How true is seattlesucks.com (Olympia: transplants, rent, neighborhoods)

[mark456]

Hi,

I was interested in moving to Seattle. I went there in Sept. - weather was beautiful (No rain in the summer), clean, people were the friendliest I've ever met. But visiting and living in a city are 2 different things. Could anyone give their insights as to the pros/cons of living in seattle? How friendly are the people?

Seattle Shmeng :: The Mystery of Why Seattle Sucks
seattlesucks
UnSpun by Amazon: Top Reasons Why Seattle Sucks

Please comment on the validity of Websites (such as the ones above) depicting Seattle as:
1. unfriendly - people friendly on the outside, but passive-agressive on the inside.
- people very polite, but hard to get close to, hard to make friends

2. depressing - grey weather makes everyone sad, and not want to socialize

3. introverted - people don't go out much, would much rather stay home

4. quiet city - not much of a nightlife, not many things to do at night, b/c everything shuts down by 1 am

5. Economically not that great - many businesses moved away from the city, hard times economically

I'm wondering whether the websites (above) are just an anomoly or is this the general consensus on how seattle truly is?

[NCWmark]

First, I don't think Seattle Sucks, so there's that. It's not my cup of tea, but I'm more of a small town boy anyway. I've lived in enough places that I've learned there are a certain amount of people in every town/city that view their surroundings with a negative perspective. I think every town has negatives and positives and life is a lot better if you focus on the positives.

That being said, it's hard to just generally say that one city is good or bad as we all have different tastes.

One person may find gray skies and rainy weather depressing, while another may find beauty in the storms rolling in off of Puget Sound.

A person with employable skills in a regions dominant industries may find that region to be thriving economically, someone who lacks those skills would find the economy depressed.

Way too many variables to make a general statement on whether it's a good or bad place, the only true measure is to find out what features you find good in a place to live and see if Seattle matches up to them.

Personally, I've always found Seattle to be thriving and filled with things to do... but I've never lived there, just visited.

Hope this helps
Mark

[scirocco22]

We've had numerous discussions on threads pertaining to these subjects on this forum in the past.

We can rejuvenate discussings these things again but please keep on topic and away from personal attacks.

Thanks.

[noplacelikeWA]

Originally Posted by mark456

Please comment on the validity of Websites (such as the ones above) depicting Seattle as:
1. unfriendly - people friendly on the outside, but passive-agressive on the inside.
- people very polite, but hard to get close to, hard to make friends

2. depressing - grey weather makes everyone sad, and not want to socialize

3. introverted - people don't go out much, would much rather stay home

4. quiet city - not much of a nightlife, not many things to do at night, b/c everything shuts down by 1 am

5. Economically not that great - many businesses moved away from the city, hard times economically

I'm wondering whether the websites (above) are just an anomoly or is this the general consensus on how seattle truly is?

Seattle does NOT suck. There is some truth in some of the ideas you listed but really overall its more about what you personally are looking for in a city.

1. Friendliness is relative to whether or not you are a friendly person. If you want to meet people you have to get out there and do it no matter where you live. Be aggressive and be brave, making friends as an adult is not that same as when we were kids at the playground.

2. Seasonal Affective Disorder is real and many people stuggle with it in the Seattle area. It may or may not affect you and either way it is treatable. It does not RAIN every day but it is more dominantly overcast and grey through out the year. The winters do seem longer and the days will get pretty short (under 10hrs of day light) so it is good to go outside for at least 15 minutes a day even if it is cold and cloudy or rainy.

3. Outgoing people do live in the area as well as the introverted. My DH is the introvert and I am the outgoing one. The weather will keep some people in and others don't mind it and go out anyway. We now live where it is sunny and above 75 degrees for 300 days a year and I could say that everyone here is introverted because they never go outdoors staying indoors with the A/C.

4. I would never have thought of Seattle as having a quiet night life. Pioneer Square is always hopping and both Capital Hill and the U-District are as well. Plenty of concerts, hole in walls to hang out in, and while "last call" may be at 1am the city does not tuck itself into bed at 1am.

5. Overall economically the city is thriving, however small businesses do struggle some because there is no state income tax and the state and cities make up for it by taxing businesses. The density of the city is such that some business have had to set-up shop on the eastside where there is room for growth and people who commute to work but live outside the city do their shopping and dining in their own neighborhoods. Downtown is packed with dining, retail shopping, market shopping, art, its all there.

Bottom line...Seattle does NOT suck, but it is expensive.

[nwthebest]

Ive got mixed feelings about Seattle. It is a great place to be if your raising a family. If not, then forget about it. I just moved back from Inglewood, CA after a long hiatus, and Seattle's faults are all of the sudden glaring. First off, the people are uptight and unfriendly. At least some are. Its much different than LA, at least. Last call is more around the 1:30-1:45 mark, but still... The party areas, Capitol Hill (Broadway, Pike/Pine), Freemont, U-District are all tame (but still fun... Capitol Hill is really gay though...). Weather sucks for most of the year BUT, and it's a big one, the summers are the BEST in the country.

I grew up in the central district and lived in south seattle most my life, and I love those areas more than anything in the world, but those arent places you really visit when you come to Seattle. There, people are friendlier, life is slower, a bit more crime, but still family friendly. Youll find the cheaper stuff there.

There a are pluses though. Seattle just looks good. Its a very green, clean city, and it's getting bigger, and maybe someday soon it'll suck a little less.
Until then though, id say stay put.

[aggies07]

I think one of the common misconceptions is that it rains all the time in the pacific northwest. I have family there and they informed me that it isn't really that bad. There are rainier places in the USA, like Miami, Mobile Alabama and Beaumont TX just to name a few. I wouldn't mind living there, but it is too expensive.

[Katiana]

Originally Posted by aggies07

I think one of the common misconceptions is that it rains all the time in the pacific northwest. I have family there and they informed me that it isn't really that bad. There are rainier places in the USA, like Miami, Mobile Alabama and Beaumont TX just to name a few. I wouldn't mind living there, but it is too expensive.

It may be that the cities you mentioned get more rain than Seattle. But I looked up the stats for Seattle and Beaumont, TX right here on city-data, and I found that Seattle has more days of rain, and far more clouds and far less sunshine than Beaumont. You can check out the other places for yourself. Seattlites are always quoting such statistics, but it is a dreary, drizzly place. Fine if you like that.

[scirocco22]

Right, pittnurse. I can't remember where we were talking about it but it's true, Seattle doesn't get the most rainfall in inches/yr. but it's one of the top for DAYS of rain/yr. If I recall, Olympia takes the honor of the most days of rain per year than any place in the nation.

[NYSooner]

I and my wife moved here about 4 months ago now. We moved from New York city, and have both lived there for over a decade. Before that we are from Pennsylvania and Oklahoma respectively. We have tried very hard to like it here. We both wanted to get out of New York even though it is a great city so that we could build a better life together outside of the intensity of Ny.
We had heard great things about the NW from friends and when she got a job offer out here we decided to move. The people are absolutly frustrating beyond belief. I am actually shocked at the over all extreme laziness and half assness here. The drivers are absolutly horrible and think that there ovezelous courtesy is good driving. THe night life is a joke. Everyone no matter what their age are high schoolish. It is hard to explain, but it is like everone is in highschool. THey are imitative posers, as well as strange folks who have weird 70s Heather Locklier hair, or strange dudes who think they look cool in black dusters and cop shades, or women with fake mohawks(foehawks). The people who wear suits walk about in them awkwardly as if they have never worn one before. You look around a bar or resteraunt and think it looks like a colledge hangout or highschool lunch room and then realize everyone there is in their forties. The way the city is arranged is nightmarish, It is civic design pandemonium. The people of the city were asked what to do about a new tunnel system and an alternative system to fix a current road that is falling apart and might be destroyed by an earthquake. THey voted no on both proposels by an overwhelming margin!
The SOnics basketball team wants to leave because after years of trying the city will not spend a dime to support them, and the prices you pay to live in a dinky little city of under 2 million for housing or rent is insane. It is a city on the way down and down from here is way, way, down. I really tried hard to like it. It's green everywhere I said to myself. I have a back yard and can grill now, I said to myself. My wife and I have stopped pretending just in the past week. It sucks. Most people here know it too.
especially transplants. ALmost all of them would agree I think. We do not want to raise children here for fear they will turn out lazy uneducated and fake. I am not kidding it really worries us. I am sorry if I sound nasty and please excuse my grammer. I just wanted to type this off for you and let you know not to listen to these other people. If they have just visited or
are from here pay absolutley no attention, trust me. It is hard to explain and I am ranting I agree, but trust me.

[5chevin5]

Originally Posted by NYSooner

I and my wife moved here about 4 months ago now. We moved from New York city, and have both lived there for over a decade. Before that we are from Pennsylvania and Oklahoma respectively. We have tried very hard to like it here. We both wanted to get out of New York even though it is a great city so that we could build a better life together outside of the intensity of Ny.
We had heard great things about the NW from friends and when she got a job offer out here we decided to move. The people are absolutly frustrating beyond belief. I am actually shocked at the over all extreme laziness and half assness here. The drivers are absolutly horrible and think that there ovezelous courtesy is good driving. THe night life is a joke. Everyone no matter what their age are high schoolish. It is hard to explain, but it is like everone is in highschool. THey are imitative posers, as well as strange folks who have weird 70s Heather Locklier hair, or strange dudes who think they look cool in black dusters and cop shades, or women with fake mohawks(foehawks). The people who wear suits walk about in them awkwardly as if they have never worn one before. You look around a bar or resteraunt and think it looks like a colledge hangout or highschool lunch room and then realize everyone there is in their forties. The way the city is arranged is nightmarish, It is civic design pandemonium. The people of the city were asked what to do about a new tunnel system and an alternative system to fix a current road that is falling apart and might be destroyed by an earthquake. THey voted no on both proposels by an overwhelming margin!
The SOnics basketball team wants to leave because after years of trying the city will not spend a dime to support them, and the prices you pay to live in a dinky little city of under 2 million for housing or rent is insane. It is a city on the way down and down from here is way, way, down. I really tried hard to like it. It's green everywhere I said to myself. I have a back yard and can grill now, I said to myself. My wife and I have stopped pretending just in the past week. It sucks. Most people here know it too.
especially transplants. ALmost all of them would agree I think. We do not want to raise children here for fear they will turn out lazy uneducated and fake. I am not kidding it really worries us. I am sorry if I sound nasty and please excuse my grammer. I just wanted to type this off for you and let you know not to listen to these other people. If they have just visited or
are from here pay absolutley no attention, trust me. It is hard to explain and I am ranting I agree, but trust me.

LOL!! I agree that poor little Seattle is no New York...thankfully. But when you rant and rave about how "highschool and uneducated" the people are....you should use spellcheck to make sure you spell "college" correctly...adds more cred...to your statement.