Umbrellas

We had a Seattle day today. The clouds were low, the temperature was mild, and though there wasn’t any real precipitation, there was a constant mist in the air. It was almost as if you were walking through a cloud. You wouldn’t believe the complainers.
“I can’t concentrate today….with this rain,” people at work said.
“It is so dreary outside,” my co-worker said, “I cannot even go out to lunch.” She ended up eating mints at her desk to supplement the missed meal.
“I hope it stops raining,” another one said, “I wanted to go to the grocery store tonight!”
If a person in Seattle avoided going to the grocery store or out to lunch because of the weather we had today, they would simply go hungry. There is no doubt in my mind they would starve to death.
The weather today even gave Arnie pause at the Great Lawn. “It feels like Seattle today,” I told him as our dogs played.
“This is what Seattle is like,” his booming voice rising. “This sucks!”
I guess New York isn’t quite the miserable town he proclaimed it to be upon my arrival.
The rain today meant that everyone carried an umbrella and wore galoshes. I am not making this up or exaggerating. Again, let me reiterate that there was no real raindrops….just extreme humidity. So 8 million New Yorkers decided that though they weren’t actually going to get wet, they were all going to carry over-sized umbrellas today to even further clutter the sidewalks. Call me crazy, but this type of rain does not warrant an umbrella in the eye. The wind tunnels from the buildings meant that most of the umbrellas were inside out by 5:00 anyway. But I tell you, the second they step from the awnings, those puppies pop open. I even saw a man give his umbrella to another lady today. “You need an umbrella,” he said, as he handed his over. “Thank you so much,” she said graciously, and walked off with it. They might have known each other. They might have been complete strangers, but what I thought was strange was the fact that he assumed she couldn’t live without an umbrella. Did I mention that it wasn’t actually raining?
And what’s with the galoshes? Why do million-dollar, power-house New Yorkers turn into second-graders with the thought of rain? There were women in $500 Prada coats with over-sized rubbers on their feet. Is it a bit of whimsy? Are all New Yorkers secretly related to the Wicked Witch of the West? Is there a phobia of water?
I’m not exactly sure, but it did make me laugh. I guess my seven years in Seattle gave me something I didn’t even realize I had….a set of webbed feet.