Phoenix vs. Boston (living, comparison, America, population)

[Ria Rhodes]

"Phx hands down for me. not a cold weather person. the suburbs are huge in itself. 2 hours to skiing, 4 hours to gamblings, 5 hours to LA. Much more laid back area, growth like crazy in an area that can geographically support it, which in the long run leads to more business, more jobs. The beauty of color lit sky day after day as the sun goes down behind the mountains. Its just my kinda place, i can relax, swim in january, enjoy a BBQ in shorts with friends, wake up the next morning drive 2 hours and go skiing. i mean thats alot of options and a drastic change in climate. I dont know, just my opinion...i always think to myself...if there was no city here and just my house, would i be happier on this land or on that land. And hands down for me in Phx."

No surprise. I see you're in Jax. Another sun worship locale. I'd have guessed you'd go with Phoenix. Cataracts and melanoma's in the land of the early bird/palmetto bug/dripping humidity or cataracts and melanoma's in the land of the 80 mph helmet less highway ninjas/dry heat/dust and monsoon storms. Choose your poison. OK - said half in jest!

[SteelCityRising]

Ouch! You know folks, I hate the sprawl and heat of Phoenix just as much as most other rational people from the Northeast do, but some of your comments towards those who are voting in favor of Phoenix are just downright callous. Melanoma? That's nothing to joke about! Ease off a bit, or feel the wrath of the Italian Stallion!

[Finger Laker]

it's not a defense - it's true

i'm an upstate NY native and i never want to see 6 inches of snow again, let alone 6 feet

and yes - i absolutely love rainy/cloudy days when they happen

you can't argue that the sun is less inconvenient to daily routine than the snow

down here you don't have to have a backup rain venue - you don't have to worry about a snow storm leaving you stranded - schools out here don't have to budget for "sun days" - offices don't have to send people home because there is some sun coming - you don't throw salt/gravel/stuff all over the place taking damage on your clothes, cars, streets because we had some sun

the reason you hear it so much is because it's true and it's a preference for many - i'm glad that i do not have to scrap ice off my car or wakeup early to shovel out my driveway just to make it to work

to say everyone down here is sun damaged is like saying everyone up there is frost bit ..... people are laying in the sun on 115 degree days - the main culprit for the leather skin in both areas is exactly the same - tanning booths and insecure people who clog them

also why does history make a city interesting today? - how many times do you actually hang out at historical places ......... i went to school in philadelphia and did the tourist thing, but for the most part it history never came into play during everyday life - DE has some fascinating history, but is not a place i'd ever live again

my hometown in upstate NY has some great history - as does a lot of upstate NY - doesn't help it as far as jobs or quality of life

also there is history out here - it's just less colonial and more frontier

[SteelCityRising]

Still, I'm TIRING of hearing the same few responses about why Phoenix is so great----"you don't have to shovel sun", "we're kind of close to California", and "we have a healthy economy." I can name countless other cities that have many more attractive qualities than this.

[Finger Laker]

attractive to you

that's the deal with all of this and the reason why i find a lot of it amusing and mind bogling at the same time ........ it's all preference

it's like people arguing about what they like more rap or country music

i'm sick off all you rap guys saying that the beats get you moving and the rhymes just flow - it's not even singing

i'm sick of all you country guys talking about the music taking you away and painting pictures of the simple life - don't know how anyone can like that twang

of course as people we tend to say what we like is the best and that things on the opposite "suck"

however, there has to be something to the opposite because it sure is popular

as i originally stated, i really like both cities - however for my lifestyle, for the quality of life i'm looking for I think Phoenix edges it out a little bit for me at this point in my life

[lammius]

Originally Posted by AliveandWell

Have you ever taken a moment to wonder why Phoenix has many more people than Boston(metro area and city combined)? There is a reason for that. Or there could be more than one, who really knows.

Except it doesn't...

Phoenix MSA: 4.1 million
Boston MSA: 4.5 million (and a CSA population of 7.4 million)

They're not very far apart though.

[Finger Laker]

another nice thing about phoenix that may not matter to most, but it sure does to some is that the length of our days (sunrise to sunset) tends to be a little more consistent

in the summer we get our sunsets a little earlier than more northern cities and in the winter they come a little latter in the day

you can drive to and from work with light - always hated that growing up and in MN it was the worst - would be pitch black out at 4pm - i had to memorize the lights on the houses so I could figure out where I was and when to pull the stop on my bus home

probably not a big deal to most, but I always found it kind of draining and depressing to wake up in the dark, spend all the daylight in and office to retreat into the dark

[Garson]

I grew up outside Boston and moved to Phoenix 12 years ago. I would rather poke my eyes out, give my right arm and go to prison then EVER move back.
I love the desert, love the heat, love the beauty of AZ in general. I love waking up to sunshine every morning. People are much more laid back and nicer here, life has been very good to me here. The extreme heat is for a very short period of time and I can spend much more time outside doing recreational type things in AZ then I ever could in MA. I can garden and work in my yard 12 months of the year. History and culture are great in places to visit but really do not have much effect on daily life. I am not aware of any water issues here - not that effect my life in any way. The southwest sits on the largest aquifer in North America. Water is not expensive and we have no restrictions. Traffic in the Phoenix area is nothing compared to Boston.
People in Boston are very driven and intense which is quite unappealing to me. I would pick Phoenix if for no other reason then the people. People in Boston are all about how much money they make and what kind of car they drive. They live to work.
Number two would be the weather - Boston is very dreary and cold. Winter was bad enough but then spring is just so gloomy and depressing. Most winters there is not that much snow but every few years they get really dumped on.
I am sure some will disagree with me but I did live in Boston for 25 years and I have been in the Phoenix area for 12.
These threads do get a little silly - everyone looks for different things that make them happy. Boston is a great city - just for me it is one to visit and not live in.

[Steve-o]

Boston is the clear victor here, not even a contest. The sun-worshipping geek crowd will proclaim PHX is best because it has high sunshine percentages (and the highest skin cancer rate to boot), no need to shovel snow (read: hideously boring never-changing environment), cheaper housing costs (gee, how much would you pay for a stucco POS w/o a basement that looks identical to every other house in the Valley???), etc.

Seriously, this isnt even a contest. Boston is the winner, what a joke of a comparison.

[happ]

Phoenix is an outdoor city [except in summer] but the rest of the year the climate is great. Also the monsoon each summer provides incredible thunderstorms.

Because of the latitude Boston is cold city compared to Phoenix so most activities are inside. I think winter can be pretty brutal but summers are cooler than NYC so it's a great time to visit. Wish I had seen more of Boston when I visited.