re: Fireplace inside: real or gas

a gas fireplace is for an apartment or condo.
a house should have a wood fireplace.

my fireplace is all brick, and the brick is all exposed in the house. Once that baby gets rolling, the heat radiates off the brick and the house will be hot. I sometimes have to open the door and let the 40 degree air enter the house to cool it down.
I've got a gas starter, so starting a fire is very simple. Not having the gas starter would be a real pain in the arse, and i could see where people would rather a gas fireplace over wood b/c of that.

Nothing like the sounds and smells of a wood fire. I'm not going to complain about chopping wood, or tending my fire, or sweeping up the ash, but i get why some people are so lazy they'd complain about that. Not really lazy i guess, just don't appreciate the wood fire enough to offset the very minor inconvenience it causes for some.