Excuse me, where is Times Square?

If you've ever lived in a place that has a tourist season, surely you know how annoying they can be. They don't know where they're going, they mess up traffic, they crowd your favorite spots, and oh yeah, they pump money into your local economy.

Back in the UP, where gun control means putting your beer down before you aim, the saying is; "If it's tourist season, why can't we shoot 'em?" And who can blame them? All those outsiders invading their paradise.

Here in New York, it's usually a long string of expletives with the word "tourists!!" at the end. And who can blame them? All those outsiders making their already crowded streets nearly impossible to walk down.

Last weekend my mom came to visit, and I got to play tour guide. It was kind of fun to show someone around the city again. Seeing the little bits of New York that made me fall in love with it all over again. There's so much history here, so much culture. It's almost too easy, when you live here, to forget how beautiful it is. How incredible a feat of architecture, art, planning, and surviving went into making this city what it is today.

I am curious about one thing, though. Every time I leave my neighborhood, some tourist asks me for directions. Whether it's Central Park, the Village, or anywhere else, I am always, without fail, stopped to give someone directions. Not only that, but now that it's summer, I'm that guy who takes pictures of all the cute couples. Maybe I should rub the "I live here, but I won't kill you" sign off my forehead. Or maybe I should pull out that "Polite New Yorker" pin I was given and wear it with pride.