seattle is like the popular girl in high school

want to hear about the biggest adjustment to our life in seattle? i'm going to tell you either way, and it's not the rain.

day one seattle: dropped the boys at the golf course and, within a couple hours, they'd managed to make friends with fred. fred, who bartends at a chinese restaurant a block away from our apartment. fred, who likes to give us "big whiskeys" for really low discount prices. fred, who is an amazing golfer. off to a good start? i'd like to think so. thru fred we meet more of fred's "friends", most of whom are also seattle transplants. after a couple "big whiskeys" they really like to talk about seattle natives.

deal is: people are super nice to your face but, beyond that, want nothing to do with you. think back to freshman year, or the first day on the job. or, as i imagine it, posing nude in an art class and, despite seeing your bits and peices, no one will talk to you afterwards. it sounds extreme, but i'm feeling very bruised in my attempt to make friends. you run into your new "friends" on the street and they all of a sudden forget they ever met you and will use any excuse to not talk to you.

i thought everyone was full of shit. but then it happened to me.
and the google search "seattle freeze" turned up lots of info.
including this little piece, which sums it up pretty well.

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/pacificnw/2005/0213/cover.html

let me clarify before ya'll think i'm depressed and unhappy with our decision to move. it's quite the opposite. i love it here. i feel that this could be/is my new home. i see water everywhere i go and it expands beyond my view. i see mountains every time the clouds part. the dog i will own is allowed in nearly every non-food-establishment location. importantly, i like the solitarly lifestyle and i look forward to this life where i can spend a weekend alone with jake and not deal with an external guilt-trip for staying in by myself.

further clarification: i love my madison and non-madisonian friends. i think of you all every day. i'd like to give a shout out to those who call me, and text me, and write me, and fill me in on the details of your life and my old life. you know who you are because we've been in some form of contact within the last week. this matters more to me than having a seattle friend to go to happy hour with me. but happy hour is more happy when you're with someone.

tomorrow: i'll talk about spiders. if you're lucky, i'll drink a big whiskey and post a picture.