There is some really good information in this article. I am a big fan of the weighting mistake. Wait, that came out wrong. I am a big fan of people being aware of the weighting mistake. I am wondering where this research leaves me. I commute almost 2 hours, each way, to work. That is awful. But it is on a very nice train. That is good. I can read. I can study. I listen to the radio. I look out the window. I drink tea. On the whole though, it is terrible. I, however, didn't fall prey to the weighting mistake. I made a choice about where I wanted to live and have been slowly transferred away from it. That being said, I live in probably the most livable neighborhood in one of the most livable cities in the world. I think my happiness index is a file cabinet in reverse alphabetical order.
To further comment on the article, I like where I lve because:
My apartment is small but not tiny. It doesn't have a great view and the windows could be larger. That being said, it is very open and next to a long covered market that sells fresh produce and seafood. Beyond that market is the river and the greenbelt that stretches north/south the length of Kyoto. Right now it is covered in cherry blossoms. The rivers merge in a park directly down the street from my house. From the bridge you can see Daimonji-yama, the mountain that hovers above the city. Two minutes in the opposite direction of the river is the old Imperial castle grounds, which are now a giant park and also covered in cherry blossoms. All of things where taken into account when I decided on this house. Studying economics and psychology can pay off for you. If only in little fleeting bits. I had a planning book in college that supposed that American notions of grand living came from images of Greek temples, raised and solitary. Japan can be cramped and squalid but the public green-space available in Kyoto is remarkable. This is all what I was going to be being paid to study right now, by the way. Good thing they gave money to somebody else.
I wonder if that happiness study factored in people who commute a long way because they really love their jobs? Hmmm.
1 comment:
My apartemnt and the school used to be one gigantic crappy house. talk about your short commute; i never have to worry about being late for school because the kids who come to shoot baskets in the garden shake the pictures hanging on my wall. needless to say, there is such thing as too much closeness. i miss the ten block walk i used to make to school, it made me healthier. i miss being unable to walk home in 45 seconds and pick up materials; it used to demand much more discipline. But overall, its nice to sleep in and awaken to the thunk thunk of basketballs bouncing off the other side of my headboard...
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