Our current residence is the most urban location that I've ever lived in. We're about a mile from downtown and several other thriving neighborhoods. Pretty much anything we want or need isn't too far away. So, we've gotten in the habit of not leaving this nearby area very often.

We did some driving around the city recently and it had been months since the last time we had been to neighborhoods like Ballard, Fremont, and West Seattle. Those neighborhoods are only about 5 miles from downtown, but to me they almost seemed like distant suburbs since we go out there so rarely.

It's great having everything so close, since we don't have to go very far for what we need. However, it's easy to forget that there's a whole lot of city out there that we haven't explored. Whenever I look at a map or talk to my coworkers about where they live, I'm reminded of how expansive this metropolitan area is and how little of it I have seen.

I doubt I'll ever have a reason to visit most of the suburbs here, but I shouldn't forget that while the inner city is an exciting, vibrant, and awesome place, there is still a lot of Seattle to see.