10 Challenges Growing Up In Seattle

Seattle is one of those cities that has a lot to offer. However, some characteristics about the PNW made for hardships when you are trying to grow up. Here are ten challenges you ran into when you grew up in Seattle.

1.Rain For Days

It could rain for days, especially in the spring when it never seems to end. It seems like other places enjoy spring and the break of the droll of the winter gloom, but in Seattle it continues until we finally hit summer. The rain is nothing to joke about and it can start to make you wonder what any other weather looks like.

2.Traffic For The Rest Of Your Life

Traffic has steadily become a real pain and you start to memorize the times when traffic is at its worst on the freeways. This really turns into problems, considering its hard to get anywhere outside of Seattle without jumping on the freeways. It really cuts into your planning, sleeping, eating, and sanity. 

3.Summer Didn’t Prepare Us For Real Summers

Summers in the PNW are as mild as they come. It never really hits that summer, eat popsicles and jump in the lake weather for very long if it ever shows up. Sometimes summers are just all around forgotten and we go straight into fall it seems like. You wonder why we are all pale here.

4.Seattle Freeze

Nope, it’s not a weather problem but what you feel running into a Seattleite. We are not the most neighborly or welcoming kind of people. I blame Seattle for my sarcastic nature and overall weariness when dealing with strangers. I am not the one to make friends with someone in the plane seat next to me.  

5.No Snow Days

Weather seems to be a theme, but Seattle has a sorry lack of snow. It really bums you out as a kid when it’s another year of yet again a green Christmas. But don’t worry, it will snow for two seconds when you are sitting class so you can’t really enjoy it.

6.Expensive Coffee

The addiction starts early for Seattleites and we can tell when you can’t make coffee correctly. It’s such a large part of our culture that we start off very young drinking coffee; that’s how we stay awake during the rain of spring. It would also explain my stunt in height.

7.Not Fashionable

Yeah, Seattle has definitely come into its own in the fashion department, but growing up here there was not a lot of fashionable influences. Although the 90’s weren’t the prime year for fashion anywhere really (let’s be honest and all call those tiny sunglasses dumb please), but in Seattle it was all about comfort and convenience. This usually means it influenced by a rain jacket.  

8.Hills Of Seattle

Trying being a young Seattleite learning on a stick shifts on those Seattle hills. Dear God, we are all lucky to be alive right now.  

9.No Public Transportation

Public transportation was not a well used or known conecept outside of Seattle, which made getting around pre-driving a difficult problem. This means alot of bummed rides and a lot of waiting around.

10.Ruined Food Anywhere Else

Seattle has some of the best restaurants and local and fresh foods in the country. I blame it for ruining the eating experience for the rest of my life and am usually disappointed when it comes to restaurants. Seattle has such unique and diverse restaurants that going to chain is always disheartening.    

Honestly, I wouldn’t have wanted to grow up in any other city than Seattle. Where else would I have gathered this sunny disposition? What were the worst things for you about growing up in Seattle? Let us know in the comments below.