Seattle to Houston? (Sugar Land, The Woodlands, League City: 2014, neighborhoods, school districts)

[sketteroo]

Originally Posted by west seattle gal

but i wasn't calling you a redneck, just stated i don't want to live in an area with them. Reread my post. Ok, done.

Originally Posted by descovy

i am a native of wa... And have been in houston 14 years. i think the op came across with a certain tone that bothered some people. It made me cringe actually. lets just say it makes us native washintonians sound very...um...pretentious?? Do you ever get outside of seattle city limits? Sounds like you'd have issues with anywhere else in the pnw as well with that attitude. (can't live around "dumb rednecks"? Ha! You must not leave the city limits of seattle very often. And most towns in wa have the whitest folks you will ever see)

houston is very much a live-and-let-live city. Very diverse. My kids have friends from all over the world. I am left-leaning, live in the suburbs and can get along with all types of people. You can find those farmers markets, bookstores, great schools, dog parks, kid parks, museums, cultural offerings, diversity and a laid-back lifestyle, all in houston.

But your little liberal hiney better learn to be *tolerant* of churches, malls, an obsession with clothes/appearance, materialism, and overly manicured lawns. And that goes for more than just houston.

Hmmm... You might want to open your mind and heart a little more, be tolerant of lifestyles different from yours... And not be so close-minded a judgmental.

Perhaps you could try being... Um... Liberal?

ya think??

[14Bricks]

Originally Posted by descovy

I am a native of WA... and have been in Houston 14 years. I think the OP came across with a certain tone that bothered some people. It made me cringe actually. Lets just say it makes us native Washintonians sound very...um...pretentious?? Do you ever get outside of Seattle city limits? Sounds like you'd have issues with anywhere else in the PNW as well with that attitude. (can't live around "dumb rednecks"? Ha! You must not leave the city limits of Seattle very often. And most towns in WA have the whitest folks you will ever see)

Houston is very much a live-and-let-live city. Very diverse. My kids have friends from all over the world. I am left-leaning, live in the suburbs and can get along with all types of people. You can find those farmers markets, bookstores, great schools, dog parks, kid parks, museums, cultural offerings, diversity and a laid-back lifestyle, all in Houston.

But your little liberal hiney better learn to be *tolerant* of churches, malls, an obsession with clothes/appearance, materialism, and overly manicured lawns. And that goes for more than just Houston.

Hmmm... you might want to open your mind and heart a little more, be tolerant of lifestyles different from yours... and not be so close-minded a judgmental.

Perhaps you could try being... um... liberal?

Great post.

[TheMoreYouKnow]

Originally Posted by west seattle gal

Annise Parker talks about Houston changing from 'redneck white city' to 'boomtown' - Houston Chronicle

Here is an article from May 2013 where your own mayor states that Houston is evolving from a "white redneck city" into something more positive. She is not the first person to address this stereotype about Houston, and I wanted to hear about the new, diverse, cool Houston that is drawing so many transplants. I did not mean to insult anyone and apologize for writing such a short post without context, but I am truly searching for a home and have posted in multiple city forums...and writing posts can be tiring. Just thought I was laying out exactly what I want, and did not mean to imply that you all fit a stereotype.

The mayor of Houston is a corrupt, bleeding heart liberal moron.

[TheMoreYouKnow]

Originally Posted by AmILost

I lived in Washington for more than half my life and live in Houston now. I loved Washington, and I love Houston.

You're going to find rednecks here. And malls. And manicured lawns. And materialism.

You'll also find those in every corner of Washington. I just wrapped up a project in Portland and saw more stupid white trash there than any other region of the US.

[horn892002]

Originally Posted by TR95

Wish some on here would just get over what they thought her tone was. She's apologized, and quite frankly she has been very nice about it. I'm not going to attempt to guess what the OP's intent was and if the tone was offensive to some, as everyone is entitled to their own opinion. I did not read that she called Houston a redneck city or even mention that it is not diverse. I just don't see it in the post.

If you read the Seattle thread then you could see all the thoughtful responses she was given, rather than the ones here that said "we don't want you here" and calling her family ignorant. She also mentions she may be dealing with SAD. I've never heard of that and had to look it up, so maybe some here think I'm ignorant.

I could see how Seattle could have that effect on someone. I start looking on these threads to assist me in deciding on a potential move to Houston or Austin. I begin to think the grass is greener than in Dallas as it may be 10 degrees warmer in the winter than here. I quickly realize to just deal with it and stay.

WestGal - the poster that grew up in Houston and has a 2nd home in Seattle gave you invaluable insight. Use it and come visit a few times if you still want to consider Houston. I mean stay in hotels in the neighborhoods that you are considering. Go to the restaurants, grocery stores, banks, pharmacies, anywhere that you would go on a daily basis and see what you think.

I do a lot of business in Houston and there are some very nice people. It seems to be that way in TX in general. Much more so than other places I have lived.

There are the people that are very religious and others that are not. I believe that's true inmost places, but do think it is more religious in TX. Heck, the first day we moved into our house we were asked about church. Being somewhat non-religious myself, i just listened and just kind of blew it off. Maybe that would really put you off, not sure. Do I agree with it or even like it, no, but it's just not worth my energy at this point.

I do think you would be unhappy in most of the suburbia neighborhoods from the people I know that live in Katy, Pearland, SugarLand, The Woodlands, etc. There are some that really like it, but it seems for the most part we live there for schools and just overall easiness of life with children.

Good luck in your search.

^^^^^^
A rational and thoughtful response. As you (WestGal) can see, there are people who don't see your post as offensive. So don't cross Houston off your list just yet.

[levi415]

west seattle gal,
I currently live in Bellevue and will be moving to Houston in early March. I will be moving there for a new job and my wife and elementary school age daughter will be joining me. We are a multicultural family, have lived overseas for some time, and seek some of the things you are looking for as well although... I probably would have posted here a little more... subtly... than you have.
At any rate, I'm starting my research on good areas to live (to rent, initially) and would be interested in trading notes with you. Couldn't figure out a way to PM you here but sent a "friend request". Looking forward to hearing from you.
p.s. Yeah, I know Bellevue is very much NOT like West Seattle but we do have some nice, down-to-earth people here as well.
Cheers.

[levi415]

fnh,
I posted on this thread a few minutes ago asking if west seattle gal would be willing to trade notes about relocating from Seattle to Houston. But I didn't read through the entire post until now so just realized she's decided Houston isn't for her. You come across as a friendly, open-minded poster so I wanted to ping you for information as well, if you don't mind.

I'll be moving from the Seattle-area (Bellevue) in a couple months and am researching different places to live in Houston. In trying to figure out the locations of various names that I keep coming across (e.g., Woodlands, Sugar Land, Pearland, Montrose, etc) I'm realizing one thing at the moment: Houston is HUGE. My office will be in Deer Park and I would prefer to limit my commute to less than 1 hour, or even closer to 30 minutes if possible while still finding an area that might suit us.

As my wife, daughter, and I are a multicultural/multinational (not sure if that word applies to people or not) family, one of my big priorities is to find an area with good cultural/ethic diversity. Of course, good schools are very important for me as well. I'm an engineer and lean towards a scientific approach for most things so I'm cautious about getting into any kind of debate with people regarding Creationism in schools and whatnot (I see it seems to be a recurring topic in these forums) but... on the whole, I guess my preference is a school that also leans more towards the scientific approach.

It sounds like I need to go read through west seattle gal's thread in the Seattle forum as well for the suggestions everyone else gave her but would appreciate any ideas/advice from you. Thanks much.

[west seattle gal]

Originally Posted by levi415

west seattle gal,
I currently live in Bellevue and will be moving to Houston in early March. I will be moving there for a new job and my wife and elementary school age daughter will be joining me. We are a multicultural family, have lived overseas for some time, and seek some of the things you are looking for as well although... I probably would have posted here a little more... subtly... than you have.
At any rate, I'm starting my research on good areas to live (to rent, initially) and would be interested in trading notes with you. Couldn't figure out a way to PM you here but sent a "friend request". Looking forward to hearing from you.
p.s. Yeah, I know Bellevue is very much NOT like West Seattle but we do have some nice, down-to-earth people here as well.
Cheers.

My husband is an EE in Redmond. I would live in Bellevue for the schools and neighborhood feel, just can't afford a nice house over there.

Yes, I am a straightforward person. Obviously I ended up sticking my foot in my mouth on this thread.

I have received a few PM's from people on the Houston forum. In addition to researching all of the posts on this thread, you could solicit PM's from those who choose not to openly post on this forum. Good luck to you!

[elan]

Originally Posted by west seattle gal

Houston is supposedly the hot place to live for job opportunities and cheap housing. We are seeking both!

Our family is politically liberal, non-religious, and would never place our kids in a school that teaches Creationsism as a viable explanation about the natural world. We love independent shops with walkable areas, farmer's markets, bookstores, great schools, dog parks, kid parks, museums, cultural offerings, diversity (except for dumb rednecks), and a laid-back lifestyle. I dislike malls, an obsession with clothes/appearance, materialism, and overly manicured lawns.

Would Houston be a good fit?

Anyone else move from Seattle to Houston?

Houston would be a horrible fit, you would not like it at all.

[levi415]

west seattle gal,
Got your PM, thanks for that. For some reason, I'm limited to only 1 direct message a day so I couldn't reply back to you and thus my reply here.

I take it then you've decided for good not to move to Houston? Good luck then on your continued search for a new place to live, although I would have to say it's not a bad thing to stay here in Seattle.

FWIW, I've heard that Houston has really great restaurants, ethnic and otherwise. That's something I've always felt Seattle had but not in great quantity (especially certain ethnic foods). On the other hand, I believe Houston has not-so-great Japanese food and you do have Mashiko's over there... so that, in and of itself, might be reason to stay put depending on how much you love sushi. =)

As a last request, could you point me in the direction of the thread you started in the Seattle forum? I'm interested in the responses and info you got there. I can't seem to find it in my search.