Seattle: 7 Reasons You Want To Live Here

We're only a few hours away from Forks (the famed home of the characters from the Twilight Saga), we are home to the one and only Space Needle and we have some of the most awesome festivals in the states.

Out of all the places on earth that you could live, Seattle is one of the safest in terms of natural disasters. We don't have tornado's, twisters or hurricanes. Tsunami's rarely even graze our shores. We have an occasional 4 pointer, but for the most part, we rarely see any earthquakes. We are due for a big one coming up, but that's still not to bad when you compare it to other places.

In our driest seasons, we've never seen a drought. Even in our wettest seasons, I've never heard of Seattle having a true flood. Large puddles, sure. Floods, not really.

We do see the occasional sink hole and mud slides, but usually only in the poorly developed areas where some developer decided it would be good to build homes on soft earth. Lighting storms happen sometimes, as do high speed wind storms, but the worst that happens is an occasional tree toppling over and it rarely makes the news because the trees rarely fall on anything all that important. Volcanic eruptions are pretty much unheard of around here, since the time when Mt. St. Helen blew her top.

Our blizzards can seem pretty bad for those that live here, but in reality, we have it very easy. Most of our blizzards never get over 6 inches. I think the record was 24 inches and only in certain parts of Seattle. The worst part about these snow storms isn't really the snow, it's the ice. The ice that layers underneath the snow from the rain, can reek havoc on unsuspecting drivers, though even with that being said, it's still not as bad as other places.

All in all, if you're looking for a safe place in terms of weather and natural disasters, Seattle is a good choice. When ever I read about natural disasters on the news, I thank the Goddess that I live in Seattle.

When it comes to summer festivals, we Seattlites really know how to throw a party.

Seattle Hempfest is one of my favorites (though I might be biased because I'm on the staff), because it's not only a big party, it's also a protest, rally, festival, B2B and educational event. It's many experiences all wrapped up into one beautifully wrapped package.

Seattle Hempfest is the biggest Pro-Cannabis festival in America, and could be one of the biggest on earth. More than 350,000 people attended in the last two years and the numbers only grow every year. The event has grown so big that it's all volunteer staff put up a huge fight with the city to allow a third day of Hempy festivities. This is because the event has gotten so large that last year, it pretty much put a halt to any non-hempfest activities going on in downtown Seattle (and surrounding Seattle areas). On top of that, the wait to get into Hempfest was more than 3 hours at times, and that's no good! So hempfest fought for a third day so that everyone can come and enjoy three days of cannabis freedom, education and fun.

Seattle Hempfest is such a popular event, that videos of it have populated YouTube and several online journalists dedicate their time to writing about the event every year. People from all walks of life and all generations, attend hempfest. Many of them come from outside the state and all over the globe.

And though hempfest can be a bit crowded at times, they have the earned right to say that Seattle Hempfest is one of the safest events around. Even back-to-back, squished together at times and over crowded - Hempfest has never experienced a crazy mob of violent attendees. There's never been a violent crime that's happened in the event and rarely does anyone experience anything other than smiles and a funny look from Seattle PD. Out of 350,000 attendees in the last few years, they might have seen two people actually arrested. Which is pretty extreme for this peaceful-protestival.

So if you're looking for a reasons to visit Seattle, or to live in Seattle, then Hempfest can be added to your list. Attending means you can enjoy inspirational freedom speakers, first class concerts, numerous educational booths, hundreds of thousands of people you have at least a few things in common with and the chance to tell the world how you feel about cannabis prohibition.

Heck, there's even a place at Hempfest for those that don't agree with hempfest! As you'll often see passionate religious activities protesting the protestival out front. Most people don't stay long to listen to them, but how many events give even their opponents that much love and respect?

We might not be covered in white carribean sands or have miles of beautiful reefs, but our beaches are not to be discounted. They are beautiful even in the cold winters and wonderful for those that love to comb beaches.

Some of my favorites are Richmond Beach, Mathews Beach, Golden Gardens and Carkeek park. They are all great beaches to be at when the weather get's above 70* and you'll rarely hear of an outbreak of sunburns.

If there is one thing the rainy weather affords us, it's BEAUTIFUL spring and summer months. We go from winters where the trees loo barren and lifeless, to springs where we lack no colors on any spectrum. Once the sun is available for just two or three days, the flora springs to life as if someone cast a spring time spell on the Seattle earth. Even the most industrial areas are transformed by the beauty of the flowering flora all around.

Seattle experiences diversity in many different ways. Culturally, we bar no one from coming here and sharing their customs. There are festivals year round that cater to every kind of person from every background, culture, ethnicity and age. From the Cherry Blossom festival to every all ages Vera project concert, you won't find a lack of fun and diverse activities to attend and appreciate.

Seattle is definitely a place that honors it's culture and appreciates every bit of difference and similarity in the world. On top of that, the state of Washington is home to some of the most diverse lands around. Due to long-time-ago tectonic activities, we've been blessed with a unique set of lands to appreciate. In the northwest, we have a rainforest in Olympic National Park. In the south east, we have several different kinds of forests to explore. We have numerous mountains that provide crystals, metals and gems that are not found anywhere else, or only rarely in hard-to-get-to places around the earth.

I know silcon valley and Miami receive much more press as far as Entrepreneurism goes, but Seattle is one of the best places to be if you have that Entrepreneural vigor. Maybe it's because we enjoy diversity so much, but Seattlites love to explore and experience new things. We also have a great market for those that love to Test new things.

On top of this, our state has one of the better tax systems for those looking to kick start a new business. We rank 5th on the list of best places for small businesses and entrepreneurs. Not so bad if I say so myself!

Pike Place Market, Pioneer Square, Smith Tower, the Space Needle, the Ballard Locks, the first Starbucks building, the Fremont Troll, Columbia City, Paramount Theatre.... these are just a few of the historic places you can visit in Seattle.

We are also home to dozens of places where Jimmy Hendrix spent his youthful days, as well as plenty of history from Nirvana, Quincy Jones, Pearl Jam, P.O.T.U.S.O.A., Alice In Chains, Soundgarden, Harvey Danger, Mother Love Bone and Foo Fighters.

From the pioneer days all the way through the industrial boom, we are definitely not short on history!