Daniel M. Ingram:
We moved from up North to Raleigh in December, 1973, then to Chapel Hill in 1976, where I grew up. I lived in Durham from 1985 to 1987 when I went to high school at the School of Science and Math, then back to Chapel Hill for Undergrad at UNC. I moved to California in 1992, then back to Raleigh in 1993, then off to India in 1995, then back to Chapel Hill 1996, then to Raleigh again 1997, then back to Chapel Hill 1998, then to Carrboro 2001, then to Louisville 2003 and I haven't lived in the Triangle since, much to my dismay at times. Huntsville is ok, but it is not the Triangle.
I've never been to Alabama so I've no basis for comparison. But the Triangle isn't quite the Triangle anymore, either. You saw the changes due to growth from 1993 to 2003 -- it's only gotten worse! We moved into our current house in 2004 and liked it because it was in a relatively wooded area (SW Wake County). It still wooded in places, but vast areas have been bulldozed for condos, shopping centers, etc.
I'm going to visit Dad once he gets settled in in Huntsville, so I'll be able see a new part of the world for me.
Cheers!