i can't stop this story

So, I’ve been working on this post on-and-off, here-and-there since June! I’m still not quite finished, but I’ve decided to break it into several smaller posts (instead of one monster post). So, June. June. It was a big month, signifying many anniversaries and milestones. 

+6/6/11 was our one year anniversary as a married couple
+6/18/11 marked our first full year as Seattle residents
+6/23/11 was my one year anniversary as a full-time employee at my job

I remember pulling into Seattle in June 2010; Devin and I had been married for shy two weeks, we’d spent 4 full days on the road - traveling through some of the most beautiful countryside I’ve ever seen (I’m taking to you, Utah & Wyoming). We were crammed into the cab of a truck with our two 60 lb. dogs and everything we owned, praying that the money we’d received from our wedding guests would buy us enough gas to land in Seattle (it did, THANK YOU ALL!). 

And after all that driving, we finally made it. We have a 23 second clip filed away - of the day we arrived in Seattle, put the keys in the door of our apartment for the first time. We’d rented it sight unseen, only viewing website photos and doing many, many “street views” on Google Maps. It was our first glimpse into our new lives as Seattleites. About 5 minutes after the video was taken, I was in tears, calling my mom and telling her I was almost 100% sure our apartment was leaning. Turns out, it is leaning because we’re on a mega-hill, but once our stuff was unpacked, it did start feeling like home.

You can watch that video clip here.

In the last year, we’ve learned a lot about this city, this city we love very much. We’ve also observed some differences between Seattle and Dallas / Texas - socially, culturally and otherwise. I thought it’d be fun to recap some of those.

So, here we go — Enjoy!

#1) Hospitality / “Seattle Freeze”
Sweet, sweet Southern Hospitality. It’s true that Texans are more accommodating, helpful and are, in general, more welcoming than people in Seattle. In Texas, it’s not uncommon to say hi or strike up a conversation with a stranger. After 5 minutes, it’s not uncommon for that ‘stranger’ to become a ‘friend’. And after 10 minutes, shoot, you’ve exchanged life stories.

Although most Seattleites are polite, it seems to be more on their terms. If it works for them, if it’s something they’d like to do … If not, you’ll know pretty quick.

Devin and I do happen across the “Seattle Freeze” on occasion- someone who doesn’t smile back, acknowledge that you’ve said hello or care to take notice of another human being in their general vicinity. It’s a phenomenon that Urban Dictionary defines as “a phrase that describes a local public consensus that states the city of Seattle and/or its outlying suburbs are generally not friendly, introverted, socially aloof, clickish or strictly divided through its social classes, thus making the city/area difficult to make social connections in on all levels”. Is it real? Fake? Imagined? The Seattle Freeze debate was just talked about this week on the SeattlePI’s “Big Seattle” blog: The Seattle Freeze: Real or all in your head?

Texans are perhaps overly nice, until you give them a reason not to be. Then they’ll put a boot in yer ass. Some (not all) Seattlelites, especially at the beginning, can be a tad stand-offish and a bit hesitant to let anyone else into their social circle. They make you work for their good graces.

BOTTOM LINE: We’ve made some incredible friends in Seattle, and overall, people here are kind. People generally become MORE friendly the longer you know them. Texans aren’t as protective of their social circles and are usually eager to meet and get to know new people. That’s kinda part of what Texans are known for, it’s our thing. ;) And I think that’s really neat.