I'm still not going to give up living in Seattle even though I work in Bellevue.

But I work in Hillsboro and I want to live in Portland :( How dare you demand I live in the suburbs Dan Savage.

I'm all for shorter commutes, but I'm highly skeptical of any supposedly scientific article that uses the word "dudes." I'm also skeptical of the claim that the stress lessens after five years. Obviously a marriage that can weather 5 years of that kind of stress can handle more. It doesn't mean the stress is reduced, it just means that the weaker marriages have been weeded out.

For those of us dealing with the realities of the economy (ever been laid off 3 times in 12 months?), it isn't so simple.

Everett, WA. No thanks.

@ 3, "dudes" was a word in the article, not the study.

Also, some marriages end in divorce after decades, and not necessarily because of cheating.

Makes sense... Besides I think they are talking about 30+ minute commutes. And all you whiners that don't wanna move because of this or that... well it's all about priorities. Why do you think you got so defensive over a tiny little post?

I was doing a 90 minute commute- on good days- when my marriage went down the shitter. Granted, it probably would have failed eventually anyway, the commute absolutely killed it.

I got divorced and moved pretty close to work. Holy Geddy Lee, my life improved. I would never make a long commute again. If I had to take a job a long way away from where I lived, I would move. Period.

@ 7, what whiners? One person likes Seattle, not the burbs - sensible; one person hasn't had steady employment, and you have to take what you can get sometimes; and one person doesn't want to live in Everett (also sensible.)

I think you're the one who needs to scrutinize your reaction.

Wonderful in theory but I don't have an extra million dollars laying around to buy a place in downtown Vancouver.

Seriously - we are a family of four who live in a 14,00 sq ft townhouse 35 miles from the city center where my wife works. We have a $900/mo mortgage - you can't rent a place in the city at that price point.

Yes, why don't all those janitors and landscapers move their families into one of those cute $800,000 houses in Wallingford?

I work in Renton. My money, time, and any potential marriage can take the hit.

There are way too many office jobs in the suburbs/exurbs here. For distribution, manufacturing, farming... ok, I understand, you need the space and the wide roads. For office jobs, it's borderline immoral to bulldoze some old forest in the middle of nowhere to put up a dirt-cheap three story office building. It causes traffic, car dependence, pollution, and social costs on employees like in the article.

We need regulation to stop this from happening, something like expensive permits for new sprawling buildings or a head tax for single-car commuters. King County Council - I'm looking at you.

So Dan, I take it you'll be moving closer to the airport soon, right? Because you probably spend more time there than you do downtown.

@10 the Skytrain takes you from downtown Vancouver to PoCo or NewWest in less time than it takes to drive.

Just saying ...

Most people who work in mid-town Manhattan can't afford to live in mid-town Manhattan. In fact, a staggering number of people who work in Manhattan can't afford to live on the island period. It's a nice thought, though.

My marriage survived 9 years of commuting to the east side. It would not have survived 9 years living there.

@15 agreed. I work in IT and most jobs are in the suburbs. Everyone on my team that is 35 or under lives in Seattle and has a miserable commute to the east side. Management all live on the east side. I know Seattle is not unique in that regard either but what is unique about our unique city is how uniquely miserable the commute to these jobs can be. =(

Well, I do live close to where I work, but Baltimore is a rough city. I wouldn't live in this city if I had children, and I live in a good neighborhood. (Being a southern city, the good and bad areas are often side by side in a patch work fashion.) The schools are bad and violent, and I'd worry every time my child went out side. Not everyone can live in Seattle, or can afford to live in the city.

Never going to even come close to happening in Seattle until we start demanding more and better affordable housing.

@17 The Sky Train doesn't go to PoCo and the cost of living in New West is astronomical. She takes the commuter train (WestCoast Express) - regardless you are looking at an hour travel each way.

I work in the same city I live in, but I still have an hour long commute. Hoping for San Francisco to ban cars outright so we can have better public transit. Then this will truly be the happiest place on earth.