Seattle is...

What's up with Seattleites?

I think Seattle has a definite folk vibe going on; a particular feeling of community. And I mean folkishness in the German sense of the word - volk. Das volkenbladt. I think I can judge only because I'm a recent arrival (Fall '05) from the wastelands of suburban D.C., Maryland. There, as in most suburbs I suppose, it's everyone for himself. Greed and callousness is the name of the game.

The city has a European feel to it, and not just because it's majority white, unlike the east-coast cities. Sure, that's part of it, but it's more complex than that.

There is anecdotal evidence of Seattle's nature, I believe, in the everyday. For instance, people's driving habits: in what big city can you expect to walk a crosswalk with no traffic light and expect cars to stop and wait patiently? And in the middle of the city, close to downtown? Many people have mused on Seattle's driving idiosyncracies, often to complain. But that is only if you are the one driving - and, in all likelihood, only if you're an aggressive, impatient east-coast school of driver. But from the pedestrian perspective, things are entirely different. Try crossing the street in traffic on Georgia Avenue in D.C.! You'll be quite lucky if you come away with your life. The coarse honking of horns that is so common in a big city is notably subdued here.

Other seemingly trivial aspects of daily life can offer a measure of Seattle's folk-mindedness and overall civility. Walking down the street, you may notice that people look you in the eye more, i.e., they're not nervous or afraid to make casual eye contact the way humans are meant to when walking by one another. As a matter of fact, when I first moved here, I commented on this to my sister (who came to Seattle in '04 for grad school), and she agreed.

I think this shows a level of trust that is lacking where I come from. If you're afraid or mistrust the average stranger walking down the street, you're not as likely to look them in the eye.
There are many things. I'm sure we could all conjure some if we stop and think. And this is notwithstanding the various demographic issues that set Seattle and the region apart.
Seattle may be the last of the traditional American cities: it's geographic isolation has been its saving grace. Of course Seattle is no stranger to change. Recent projections have population growth accelerating rapidly during the next 30 years.

We, if there is a 'we' - and maybe I couldn't include myself since I'm not native - should be cognizant of what we have. They say you don't know what you've got 'till it's gone. Often true. But let us hope we can realize what we've got and keep it from going! I think many people are aware of how Seattle is special. In fact, I'm struck by the self-knowledge Seattleites have of their uniqueness, distinctiveness. But it is especially salient when one has moved from afar: another region of America as a standard for comparison.