Official "Seattle Freeze" Discussion Thread (Kirkland: metro, cities)

[robertpolyglot]

Unbelievable....just UNBELIEVABLE.

I go away (from this site, anyway) for a month and a half and this thread just RAGES ON! I doubt a "freeze" thread has such a survival rate for any other city, so that alone speaks volumes.

Digression about some earlier comments about other groups:
1.
Northeastern/NY-abrasiveness: I welcome it! You always know where you stand. They are generally not hard to get to know, except those of exceptional privileged standing. Last week, I had to spend a day with a high-level manager of an entity we do business with as he had to familiarize me with their operations. He was highly educated, well dressed, assertive but not obnoxious...and the son of a working class immigrant Irish family...I have actually seen this a lot in that corner of the states...people from real down-to-earth family backgrounds that became educated and successful yet are incredibly easy to talk to. In 2002, on a flight to Europe, I sat next to a Wall Street IT exec who talked to me most of the way across the Atlantic...he was very funny and very "salt of the earth"...he even offered me part of the hoagie/sub his wife had made for him. LOL. I declined. (I'm sorry, folks, but I don't encounter Northwesterns that are that extroverted).

2.
Southerners....generalization, I know....lived in the South for 2 years....some of the "sugar-coating" is fake (and you can learn to tell) and some is somewhat sincere. It depends on the person and it depends on you, so it's an interplay of variables. My "gut instinct" is NOT to trust it. When I lived in ATL, most of my friends were from the North, so I didn't care anyway. There are way too many Yankees in ATL such that you can ignore annoying Southerners.

About Seattle's freeze: Let's ask this....
Can it change? Will it change? What would it take? Do you think people that are bothered by it just move away?

[mayfair]

Originally Posted by robertpolyglot

Do you think people that are bothered by it just move away?

Naw, they just get assimilated.

[ArizonaBear]

The PNW is a world unto its own.......and, IMHO, San Francisco is not much different (I lived in the Bay Area from 1978-80). Using just the SF Peninsula as our guinea pig; the 'crossover point' is the border between Belmont north and San Carlos on south........I felt 'better' the further south I went when living there.

With all due respect to the Seattle crowd; I honestly think it has something to do with the overcast weather. Speaking for myself; if it is gloomy for 3+ days, even here in sunny Arizona, I start becoming 'antisocial' for want of a better word.

And trust me: the intense sun here in Arizona gets old fast.

[robertpolyglot]

Originally Posted by ArizonaBear

The PNW is a world unto its own.......and, IMHO, San Francisco is not much different (I lived in the Bay Area from 1978-80). Using just the SF Peninsula as our guinea pig; the 'crossover point' is the border between Belmont north and San Carlos on south........I felt 'better' the further south I went when living there.

Thank you very much for your post. I often wondered about the Bay Area. It gives off some of that same vibe and I'm from L.A., from which it feels too different. Clearly, one can't deny that it's beautiful, but it too has a pi$$y political correctness about it. I was there for work on Wednesday and just being in Berkeley makes my hair stand on its ends.

(Now, on your San Mateo/Santa Clara county continuum, I hope Palo Alto is another exception. That's another pretentious place).

Another sidebar: So. Cal. people go up to the Bay Area and say "but it's so green" or "it's so lush." That only holds true for the side of the coastal range fronting the ocean. All of the foothills, as seen from the bay and beyond, are brown these days....just like they are anywhere in inland So. Cal.

The whole Pacific Coast seems to very niche-like, from San Diego (hedonistic as can be) all the way to Bellingham (frumpy)...my opinion.

[toughguy]

Originally Posted by robertpolyglot

Unbelievable....just UNBELIEVABLE.

I go away (from this site, anyway) for a month and a half and this thread just RAGES ON! I doubt a "freeze" thread has such a survival rate for any other city, so that alone speaks volumes.

Maybe it has something to do with the fact that it is a sticky at the top of the page?

[_Charles_]

I can tell you from my own experience and that of other relocatees, that they have reached out to their neighbors, coworkers etc, without much luck. They throw parties, bbqs, etc but the neighbors don't reciprocate.

You will find the most people here are polite and face nice but hardly anyone is really friendly - lack of sociability is the essence of Seattle freeze. And it is awful.

[cobolt]

Originally Posted by _Charles_

You will find the most people here are polite and face nice but hardly anyone is really friendly - lack of sociability is the essence of Seattle freeze. And it is awful.

Charles, are you moving away or are you still in Seattle? I seem to recall some time back you speaking of leaving.

[_Charles_]

Charles, are you moving away or are you still in Seattle? I seem to recall some time back you speaking of leaving.

I am working on getting out of here. After 7 years I have had all I can stand. The only hold up is lining up a comparable position in my field back in Phoenix. If the economy was in better shape, I would just sell and move and take my chances finding a new job. Believe me I am ready to leave tomorrow!

[VeronikaW]

Originally Posted by _Charles_

I am working on getting out of here. After 7 years I have had all I can stand. The only hold up is lining up a comparable position in my field back in Phoenix. If the economy was in better shape, I would just sell and move and take my chances finding a new job. Believe me I am ready to leave tomorrow!

House prices are so great in Phoenix right now. I was just there visiting my parents, and houses in their neighborhood (in Anthem, just north of Phoenix), there are 1800+ square foot houses selling for under $200,000. It made me want to buy one just to have.

V. =)

[kattwoman2]

How anti-social are the people? I'm sort of used to places in the South where you can go up to people and start a friendly conversation. Same thing in Northeast England, Toronto, and Montreal. I know the people in NYC, from my experience, are a bit colder about socializing, so how is it in Seattle?