My nails need a little trimming so I thought I would blend in with the crowd and bring some clippers onto the T. I thought better of it in the end, but I got to wondering: what makes this act of personal hygiene so attractive to perform on the train? I see people clipping thier nails on the T all the time.
The Red Line is a popular line on which to perform this task, but the Blue and Orange lines seem equally inviting. I see less of this behavior on Green Lines trolleys, but once the streetcars get underground, the stainless steel clippers come out. Do dark windows make closet nail clippers come into the light? The Silver Line is the only branch of the MBTA that doesn't seem to tempt this urge to nip cuticles or cut off excess keratin. No one straphangs with a hangnail in Boston.
I live in Dorchester, and when I disembark at JFK/UMASS station I walk past plenty of front porches where people are clipping thier nails, letting the shards fly where they may onto the sidewalk. On front porches people clip thier toenails too, something I haven't yet witnessed on the T. Maybe I don't ride often enough.
2 comments:
Wait until summer, then ride the blue line. I have seen young woman shaving their legs, clipping finger and toe nails and giving each other mani and pedi cures.
Something about having to look amazing at the beach. A place where if they have not had time to take care of their personal hygiene they complete on the beach.
I suppose it's city living...being anonymous in the crowd. It's so common, who am I to complain? When in Boston do as the Bostonians do.
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