In a recent discussion with a non-St Joe resident, a particular observer told me that he had always called St Joseph "St Slow". My initial reaction was to be offended. But after about... oh 1 minute or so... I laughed. Out loud. St Slow. How funny! I can see how an "outsider" would see "St Joeians" as slow.
We have speed limits that are absurdly low (and nevermind that almost every resident obeys them); ahem, Woodbine, anyone? Has anyone seriously tried to drive northbound on Woodbine without braking? Next to impossible. And our police force is consistently staking out this road to snag any who dare to pass the 35 limit by any speed. Cook Rd - east of the Belt. 25 MPH? You've got to be kidding me. I could go on and on, but you catch my drift.
Nearly every retail store or restaurant is guaranteed to provide slow service. Not good or bad service... just SLOW. 1 hour minimum visit at Chili's guarantees I won't be taking my lunch there, and 30 minutes in line at Wal-Mart makes me want to buy "quickie" items elsewhere.
The whole mindset of our town is slow. A great example is an advertisement by The Comfort Center. They are advertising a fiberglass pool as "the pool of the future". People, these pools have been around for years. They aren't anything new, yet somehow, St Joe is just now catching on. Some homebuilders are still using copper pipes to build new houses for crying out loud!
Technology is slow. Does any business provide stellar internet service? No. Does every citizen have internet access? No. Does every business have a website? No. In fact, most of these "technological" advances that most of the progressive world takes for granted is too far-fetched for St Joe residents.
What is the solution? I dunno. Maybe the roots here go too deep. The old adage that "this is how it's always been done" will always remain in this town. Stuck in it's history. Continually looking backwards instead of forward. It sure explains most of the current problems our town faces, including the inability to attract businesses in both the mall and the industrial park on Riverside. Maybe other outsiders see us simply as "St Slow". Maybe our workers are too "slow" for new business. We need to kick the label. Let's start with raising the speed limits!
