an e-mail to a Kentucky friend who inquired...

As for SF, are you kidding, everyone here is our age. Seriously, where are the children? You get a few old little chinese ladies thrown in the mix, but otherwise, SF is MADE of young professionals. Naw, that's exaggerating, b/c SF is really diverse, but truth is, people like 24-35 are most abundant.
And i live in the city. Smack dab in the middle geographically, right by Golden Gate Park. UCSF is centrally located, and i live near the hospital. "downtown" is focused on the east side of the city (the bay side): financial district, tourist stuff. Friends of mine grew up in families on the west/ocean side, and i'm somewhere in between. I love my neighborhood. And sf is FULL of awesomely hip and chill places.
Cost of living, i wont lie, is STEEEEP. Rent is easily in the 2000s for a 2 bedroom, you'd be hard pressed to get a studio for less than 1200. But RN salary makes up for it here. It's like 60% higher here than in Nashville, and since i walk/bike/take muni, i save $$$ on car expenses (i don't have a car here).
SF is so awesome. Nursing itself is SO challenging, but can be so rewarding too. It took me close to 2 years before i really liked my job. The learning curve can be pretty steep in a fast-paced teaching hospital, but now that i'm settled, it's so much better. And i feel like i can really help people now that i feel competent in my skills/knowledge and all.
So yeah, that's SF and nursing. I'm SOOOOOOOOOOOOOO spoiled here too. The CA state ratios mean we have no more than 5 patients, whereas it can be twice that elsewhere. Also the weather is nice (though you must like fog), like 50s -70s year round, people are so multicultural and conscientious about health and the environment and on and on. It's hard to leave once you live here!