I really dislike it here. Please help! (Houston, Dallas: rent, how much)

[TexasVines]

I am going to give you some advice I hope you listen

1. you sound very nice I think you are just having a string of bad luck

2. Houston has some of the best cops out there and a few of the worst.....if they give you attitude then give it right back and 99% of the time they will shut the hell up and go away....the other 1% well you are a lawyer right

3. the thing with the landlord is not a "friendly" deal it is just a bad landlord.....light a fire under his ass and you will be surprised what happens.....if not move

4. with the neighbors park where you want if it is in front of your place of residence or a reasonable thing to do and if the neighbors keep it up take out your frustrations by dishing it back out......back into the parking spot with PLENTY of room on your drivers side to enter and exit and none on their drivers side

5. the bums......come on are you saying you did not deal with them in dallas and Austin......you must have lived in a different part of dallas or Austin than I ever lived in......true in Austin they might be stoned out of their mind and too wasted to be aggressive, but in dallas you must have just missed the "normal" ones....bums like "weakness".......be rude back who cares they are bums

6. on the driving......get in the race princess.....places to go people to see......things to do......last one loses the race......bust the blinker thing off the steering wheel and get out there and let out your frustrations on the road like everyone else you will feel so much better after you park.....remember right lane is for 5 over the limit, middle lanes for 10 over, left lane is for passing only and has no limit.....see you at the races

7. the guy at work......might be married, might be scared of women, might not like to date at work, might be gay (if you listen to the gays you would think 90% of the population is)

8. coffee sucks drink milk or juice or tea.....something refreshing

9. red bull.....REALLY....red bull......you sound like a lady leave the red bull for the kardashians......and choose your stores carefully and shop at the ones that give good service.....ever since Randalls sold out (before your time) you have to find the store that has good people and go there even if it is a bit further away

10. Houston will not be like dallas.....that is the GOOD part

11. as pointed out many of the idiots you are meeting might not be from here.....and if they are and they ask where you are from just say "I have lived a lot of places in Texas" and go from there


12. an ex GF of mine (way back) loved Houston because of all the trees.....she was from that d place (actually Garland)

13. to the person from Seattle......don't sit around and mope go find something to do and you will meet people.....and I am sure your neighbor was an idiot, but I am also positive you could make great friends with all your other neighbors that talk about what an idiot that one is

14. back to the OP Houston is not a "cliquish" place and in fact it is kind of the opposite which can make it seem like it is.....what I mean by that is there is no hip happening coolest place ever that you just have to be seen at and then next week it is somewhere else......sure there is some of that on Washington Ave.....but hell there are still places like Sams Boat on Richmond or some of the Ice Houses that have been around for 30 years probably with some of the same people still going there......so when you show up....many might just assume you are passing through and Houston guys are not the "fresh meat" type that will just be all on you immediately......so when you show up again the next week or 5 days later or whatever......you might actually strike up a conversation with someone that saw you there before.....VS being pounced on by the first leg humper that saw you

15. Houston people have opinions.....not about stupid stuff or even about politics, but about anything...and not like new trendy watches or clothing or the new loser club that will be closed next month in favor of the next loser club.....so have one too......just be prepared to back it up and then hear theirs too.......then move on to something friendly

16. keep driving aggressively (can't say that enough)

17. it has only been a month.....things are crazy in Houston right now with people moving in from all over like Houston has not had since the 80s probably so drive aggressively, stake your claim to stores where you get good service, bars and restaurants that you liked the first time.....and you will get in the game eventually

18. say things to people that catch them off guard like store clerks.....don't just ask for the red bull....make some stupid comment about anything first to let them know that life is good and you are loving it and not uptight about things.....their life is probably decent to good too, but they get caught off guard by people that are uptight about red bull (probably from all the coffee and red bull )....say something like "I am too out of it to find the red bull can you show me where it is"......if you get attitude them give it back to release the stress and and go to another store where the clerk will say "you and me both let me try and find it with you"......then you have your store where you are a known.....and every day you can greet each other with new insanity and you will be happy you trade there

Houston takes time sometimes for those used to places where everyone is "out there" and "doing it" and all that crap.......they are usually talking about doing it.....Houstonians are recovering from doing it and too warn out to pounce immediately

good luck have fun

[JazzOne]

Originally Posted by TexasVines

Lots of stuff...

Thank you for taking the time to indoctrinate a noob. The woman at the Walgreens was actually nice to me the next time I stopped in. I guess she was just having a bad day. I was more surprised by the manager's nonreaction.

[cheryjohns]

How you view your Houston experience is made up of several factors, not the least of which is where you live.

I wish you had come on the forum prior to moving. You are in a crummy apartment with a crummy landlord, in an area that may transition one day - but has yet to do it. You are not in the area with singles. This home base affects your attitude to no small degree (it would mine).

[JazzOne]

Originally Posted by cheryjohns

How you view your Houston experience is made up of several factors, not the least of which is where you live.

I wish you had come on the forum prior to moving. You are in a crummy apartment with a crummy landlord, in an area that may transition one day - but has yet to do it. You are not in the area with singles. This home base affects your attitude to no small degree (it would mine).

You are probably correct. I normally do a lot more research before choosing an apartment. However, my firm hired me on a "get here as fast as you can" basis. I started my new job about one week after receiving the offer. I stayed in hotels for a few days when I first arrived, but that got to be pretty expensive. So, I needed to sign a lease quickly, and I was limited by the fact that my contract was under 6 months.

I made a huge mistake. I totally regret it. Now I'm just trying to make the best out of a bad situation. I will move as soon as humanly possible.

[Oildog]

Originally Posted by JazzOne

I will take that under advisement, but I had no problems making friends in Austin or Dallas. However, you are wrong in thinking that the unfriendliness is not a common comlaint. Yesterday, I Google searched two things: "Houston is great" and "Houston sucks." The results for "Houston sucks" are replete with complaints about unfriendliness.

What a surprise, googling a complaint revealed more results than a compliment.

[JazzOne]

Originally Posted by Oildog

What a surprise, googling a complaint revealed more results than a compliment.

That's a strawman. I never said that. I was responding to the suggestion that few people complain about Houston's unfriendliness. In fact, many people have complained about that. Whether or not it's justified is another matter.

[cheryjohns]

You said the landlord swapped out the AC. Does your apartments have window units?

[JazzOne]

Originally Posted by cheryjohns

You said the landlord swapped out the AC. Does your apartments have window units?

Originally, it had a fairly new unit in the room. It was one of those standup ACs. When I moved in, the newish unit had been replaced with a window unit. However, the window unit is quite old and smells funny. And on top of that, it was not placed in a window. It was placed in a wall, and the other end of the unit does not extend to the outside. I think it's drawing air from between the walls!!! This dump and the landlord's BS have contributed mightily to my disappointment.

[David Dollar]

Houston takes time to get used to. After awhile, you stop noticing the bad service. You even learn to laugh at it. Like somebody said, you just have to find the right places for where people are nice. The cops are bad. Complete jerks. Good luck if you have an accident, they probably are not showing up for that. However, heaven forbid you have an expired sticker. There are some good coffee shops though. Try Antidote in The Heights. It is a place for free thinkers though. Landords are bad too. I have yet to get a penny back from my deposits. I always got them back everywhere else I lived though. My current landlord is good though. She keeps everything working good and usually responds same day. Ignore the people that say it is you. It isn't. These are people who will defend Houston to the end, and I can understand people wanting to defend their city. Some people on here that are banging on ive here tjust try and ignore them.

[JazzOne]

Originally Posted by David Dollar

Houston takes time to get used to. After awhile, you stop noticing the bad service. You even learn to laugh at it. Like somebody said, you just have to find the right places for where people are nice. The cops are bad. Complete jerks. Good luck if you have an accident, they probably are not showing up for that. However, heaven forbid you have an expired sticker. There are some good coffee shops though. Try Antidote in The Heights. It is a place for free thinkers though. Landords are bad too. I have yet to get a penny back from my deposits. I always got them back everywhere else I lived though. My current landlord is good though. She keeps everything working good and usually responds same day. Ignore the people that say it is you. It isn't. These are people who will defend Houston to the end, and I can understand people wanting to defend their city. Some people on here that are banging on ive here tjust try and ignore them.

Thanks. I haven't given up on the city yet. Just had a slow start, that's all.