What I like about Cincinnati is that it has a lot of the offerings of a big city (as far as I can tell, I've never really lived in a big city) but it's more accessible. There is always something going on. There is always theater and music. You can look at Karen's blog (http://deime.blogspot.com/) for more about the music scene. There are constant sporting events and even if the Reds and Bengals aren't playing well, we have exciting college teams (Go Miami! Go XU! Boo UC! Hee hee), and really great high school sports. From spring to fall there is always a competitive race or 5k for runners. Check with Bob Roncker's Running Spot for info on that. Although we don't have any mountains, we have plenty of nice parks to wander through and the Loveland bike trail to ride on. We have a really nice zoo, and several no-kill animal shelters if you want to help animals.

Best of all, there are so many opportunities to get involved if you want to. Whatever your passion or cause, there is sure to be a group, charity, or club supporting it. Even if you just want to do some random community service project, there are groups who organize those.
You just have to look around and be aware. (I have a friend who had lived here for 6 years without knowing about the Flying Pig Marathon.) Read CityBeat, CinWeekly, CincyUpdate. Check the United Way website and be persistent.