Seattle starting to really feel like it has a higher number of jerks (Everett: insurance, condo)

[cmswazey]

I have noticed a fair bit of road rage out here. I attribute that to a combination of territorial imperative and overcrowding-as analyzed in those studies about lab rats getting more aggressive when conditions are overcrowded. It affects humans, too.

People really get worked up about anything automobile related and can act irrationally.

[cmswazey]

Our driveway is weird. It's directly against the next door neighbor's driveway. Not allowed now but we have some sort of easement or right of way. It's grandfathered in.

Visitors to either house get confused as to whose driveway is whose. The two driveways don't look similar but abutting each other as they do seems to confuse people. Also, I often see the neighbor's son's stuff in the front part of my driveway. I don't say anything about it and he generally tidies up in a day or two. Good neighbors.

[cmswazey]

Originally Posted by CityWok

I don't recall the OP ever saying they had problems with everyone, but that there was a noticeable increase of "jerks" in the area.

I have to say, I have to agree. The other day I was about to get out of my car, and a lady attempted to pull into the parking spot next to me. So I smiled and gestured for her to go ahead while I waited, she gave me the NASTIEST look.

Was just trying to be nice and in her head I had done something wrong. Talk about childish. These sorts of incidents have been increasing.

There seems to be a lot of bottled up anger which I think stems from the poor social skills of the folks moving here.

Dunno. It's actually been like that for years. I've had turning drivers scream at me for jay walking because the walk don't walk sign was flashing. They used to practically mow pedestrians down til the city put up one of the lights with the turn arrow. Seriously, these guys were clueless.

[Ruth4Truth]

Originally Posted by Tac-Sea

When I lived in Seattle proper, I can't tell you how many absolute jerks I ran into. People trying to run me off the road because the light turned green and after 15 seconds of waiting, I lightly tap my horn (NOT lay on it like an ass) and the guy tries to ram me with his vehicle.

I even witnessed something similar in DT Seattle where it was 2 AM and an almost identical scenario above except the guy did ram the guys car and then got out to fight him. The victim who's car was damaged just drove away after driving around him. All he did was lightly tap his horn after the guy sat there at a green light not moving. So the guy rams his car and messed up his entire front end, lights out, hood popped, fenders, etc., then jumps out to fight the guy who he just assaulted with his vehicle already?

The other day I am changing lanes and some guy two lanes over flips me off when I check my blind spot. He looked like an angry and unsavory guy in general, but I can't tell you how common this kind of crap is starting to appear. A friend of mine even said he was recently assaulted by three 17 year old kids downtown. My friend is a tall and lanky guy, not a trouble maker, it really just seems there is someone just trying to start a fight with you at every turn.

Was driving with another one of my nerdy friends a while back in DT Seattle and a couple guys walking down the street, two preppy looking guys, one of them just gives us the finger for absolutely NO reason.

And now I've moved to the Renton Highlands, a neighborhood of 600-700K homes and my neighbors: store their belongings in my driveway and park their cars in my driveway. I have a really huge and long driveway. Property lines are clearly marked. I ask them to respect my property and not to park in my driveway, and the response of one of them? Threaten to revoke my sewer easement, that apparently according to him, runs just a few feet under his property to the street, just at the edge of the street.

While I highly doubt he could revoke an easement of necessity (I did a bit of research) I have lived everywhere from Tacoma to Seattle, and I have to say, every place I've lived in King County has had one major douchebag or another. The closer I get to Seattle the worse it seems to get. Entitled aholes everywhere here. Seattle freeze is more like Seattle aholes.

Guess I will just need to fence the property in.

I'm not understanding these scenarios. You (or whoever) is tooting at someone in front, who's delaying at a green light. That I get, I do that, too. Just a quick little toot, to get traffic moving. I even do it sometimes from 2 or 3 cars back, and nobody gets mad, because everyone understands why I'm doing it. But I don't live in WA.

But then, in your scenarios, the car in front tries to ram the person tooting at them? That would involve suddenly backing up in to the tooter's car, right? I've never heard of that. That's very strange. And pretty stupid, since the person behind can see the license plate of the person attempting to ram them, and could easily call the police.

I don't know about driving, since I used transit when I lived in Seattle. But I have a few outrageous neighbor stories. One involved neighbors across the street who got into a dispute about a driveway that was an easement. To make a long story short, one of the neighbors waited until the other was out of town with her kids (single mom), and torched her house.

Another was a real estate agent who would leave me threatening notes under a rock by my back door about some little shrubs I'd planted, that she felt were too close to her property line. I later found out from another RE agent that all the agents were kind of afraid of her, because she's such a nasty personality. He was kind of in awe of me, that I was able to be her neighbor and survive unscathed, lol.

There are crazy people out there, OP, and yes, it seems to me that Seattle has more of its share of crazy neighbors. I've never seen or heard of anything in my entire life, like I observed and experienced in Seattle. I grew up in a place where neighbors all got along, were friendly with each other, socialized with each other, and even helped each other out, like sweeping the elderly neighbor's sidewalk weekly, just to be nice. Seattle was a huge shock.

[elkotronics]

I grew up in Edmonds and in the late 90's I believe, the most sickening driving story ever from the Seattle area hit the news. This couple was driving along that freeway that runs from I-5 east to Puyallup, just driving along minding their own business. Some moron driving alongside them shot this lady's husband. The deceased was driving their car. Killed him, too. I just looked at our TV in total disbelief.


Why? Seattle isn't always like that, but, for who knows what reason (s) it can get really nutty driving in Seattle. One of the worst spots is driving on the Freeway Bridge southbound on I-5. You've got people getting on I-5 from one of the floating bridges wanting ta get off on Mercer Ave. Stressful stretch right dere!

[Seattle4321]

I've noticed lots of "stupid" people here. Left name people going 50, huge semi trucks in fast lane, driving on shoulders, not knowing police and fire trucks are behind him, lights green but someone doesn't go and no one will honk, and lastly people wanting to go left but in the left lane stop and put there blinker on and make everyone behind them stop so they can get over while the light is green. Oh and I forgot the exits on the freeway, there's the white shoulder and they drive threw it to get to their exit. Like did you not see that the exit was coming up 3 miles ago? I see lots of pot smokers that drive and text. Its ridiculous. I've noticed all these people have something in common.... No effence but they usually have Obama stickers... Or are immigrants...

[PollyGlott]

Originally Posted by Seattle4321

I've noticed lots of "stupid" people here. Left name people going 50, huge semi trucks in fast lane, driving on shoulders, not knowing police and fire trucks are behind him, lights green but someone doesn't go and no one will honk, and lastly people wanting to go left but in the left lane stop and put there blinker on and make everyone behind them stop so they can get over while the light is green. Oh and I forgot the exits on the freeway, there's the white shoulder and they drive threw it to get to their exit. Like did you not see that the exit was coming up 3 miles ago? I see lots of pot smokers that drive and text. Its ridiculous. I've noticed all these people have something in common.... No effence but they usually have Obama stickers... Or are immigrants...

As both an Obama supporter AND an immigrant, I do not take "effence" to your ridiculous statement - that all bad drivers just happen to be people whose viewpoint or whose background you don't like.

[cmswazey]

Also- how can one know the other driver's a pot smoker?

[Seattle4321]

I smell the pot of the freeway! And I'm not saying all immigrants or all people that support Obama are oblivious but all the people that seem to do the things I mentioned seem to have stickers on the car or are an immigrant! That's just what I notice someone tell me why? And I didn't say I don't like immigrants OR Obama supporters! And I'm not saying all bad drivers are those people! But most of the people that are seem to fit one of those categories.

[Cinema Cat]

Originally Posted by Tac-Sea

Threaten to revoke my sewer easement, that apparently according to him, runs just a few feet under his property to the street, just at the edge of the street.

He might not have the right to revoke your sewer easement. If you're really concerned about it, hire a real estate attorney to do some research. Or you can try it yourself. You'd need to research both the law, and the relevant title deeds (your own and your neighbor's), and the HOA rules if there is one.

If you really want to annoy him, have your attorney write him a letter warning him not to use your driveway, and that he cannot revoke the easement.