Ever moved from Houston and want to come back? (Austin: crime, how much)

[luv80s]

We just moved up to the New England area and I'm ready to come back to Houston. I thought I'd be ready to leave Houston and ready for a new change. The heat is terrible, traffic is horrible, crime, etc. But now that we moved waaaaay up north, Houston doesn't look that bad anymore. I miss family and friends. I miss not being able to go to the TX Renaissance Festival this year or the Galleria/Uptown park during Christmas. I miss seeing the Nutcracker and other great concerts and festivals coming to town. It will be awhile until we can go down to visit since we are having a baby in a few months and won't be able to travel anytime soon.

We moved up North in March and have to stay at 2 years for my husbands job commitment. He hates Houston and doesnt want to go back but I think he's changing his mind about it because of family. Life up here in Vermont is beautiful and people are so friendly but I love living in a big city. The weather here is nicer than Houston except for winter. Shoveling your car out of snow is such a pain in the butt.

Anyone ever move away from Houston and wanted to come back? Share your stories please!

By the way, what am I missing down in Houston? Whats been going on? I've been gone about 3 months now.

Thanks!

[love roses]

We lived in Houston, moved to Denver, but instead when we came back we moved to austin.

[Premont]

I lived out west briefly and it felt funny. I kept thinking of Texas way over there and somehow I didn't feel centered. It doesn't bother me in any other city in Texas, but in different states and time zones, I start to miss Texas.

[BrooklynTx]

I have lived in the Big Apple for over 12 years. I do miss many elements of Houston and Texas. I certainly miss not being spoken to like a child or imbecile, like many in New York do, once they find out you're from "the middle of the country that doesn't count."

The carpetbagger in the White House certainly hasn't helped diminish stereotypes of Texans.....and that's ironic given he and his family are from the NE.

[SWATgirl]

I was born in Columbia, South Carolina but raised in Houston. A couple of years ago, I moved back to South Carolina and missed Houston the ENTIRE time. I was miserable. I was known to annoy people by constantly saying how much bigger and better Houston is. I thought Columbia was too small, too racist and too boring. I moved back to H-Town as soon as the opportunity arose and have been sooo happy here since! But guess what?! Now my husband has a job offer in Vernal, UT a small town of 8000 people! I am already awaiting the day when we can move back here.
My advice is to convince your husband to move back! You'll never have to shovel snow again! The best thing about Houston is that anything your heart desires is right here in the city or close by (okay, except mountain activities). The worst thing: the crime. You might get jacked at any stoplight.
The coolest new thing in town: 30 ft statues of the Beatles in the heights area! Check out these pics: Sawyer and Summer: What is that about? - Houston Architecture Info Forum - HAIF® They are awesome!

[houstoner]

Yes, many times I've moved away... and I've always moved back!

I pass the big heads every day driving down Sawyer. Not all of them are visible from there. You have to drive down Summer Street to see them all close up. Kind of creepy at night. I last visited when the artist was making John Lennon's head, but haven't been back in a while. Must go by! They remind me of one thing I ALWAYS miss about the city when I leave --- the scale! Everything is soooo huge and haphazard and crazy and nonsensical, I love it. I last moved to a neat and tidy small historical city because I thought I'd like it better, but I really missed that about Houston... the whimsy...

[larice]

this is my 4th time to live here (my husband in in the oil and gas industry). we have literally lived all over the world and still love to live here (ok...sydney, australia was GREAT). we just moved back a year ago and couldn't be happier. we absolutely love our neighborhood and in fact live 2 streets from our old house. (we live on the west side/memorial area off the bayou)

cost of living, quality of life, schools, people...just can't be beat
(and i don't agree with the comment about the crime rate....we feel very, very safe here!)

[luv80s]

Thanks everyone for your input. I really miss Houston. The only thing I don't miss is the heat. My husband says that if it weren't for the heat he'd love it there. This is a man who could live in his Speedo in Antartica and be perfectly content, LOL. I'm the opposite, as much as I hate the high humidity, I hate the cold snowy weather even more. Its pretty for a few days but after that I'm ready for it to all melt.

We've talked this weekend about moving back in two years and hubby says if he can find something that pays just as much or more than what he is making now then he'll want to move back. When I tell people up here that I'm from Houston, they all tell me how much nicer it is to live in VT and safer, great place for familys, etc. Well, growing up in Houston was great too! Just because we don't have mountains or nature trails doesn't mean you can't raise a happy family in Houston with a good quality of life. Life is what you make it, wherever you may be.

Ok, I guess I'm just rambling on now, hehe. Til then, I'll be counting the months to our return home.

[Grblpwr]

I lived in Houston from age 2 to age 15. My parents dragged me kicking and screaming to Atlanta at 15 and when I married at 21 I moved to VA because hubby was stationed there. I am now in UT (hubby's job required it) and I STILL, 18 years after I left, long to move back to Houston. I miss the festivals, the art, the rodeo, the football obsession, the massive and horrible homecoming corsages with all of their wonderful craft store decorations (no other state does that), the twang and the overall sense of tradition and fierce pride and loyalty.

Luckily, I get my fix this Christmas when we go visit my aunt!

[Joe_Ryder]

This thread strikes a chord with me. I was raised in Houston but went west about 25 years ago. I've never been back.

I lived in LA for a few years and then Up to the San Francisco Bay Area. I started a business, made some money, sold it and retired. Then I bought a house up in Minnesota last year to get away from the city. For many years, I've thought that I wanted to get away from all the people and BS of city life but now that I'm sitting in this Rockwellian white middle class winter wonderland, it's started to occur to me that maybe all I really wanted was to go home. I suppose 2 solid months of sub-zero temps and not seeing the ground for snow for 7 months can also make a more tropical climate a bit more appealing.

I miss the smell of the gulf. Oddly, I miss the stifling heat and humidity. I miss getting into arguments with strangers over nothing. I know that sounds weird but even though it's not good behavior, it somehow seems normal. I miss the warm water at Galveston. Most of all, I miss Pancho's all-you-can-eat Mexican Buffet. They had those in Austin too! When you look at it objectively, Houston is a miserable place but something about it draws us all back.

I used to speak fairly fluent Spanish too! Now I can't count to 10, Pretty pathetic.

My father once said that Texans always go home sooner or later.

How's League city these days? I always liked it down there.

Edit: One other thing. In the 25 years living on the west coast, I was constantly confusing north and south. Oddly, I've always been able to find my way to the water but for all those years, the water was on the wrong side. May sound crazy but it's true.