Keep ____ Weird: if not Austin where else? (Houston, Orange: neighborhoods, to live in)

[julrey]

Originally Posted by nativeDallasite

Excuse me? I decided to move back to Dallas because my family lives here. I grew up here; it's home. The fact that there's a lot to do...a hell of a lot more to do than there is in Austin...is just the icing on the cake. The COL is low, the job market kicks butt, and Dallas is a great place to live. We don't really care what the rest of Texas thinks of us. Don't like Dallas? Simple: don't move here. We won't miss you.

Yeah, and there's a lot more to do in Houston than there is in Dallas. There's a lot more to do in LA than there is in either town. As long as you don't mind the ridiculous commutes and heavy traffic which often dampen locals' enthusiasm for taking advantage of those amenities.

Besides, before you get all huffy might I remind you that you're the one who came on this city's forum talking smack about how Austin sucks these days but Dallas is ohhhhhhh so hip. You Dallas-ites kind of have a habit of that, so don't be surprised when you raise a few hackles.

[julrey]

Originally Posted by love roses

You just answered your own question about Hutto and Manor. Price is a big factor, and it's so pretentious for people to look down their noses at people who don't choose to live in Central Austin. It must be quite a problem in a rainstorm. Many people don't choose to live downtown because maybe they actually don't like small home or condo living, or want to own many acres, or aren't into partying every night. I have noticed a particularly new and disturbing attitude in this direction regarding the people in Central Austin towards people who live in the suburbs and surrounding towns. I don't see this happen from people out here towards people in who choose downtown living, except that it must be nice to be able to afford it. That is something that was lost of "Old" Austin.

To me a certain degree of pretentiousness is just a necessary evil if you're going to live in any town that's considered hip or highly desirable. The flip side is something like living in a small town in the midwest, where there's zero pretension but also not much by way of civic pride. The latter describes Indianapolis to a tee, and to be honest I'd much rather take my chances with the snobs than the "everyone knows this is nowhere" crowd, but tastes vary with this kind of thing. My point is that in the old days Austin wasn't necessarily known as a hipster haven, even though it might have actually been so; I imagine you can trace a line between the rising level of local pretension and the degree to which Austin started gaining cultural prestige.

[Melissa78703]

Originally Posted by julrey

To me a certain degree of pretentiousness is just a necessary evil if you're going to live in any town that's considered hip or highly desirable. The flip side is something like living in a small town in the midwest, where there's zero pretension but also not much by way of civic pride. The latter describes Indianapolis to a tee, and to be honest I'd much rather take my chances with the snobs than the "everyone knows this is nowhere" crowd, but tastes vary with this kind of thing. My point is that in the old days Austin wasn't necessarily known as a hipster haven, even though it might have actually been so; I imagine you can trace a line between the rising level of local pretension and the degree to which Austin started gaining cultural prestige.

One's perception of Austin is going to depend on where you are in life, too. When I was in high school and college, it was easy to enjoy the Austin that "was" - Liberty Lunch, Back Yard, Spamarama, Eeyore's B-Day, etc. But I've found that now I'm working and in family mode, I do far less of these things. I don't have the time or spare money to buy tickets to SXSW or ACL. Pretty much, we rent videos and make spaghetti with the groceries we got from HEB. You can do that anywhere. But I admit, it's nice to have "Austin" around when/if I need her.

[julrey]

Originally Posted by Melissa78703

One's perception of Austin is going to depend on where you are in life, too. When I was in high school and college, it was easy to enjoy the Austin that "was" - Liberty Lunch, Back Yard, Spamarama, Eeyore's B-Day, etc. But I've found that now I'm working and in family mode, I do far less of these things. I don't have the time or spare money to buy tickets to SXSW or ACL. Pretty much, we rent videos and make spaghetti with the groceries we got from HEB. You can do that anywhere. But I admit, it's nice to have "Austin" around when/if I need her.

Good call. When I first moved to Indianapolis I noticed that nearly everyone had lived up here their entire lives and wondered what it was keeping them here. Eventually it occurred to me that if your lifestyle dictates you being a homebody for the most part, you tend to gravitate toward areas where you can get the nicest house for your dollar... obviously places like Austin, Seattle, San Francisco do not play to these strengths.

[elduderino38]

Originally Posted by love roses

You just answered your own question about Hutto and Manor. Price is a big factor, and it's so pretentious for people to look down their noses at people who don't choose to live in Central Austin. It must be quite a problem in a rainstorm. Many people don't choose to live downtown because maybe they actually don't like small home or condo living, or want to own many acres, or aren't into partying every night. I have noticed a particularly new and disturbing attitude in this direction regarding the people in Central Austin towards people who live in the suburbs and surrounding towns. I don't see this happen from people out here towards people in who choose downtown living, except that it must be nice to be able to afford it. That is something that was lost of "Old" Austin.

sorry if it sounds condescending but i'm just calling it as i see it. and to be fair, downtown hutto has a little charm. manor has zero. i couldn't afford my neighborhood if i was looking to buy today, so i'll just count my lucky stars. and no problems in the rainstorms or partying every night for me here in SOUTH austin

[elduderino38]

Originally Posted by julrey

Good call. When I first moved to Indianapolis I noticed that nearly everyone had lived up here their entire lives and wondered what it was keeping them here. Eventually it occurred to me that if your lifestyle dictates you being a homebody for the most part, you tend to gravitate toward areas where you can get the nicest house for your dollar... obviously places like Austin, Seattle, San Francisco do not play to these strengths.

or being close to family and life long friends.

[nativeDallasite]

Originally Posted by julrey

Yeah, and there's a lot more to do in Houston than there is in Dallas. There's a lot more to do in LA than there is in either town. As long as you don't mind the ridiculous commutes and heavy traffic which often dampen locals' enthusiasm for taking advantage of those amenities.

Besides, before you get all huffy might I remind you that you're the one who came on this city's forum talking smack about how Austin sucks these days but Dallas is ohhhhhhh so hip. You Dallas-ites kind of have a habit of that, so don't be surprised when you raise a few hackles.

I don't really care what's going on in Houston or LA.

I also never said Dallas was hip in the sense that it's popular with the hipsters who don't mind paying for the "privilege" of living in a place like SF, Austin, Seattle, etc. There are plenty of hip doings here in Dallas that people like that choose to ignore, and that's fine. More room for those of us who aren't driven by the desire to impress people with our mailing address. DFW is growing explosively mainly due to out-of-state transplants. They love our cheap real estate and our thriving job market. All the cultural offerings are icing on the cake.

Austin is overrated. At least with Dallas, what you see is what you get.

[julrey]

Originally Posted by elduderino38

or being close to family and life long friends.

Most of my family lives up here in Indiana, but I do have friends (and a brother) remaining down in Texas. Family was the reason I moved up to Indiana in the first place but after a couple of years I've come to realize that for me it's not reason enough to stay in an area that I otherwise have no affinity for. Don't mean that as a knock on anyone who feels otherwise, though.

[Soccersupporter]

Originally Posted by julrey

There's a lot of (usually justified) concern on these forums about Austin losing it's character as it grows larger and absorbs a greater and greater influx of transplants. This is a legitimate problem, I feel, but my question is how to avoid such a problem, not just in Austin but elsewhere.

Consider this scenario:

Sometime in the early 80s. You've been a lifelong resident of San Francisco, but the old hippie mentality has been largely disseminated through the usual gentrification. So you move to Seattle.

Now it's 10 years later. Seattle has also been taken over by the granola hippies, so reluctantly you move to Austin, which you understand used to be hipper in the 70s but hey, what wasn't?, and these days you're taking what you can get. At least Austin is still small.

Now it's 2007, and Austin is rapidly starting to lose many if not most of the old benefits of living here. Sprawl is increasing, the influx of non-liberal, non-creative types are turning the city into another potential Dallas. What next? Move to Portland? Denver? Santa Fe? Where do you go that you're not almost 100% assured of not running into the same gentrification issues elsewhere? Unless one is willing to live like a nomad for the rest of his/her life, constantly jumping around from one city to the next in search of the next elusive artistic enclave, I'm not sure there's any permanent escape from gentrification.

Comments welcome.

Main Entry: gen·tri·fi·ca·tion Pronunciation: \ˌjen-trə-fə-ˈkā-shən\ Function: noun Date: 1964 : the process of renewal and rebuilding accompanying the influx of middle-class or affluent people into deteriorating areas that often displaces poorer residents.

If this is your definition of gentrification I would suggest you find a way to become more affluent/middle class or plan on being a gypsy all your life.

[Soccersupporter]

Originally Posted by nativeDallasite

I take issue with the use of the word "gentrification" here. What is happening in Austin (and Dallas) is the opposite of gentrification. It's what we natives call "Californication", and a lot of us don't like it one bit. We wish many/most Californians would stay put and fix their own state instead of messing ours up. When every other Starbucks is full of people in Birks griping about how much they miss Trader Joe's and all the other great super-brilliant-wonderful things about California and how Texas sucks and is a cultureless bible-beating wasteland, we get sort of annoyed. They like our relatively cheap real estate and they love our job market, but they don't like anything else about the place. They should go. I don't know anyone here in Dallas who DOESN'T share my feelings on this. If you're going to move here, embrace it warts and all. If you're not prepared to do that, don't move here. Simple as.

I agree wholeheartedly and I moved here from California. I came here because we were trying to leave California in the rear view mirror.

I have heard on numerous occassions mainly on flights to and from California about Californians who have moved to Texas but have nothing good to say about it. They should either keep their mouths shut or leave, better yet just leave.

We have found that most Texans are kind, generous, good people that just want to raise their families in a family friendly environment. An environment free from political correctness, over regulation and anti-family values. We love it here in Texas and would not trade it for the most beautiful day in California, it is just a better way of life for us.

This is from a former lifelong Orange County, California resident.