As a local blog, we get to see the search terms that people use to find us and they reveal many interests.  Someone visited Today in Montclair yesterday, after googling:  Why live in Montclair?

I’m imagining that this searcher is deciding to move to Montclair Village, because it seems like a strange thing for a current villager to search online.

For all you wanna-be Montclarions, you need to hear from us (and not your realtors).  Here are some of the pros and cons of our place:

Montclair Pros:

• Still has folks who have been here forever
• Still aspires to Berkeley intellectualism
• Still feels like a village, but has a canine mayor
• Still has a dress code of sweats and t-shirts
• Still lets driven people hide in plain sight

Montclair Cons:

• Not where hipsters mingle or thrive, like in SF or DTO
• Not a normal family spot with garage, flat lawn and 2.5 kids
• Not immune from city ills, as you need to lock up
• Not quite the city, as wild animals may eat your cats
• Not well known like Peninsula or Contra Costa suburbs

Recently I went to an Oakland blogger meet-up which attracted everyone who writes about our faire city.  I still felt a little cowered by the cool factor, but was welcomed to the fray – and think that’s really the reason for being here.