"real" rain in Seattle? (Tacoma, Everett: how much, live, moving to)

[eskercurve]

During the past couple days I've been driving through Tacoma and the Eastside and ... it's been rainy, as usual, but it was coming down in buckets! I thought it only drizzled in the Pac NW? Does the Eastside / south of Seattle get "normal" rain?

Not that I mind it. I actually miss real rain that is the size of dimes, and lightning.

[pw72]

They say the rain is gentle in Western Washington. But the fact of the matter is that occasionally there are heavy downpours, even thunderstorms! I believe this can happen almost any month of the year. But, still, real Seattleites don't carry umbrellas!

[Heiwos]

A friend of mine & I have lived here 20+ years. Seems to both of us that the weather has changed during that time, with more downpours and variability in general. Nothing to back that up though. Seems lightning is more common too, like it's tripled to 3 bolts annually.

[SPOKENFOR]

The hardest rains I saw there were around the Everett area, but did see it one night where I lived. It only lasted for maybe a good minute and stopped. I was like, 'wow, is this a hard rain coming down'..rare, except north near Everett from what I have seen coming through there.

[chrisstie]

I can't wait to get to Seattle. I'm in Orlando and have been hit by lightning - my dad has been hit more than once! Where it only strikes once in a blue moon is FINE by me I'll take all the rain in exchange for that!

[LMB]

Chrisstie, I lived in Orlando for nearly 15 years before moving to the Seattle area in 2007. I am from the midwest, famous for its intense storms, but I have never seen more torrential rain than in Orlando. It's incredible really, just how much water can fall out of the sky all at once. Not to mention that Central Florida is also considered the lightning capital of the US. Almost everyone there can name at least one person they know who has been struck by lightning. I've only heard thunder once since moving here, and haven't seen lightning at all. It's kind of funny when rainfall is mentioned here on the weather forecast as being heavy. Just a matter of perspective. :-)

I'm sure you'll do fine here with the weather.

Lynn

[texastrigirl]

I called my husband the other day and told him we were getting "real rain" on the Eastside. It was different enough from normal Seattle rain that I noticed it. It was the "I HAVE to have an umbrella rain" and not the "put up my hood and carry on rain". More often than not it seems like a lighter rain that you can't really see it's raining until you are out in it. Of course I came from Texas and it's either torrential or not at all there so I rather enjoy it when it happens like that here.

[mayfair]

It does mostly drizzle, but downpours happen. It's a myth that Seattle has just gentle drizzle...we have some wild and extreme storms. It's unusual to get them in May, though.

People often say, "this is an unusual year" no matter what the weather is! There are no two years the same.