Originally Posted by Ralph Sir Edward
I like urban sprawl. I live in one of the most sprawled cities in the world, (and like a good Texan) am proud of it! Let me explain what I get for my sprawl.
Bad - Air Pollution
Heavy Auto Traffic
Long Commutes (although I am currently between commutes at this time)
Minimal sense of neighborhood.
Good - A 220 sq meter house, (nice brick, in an affluent, nice neighborhood) on a 825 sq meter lot. I split the house with my brother when we bought it. It cost less (30 year mortgage) than 2 average separate 80 sq meter apartments (at the purchase time).
On the lot, I garden. A pecan tree, 60 rose bushes, a raspberry patch (ripe right now!), 6 dwarf orange trees in pots (along with 10 tropical hibiscus plants), amaryllis (5 varieties), daylilies, irises, tomato plants, daffodils, ect., and a lawn. I see various birds, (including hummingbirds), lizards, squirrels, the ocassional frog, (I have water lilies in tubs), and butterflies, among others...(Future plans include a 4-in-1 apple tree and a boysenberry patch)
I can also hop in the car and go anywhere I want, 24 hours a day, as long as I don't have to go across water. (Can't drive to Hawaii or Europe, for example - But I could drive to Nome, Alaska, if I wanted to.)
I'm not totally impervious to envornmental concerns (just almost!), and my longer term plans are to panel my roof with solar panels, which should provide all my electricity needs (in 5 to 10 years, IMHO), and my next car will be a serial hybrid (when they come out).
I like my lifestyle....(did I mention the hot-air ballons that fly overhead every year.....)
|