A couple days ago I was walking along North Street when a white delivery van suddenly stopped across the street from me. It was one of those windowless vans a creepster could use to stalk children in, but it was too new for that. The Scottish driver got out and waved at me as he crossed the street, "Are you local?" "I'm a student," I answered. He seemed disappointed when he heard my American accent. I figured he was about to ask for directions, and I know the town well enough to direct him to the major landmarks or streets. He asked, "Do you know where Boase Avenue is?" St Andrews is filled with small alleys and avenues that are only 40 yards or so long, and there is no way I know where all of them are unless I happen to live on one (mine is Hope Street). I politely told him that I wasn't familiar with that avenue. Once he walked back across the street, he turned around and said, "Have a nice life."
Back home, no one says "have a nice life" in a kind way. It's always a sarcastic remark with the same meaning as "go to hell." We would only use it with people we hope to never see again because they're worthless to us. I could see the British actually using the 'nice life' phrase in a cordial manner with strangers they don't expect to see again. When that driver told me that, I didn't know whether or not I should be insulted. Maybe those were fighting words, and I should have punched him in the face. Then again, he could have meant it in a cordial way and would have been very surprised to see an American's fist flying towards his face.
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