Reply #4: Well, it depends on whether they say negative things

[skygazer]

That bothers me. But some people don't give a lot of compliments because of the idea that it devalues the gesture. People tend to think of New Englanders as cold and unfriendly but they are just spare with words and don't say anything unless they have something important to say.

One of the best compliments I ever got was from a New Englander when I helped load a hay truck. Stacking hay is an art and I'd stacked that thing to the sky and it wasn't going anywhere. The farmer walked around the truck and simply said, "You've stacked hay before." That's all. But it was a huge compliment.

Everyone's different. Don't let it get to you.