Talkeetna

So, I just booked a room for two nights in Talkeetna, Alaska - the two nights immediately prior to the start of our trip up (and back down, hopefully) Mt. McKinley.

While talking on the phone to the old guy at the hotel, he mentioned that the town has been "booming" these past years. Apparently the population is nearing 800. According to Wikipedia:

Talkeetna is a census-designated place (CDP) in Matanuska-Susitna Borough, Alaska, United States. It is part of the Anchorage, Alaska Metropolitan Statistical Area. At the 2000 census the population was 772.

What this means is that the population of my apartment building is probably slightly greater than the population of Talkeetna.

And did you catch that phrase? A census-designated place? Not even a city or town. It's a clump of people that the Census Bureau recognizes as being distinct from other clumps of people. I'm going to enjoy visiting there.