Ten Reasons Why Living in San Francisco is Better Than Living in Detroit

Before you say "DUH!" here are my reasons written in black and white (actually, transcribed from a list I scrawled on scrap paper while waiting for my plane yesterday), on why San Francisco is better than Detroit. This list is in no particular order, although #1 and #2 are near and dear to my heart. While my son now lives in the Fog City, he doesn't even make the Top Ten.


1. Lack of squirrels - There appears to be more squirrels in the square block where I live in Royal Oak than in the entire city of San Francisco. I spent a great deal of time in Golden Gate Park, and didn't see any squirrels at all! Before you say, it's a city, there's no wild life there, I did see other animals such as well behaved dogs on leashes, lots of birds and a covey of quail. Part of the reason for the squirrel overpopulation in my neighborhood is due to the idiot who is feeding these glorified rodents his left-over Krispy Kremes. In San Francisco, nature lovers feed their wild animals stale focaccia or organic greens. If that's what it takes to keep the squirrels away, I'm all for it.

2. People saying "Good morning!" - Before starting my San Franciscan day, I would take an hour and a half to two hour walk on the beach. I am totally blown over that almost everyone in passing greeted me with "Good morning!" and they actually appeared to mean it! They were smiling! Even the wheelchair-bound homeless man sadly sitting with his shopping cart full of worldly possessions wished me a good morning. This is simply not done in the Detroit area, although I have tried to impart a modest amount of friendliness on those occasions where I walk to work. First of all, if you're walking in the Detroit area, people assume you are too poor to buy a car and don't have money for bus fare. Secondly, smiling is unheard of (what's here to smile about anyway?) and people would assume you are either looking to get picked up because you're a hooker or too poor for a car. Thirdly, saying "good morning?" Are you kidding? Do you have a flak jacket? I don't. It might just be me, but most Kevlar-based clothing is not all that stylish.