Since our situation a year from now is so up in the air, and the academic job market is such that a good job could take you anywhere in the country, we’ve found ourselves driving on this trip and asking “could we live here?” Tossing aside geographical and familial concerns, the question was pretty easy to answer heading up the west coast. Yes to Berkeley, a hearty yes to Seattle, yes to Vancouver. The question gets more complicated as you head inland. Take Missoula, Montana. It’s scenic and has no state tax, but we were greeted by a stand in our hotel lobby selling children’s books called, for example, God Made Puppies. Somehow, I imagine the latter two characteristics are related.