Weather and Careers

When I was writing my relocation book, I interviewed a psychologist to get the official mental health professional perspective. To my surprise, she talked about challenges newcomers face with (of all things) weather.

I've always had a hard time with bitter cold. Two years in Alaska and 5 years in Manitoba -- and I still won't drive in snow.

But this week I realized the power of the weather in a different way. Seattle enjoyed a mini heat wave...just a few days but I lost a couple nights sleep. That put everything back...and then I was stumbling around doing dumb things...and had to spend *more* time undoing them.

Yesterday I was waiting to cross a street when a well-dressed man asked, "Is the weather always like this?"

I felt like saying, "Go see Sleepless in Seattle. The state symbol is the raindrop."

But instead I mumbled something about how rare this weather was. That's why, I explained, so few places are air conditioned. My apartment building is one of the nicer ones in Lower Queen Anne. So we have washers and dryers but no a/c. For 362 days a year--no problem.

"I'm from Palm Springs," he said, shaking his head. California people still think they're superior to the rest of the West Coast.