I too live in Massachusetts, and find the manners of men to be quite gentlemanly. There are some women who are rather rude, but they are in the minority in my experience.
One thing I have found is that there are women HATE being addressed as “Ma’am” and tell me so (I work in a hospital, and part of my job is interacting with many people)
I usually apologize, and say that I was raised that way and just cannot shake the habit, and tell them it is, to me, a gesture of respect.
Many times, they think, and then say something like “Okay, then. You can call me “Ma’am”. But it makes me sound so OLD!”
I miss the concept of being gentlemanly. People think you are a dinosaur if you try to be, perhaps I am. I never thought I was old enough to be, but as I write this, it occurs to me. But I am not changing. I will still open doors for women and the elderly.
I miss dressing up to go out to dinner. There is no ceremony in going to even the most expensive restaurant. You can go into just about any restaurant wearing jeans and sweater.
I miss (as a man) the opportunity to talk to small children in public who aren’t yours. You just can’t do it any more, which I find to be as sad as anything. Even when my wife does, parents seem extremely edgy. I guess I understand why, but I don’t like it.
Sigh.