Neat stuff in Sunday's paper about Pittsburgh's in- and out-migration trends, courtesy of the Center for Social and Urban Research at the University of Pittsburgh. The report confirms what Pittsburgh expatriates knew intuitively, via the abundance of Pittsburgh-themed sports bars in Washington, D.C.: The nation's capital is the unofficial capital of the Pittsburgh Diaspora.

We caught up with one of the (many) people who left for Washington's slightly balmier climes, alarming homicide rate and comical ex-mayor, Marion Barry. Her name is Tiffany Bridge, 28. She works as a Webmaster for a nonprofit in D.C., living there with her husband, who came to the Beltway by way of California.

Q: Why'd you leave Pittsburgh?

A: I majored in political science in college and always had this idea that I'd move to D.C. -- the mecca for politics geeks. I didn't do it right after college, but after losing a job due to the company going under, and a little bit of personal transition, June 2002 seemed like the time to make it happen. Of course, once I actually arrived in D.C., it didn't take me long to realize that a career in politics was the last thing I wanted.

	James Hilston, Post-Gazette Click illustration for larger image.

A: Every once in a while, yes. Pittsburgh is friendlier. It's not that no one is friendly in D.C., but there's a more self-interested vibe to the friendliness here. When people smile at you in Pittsburgh, it feels like they're genuinely pleased to see you.

Q: You wrote in your blog (www.quibbling.net) that it seems one out of every four people you meet either is from Pittsburgh, or has an auntie in Pittsburgh, or is dating somebody from Pittsburgh. Neat, or aggravating, or comforting, to be among such a large portion of the Pittsburgh Diaspora?

A: I love it. Seriously. There's always someone nearby to celebrate / commiserate the Steelers with, or who knows exactly how to pronounce "Primanti's," and understands what a "hoagie" is.

Q: Statistics bear out your theory. Between 2000 and 2006, about 9,000 people moved from Pittsburgh to the Washington-Arlington-Alexandria area. But would it surprise you to learn that during the same period, 5,500 people moved from D.C. to Pittsburgh?

A: Not at all. First of all, there's a lot of churn in D.C. -- the percentage of people who aren't "from here" is about the same as in other large cities, but due to the staffers-are-like-lightbulbs political economy and of course the vagaries of the political process, there are a lot of people moving in and out all the time. Also, have you seen what real estate costs here? For the price of our 900-square-foot basement condo in Arlington, we could have a palace in Squirrel Hill. The Allegheny County real estate assessment Web site is reason enough to consider moving to Pittsburgh.

Q: What do you miss the most about Pittsburgh, besides family and friends?

A: The Strip District is one, definitely. My husband and I are foodies and we love wandering around the Strip on a Saturday. I miss the Pittsburgh skyline, too -- buildings in D.C. are prohibited from being taller than 12 stories. And during a snowstorm, I actually miss PennDOT. For all our complaining, they're really good at snow removal.

Q. Would you come back for the right job/salary? Or is Pittsburgh part of your past now? As one blogger puts it, "We all say we'd love to move back, and mean it, but we likely never will. You may have a great love for your homeland, but sometimes you take a look around and realize that no matter what your original plans, you've made a life for yourself elsewhere that means a lot to both you and the other people in your life, and your desire to recoup your own memories starts to lose its prominence in the grand scheme of things. Sad."

A. I think that blogger is right on. I mean, I would of course consider moving back for the right job/salary, but the right job/salary to make me move would have to be worth uprooting my life here for, convincing my West Coast-raised, solar-powered husband to tolerate gray skies for six months out of the year, and rebuilding it all in Pittsburgh. It's my home, and I will always love it, but that's a tall order for any job.