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"Seattle? It rains nine months out of the year in Seattle."-David Hyde Pierce, Sleepless in Seattle
Seattle weather, an engineer's perspective - Okay, let's start off by asking a simple question. If you simply had to have rain, what kind of rain would it be? I mean would you prefer the less frequent thunderstorms or never ending cloudiness and drizzle? I have found that most people vote for the former for a couple of reasons. They find that thunderstorms are kind of relaxing, and they would rather have more sunny days.
By now you should know that I not only live in Seattle but also lived in Miami for a number of years. [Where's that CD again?] Here are the numbers from Microsoft Encarta 98:
| City | Seattle, WA | Miami, FL |
| Annual Precipitation Average | 36 inches | 60 inches |
| Days with Precipitation | 153 | 131 |
| Clear Days | 71 | 76 |
So strictly by the numbers, Seattle has less rainfall than Miami, but they also have slightly less clear days. So in Seattle, you get less rain across more rainy days; in Miami, well …"When it rains it pours". Now, let's extrapolate that from an day by day model to an hour by hour model (Did I mention that I was an engineer?). That would imply that during the course of a rainy day in Seattle, it generally stays rainy or cloudy. In Miami, you would typically have some monstrous biblical caliber thunderstorms and then it would clear up and be sunny. Very odd.
I would also be interested in seeing highs and lows for lumens (measures intensity of light), I'd be willing to bet that Miami has consistently higher numbers on cloudy and rainy days, but that's just speculation. Then again, you may actually enjoy the cloudy days and the incessant drizzle; in that case, move to Seattle because there's plenty of it.
This dragon's perspective on the weather - Remember those days when you were a kid when one of your brother, sister, or friend turned the garden hose on you. It would be during a summer day maybe you would be doing some work outside (maybe washing the car). You would all end up soaking wet, but it would be warm enough so that you would not be shivering from the cold.… Or you would be in the pool or at the beach and it would be about low to mid 80's, and it didn't really matter whether or not it was raining.… Or maybe you and your friends had this nutty tradition of throwing a person into the school fountain on their birthday, and inevitably all of you would wind up in the fountain. Those are some of the fondest memories I have. Okay, I have just described the typical rainy day in Florida, pretty much in any season. Now don't get me wrong, Seattle occasionally gets weather like that during the summer; both weeks are absolutely wonderful. In my experience, most folks that moved to Seattle from a sunny place eventually come to admit that inevitably the lack of sunshine adversely affects their mood.
I've had a friend trying to argue the "change of seasons" angle. You know the one that goes, "the bad weather makes you appreciate the good weather". Okay, did that not make sense to the rest of you either? So in other words, I should endure the pain so I can fully enjoy the times when I'm not in pain. I don't see him scheduling his teeth to be drilled from for six consecutive months so he could enjoy the six remaining months. [Hold the anesthetic, please. I want to really enjoy April through September].
Note: I do have to apologize about the dentist remarks. My dentist happens to be exceptional and absolutely painless. She even has these cool TV glasses with VCR's so that you can watch movies while you're on the chair. She once asked me what I wanted to watch; naturally, I asked for Marathon Man, which is the movie with Dustin Hoffman on the dentist chair and Laurence Olivier drilling into him asking, "Is it safe?" Although she didn't seem particularly amused, she said that she would get it if I really wanted it. She will be one of the things that I'll miss about Seattle if or when I leave. If you're looking for an excellent dentist in the Seattle area, send me mail for info.The one thing in Seattle's favor is that it rates better in the "wet shoe" metric than Miami. Think about how often you have to walk around with wet shoes and how miserable that feels. Due to the heavier rain over fewer days, this happens quite frequently in Miami. I distinctly remember switching between two different pairs of shoes because the other pair was drying. However, it is still a small price to pay for the sunshine.
Radical environmentalist -Okay, it's not that I'm against saving the environment. Now, technically, I used to cheer, "Pave the World!", but no longer. I mean someday I hope to be a father and I want this planet to be around for my kids. However, I think there is a fine line to everything. Also, here it seems like Seattle folk are less concerned with the actual environment than conforming to one common ideal.
Take the whole spotted owl argument. People argued that we should stop logging because it would affect the spotted owl population, which is endangered. There were even some folks who chained themselves to trees. To me it seems kind of silly, doesn't a chainsaw cut through human flesh much easier than wood? This is what I'm seeing, present the logger with two choices. First, don't cut down the tree and lose my job. Second, cut down the tree and get rid of the whiner that chained himself/herself to the tree. Hmm… Not a real tough one for me. Do take note however, that at least logging is a business that provides goods for just about everyone. So I'll assume that you're really that devoted to this cause.
There's also the issue with the geese. I forget precisely which species, but they're actually protected, which is notch less urgent than endangered. Their population was actually dropping, but it certainly didn't seem like it in the Seattle area. These geese also had a nasty habit of… well, defecating wherever they felt like. To be honest, it was quite the mess. Now, these very same Seattle residents that opposed logging are now supporting the controlling of the geese population. They went as far as covering the eggs with some substance that prevents them from hatching and prevents geese from laying new eggs. What gives? We can slow down the logging and paper industry for the spotted owl, but we cannot endure a little mess for the geese. The only saving argument that I can see is the fact that one is endangered while the other is protected, and that argument is incredibly thin. For those of you who support this mindset be sure that you state that when you debate the issue, so your opponents can argue to both faces. Can we say hypocrite?
That's just one argument, here are other examples:
- In one nearby city, they have also passed laws that regulate the percentage of carpool spots private businesses must adhere to for employees.
- In some surrounding areas, you can be fined for throwing away aluminum.
- The following are related observations from work:
- I personally was once criticized for not recycling a (meaning one) Post-it note.
- There was actually a discussion in our weekly newsletter about our not being environment conscious because we switched to printing the newsletter on 20% post-consumer paper instead of 100%.
- There was a low hanging branch obstructing a stop sign, and there was debate as to whether or not to trim it.
- We switched to more environmentally friendly brown non-bleached paper napkins.
Naiveté - Life is harsh. Picture being a parent; think about all the adversities to which your kids may get exposed. Just think about the drugs, fights, sexism, racism, peer pressure, and prejudice that exist out there. As a parent you can take different approaches. You can try to shield and protect your children from it, or you can try to educate them.
Right about the time I turned ten, I moved from Puerto Rico to Florida. I remember hating the fact that I came from Puerto Rico. There wasn't anything wrong with it per se; I hated it because it failed to educate me. It didn't teach me about the harsh realities of life. I endured name-calling, fights, being spat on, and it probably wouldn't have been as bad if I somehow knew it was coming. In the end, I turned out a better, stronger person for it. It kind of reminds me of the movie Mr. Destiny. If you haven't seen it, rent it; it's worth watching. During those days, I was very naive, but I suppose I grew up quickly.
That's probably the best way to describe Seattle, the embodiment of naiveté. Here in Seattle, speeding motorist are criminals. Here in Seattle, drivers who park their convertibles with the top down are actually surprised when their valuables are stolen. In Miami, I have friends who kicked themselves for leaving a valuable in plain sight in a locked car with the alarm on in a well-lit parking lot.
Seattle was the most honest city when it came to returning wallets. I have lost my wallet at least once; I honestly didn't expect it returned. I figured that if I'm stupid enough to lose my wallet, I don't deserve to get it back (certainly not with the cash, call it a "finder's fee"). Isn't the word naive just the polite word for sucker? I have a friend who believes that "it is immoral to let suckers keep their money."
I remember reading an article in Seattle magazine a few years ago. [Now where did I put that magazine?] Oh yes, here it is, the March 1995 issue. They were interviewing a local writer, Sherman Alexie, who had recently moved from Spokane, WA. Here are some things he says about Seattle:
"Seattle is quite self-impressed… Spokane doesn't pretend to be multicultural. Seattle pretends to be this huge, multicultural city, but it's really not.… Mostly, it's a liberal enclave of middle-class white people who can afford to pick and choose what other cultures they want to dabble in.… [In Spokane] conservatives may not like you because you're brown or a woman or whatever, in Seattle the liberals pretend that everyone is the same. Here, people have a romanticized view of what it's like to be an Indian -- in Spokane, they know how shitty it can be."I completely agree. Seattle folk are delusional. If you imagine Seattle as the parent to its residents, then it is neither the parent who tries to protect nor the parent who tries to educate. It is the parent who is completely oblivious, which is the worst of all.
- Sherman Alexie
February 7, 1998