So, I know that I am far from perfect, but if there is one thing that I take very seriously, it's being considerate about other people's time. I don't know if I'm extra sensitive; but living here in Miami seems to give everyone "carte blanche" to be inconsiderate just because as they say, it's the "Latino way." I seem to spend most of my time waiting for everything and everyone.
Since when is being Latin or Hispanic a God given right to be disrespectful or inconsiderate of others? I was born in Latin America, I grew up there, why can I tell time and they can't?
Being "fashionably late" has always been the norm; however, here in Miami, fashionably late seems to take on a meaning all it's own. How can anyone plan any social event, make an appointment, plan a wedding, anything for that matter, if 95% of the population thinks there is absolutely nothing wrong in showing up to a 7:00 p.m. invitation at 10:00 p.m.? With that mentality, throwing a suprise party is out of the question. Why do people think it's ok for others to just sit back and wait for a person to show up when they feel like it? Mind you, there's never a good reason. It's not like they get a flat tire or their child is sick; nothing like that. The plain and simple reason is that they couldn't care less about what the person on the other end might have planned. In the age where most people have at least one phone, if not two, they don't feel the need to let others know how late they will be, or in some cases, if they plan to show up at all. R.S.V.P.'s - what a joke!! If they R.S.V.P. "yes", they don't show up; if they don't bother to R.S.V.P., they just simply show up in a heard, and don't think there's anything wrong with that either.
I don't know about the rest of the State, the rest of the country, or the rest of the world for that matter, but civility here in Miami is dead. It just doesn't exist. Take me for instance. I had an appointment with someone to come to my house and remove some cabinets yesterday afternoon. An hour before, I called to confirm and got no answer. I sent a text which was answered at the exact time when the person should have in fact been at the appointment, indicating they would not be able to make. They re-scheduled for today. Today's appointment has come and gone, no call, no answer to my calls - nothing. I have sat here for two days waiting, yet this person didn't think it necessary to make me privy of his intentions of not showing up. This drives me insane. Why? Why should I have to tolerate this? Why can't people put themselves in the other person's shoes to see their time is just as valuable as everyone else's?
I believe most people around me end up thinking "if you can't beat them, join them". It's hard being the only fish swimming upstream all the time. I just can't seem to do the same. If you see someone jump off a bridge, are you going to jump off as well? Or is it simply that this is what the future holds - communities & civilizations with no civility whatsoever?
If that's the case, then I'll gladly stay behind. I want to live in a society where "please" and "thank you" are the norm and not the exception.
Today, as I came home from picking my car up at the mechanic, my neighbor walked up to me to tell me that some newborn ducklings had fallen into a stormdrain. As most of my friends know, that's all I needed to hear. I ran to the storm drain and tried to get a plan in action in order to rescue them. It didn't take long before a crowd of on-lookers gathered around. I asked one of the men to remove the cover off of the storm drain as I quickly ran home to get a loaf of bread to see if we could get them to come out of hiding. At the same time, the mother duck and her remaining two ducklings were circling around anxiously. I started throwing pieces of bread into the drain hoping the ducklings would come out so we could grabe them.Sure enough, as I threw the first piece in, six tiny little ducklings appeared. I tried grabbing one of them, but they were too fast, and as quick as can be, they hid further down inside the drain where they were impossible to catch. I asked someone to bring the skimmer from the pool and we tried several times to no avail. Again, they were too fast. All of a sudden, a lightbulb went off in my head. Why don't we call the Fire Department? How many times have we heard and seen stories on T.V. of cats stuck up a tree or in a storm drains rescued by firefighters? I dialed 911 non-emergency and within five minutes the fire truck, along with five or six very willing and able firefighters came to the ducklings' rescue. They tried everything, even flooding the storm drain with water, but in the end, only managed to rescue one of the little ones. After over an hour of trying, they eventually called it quits and were on their way. Mama duck, anxiously circling the drain the entire time, also called it quits and went on her way, now with three little ducklings in tow. There I sat, my heart aching for the five tiny, defenseless ducklings that I had to abandon, knowing of their pending demise. 
I guess Mother Nature knows what she's doing. There is a method and a perfect balance to her cruelty and beauty. A neighbor told me the mother duck had 19 little ducklings that hatched a few days ago. If all were meant to survive, we would no doubt be faced with an over-population of ducks sooner than later. Instead of the 19, only 3 will most likely survive - ensuring the survival of the species but not an over-population. It might be perfect, but none-the-less, sad. I'm going to have a hard time sleeping tonight. The idea of those five little ones, scared and alon,e just breaks my heart to pieces. As I conclude this post, almost six hours have past. I have gone back to the storm drain on numerous occasions and tried getting them out, but nothing has worked. I just hear the little things chirping away anxiously. Night falls and with it, the scavengers are sure to emerge shortly. Poor little, defenseless creatures....they don't have a chance.
