Flightster

Seattle: Bipolar City of America

• by Andi Norris
• on August 20th, 2010
• 4 Comments

Whatever you may be for in a city, it’s in Seattle. If you can find it.

Ask any Seattelite what type of city they live in and chances are the answer isn’t ‘a big one.’ Seattle actually ranks 23 as a city by population in the US. It’s about half the size of San Francisco with less than half the amount of people per square mile. There are few cities in the US that feel so like small towns with high-rise buildings bursting out their center.

The people here are naturally protective of the gem they claim. You can look, but you can’t stay. Not without an investment.

The summers in Seattle are perfect. The sun is bright and shining. The sky is clear, bright blue. Puget Sound glitters as sailboats and cruise ships glide across. The temperature is warm, but not scalding. The people soak up the day on bike rides and hikes and trips to Pike Place Market. Downtown is full of excited tourists and enthusiastic buskers. The customer service is second to none.

Come to Seattle any time from June to September and you may not leave! Stay until the gray sets in for the remainder of the year, and you might just encounter one of the strangest shifts a city can make as a whole: The Seattle Freeze, a city wide mood swing.

Midway through October, the smokers start to dot the sidewalks, seeming to come out of hiding. Though perhaps there were there all along and are only noticeable now because there they are the only one’s outside. The cold isn’t terribly extreme. The rain doesn’t pour down on you like the rumors insist, it’s more of a constant spitting mist from the awnings. People stop returning phone calls. Plans are consistently canceled. Though no one is outright mean, the passive aggression is so rich it’s no wonder people are impressed when newbies stick around for a second winter.

It’s easy to attribute such a massive state of depression to drastically reduced Vitamin D levels and Seasonal Affective Disorder, but there’s something more to it than that. What makes Seattle a uniquely beautiful place isn’t just the scenery, it’s the people who live there. They are some of the most eclectic individuals, hearty, head-strong, creative, health and eco-conscious. Just look at the skyline, between the Space Needle and the giant class library lies a slew of innovative modern architectural wonders snuggled in next to early 20th century classical brick office and apartment buildings.

As the weather chills and the leaves begin to turn, the almost imperceivable groups in the city start to solidify. There are the fitness enthusiasts who retreat to their parcour gyms and yoga studios until the weather is cold enough to head to the mountains for skiing. There are the buskers who start playing more indoor gigs as they get them and jamming with their neighbors in the suburbs rather than venturing out into the tourist forsaken Market. There are the circus performers (this is a group here) who slip quickly between their Georgetown hideout and their performances spaces. And of course there are the Microsofties and the Boeing employees who likely begin their commute long before the sun comes up in the winter and don’t return home until long after it’s set (it’s a gap from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. some days). Capitol Hill is crawling with proud hipsters (that area is ranked 5th in the nation for number of hipster residents).

Breaking into one of these groups when you’re new to the city can be a daunting endeavor in the winter. The only place to snag a conversation with someone might be when they venture out to one of the city’s thousands of fantastic happy hours. Most often than not, the response you will receive is one of awkward rejection. It isn’t you. The groups are in seclusion and don’t you know how this works?

Psychologists, doctors, and historians have taken stabs at explaining this phenomenon through the eyes of their individuals fields. Don’t be discouraged from moving here. There is a group to fascinate and inspire any type of person. The experience of getting to know the people is rich with rejection, but well worth the persistence it takes.

Andi Norris

Andi Norris is the mastermind behind Dezabulous, a design and branding focused studio based out of Seattle. She moonlights as head instigator on her blog Instigationology, where she takes on a new career each month to challenge other bloggers at their own game. In her copious free time, she flits around the US on ambitious road trip adventures in search of undiscovered American treasures. Follow her day to day doings in TMI detail over on Twitter as @instigatingandi.