I'm from Oregon, was in NYC once and it seems cooler than LAX. Was teaching English in Vietnam for 5 years. Now, I'm near Seattle in a small city which is great for the fresh air. It can be better to live in a big city for networking. Some say NYC is the best metropolis in the world. Some would say that on How I Met Your Mother (HIMYM) for example. Great show, maybe better than Friends in some ways.