> What that chart does not take into consideration is the amount of people living in the suburbs of the cities.

I thought of that as I was browsing the page. It's unfortunate that suburb numbers don't get included, but it would be hard to do that accurately. Where does the "Greater [Wherever] Area" stop and "other areas" begin?

> I do still get homesick for the mountains and the quiet solitude and the trees, but I think I also adapted to city life fairly easily.

I'm pretty certain I couldn't do that. Well, I could do it, but I couldn't do it happily. I'd survive, but I'd lose something inside, and it would fester until I suddenly realized, probably on a return visit from the country, that I just wasn't enjoying my life so very much anymore. I could work in a city, no problem, but I could never live in one. I need trees and mountains and water. I also need a shield from noise. It bothers me VERY VERY VERY much when outside noise violates my home. Leen will tell you how stressed and distraught I get if I hear people screaming on the street or the next door neighbors blasting their stereo. In a supremely quiet neighborhood where the houses have good insulation, I'd last a lot longer in the city, but of course that's not the only problem I'd have.

> Yes, I get annoyed if I get stuck in traffic for too long, but I think my love of, and my fascination with, people has made the change of pace much easier. I love to see and experience new things, although I'm actually quite resistant to personal change. There are just so many interesting people in a larger city.

Your fascination with people is an interesting quality, and I imagine it has great potential to be a valuable character asset. Alas, it's one I do not have. Individuals interest me. People, as a group, annoy the heck out of me. Places DO interest me. It all adds up to me being happy living in the country and visiting the city from time to time.

And that's one quality about people in general that I do appreciate and respect. People are different. Even two people that find themselves so miraculously similar in countless ways will still find things to differ on -- if not in personal opinions than in something like this: differences in what they need to keep their emotional balance and wellbeing. That DOES intrigue me, very much.

> As for exhaust vs. freshly cut grass, does exhaust from a lawn mower in the process of cutting grass count? :-P

Why, I would only ever use one of those non-power lawn mowers!

Ok, ok, touche.

Seriously, I'm not Amish. I like machines, and I appreciate what they can do for me. I'm only an environmentalist in moderation. I'll take a big honkin' pickup truck and a big old self-propelled power lawn mower and an oil-heated home. As long as there is enough other stuff to mask the smell and there aren't too many other people around with their own trucks and lawn mowers and oil-heated homes, I'm happy.

But you knew that.