Social Class Markers

Earlier this week, we discussed things that marked social class.  Mr. Bolos showed us a video of a class of his analyzing the Kennilworth train station. Students commented on a huge variety of things, from what newspapers were being sold to what cars were in the parking lot. Ever since there were mentioned, I could not help but notice aspects of my surroundings that may hint at social class.  When I took a trip to downtown Chicago this weekend, I noticed some major differences, that could be class markers.  First off were merely the sides of the streets.  In the North shore, nearly every road has grass by its side.  In downtown Chicago, on the other hand, the only vegetation that can be seen on the sides of roads are the trees that are planted in holes in the concrete sidewalk.   Another class marker are the shops that are on the sides of the road.  In downtown Wilmette, some of the shops are Lad and Lassie (clothes), The Crystal Cave (glass sculptures, plates, etc.), and CJ Arthur's.  None of these shops are part of a chain, and all are expensive compared to what I found in Chicago.  McDonalds littered the streets of downtown Chicago, and nearly every restaurant was an inexpensive chain restaurant.  One final thing that I noticed was this: the duration of a yellow light on traffic signals.  I noticed that yellow lights last significantly longer in the North Shore than they do downtown.  Maybe they are longer in the North Shore to prevent accidents, and shorter in Chicago, to prevent traffic jams.  I am honestly not sure, but I just wanted to get this out there.  Do you think yellow lights are social class markers? Also, please share any other class markers that you may find