Official "Seattle Freeze" Discussion Thread (Tacoma, Bellevue: gangs, estimates)

[chris]

There is a lovely rotten egg smell (actually smells closer to death) in Tukwila/Renton near the green river on 405. Anyone ever figure out what it is exactly?

[Ira500]

I believe that's the Sewage Treatment plant. It's supposedly odorless, but I've driven by and smelled that putrid odor.

[theRain]

Originally Posted by Katiana

I have never heard of a church that would not welcome someone willing to do some work! Ditto an elementary school.

Welcoming newcomers to help is not the same thing as trying to become their friend! I believe that many churches have the very same atmosphere as the "Seattle Freeze"; very friendly on the surface, very happy to sign new folks up to volunteer for this or that, but at the end of the day, most go home and do not initiate contact outside of the church setting. The same goes for the schools; you volunteer at your child's school, and people are all friendly there, but you don't interact outside of that, that's just how it is.
I still don't see why everyone finds this so unusual, it happens everywhere! I think some folks are just the kind that make instant friends with anyone, and others are not like that. I really don't believe it is just present in certain cities!! That's just silly.

[MontanaGuy]

I just happened upon this thread and just read the beginning posts to try to grasp what the Seattle Freeze was supposed to be. I lived in Seattle for twenty years. I grew up in Montana and have lived in Denver, Phoenix and I recently moved to Nashville so I've experienced what life is like in a number of different places and how people tend to treat each other. From my point of view this whole topic is nonsense, people are basically the same everywhere and I've seen how people interact at work, in public places, etc. I just don't see any difference in behavior in any of the places I've lived. I've also traveled to all fifty states on many trips and have visited twenty two foreign countries. I've made friends in different places, I've found certain people to be rude or insensitive in different places and so on, but I don't believe that Seattle has some unique quality that affects the behavior of it's citizens in such a way that it can be distinguished from any other city.

[goldengrain]

Originally Posted by theRain

Welcoming newcomers to help is not the same thing as trying to become their friend! I believe that many churches have the very same atmosphere as the "Seattle Freeze"; very friendly on the surface, very happy to sign new folks up to volunteer for this or that, but at the end of the day, most go home and do not initiate contact outside of the church setting. The same goes for the schools; you volunteer at your child's school, and people are all friendly there, but you don't interact outside of that, that's just how it is.
I still don't see why everyone finds this so unusual, it happens everywhere! I think some folks are just the kind that make instant friends with anyone, and others are not like that. I really don't believe it is just present in certain cities!! That's just silly.

Yup. I have spoken to many people who have 'fled' the Northeast for the South in retirement and come right back with the same stories. People being very nice, but at a distance.

I find the comments on New Jersey pretty much on target, though. I have lived in NJ and have perused the NJ newspaper forum. I know that forums do not indicate all there is about a people, but it may give you an idea of the flavor of a community.

NJ.com: Forums (Look at the World and Nation sites)

These are not very nice people, not those whom most of us would cultivate as friends.

[Katiana]

Originally Posted by theRain

Welcoming newcomers to help is not the same thing as trying to become their friend! I believe that many churches have the very same atmosphere as the "Seattle Freeze"; very friendly on the surface, very happy to sign new folks up to volunteer for this or that, but at the end of the day, most go home and do not initiate contact outside of the church setting. The same goes for the schools; you volunteer at your child's school, and people are all friendly there, but you don't interact outside of that, that's just how it is.
I still don't see why everyone finds this so unusual, it happens everywhere! I think some folks are just the kind that make instant friends with anyone, and others are not like that. I really don't believe it is just present in certain cities!! That's just silly.

Well, it does give you something to do with your time besides watch TV, and at my church anyway, there are many social events to attend as well, such as dinner theater trips, Rockies games, etc. Some of the people get together in their homes occasionally as well. Some of the volunteer activities are fun and social in their own right, as well.

[KarenH58]

Originally Posted by Ira500

it's not just an urban area thing...the Seattle Freeze is real, it's just different from the NJ Guido or preppie thing, it's more like a reserve or shyness rather than an outright coldness.

I think you've hit the nail on the head about the reserve/shyness.

I've lived in the Seattle/Puget Sound area steadily since 1975; grew up a few years here and there before that during my childhood. So, I know the area and the people well. I'm not precisely a native, but I've lived here long enough and have roots here. My husband, however, was born and raised here.

I think I can say we're...hmm...how to put it nicely? Umm... unconventional in many ways. You know those Pemco Insurance ads, the ones about the Walla Walla Wine Wine Woman Woman, the Ponytailed Software Geek, or the Sandals and Socks Guy? (Yes, they include the Confused East Coast Transplant.) Well...we're really like that. (see We're a Lot Like You: PEMCO Insurance)

I'm not saying that all Seattlites and Washingtonians are like the ads, but we are quirky, even geeky and dorky, and we know how people can respond negatively to that, so we tend to be very polite, and keep a friendly distance until we understand whether the newbie is okay with the way we are, or just as quirky as we are. Trust me, underneath the well-coiffed hair and three-piece suit of a Seattle person is a secret Trekkie who has memorized the Klingon language, or grows organic tomatoes on an apartment balcony with kitchen compost (if not in their back yard).

If you can even find a true Seattle person in a three-piece suit and well-coiffed hair, that is. More likely to find the Sandals and Socks Guy, actually.

Plus--and I think this is a big component--we're very racially diverse here, and pretty well integrated, more so than a lot of places. Whenever you deal with people of different cultures, especially if they're your next-door neighbor, you can't assume your own cultural approach isn't going to offend them or be off-putting. The best way to get around that is to be as polite as possible and bide your time until you understand where that person is coming from and adjust your behavior accordingly. You do this enough and it becomes automatic. But it takes a long time before you understand whether the other person is the sort to tolerate your quirkiness while at the same time figuring out their cultural background and adjusting to that. Which is why it takes a long time for a very polite Seattle person to become part of your group and you a part of his or hers.

So it's partly a sort of shy/reservedness, and partly out of respect for where someone else is coming from and slowly learning how to adjust to that.

Oh, and I think a lot of us are introverts. It's not that we don't like people--we do, a lot. It's that being around a lot of people wears us out. Unless it's during the Apple Cup.

I'm not saying everyone here is like that, but I've lived here long enough to have observed this over and over again.

[chris]

I like KarenH58's assessment because it highlights what I believe to be the second highest contributor to the freeze (#1 being weather), that being the computer climate/domination that exists here. It's not just computer nerds though, like Karen said, it's a combination of a certain type of people that are attracted to this type of environment. Maybe it is introverts, maybe it's people who like to be left alone. It's not that they don't like people, but they have a great appreciation for the "live and let live" attitude, which unfortunately is eroding as more and more people move here and try to change the climate that has existed here for a long time (and I don't blame them). It could be a contributor to what many perceive as the "freeze".

Although I disagree with the racially diverse element. This is probably the least diverse place I've lived besides Maine in my entire life. Certainly there is an Asian/Native element to the area but I wouldn't classify that as being diverse, as say San Francisco or Los Angeles.

[cobolt]

I don't find Seattle racially diverse, then again, I grew up in Chicago so that is my barometer.

My hairdresser is a native Washingtonian who is married to a Texan. She said on her visit to Texas last year, she and her husband were shopping in a store, and two older ladies started up a friendly conversation. Her reaction: "What do these people want from me? Why are they talking to us?" Her husband's reaction: He had a ball chatting it up with these women. My hairdresser even admitted: "Growing up in Washington, you're just not used to that sort of social interaction."

Seattle freeze exists people. Accept it and move on.

[Topaz]

Originally Posted by cobolt

I don't find Seattle racially diverse, then again, I grew up in Chicago so that is my barometer.

My hairdresser is a native Washingtonian who is married to a Texan. She said on her visit to Texas last year, she and her husband were shopping in a store, and two older ladies started up a friendly conversation. Her reaction: "What do these people want from me? Why are they talking to us?" Her husband's reaction: He had a ball chatting it up with these women. My hairdresser even admitted: "Growing up in Washington, you're just not used to that sort of social interaction."

Seattle freeze exists people. Accept it and move on.

Seattle is definitely NOT diverse. The U.S. Census says the Seattle population is 84.8% White, 3.6% Black, 6.6% Asian, and 9.1% Hispanic/Latino. By comparison, Chicago's population is 42% White, 36.8% Black, 6.6% Asian, and 26% Hispanic/Latino. Houston's population is 49.3% White, 25.3% Black, 5.3% Asian, and 37.4% Hispanic/Latino.

After living in Seattle for almost a decade, I've been living in the Houston area for six weeks now. I am constantly being surprised by how talkative strangers are with each other here. The cultural vibes in Seattle and Houston are extremely different. I would think that people who are quite reserved would feel more at home in Seattle because in Texas the culture is so much more outgoing and expressive.