Mukilteo Musings

Only In Seattle

Yes, indeed! I have a couple of items for my unique and exclusive "Only In Seattle" blog posts.

1. Only in Seattle is the weather gorgeous, cool, and loved by all. After that week of horrible 90 degrees, we have settled down to our normal highs of 70 or 75 and down to 50 at night.


Picture taken yesterday in my backyard.

2. Only in Seattle do the new people who are moving here this summer rave about the place. My advice---you may want to wait through a winter or two. Get used to it; get used to the people; understand that one week in the winter you may feel like committing suicide but then the next week, the sun comes out, the mountains come out and you realize you'd live no where else. But give it some time.

This was the editorial in the Seattle Times today written by a new citizen.

The first discrepancy in matching our image to our new reality is the people! They are friendly, helpful, kind and welcoming. Not at all the profile of busy, unconcerned urban-ites! What gives, Seattle?

Next: What happened to the gloomy and cold weather we heard was common here? It's perfect and perfectly not gloomy!
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/opinion/2003176247_satrdr05.html

3. Only in Seattle when terrible things happen like the shooting at the Jewish Federation, does the true Seattle spirit come through. This story brought tears to my eyes this morning. I realize this happens all over our country but this made me proud that I share this area with some really good people. The article in the Everett Herald today told how one young woman, a shooting victim lost all of her blood and died but she has miraculously recovered. Only 10% of people who lose all of their blood can live to tell about it. The young woman, age 29, worked in Seattle but she lives in Everett. Her mother talked to the newspaper and this is what she said about the Muslim man who forced his way into her daughter's office and opened fire:

She said she'll never forget what happened, but harbors no hate for the man who shot her daughter.

"We're all God's people, no matter what, even the man who did this," Rexroad's mother said. "I feel bad for him and his family."

She's just glad her daughter is still alive.
http://www.heraldnet.com/stories/06/08/05/100loc_a1rexroad001.cfm

I cried because just yesterday when discussing hiking options with my son given the still unsolved hiking trail murders, I told him I would have no trouble shooting and killing someone who attacked my children---in the heat of the moment. I mean, I wouldn't plan something and go hunt them down later or anything. But it makes you wonder if this woman's forgiving heart had something to do with why her daughter survived against all odds.

4. And finally only in Seattle do we perhaps take political correctness to extremes?! I don't know. I am very sensitive to using the right words and not saying things to offend groups of people. I was one of the first back in the 70's to refer to adult females as women instead of girls and I would correct people. I consider myself poltically correct and I am proud of it.

But this month's Washington Bar News---the magazine that all Washington lawyers receive, had a great article about people with disabilities and the laws we now have. Seriously--a great article. Seattleites have a sense of humor so I thought this page was a joke:


p.24, Washington State Bar News, August 2006

But after having a good laugh to the point that my Seattle freshly ground French pressed coffee came out of my nose, I realized I am going to hell. This page is not a joke and I guess it is a bad thing to call the blue parking spaces at the grocery store "handicapped parking". We are now to refer to it as "accessible parking". And when I introduce my husband who has very strong lenses in his glasses, I am not to refer to him as "visually impaired" but I guess I should just say he is "blind".

"Hi! My name is Janet and I am not "normal" because I cannot do cartwheels so I guess I am a "person with a disability".

Sorry! Maybe I am wrong but.......isn't this just so Seattle!