to cover his mouth.  After another couple of minutes, a college boy came out of the store and joined the man.  They spoke for a moment, and then both of them headed back inside.  Curiosity made me follow them.  They took four steps inside the door, then stopped, blocking the entrance (because of the railing), while the son pulled out his phone - BlackBerry - whatever, and said, "Dad, you have to look at this great app!"  I finally tapped both of them on the shoulder, to ask them to move, so I could continue to enter the premises of the store....  Like father, like son...  I guess.