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Seattle itself is OK for a place to work, but I wouldn't live there. Beautiful City being ruined by the politicians, especially the school district. In the course of my work I have become aware of the number of homeless, which is tolerated, in fact the police in eastside cities have very few because they
drop them off in Seattle. Another negative is the traffic, lots of growth in the last 25 years with no attention to new roads or mass transit for them.
The eastside, on the other side is one of the best places to live, despite the clouds and rain. You really need that rain if you want to see green all year, and the short summer makes the rest of the year worth it, rarely over 85 and cools off at night.
I'm not sure what drugs you're on, but can you share? Traffic in Seattle isn't horrible at all. The Eastside? Forget about it. Those bridges can be backed up forever and try driving up 405 almost any time in the morning lunch or afternoon. It's horrible. To boot, you have to drive everywhere.
My cat sits in front of my house. I can walk to a lake, 3 grocery stores, probably 15 restaurants, 5 coffee shops, a few clothing stores, sports fields and a bunch of other things that I can't even think of.
FYI, the homeless were camped out on Mercer Island for a long time.
I'm not sure what drugs you're on, but can you share? Traffic in Seattle isn't horrible at all. The Eastside? Forget about it. Those bridges can be backed up forever and try driving up 405 almost any time in the morning lunch or afternoon. It's horrible. To boot, you have to drive everywhere.
My cat sits in front of my house. I can walk to a lake, 3 grocery stores, probably 15 restaurants, 5 coffee shops, a few clothing stores, sports fields and a bunch of other things that I can't even think of.
FYI, the homeless were camped out on Mercer Island for a long time.
Yeah, those constant backlogs I see on Denny Way, South I-5 from Northgate on down, North I-5 from the West Seattle Bridge to downtown, etc. are clearly figments of my imagination.
You are aware that Seattle has been consistently rated one of the top 5 worst traffic cities in the entire country for like 12 years running, aren't you? But yeah, that doesn't mean it's bad. Never that.
As to the rest of your stuff? You may be able to walk to a lake...I can literally throw my remote control out of the window in the room I'm in right now and have it hit water. I could walk to a grocery store if I wanted to, but why on earth would I want to do something stupid like that? How would I get all my groceries back home? And how hard is it to "drive"? Really? You sit in a chair, tap your feet here and there, and occasionally turn a wheel. You make it sound like you're lifting a block up a pyramid. And know how long it takes me to get from Mercer Island to Bellevue via that "dreaded" 405? Me either, because it's such a short timeframe I have never bothered to time it. I know I can make it to Fry's in under 10 minutes, and that's all I really care about. Meanwhile, it'll take you hours as you try to navigate bus after bus.
And, as an added bonus, I have to put up with precisely none of the ridiculous policies that Seattle throws onto its people, same with the noise. Oh, and I have this thing called a "yard". It's quite wonderful. And no, that little stripper landing strip you have out in front of your...whatever type of dwelling you are in over there...doesn't count. Methinks all that coffee you stop for 5 times between your house and the grocery store each way has clouded your objectivity.
Location: East of Seattle since 1992, 615' Elevation, Zone 8b - originally from SF Bay Area
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My commute from Sammamish (Eastside) to the Seattle waterfront and back is always at or about the speed limit between my house and the stadium area at the end of I90, after that the congestion in Seattle takes almost as long for the last 3 miles as the rest of the trip. If I had to go on 405 between Renton and anything north of there I'd move, that is pretty bad most of the day, but there are plenty of places on the eastside to live without going through there. Oh, and I too can walk to a major grocery store, Tully's and 2 Starbucks, several good restaurants, a huge park and
two lakes. When speaking of the homeless the organized camp doesn't count, that could end up moving any place that might welcome them for a while. I'm talking about the ones that live under an overpass or on the sidewalk and sometimes harass people.
I'm not sure what drugs you're on, but can you share? Traffic in Seattle isn't horrible at all. The Eastside? Forget about it. Those bridges can be backed up forever and try driving up 405 almost any time in the morning lunch or afternoon. It's horrible. To boot, you have to drive everywhere.
My cat sits in front of my house. I can walk to a lake, 3 grocery stores, probably 15 restaurants, 5 coffee shops, a few clothing stores, sports fields and a bunch of other things that I can't even think of.
FYI, the homeless were camped out on Mercer Island for a long time.
Example of "Seattle vs. The Eastside" ... because life anywhere else NOT in Seattle just can't be as good.
I don't buy these arguments that all the spending around here goes for liberal causes or that conservatives are the anti-tax, small government party. Whenever I talk politics with conservative family members & cowokers (and I even have a few conservative friends) they get real quiet when you talk about wanting to cut the miltary, police, surveillance state, prisons, corporate welfare, highways, parking subsidies, mortgage subsidies, subsidizing sports teams and stadiums...and God forbid if you talk about cutting their Medicare or Social Security.
From my centrist point of view (I'm probably a bit right-wing in terms of Seattle), conservative spending is just as large and out-of-control as liberal spending.
The bicyclists around here are quite infuriating, they and their Portland brethren are some kind of cult. It does not make logical sense to put a vehicle that usually cannot even do half the prevailing speed of car traffic on the same roads, and I don't get the mindset where you'd voluntarily ride a bike on a busy arterial or street. Frustrating enough when I get behind one while I'm driving, worse when I'm on a bus and they're holding up a 100+ people. There's a reason why they're banned from interstates and many highways. I would extend that to arterials. Though the more liberal side of me would support building out extensive bicycle-specific infrastructure over time.
Natives tend to exaggerate how bad and interesting the weather is. It's drizzly and cloudy, big whoop. It also rarely gets hot, rarely gets cold, there's basically no snow, and we have great summers.
Some Seattle schools really are terrible--shockingly so, despite all the money that goes into them. That's one thing I will readily concede to the east side--you could plop your kid into a random east side school and likely be pleased with it. In Seattle, you've gotta be choosy about where you live.
I don't buy these arguments that all the spending around here goes for liberal causes or that conservatives are the anti-tax, small government party. Whenever I talk politics with conservative family members & cowokers (and I even have a few conservative friends) they get real quiet when you talk about wanting to cut the miltary, police, surveillance state, prisons, corporate welfare, highways, parking subsidies, mortgage subsidies, subsidizing sports teams and stadiums...and God forbid if you talk about cutting their Medicare or Social Security.
From my centrist point of view (I'm probably a bit right-wing in terms of Seattle), conservative spending is just as large and out-of-control as liberal spending.
That isn't really the issue here though. I could bring up a couple points about some of spending practices that Mayor Schwinn that is just bizarre. He complains about how we don't have enough money, but has no problem spending $15K per intersection to redefine bike lanes and bike boxes. His push for $4 street parking as one of the solution to fixing the budget. Not to mention of the Mayor's horrid behavior about the whole MOHI deal.
Yeah, those constant backlogs I see on Denny Way, South I-5 from Northgate on down, North I-5 from the West Seattle Bridge to downtown, etc. are clearly figments of my imagination.
You are aware that Seattle has been consistently rated one of the top 5 worst traffic cities in the entire country for like 12 years running, aren't you? But yeah, that doesn't mean it's bad. Never that.
As to the rest of your stuff? You may be able to walk to a lake...I can literally throw my remote control out of the window in the room I'm in right now and have it hit water. I could walk to a grocery store if I wanted to, but why on earth would I want to do something stupid like that? How would I get all my groceries back home? And how hard is it to "drive"? Really? You sit in a chair, tap your feet here and there, and occasionally turn a wheel. You make it sound like you're lifting a block up a pyramid. And know how long it takes me to get from Mercer Island to Bellevue via that "dreaded" 405? Me either, because it's such a short timeframe I have never bothered to time it. I know I can make it to Fry's in under 10 minutes, and that's all I really care about. Meanwhile, it'll take you hours as you try to navigate bus after bus.
And, as an added bonus, I have to put up with precisely none of the ridiculous policies that Seattle throws onto its people, same with the noise. Oh, and I have this thing called a "yard". It's quite wonderful. And no, that little stripper landing strip you have out in front of your...whatever type of dwelling you are in over there...doesn't count. Methinks all that coffee you stop for 5 times between your house and the grocery store each way has clouded your objectivity.
Not everybody wants a yard...why is that so difficult to understand?
So there you have it OP. There is an Eastside vs. Seattle battle I wasn't really aware of. I live on the Eastside but think that Seattle is one of the most beautiful and clean cities in the country bar none. We will always have homeless because of the somewhat moderate weather. CA has far far more.
I'm all for bicycles, less pollution and healthier lifestyles.
Chicago pizza has a lot of carbs, stick to salmon which you can get reasonably priced at Costco
No one under the age of 40 uses the word hippie
Seattle and Portland are nothing alike and saying we will be like Portland in twenty years won't make it so. The cities have very different personalities.
Recycling is good, buses are good, the traffic is bad (we need more bicycles, heh heh).
I always thought it would be fun to ride a Vespa like an old Italian movie.
I'm all for bicycles, less pollution and healthier lifestyles.
Nobody has a problem with them. What a lot of us have a problem with are people trying to shove those lifestyles down our throats.
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Chicago pizza has a lot of carbs, stick to salmon which you can get reasonably priced at Costco
I never understand people like you who do this. That's like me saying "I think I'll go get a German sportscar" and you responding "naw, get a bicycle!" The two aren't even remotely the same. I'm sure someone who enjoys a Chicago style pizza (I amongst them - see below), can also enjoy a good salmon. Doesn't mean that if I crave pizza one night, I should go out and get FISH.
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No one under the age of 40 uses the word hippie
I'm well under 40, and I use it all the time - as does just about everyone I know. I mean really, those extreme lefty types are essentially modern day hippies. Instead of VW buses, they ride around on bicycles and Prius's (random aside: All you hippies rejoice: VW is coming out with an electric powered VW bus that has no top end speed or range that you can all flock to). Instead of love festivals, they have Hempfest. Instead of marches for big issues, they grab signs and start screaming like shrill harpies for causes like legalizing weed or railing against a bank. They still douse themselves in patchouli oil just like the 60's, they still have lousy bathing habits, and they still irritate anyone with sensibility.
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Seattle and Portland are nothing alike and saying we will be like Portland in twenty years won't make it so. The cities have very different personalities.
True, they are nothing alike, and I and many others hope to KEEP it that way, in spite of extreme hippies trying to make it so.
On the issue of Chicago pizza: You can have Gino's deep dish Chicago pizza shipped to you here in Seattle. Sure, it costs a pretty penny. But let's be honest: Since Seattle can't offer up a dish anything like it, sometimes it's worth it to pay the premium. I mean hell, if I'm willing to spend hundreds of dollars on a meal at Canlis, what's the big deal with plopping down 70 bucks for 2 awesome pizzas (24 and change for each of the pies, 20 dollars for shipping)?
The pizza thing was a JOKE. I don't care if you eat pizza all day and night.
No one has ever called me a hippie, quite the opposite. I just don't wear my politics on my sleeve at work. I work in a corporate tech environment between Seattle and NorCal and dress very corporate.
I have never smoked pot (or cigarettes) or any other drug. I drive a 4Runner and live on the Eastside. And I vote blue. See how wrong your cliches are?
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