IT Worker from Jersey..re-locating (Houston, Dallas: transplants, neighborhood, living in)

[dreamtheaternj]

Hi all !

I am a recently laid-off IT worker from NJ, and I have always said I was moving to TX once kids were done with HS...( i have always believed I was a southerner in a past life)

2 kids still in HS, but think it might be a good time to make the move..

Considering either Dallas or Austin..my 16 yr old has always had aspirations of UT, so Austin might be better, but trying to get a feel of where the jobs are..

That summer heat doesnt bother us, tired of NJ winters..

would appreciate the input..

thanks !!

bob

[sxrckr]

My impressions are that Dallas and Houston have way more IT jobs. Austin is more software, semiconductor, etc.

[catholicdad]

Texas is not particularly southern. Especially if you work in IT in Austin, chances are you'll be surrounded by transplants from other parts of the USA, along with Hindi and Mandarin speakers. I've made posts on here before stating that in my line of work and my neighborhood, native Texans (or even Americans) are a rare species. If you want to meet Southerners, you will need to plan accordingly; Austin may not be the best destination for it.

[dreamtheaternj]

Originally Posted by catholicdad

Texas is not particularly southern. Especially if you work in IT in Austin, chances are you'll be surrounded by transplants from other parts of the USA, along with Hindi and Mandarin speakers. I've made posts on here before stating that in my line of work and my neighborhood, native Texans (or even Americans) are a rare species. If you want to meet Southerners, you will need to plan accordingly; Austin may not be the best destination for it.

thanks for the input..

Not necessarily looking for that Southerner feel, just away from the non-friendly Jersey attitude...lived here all my life and hate it...

been to Dallas a few times, and loved it, but never Austin though..

[ImOnFiya]

Originally Posted by catholicdad

Southerners/Texans display a superficial hospitality. But it's also easy to offend them by e.g. not being baptist, ordering a glass of wine with dinner, not hating "the government", not caring about hunting or fishing, pronouncing words the "wrong" way, etc. I have been around Texans before moving to Austin, so I have a sense of what to expect. I was at a 12-hour night shift job with a bunch of Houstonians in an airtight office, so their true colors were revealed. For Texans, add "not believing that Texas is the greatest place on Earth". I would do a test trial of living in Texas for a few months, and you may end up hating it even more than NJ.

Dear OP, I am sorry that an internet-created personality is responding to your serious question. Obviously, he is not serious. Texas is Texas. It is southern, some parts feel western. But, you never forget you're in Texas. It is bigger than life.

[catholicdad]

Everything I've stated is based on actual experiences. If you want more details, feel free to send me a message.

[ImOnFiya]

Originally Posted by catholicdad

Everything I've stated is based on actual experiences. If you want more details, feel free to send me a message.

[I've lived here on and off nearly all my life. You've lost me. ]

To the OP, don't be distracted. Other posters will carry on the conversation!

[Aquitaine]

We came from NYC. I run a tech company.

There is some IT here but not as much as the larger cities (Houston/Dallas) just due to scale. If you can get a job here, then absolutely check it out, but I wouldn't recommend moving here without a job.

Texas is definitely Southern. Differently than, say, Georgia or Alabama (which are different from one another).

[love roses]

Originally Posted by catholicdad

Southerners/Texans display a superficial hospitality. But it's also easy to offend them by e.g. not being baptist, ordering a glass of wine with dinner, not hating "the government", not caring about hunting or fishing, pronouncing words the "wrong" way, etc. I have been around Texans before moving to Austin, so I have a sense of what to expect. I was at a 12-hour night shift job with a bunch of Houstonians in an airtight office, so their true colors were revealed. For Texans, add "not believing that Texas is the greatest place on Earth". I would do a test trial of living in Texas for a few months, and you may end up hating it even more than NJ.

I am a lifelong Texan and don't particularly care what someones religion is or if they have none at all as long as they don't feel the need to tell me what I should believe and vice versa.

Many people in Texas hunt as a way of supplying food for themselves. I don't hunt and don't care what someone does as far as that goes...to each their own (my B.I.L. gives us some of his take of Venison and Boar) Pronouncing words the wrong way (Who anywhere isn't guilty of this?) It happens in New York too. Not believing Texas is the greatest place on earth isn't a deal breaker but it does get tiring hearing continuous slams (I won't give people a hard time if they don't like Texas. I think there are lots of other places that are quite wonderful too).

Texas, depending on what part of the State you are in, can have either a Southern flavor or a Southwestern one. About the IT field I don't know...I'm more into the education side of things.

[austinnerd]

Originally Posted by catholicdad

Southerners/Texans display a superficial hospitality. But it's also easy to offend them by e.g. not being baptist, ordering a glass of wine with dinner, not hating "the government", not caring about hunting or fishing, pronouncing words the "wrong" way, etc. I have been around Texans before moving to Austin, so I have a sense of what to expect. I was at a 12-hour night shift job with a bunch of Houstonians in an airtight office, so their true colors were revealed. For Texans, add "not believing that Texas is the greatest place on Earth". I would do a test trial of living in Texas for a few months, and you may end up hating it even more than NJ.

Interesting, I'm not Baptist, I often order wine with dinner, don't "hate" the govt , have only a superficial interest in hunting/fishing, refuse to mispronounce places and yet I don't have any problems with the overwhelming majority of folks I meet (and haven't in the 15+ years I've lived here). I certainly wouldn't use my experience and claim that it is "the" Austin experience (or even more so "the" Texas experience).