KurtfromLaQuinta wrote:
At least they aren't driving on ice!

 talexb wrote:
I think Toronto is a lot like Melbourne Australia in some ways. Lot's of big city things but not a lot that is unique to it's location. I mean Vancouver has mountains and ocean right there. I suppose the lake is nice but at least when I spent some time there it wasn't a huge part of the cultural dna.

The McMichaelCollection Canadian Art Gallery is one of the world's great small art museums.

Still in Cleveburg which is always in the top 3.  Always one of the top 2 poorest major cities as well.

It was #1 when this thread started. I went back through the whole thread.  One of those that had a wild week and then just went away. 

lot's of old faces in here ...

I'm happy to report that despite complaints about the weather, Toronto is a pretty cool city to live in. Eat food from dozens of different countries if you want; the city hall has resources available in something like 75 languages. Despite the urban sprawl, gorgeous countryside is just an hour's drive away. (Also, the lake moderates the weather, so we have it pretty good — it's only bad in the winter when it's a wet cold.)

No quibbles on my end.
Well, maybe one... too many snowbirds that don't know how to drive.

Some folks are more than adept at pointing out some of the failed policies that attempt to address social issues. Yet, at the same time they have zero contribution to addressing these same problems, including: healthcare, crime, homelessness, drug use, mental health, wealth inequality, affordability.  
Blaming cities for homelessness, mental health issues, drug use and crime, is all too typical. Yet, these issues often reflect the failed policies for education, mental health, and capitalism. 

Here's a little story that talks about homelessness in Denver. I don’t agree all these people are victims, and many are a product of their own bad
choices. Yet, you cannot ignore how their background played a role, and there but the grace of God….

Tent city bans haven't solved America's homelessness crisis. A Denver program is trying something new: Compassion. (msn.com)

 pdhski wrote: 
this explains a lot.

 Mugro wrote: 
My daughter is a docent at the National Zoo. Don't miss it!

DC is a wonderful city.

I live in the District of Columbia. (Well, actually I live in N. Virginia, but I'm inside the beltway and a short walk to the Metro).

And despite the D.C. government's criminally negligent snow plowing (they have just plain given up plowing the streets from the snow storm that hit two weeks ago and are waiting for it to melt even though many roadways have less than a third of passable plowed space) and a Metro subway system that is falling apart, I LOVE this city.

Today, Mrs. Mug, the Monk (5 year old Seamus) and I went to Chinatown to watch the Chinese New Year parade. Seamus doesn't care that 6 people have either died or have been injured in Metro related accidents in recent months — he loves the experience of riding the subway. We don't have a subway back home in what Seamus calls "our country" (he thinks that we've already left the country. In a way he is right because we live in the Beltway Bubble which is not really a representative part of the United States).

The Monk loved the parade and enjoyed watching the colorful dragons doing their dances. He loved the firecrackers as well, even though he stuffed his fingers firmly into his ears the whole time. And he loved going out to eat afterwards and getting fortune cookies.

We have eaten cuisine from a dozen different countries in the last two months that we have been here (Chinese, Vietnamese, Korean, Brazilian, Italian, Spanish, Mexican, Salvadoran, French, German, Indian and U.S.)

There is so much to experience here that I know that we will only see and do a fraction of it.

No, I DO NOT live in a miserable city.

I live in the best city in the world. Or Texas, whatever.

 bokey wrote: 

Misery is a state of mind so some people can live in Paradise and still be miserable while others can live in extreme conditions and be quite exhilarated.

To answer the question, though: No, I live a fabulous life in a lovely city and I could care less what any statistics say about my location.

Do you mean a city in Missouri? Like St. Louis? No, but I went there once.

The question is actually this: Are you miserable?

i grew up in Buffalo.

No. But define miserable. I'm curious.

 Mark_E_DeSnow wrote: 
How do you fit a chip on your shoulder bigger than Texas into a place the size of Portland?

ok I've got you beat.   in 1976 we lived in a trailor in a beautiful Missouri valley for $50 a month.

 OlderThanDirt wrote: 

 Mark_E_DeSnow wrote: 
Boolean talk gets me all hot.