Uptight Poles

Well, it is what it is. I'm Taurus with my feet strongly planted on the ground. I'm not the one floating in the blue skies ruffling my feathers and denying reality :) A pretty picture, but real? Just like angels, I guess.

I know the sign well. My first wife, Polka, was a Taurus. :)

lol. I understand why you're no longer married. We are tough cookies to handle. My ex couldn't handle me neither. :)

I'm not really into this Horoscope thing but I'm a Leo and I know how I am. I guess it must be pretty much the same as Taurus then, lol

that's so funny. I'm a Leo. I'm married to a Scorpio.....very nice ;)

very good observation and an unusual honesty for a Pole.

Polish people are abrupt and ill mannered (rude) and they look like they're angry all the time. But that's who they are. It's the culture. It's what makes a Pole a Pole. Probably due to all the invasions throughout their history. Can't relax, you'll never know who's over the hill ready to invade.

the last time I checked there was nobody;)

Probably the polish moustache was developed to scare the enemies.

I think it was developed not to allow flies into your mouth while eating ;)

CP, you can't define a Pole in that way. Many are like you described, yes, but there are many that don't fit that description.

he just did:)

Well, he did but should he have? There is so much that we can ignore. Being drawn to uptight people is wearing and they are best left alone. I think some people here get frustrated when reality sets in and they can't just bumble along.

I wonder if this is a common slavic thing. I don't meet many Poles so I'm going to withhold my judgment here. However I do come across scores of Russians. Thailand is awash with them, after all it's only 3hr flight from here to Vladivostok. By and large they are gruff and extremely rude and as such very much disliked by locals and ex-pats alike.

FP, they are way across in the more mongoloid part of Russia, not in the slavic western part.

Anyway, let's not digress into that. Slavs can be broody and stiff but so can anyone really. They have reason to be uptight here in Poland. I happen to think that the Poles are similar to the Japanese in the sense that they want to create, as best they can, this 'My Polacy' idea. Part of that means that they try and fit in with the general flow. In Japanese they say that 'the nail that sticks up gets hammered down'. Poles can be similar in that way. So, when they are in administrative centres they tend to behave in a similar fashion to those there. That often means being uptight and impatient.

still they ones I see are white slavic ones....


Fair enough, their reputation here is damaged enough as it is. (And it doesn't help that of all the places in this beautiful country they choose to congregate in.... Pattaya, wtf!?!)


That saying reflects very well Asian collective mentality, which ,one would have thought, would be at odds with the anarchistic nature of the Polish soul.

Many people are boors when on holiday or away from home generally.

Anarchistic? I'd say that, whilst quite a few Poles live in emotional turmoil, many are not anarchistic in the sense that I understand that word. It just depends on the Pole, really.

NO: the original version was: THE CUSTOMER IS ALWAYS RIGHT.
Since when an observation made by one person is an opinion of all the foreigners? Since when I said I was right. I must have touched a sensitive spot in your Polishness. Your posts just proves that you are a little uptight too.

I am not a foreigner in Poland, but I have been away long enough to spot the cultural differences. I think that you twisted what I said or did not read what I have written.

Readjust your filters and improve on reading skills.

No, I simply made a generalisation based on both your post and the posts others wrote in reaction to it. If you would care to have a look at the first page of this thread, you will see were I am coming from.

I think Poles are actually one of the most laid back European ethnicities.
I notice both Western Europeans & Other Eastern Europeans are typically more uptight than Poles.

But it kind of seems like maybe Ukrainians & Maybe the Irish maybe more laid back than Polish. Most of Europe is more uptight than Poles from what I see.

Especially Southern Europeans. Poles are like super laid back compared to Italians & Albanians. Then Germanics seem to be high strung in a weird way like they are very uptight & orderly & OCD about somethings.

My Polish father actually says that Poles being laid back makes it so sometimes Poles lose Oppurtunities. I agree. My father is right when he said Poles are generally more generous & not so uptight on things like money.

My fathers Polish friend Osuch had a big farm & he was super laid back. He sold the Farm for a fair price. He could have sold it for alot more.

But, He didn't want to be bothered welding & dealing.

That is by no means uptight LOL Alot of Poles are like that. But there are some uptight poles. In general Slavs seem to have a more diverse range of physical features & personalities I notice than Western Europeans

I know the Polish store owners here are so kind & have very fair prices with very good portions & quality of food.

Most Poles like to enjoy life.

lol evidently you haven't been to Denmark (not to mention Holland) or if you were you must have failed miserably at connecting to the locals... could it be you were too uptight? ;)

Everyone knows Germanic people are rather uptight but in a quiet passive agressive way. They will be nice to your face & then at the same time think you are not acceptable.

Germanics are extremely orderly & OCD.

I notice Germanics are more likely to get angry if something is out of Order than if someone is hurt LOL

PMoc, you are again speaking for a whole group and it's just not on. I find many Poles laid back but many uptight too. I imagine more Irish folk to be stressed now.

Some Poles have a little of the 'mańana' in them, that's true. Some can lose chances that way. Some are more generous and some are just plain stingy. How can most Poles not be uptight about money given the modern realities here?

It depends what store you go to, PMoc.

I have met some uptight Poles too. But, Overall I think Poles are one of the most laid back European ethnicities.

To me both Latin countries & Germanic countries are far more uptight than both Slavic & Celtic Nations.

French prob are the probably the most uptight though they seem to have the both the Latin & Germanic uptight tendencies towards them.

Laid back as in slack or laid back as in mellow and carefree, PMoc?

It depends what type of German or Frenchie you mean. The cafe goers tend to be chilled out but the administrative workers much less so.

I think it all comes down to set and setting as Timothy Leary famously once said.

Mediteraneans are way more relaxed than westerners and Slavs.Just visit a cafe in Greece or Italy and one in Germany and the difference is huge.Turks and Arabs can bring relaxation to the level of apathy.

Stop patronizing people. You fancy yourself sociology expert but I have a news for you: your observation skills and analytical ability simply suck. So take that into consideration when giving anyone advise on anything.

Indeed, very well said.

Agreed. German Cafe looks more like Kasernenhof...everything in order. Jawoll!


T-man, what a life in the name of science... ;)


Latin uptight? Where have you been? Go to a tango bar and then tell me your impressions. ;)

We have to conclude that there are tense and loose aspects to virtually every culture. There are days when I'm visibly more uptight than the Poles around me but, sometimes, I'm much fresher, looser and in my stride. We are just people and that's all we'll ever be. Tense, loose or sth inbetween, it's just what we need to work with to do what we do.