Seattle Transplants: Love It or Hate It? (how much, home)

[DP79]

I want to try to get a new perspective on the whole "Love/Hate Seattle" debate. As many other posters have mentioned in different forums, there seems to be a very clear divide between those who, for whatever reason, fell in love with Seattle when they first moved there, and those who, for whatever reason, have considered it to be a dreary, depressing netherworld since the day they arrived.

I think, after years of debate, I have found a very solid correlation between where people moved from and whether they end up liking Seattle in the long run, but first I have to take a poll: transplants, where did you move from, and do you like Seattle? Mind you, this is limited to more of the "permanent" type of transplants, those that lived a good spell elsewhere beforehand and have spent a decent amount of time in Seattle, not those who get up and move every 2 years.

So please give me your feedback, and we may not only a) be able to figure out why some love Seattle and some hate it, but b) be able to give others who are thinking of moving there a very good indication of what their experience will be like.

Thanks!

[flyingsaucermom]

So what's your hypothesis? Is it that Southerners like the South and that Midwesterners like the West?

I've been here for nearly two years: I love it. I spent five years in the midwest with mixed results (loved WI, hated MI) and I spent 20 years in Texas (where I grew up and where my longtime friends are). I *might* consider going back to Texas if my husband died or something strange and terrible like that.... otherwise I want to live the rest of my life HERE. I'm also a socially liberal person, attracted to intellectuals, doesn't tolerate the heat or the sun and loves coffee. Personally, I would think about those variables BEFORE someone's geographical origins

[Ira500]

I moved here from New Jersey 35 years ago, and I like it. There are things about Seattle I don't like, but overall I'm pretty happy here and glad to be here. Like flyingsaucermom, I'm socially liberal and hate hot weather. I also love coffee and microbrewed beer, something Seattle has an abundance of. But most of all, I'm still awed by this area's natural beauty. Big trees that stay green. Mountains. Water. Lots of places to hike.

[Kayela]

I'm originally from South Dakota. Moved here 11 years ago and love it. Of course I find things to whine about, but overall I've never been anyplace that feels like 'home' the way Seattle does. That's something that hard to define or put your finger on, and it's different for each person.

I absolutely love the grey, misty winters. And I daresay I've gotten to the point where one might describe me as 'outdoorsy'. Like Ira, I'm also continuously in awe of the beauty around here. For example, this morning - as my car swooped down onto the world's longest floating bridge (we have bridges that freakin' float!!), I saw two bald eagles sitting on a lightpost against a backdrop of tall evergreens, and this was in the middle of a major metropolitan area.

[shaylahc]

We came from NC last July, and so far we're loving it. The summer was long, and winter has been better than I expected. There were a few weeks in December when the days were really short that I felt depressed, but otherwise---it's been great.

What I love: Great schools, lots of things to do, the beaches, the San Juan Islands, good medical care, lots of availability of activities/lessons/clubs/meet ups, tons of beautiful parks.

What I hate: Cold rain (ha!), high cost of living, traffic and congestion.

ETA I love the wildlife! I've been whale watching twice in the San Juans, I've seen orca pods, seals, porpoises, bald eagles, and more.

[mrman78]

I moved here last April from Houston after many years of planning and it's just the right place for me. It's hard to explain, but honestly if I ever got tired of living here I have no clue where I would move.

[fnh]

I grew up and went to college in LA/TX, spent 10 yrs in Seattle for grad school/post-docs until moving back to TX (Houston) in 2004. We currently live in Houston. I loved living in Seattle until I became pregnant when, quite suddenly, I simply couldn't take the weather anymore.

DH grew up in Eastern WA and attended college/grad/law school in Seattle. Our move to Houston (at my insistence) was his first experience living outside the PNW.

We both are very happy living in Houston but interestingly my DH loves Houston while I miss Seattle. I just can't bear the summers in Houston with kids out of school for three months, even with lots of swimming in the pool. DH, on the other hand, vows to never spend another winter in the PNW. As an avid cyclist he loves that he can bike/race year-round in Houston, plus I think he never realized just how much sunshine and warmth he missed as a child and young adult. My family is in Houston while his is in Seattle now, so we just bought a second home in Seattle to split our time. We have the best of both worlds, we are very fortunate to be able to do this, but I find it curious that we both prefer the place where we are NOT from.

[Hemlock140]

We have been here 20 years, after living 40 in the San Francisco Bay Area. While the first winter was a little rough with a heavy snow year, we found it to be an adventure and have never considered going back or anywhere else. Even when we retire, it will be a smaller more
rural area but we will stay in the state. I happen to love the rain and cloudy days, and everything green all year. All that sun and brown hills with a few oak trees here and there
in CA was depressing.

[thatguy950]

Moved from the desert SW and hate it here, honestly. The weather has had more of an impact on me than I imagined it would, so I will be heading out of Seattle as soon as I can. Summers can be great, even the cloudy yet warmish summer days don't bother me, but the winters are the worst; more so in fact than Minneapolis where I spent a few years (the dripping darkness has been worse than snow and cold, hands down). Another thing I don't care for here, honestly, is the populous.

If you aren't knocking on communism's door, you probably aren't that welcome here. People here really are passive-aggressive in every aspect of their lives, and neighborliness if HEAVILY frowned upon I have come to find. I always heard how "intelligent and educated" people were up here, but I have not found this to be the case. I know many people go to "college" in this area, but IMO spending $50,000 on a degree in art, music, dance, or French furniture history doesn't make you educated (STEM, finance/accounting, law, etc that's another story). The anti 2A attitude in and around the city is irritating, traffic is horrible from 7am until 8pm many days, and taxes and tolls keep on going up and up. Soon we will be punished for being on the Eastside of Lake Washington with another toll on I90...

[Tall Traveler]

Seems like liberals love Seattle and conservatives not so much. I would add I'm Libertarian and I would say that Seattle is Liberal/Libertarian. I wuld prefer Libertarian/Conservative say like what you have in Arizona myself and have considered moving there many times. But I do support the recent legalization of pot and marriage equality. I just don't agree with the liberal attitude about conficating an ever increasing portion of your personal income to give to non-workers. Paradoxically, Washington state has no state income tax and Arizona does....so opposite of what one would expect.