via tamu ^[1]

The first thing most non-Seattleites think of when our fair city is mentioned is rain. However, a truer, more accurate, association should be, dare I say, greatness. Yes, greatness.

You see, what Samantha was saying in regards to our art scene [mb ^[2]] is true across all industries/genres. There is a laissez-faire mentality present here that encourages open-mindedness and creativity and allows people to take chances. No matter what it is – medicine, information technology, transportation, food and beverage, entertainment – a person can come to mother Seattle and be nurtured, be given the opportunity to grow into beauuutiful butterflies all they can be ah, screw it, superstars.

So on this, the fifth day of city gifts, my true love gave to me – and the world – 5 gold rings¹. That is to say, 5 people who have emerged from Seattle’s chrysalis and ascended to the top of their fields².

#1 Dr. William Hutchinson

Surgeon turned founder of the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, [# ^[3]] one of the foremost cancer research centers in the world and home to no less than 3 Nobel laureates.

#2 & 3 Bill Gates and Paul Allen

College dropouts turned co-founders of Microsoft. [# ^[4]] (I don’t need to write this explanation, do I?) After creating Microsoft and driving it to be the biggest software company in the world, in true Seattle fashion both have gone on to create their own philanthropic organizations [gates ^[5], pgallen ^[6]] that fund a significant number of worthy causes worldwide.

#4 Jeff Bezos

Rocket geek turned founder of Amazon.com. [# ^[7]] When you’re sitting at home ordering holiday presents for your loved ones instead of being crushed at the mall you can thank Jeff. In addition, Bezos’ new project, Blue Origin [# ^[8]], is working on making “an enduring human presence in space” a reality.

#5 Dan Savage

Former video store clerk turned nationally syndicated writer of Savage Love [# ^[9]] and pioneer in bringing sex/dating advice into the mainstream. Without Dan we’d all still be reading Playboy Advisor and wondering how to best slam a U.S. Senator [wiki ^[10]]. He’s also got a soft side and has written at least two books about parenting and is a contributor to NPR’s This American Life [# ^[11]].