Thing is, I'd consider Riverfront and Gold more "central" than anything. Yes, by the map, Gold is in the south. However, it only takes me 5 minutes more driving to get to Wai's than it does to get to Gold's. So to me it doesn't really feel all that "south". Porthos I asssume you live in the north, I don't think you'd say that otherwise
To be honest, I really did enjoy Big Al's previous location. It was close to work, close to home, I could go there for a quick boo and be back home inside of an hour. I can't do that to any store anymore except for Elite. And ... well .. short of M.O., guess who gets most of MY business? Sorry, location being convenient is a BIG factor to me nowadays. Before I had kids and I had lots of time to spare, I didn't mind driving all over the wazoo. Now with small kids at home, no ... not so much. So .. yeah, I don't think I'm being unreasonable feeling the way I do. And if you think I am .. well .. tough, I'm not changing my opinion!! Well .. actually, no. It's not an opinion. It's fact. From where I live, it's inconvenient to get to the north (or "north-esque") stores. It takes a bit of planning and juggling things around to do it. I realize it's not this way for everyone, and that's cool. But that's how it is for me.