I live in a suburb of the capital city. There aren't any side walks on my street, but we are only a couple miles from downtown Columbia.

My mortgage is paid; I rent out another house, a small 2-bedroom 1 bath house with a fenced yard for $550 a month plus utilities. Gas and electric for this house average about $160 a month. My utilities are higher because I use more gas and electricity to keep all the critters comfortable. Or maybe that's just my excuse!

I like being close to all the shopping and entertainment. We have the Koger Center for the Performing Arts, the Coliseum for sporting events and some concerts, the Convention Center for more concerts, the Township for shows and concerts and the Fairgrounds for craft shows, home and boat shows, and of course for the State Fair every year. We have a lot of good places to eat, two dog parks, and several regular parks. Finley Park has free music every Saturday night in the summer, with food vendors. Every weekend has something going on.

The people here are pretty friendly and willing to help when you need help. We have three animal rescues as well as three different city animal control groups. The only one that does a lot of adoptions is Pets, Inc.

We get a spring, summer, fall and winter. The leaves change in the fall and we have a lot of pollen in the spring. The only thing I don't like is the humidity in the summer.

The area is only a couple of hours from the mountains of Asheville, NC, Myrtle Beach, SC or Charleston, SC. With two major highways, it's easy to get around. Of course, there ARE some crazy drivers here.

Gas is a little lower than a lot of places and we have very little bus service. Lots of cabs, though.