I moved here three years ago from New Jersey. It rains in New Jersey. For a day or two at a time. And when it does, everyone goes inside. Or if we need to go somewhere, we get our umbrellas and go.
Not in Seattle.
The rain doesn't stop people in Seattle. No one goes inside when it rains. I even got a letter from the school principal making sure that parents (especially those that moved here from New Jersey) knew that the kids will be playing outside during recess even if it is raining. The school does have some covered areas outside for the kids to play under, but my kids like to get wet. A slide with a puddle at the bottom is irresistible to my 5 year old. So my kids are soaked after recess.
No one in Seattle uses umbrellas. Using an umbrella here is like wearing a huge sign that says, "I'm a tourist."
People don't stop when it rains. They still go jogging. They still bike to work. They still go outside for recess.
Not me. I got all ready to go running this morning. It hadn't started to rain until five minutes before it was time to leave. Then it started. So I took the kids to the bus stop. And I brought my tourist umbrella with me. Sure enough none of the other kids or moms at the bus stop had umbrellas. I wonder if they have some secret duck-like hair that is inbred in the local Seattle population... Running will have to wait until tomorrow or maybe till May.
