Anyone move to Austin....and hate it? (Houston: scorpion, construction)

[parkk]

Originally Posted by sberdrow

Finally a cure that taste damn good too....is there something chocolate cures??? I would love to have a reason for eating candy bars, you know for Medicinal purposes.

If your a insulin using diabetic you get to carry sweets with you and eat them if needed.

[Smooth from ELP]

I moved here 7 years ago. I am still trying to call it home. I came here because of a job transfer. So in a way I was kinda forced to relocate here. I like this time of the year when it is not too hot or cold. So right now I like living here.

[marylee54]

I wonder if the oppositw would happen with the honey? That is, if you get locally grown honey from another city, say, several hundred miles away, then would that create allergies to local pollen, etc?

[short&portly]

Originally Posted by Ed Truck

Austin gets a lot of love as a pretty desireable place to live. Did anyone move here and find that they really did not care for it, and if so, why?

I'm a small-town (central OK) girl at heart, but even a s/t-girl's gotta spread her wings and live in "the big city" after college. When I arrived in Austin, freshly graduated, open eyes to new adventures & new places, I was in awe. I seriously thought, "this is it...I'm in NYC." To me, it was "huge," the highways were intimidating, the people were different, there's so much more cultural diversity than what I was accustomed to, there's more food selection, the bar/club scene was way more expansive, there were more boys....

However, now that I've lived here for 9 years, I'm ready to move elsewhere. My hubby has lived here for 18 years and is practically blue from frustration of how much he despises the traffic, job market, people, etc. Anyways....without further adieu, the list (in no particular order):

1. Allergies: CEDAR FEVER indeed exists. I was attacked in less than 2 months of arriving. My eyes were swollen, red, itchy, *****, and sunlight/light was unbearable. I wasn't able to wear my contacts and had to resort to glasses, unfortunately, I'd have to drive home from work (1.5 hours) in the direction of the setting sun. I could hardly (& still hardly) breathe - it's either runny and/or stuffy. I blow my nose every day & night.

2. Being landlocked: I detest that it takes nearly a day to get out of TX. Back in OK, I was able to make fun road trips to the Ozarks, to ski in New Mexico, visit Branson, etc and it wouldn't be this big ordeal with time off from work. And the coast is, *sigh* disappointing. We stopped going. The water is disgusting (brown like poo h2o), stinky, and yet again, REALLY FAR to get to, especially after you've been sitting in traffic for so long.

3. Mosquitoes: An excess of them, in full force. We have a fantastic backyard with a beautiful deck, but we can't enjoy it but for maybe 2 weeks max out of the year - unless we are saturated in repellent, or wear long-sleeved shirts and long pants...but then they start attacking the face, ears, and hands! Citronella tiki torches are a joke. Fogging them works for maybe a few minutes, and then they find you!

4. Music Scene: With all due respect to the plethora of talented musicians that flock Austin to make their big break......the "scene" is highly overrated. AND, it's all in what kind of genre one prefers. But what is playing around town on a daily basis is not my cup of tea. I'd rather listen to my CDs over & over again.

5. Traffic: No, it's nothing near as bad as in L.A. or elsewhere, but when getting to point A to B is over an hour, bumper to bumper, when I was used to a mere :10....it just sux altogether. The public transport system is a joke. I've tried and it's more a waste of time and gas for my particular route, than if I were to just take my own car.

6. 'Tude & The Clicks: Oh, the tude. *sigh* The attitude from most Austinites (whether or not they're true locals, I've no idea) are "I'm cooler than thou will ever be." That gets so old! I've come across so many pretentious, pompous, higher-than-thou people that it's disheartening. Most have the, "O, you don't shop at thrift stores; wear skinny jeans, screen-printed tees, chucks; see various rock bands every night; drink your liver to cirrhosis, or smoke your lungs to emphysema, then you must NOT be cool like moi." *Pssht* Puh-leeze.

It's very cliquish....to the extent that I feel like most of them still think they're in a very large high school. You cannot hang out with us unless you are abc, or wear xyz, or do 123.

7. Beautiful Scenery: LACK THEREOF. I'm so tired of being landlocked (see #2). Austin is known for it's "hill country." I'm sorry....there's only so many ant-hills and Cedar trees (which I'm highly allergic to, as I discovered) and wild grape vines overtaking native plants/trees, that I can take. Yes, there are beautiful wildflowers during spring, but they bolt quickly due to our heat. SO, blink, and too bad, you missed it!

8. Peter Pan Syndrome: (see #6) Most Austinites don't want to grow up. (I don't either folks, but aging is inevitable). If I hear one more person in their 30s/40s/50s say "dude" and speak like they are a teen, I will scream. I've come across so many people that act cool (i.e., cool "speak," cool clothes, cool hair, cool scenery)....after a while, it must be so embarrassing to be surrounded by kids young enough to be your daughter/son.

NOW, all that being said and done. I would not move back to my hometown of small, central OK.
There are also some nice qualities to Austin: environmentally-minded, tax-free on food, no state tax taken from your paycheck, no brutal winter storms, the gardening season is longer, and you're very close to Mexico or the Caribbean if you wish to hop on a 3-4 hour flight.

[readymade]

Originally Posted by short&portly

6. 'Tude & The Clicks: Oh, the tude. *sigh* The attitude from most Austinites (whether or not they're true locals, I've no idea) are "I'm cooler than thou will ever be." That gets so old! I've come across so many pretentious, pompous, higher-than-thou people that it's disheartening. Most have the, "O, you don't shop at thrift stores; wear skinny jeans, screen-printed tees, chucks; see various rock bands every night; drink your liver to cirrhosis, or smoke your lungs to emphysema, then you must NOT be cool like moi." *Pssht* Puh-leeze.

It sounds like you're very judgemental over people you perceive as being very judgemental.

[Smooth from ELP]

Originally Posted by readymade

It sounds like you're very judgemental over people you perceive as being very judgemental.

She's got some good points though.

[short&portly]

Originally Posted by readymade

It sounds like you're very judgemental over people you perceive as being very judgemental.

Ooops. My humble apologies...you and Smooth from ELP are both correct. That was not my intent to be judgemental....just merely sharing my own frustrations.

[iceshots]

What does it matter what other people think? If I have to "fit in" in order to be allowed to hang around with a group, then I probably would not even get along with that group.

If the point is that "everyone" is like that, and it is difficult to find a group of friends that do not act that way, then yes, I could see that as being a problem.

Then again, I'm just an old fogey who is enjoying going to the high school football games, avoiding the upcoming Canadian winter, looking forward to the new house in the "sticks" and doesn't really have to be concerned about the night life or social life of Austin proper. I'm looking for a different definition of good times & good friends.

Good luck on wherever you end up calling home.

[readymade]

Originally Posted by short&portly

Ooops. My humble apologies...you and Smooth from ELP are both correct. That was not my intent to be judgemental....just merely sharing my own frustrations.

You DO have some good points! I've experienced that "hipper than thou" thing everywhere, though. And I've also found that a lot of those people are, believe it or not, merely socially awkward.

I've had one or two people tell me that they thought that I was "too cool for school" before they actually got to know me. Turns out, I'm just shy around new people!

That being said I admit to having the urge to walk around Austin (and other places) with an electric razer to shave off all the ironic beards that aren't really ironic anymore.

[jread]

Originally Posted by short&portly

3. Mosquitoes: An excess of them, in full force. We have a fantastic backyard with a beautiful deck, but we can't enjoy it but for maybe 2 weeks max out of the year - unless we are saturated in repellent, or wear long-sleeved shirts and long pants...but then they start attacking the face, ears, and hands! Citronella tiki torches are a joke. Fogging them works for maybe a few minutes, and then they find you!

Maybe you live in some sort of micro climate within Austin, but I'd say it is largely a false claim to say that all of Austin has a huge mosquito problem. I've lived here 8-years and have only seen maybe 2. In fact, my family/friends from SE Texas (where mosquitoes will carry you off) always love the fact that you can be outside in Austin and not have anything biting you. There just isn't enough standing water here to have a huge issue with them... nothing remotely close to the Gulf Coast swamplands.