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Seattle, in Midst of Tech Boom, Tries to Keep Its Soul

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Re: Seattle, in Midst of Tech Boom, Tries to Keep Its Soul

#211

Post by devindotcom »

vectorpush wrote: post #203
devindotcom wrote: post #155

Earlier quoted context omitted.

We might have to fuck off because the rent is too high, but it doesn't mean we have to do it quietly. The people coming in should know how much they are resented by the people they are displacing. The mechanics terraformed capitol hill, the current community colonized it, and now the next wave is buying it. No one here is dictating culture - they are asserting their preference to a community that was built over decad…

II reject the idea that you can judge someone as a cultural reject based on the salary they take home.

Us too. We also reject the wealth-forward culture helping itself to the neighborhood, not necessarily the people who take part in it. But very often we find the representatives of that culture to be intolerable as well. Ye shall know them by their fruits, and so forth.

Re: Seattle, in Midst of Tech Boom, Tries to Keep Its Soul

#212

Post by marssaxman »

Zach_the_Lizard wrote: post #182
marssaxman wrote: post #168

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've never understood the problem with that question. It's been a normal thing to talk about everywhere I've ever been. Work is a defining feature of one's life, the single activity people spend more time on than any other; what's wrong with asking about it when you want to get to know someone?

Your job can imply your socioeconomic status. When it's the first thing you ask, it can come across as deciding whether you're worthwhile or not. Maybe you're not worth the connection because you're a fry cook at McDonalds, but the doctor over there in the corner is. Learning what someone does for a living is, to me anyways, far less important than learning what they like to do, what interests they have, etc. I can b…

I realize that it can be interpreted as rude, I just don't understand why. It's not a question about socioeconomic status, it's a question about "what [you] like to do, what interests [you] have, etc.," as those characteristics are expressed in the activity you've chosen to spend at least half your waking hours on.

Re: Seattle, in Midst of Tech Boom, Tries to Keep Its Soul

#213

Post by mahyarm »

rm_-rf_slash wrote: post #64
xxpor wrote: post #44

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>I live in a college town Boulder? Because if so, PLEASE vote down the land use issues on the ballot. http://www.citylab.com/housing/2015/10/they-are-coming-for-o...

Ithaca, where we don't have the luxury of flatness so everything's hemmed in by the lake and the hills, like a reverse geography San Francisco

You can build on hills. I've lived on a hill.

Re: Seattle, in Midst of Tech Boom, Tries to Keep Its Soul

#214

Post by pnathan »

voxrumor wrote: post #85
mattress wrote: post #9

Took a job in Bellevue in April and moved from Philadelphia to Seattle. So far it's a been an interesting experience. I've encountered many people hostile to software engineers in general. A bunch of people immediately ask if I work for Amazon with a hint of disdain after I state my occupation. So it hasn't felt super welcoming so far. I get it, even in some neighborhoods in Philadelphia the same thing is happening.…

My experience has been eerily similar. Moved to Ballard from South Philly at the beginning of the summer, working in Bellevue. People are so openly hostile I kinda stopped trying to talk to anyone. The "Die techie scum" graffiti all over doesn't really help either. Seattle itself seems pretty nice. Its a shame this forced isolation is just going to lead to even bigger division. Maybe we should hang out?

I love Seattle, but the people spewing hate against techies gets me down, hard. I haven't really run into hostility outside of the anonymous ranting on reddit and the rude graffiti, etc.

Re: Seattle, in Midst of Tech Boom, Tries to Keep Its Soul

#215

Post by pnathan »

justizin wrote: post #141
mattress wrote: post #9

Took a job in Bellevue in April and moved from Philadelphia to Seattle. So far it's a been an interesting experience. I've encountered many people hostile to software engineers in general. A bunch of people immediately ask if I work for Amazon with a hint of disdain after I state my occupation. So it hasn't felt super welcoming so far. I get it, even in some neighborhoods in Philadelphia the same thing is happening.…

> A bunch of people immediately ask if I work for Amazon with a hint of disdain after I state my occupation. So it hasn't felt super welcoming so far. I moved to San Francisco ten years ago with $700 in my pocket, to stay with a relative, who kicked me out pretty soon because, well, having an adult man stay in your guest room when you are accustomed to pre-teen daughters, even if you really direct your misplaced desi…

> You want to know what it's like to live on a third of the salary you make?

I've lived paying 70-80% of my income to rent. That was unpleasant and not sustainable. My conclusion was this: own a house that you can afford.

Re: Seattle, in Midst of Tech Boom, Tries to Keep Its Soul

#216

Post by dx211 »

ergothus wrote: post #79
mattress wrote: post #9

Took a job in Bellevue in April and moved from Philadelphia to Seattle. So far it's a been an interesting experience. I've encountered many people hostile to software engineers in general. A bunch of people immediately ask if I work for Amazon with a hint of disdain after I state my occupation. So it hasn't felt super welcoming so far. I get it, even in some neighborhoods in Philadelphia the same thing is happening.…

Interesting - I moved from VA (Originally from PA) to Seattle a bit over 3 years ago, and my experience has been pretty different. However, I work downtown and live on Shoreline, which is quite different from Bellevue. I've found Seattle quite friendly to newcomers (Some friends visited and it took 3 days before some stranger didn't cover their drinks when out for dinner), and open and welcoming to me on multiple lev…

Fremont is not Bothowoodinredmokirkllevue. But it is basically the same as Ballard.

Re: Seattle, in Midst of Tech Boom, Tries to Keep Its Soul

#217

Post by pnathan »

sakopov wrote: post #93

I'm a software engineer with a great job in midwest but I have never been happy here and have been contemplating about just packing my stuff and moving to Seattle for the past 3 years. I don't have any job leads but I have enough in savings to get a place for 6 months. Does anyone think it's sane to just move without job offers?

I'd actually suggest interviewing first and getting flown out. I'd suspect you can swing a job within 3 weeks.

Re: Seattle, in Midst of Tech Boom, Tries to Keep Its Soul

#219

Post by icanhackit »

JPKab wrote: post #116
thieving_magpie wrote: post #68

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yeah, I'm not all that concerned with making friends with people that are hostile about my profession. That's so petty. >partly because the countless new techbros with no respect for Seattle culture who spend 11hrs/day at work and don't have time to develop a personality romping around town give it a real bad reputation What does that even mean? I hear this all the time and I honestly have no idea how to "respect Sea…

As someone who has lived in a few cities filled with counter-culture types, they can be incredibly insular, superficial, and tribal. Ironically, they end up being a different looking, but similar acting version of the wealthy elite they claim to hate. It seems like everyone in these places is just trying to re-invent a "cooler than thou" image, looking down on others who don't prize their typically temporary life-sty…

> counter-culture types, they can be incredibly insular, superficial, and tribal

This applies to all types of people, rich, poor, conservative, progressive and the stuff in between. On a meta-scale it would be the way a country might react to immigrants, and like a self-similar fractal the sentiment works at smaller and smaller scales like seaboard, North/South, state, county, town etc. I guess the underlying mentality is, hey we made this area for people like us, not people like you. Now you're ruining it by changing what it is...

Using the counter-culture area as an example, if large numbers of people move to an edgy place shaped by artists, musicians, bums, gender/sexual aberrations and people who generally reject what other areas have to offer, and they don't want to be part of the existing social fabric then they're treated in a way analogous to how an immune system would antagonize a foreign body. It could just as easily be old money getting shitty with new money flooding their uppity neighborhood with unacceptable values or garish sensibilities.

IOW: people generally don't like change. Especially if it's not in their favor or to their taste.

> looking down on others who don't prize their typically temporary life-style choices

It's easy to judge groups of people with generalizations - they're doing the same to you. The funny thing is most people would get along fine if they put that kind of mentality away and just spoke to each other with a common respect.

Re: Seattle, in Midst of Tech Boom, Tries to Keep Its Soul

#220

Post by astrange »

kpennell wrote: post #107

I don't know if I ever really saw Seattle's 'soul' when I lived there for 3 years. Granted, I lived in the North part. I saw a lot of white and asian people (mainly dudes) looking at their feet or looking at their phones. Seattle is one of the most difficult places to strike up a conversation with strangers or get people to actually want to hang out (worse if they are locals). South Seattle, on the other hand, truly…

The Asians must be very happy they've made it and can no longer be considered diverse. Have you tried getting dim sum with them? You get to eat every part of the chicken.
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