Is Seattle the new “capital of kvetch?” The latest column from Seattle Times FYI Guy Gene Balk sure makes a strong case for it.

Our city is known as a magnet for young, ambitious working professionals. But a new survey from a Denver-based demographer suggests that the rose-tinted glasses come off pretty quickly.

The survey, which asked 3,000 millennials in 22 cities to rate their level of satisfaction in a range of topics, has Seattle in the bottom five of 22 major cities when it comes to “overall value.”

The most interesting part, as Gene points out, is that these perceptions don’t always line up with reality. For example, survey respondents gave Seattle a below-average score for income tax — which we don’t even have here in Washington state.

And then there’s traffic. Seattle survey respondents were the most frustrated with traffic out of all 22 cities, but other studies have found the Emerald City’s congestion doesn’t even crack the top five of major U.S. cities.

So why all the complaining? The survey’s creator tells Gene he thinks it’s a matter of expectations: “It’s my hypothesis that Seattle millennials are very progressive, and they have very high standards for what their city should be.”

Do you agree with that conclusion? Or is something else is going on here? Hit reply and let us know.

In other news…

Know who else isn’t happy with Seattle? Cops. KUOW got its hands on unredacted exit interviews from dozens of former Seattle police officers, and they didn’t hold back in airing their frustrations with city politics and the Office of Police Accountability. (KUOW)

We still don’t know for sure what caused last month’s deadly crane collapse, but a number of experts believe the workers who were dismantling the crane removed the pins or bolts that were holding it together too early — something they say has become a common shortcut in the industry. (The Seattle Times)

Amazon has some explaining to do after a resident posted photos of a six-foot-high pile of discarded Amazon Go meals at a local landfill. Meanwhile, a French documentary film is sounding more alarms about what the company does with the household items it cannot sell. (Buzzfeed News, Daily Mail)

The latest casualty in the trade war with China: Orca cards. Sound Transit says the transit cards now cost $2.40 each to manufacture  — up from $1.92 last year. The agency plans to use $400,000 in emergency funding to cover the added expense. (Q13 Fox)

We had a blast with you all at last night’s Build a Terrarium Event with The Works! Thanks for joining the fun. Here’s what’s coming up…

🍽️ We are honored to have Frank Nam from the Seattle Foundation, Rebekah Bastian from Zillow, and Michaela Ayers from Nourish, join our co-founder Mónica Guzmán for a panel discussion about belonging in Seattle.

It’s all going down at our new Setting the Table event on May 22. Don’t miss it — get your tickets today. (Belltown)

Want to unlock big discounts at Evergrey events? Support The Evergrey with a membership.

The tech industry is a part of Seattle’s DNA, but that doesn’t mean we can’t poke a little fun at it from time to time.

Bethany Buer and Rob Polonsky are two Seattle-based actors who met while taking classes at Gilmore Studio in Ballard and are now in the middle of creating a TV comedy series called “Everybody’s Watching.”

The premise will sound familiar to anyone who’s ever worked for a tech company — or even just a modern-day corporation. Rob, the protagonist, works for a Seattle-based tech giant called “Microzon,” where he earns a comfortable salary but dreams of escaping to pursue a career in acting. He struggles to pursue his passions while remaining dedicated to his day job.

The team — which includes folks who work for Amazon, General Assembly, Tableau, and Microsoft — just finished a crowdfunding campaign to raise money for a pilot episode. Filming is set to take place in late June.

Head over to our website to check out our Q&A with Rob and Bethany, watch a scene from the show, and find out how you can get your 15 seconds of fame as an “Everybody’s Watching” extra.

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Thanks for all the support. We’ll see you tomorrow. ✌️

— The Evergrey