If you left Houston to live somewhere else, why did you leave? (cost, move)

[coog78]

Originally Posted by houstoner

Tell that to the people at the icehouse down the block enjoying beer and burgers on the patio as I type. Y'all need to get out more. You're not going to see anything or anyone but the four walls as long as you stay at home.

Yeah, sounds like some people just like to wallow in their misery. If I could afford the type of lifestyle I am accustomed to in Houston, then I would live in Boston or San Francisco in a heartbeat. But alas, I do not make $500K a year. Different strokes for different folks, but I really like Houston. It has its flaws, but love that there are always tons of people out and about 365 days a year, not bundled inside during winter. It's not like Houston has heat that a cold margarita can't fix.

[coog78]

Originally Posted by jd2008

Just out of curiosity, how did you find the community feeling generally in Houston? I enjoy the close knit feeling you get in certain neighborhoods in other cities (namely the North East) and I'm not sure Houston has the same attitude. I lived in several cities where one had the local market, local bar/pub, local restaurants, local laundry, etc. One could walk to most places and you often knew close to everyone in the area. I loved it because it was like a small town feeling within a larger city.

My limited experience with Houston seems to point to the contrary. But perhaps that is because the city is so focused on the burbs and their miles of strip malls and highways. You couldn't pay me to live in such places but is the attitude different inside the loop in more "urban" neighborhoods?

Yes, I have several neighborhood pubs and restaurants I walk to often. The coffee shop (NOT starbucks) across the street starts making my drink before I get to the counter and nearly everyone inside knows each other. The atmosphere is very relaxed, not pretentious, and enjoyable. I live in the Montrose district. It is an extremely liberal neighborhood, politically and socially. Pretty much take every stereotype of Texas and this neighborhood is exactly the opposite of all that. Yet it is distinctly Houston and distinctly Texan. You couldn't pay me to live near the burbs and strip malls either.

[Indianspringsguy]

Originally Posted by I LOVE NORTH CAROLINA

I hope you make it! I hate the weather here too, the heat in unbearable to me.
Currently in Houston, TX
Fair 83°F
Feels Like
88°F
Dew Point: 71°F
Humidity: 66%
Pressure: 29.81 inches
Wind: From the South Southeast at 10 mph

Tonight: Mainly clear. Low 78F. Winds S at 10 to 20 mph.

Tomorrow: Partly cloudy skies with gusty winds. High 93F. Winds S at 20 to 30 mph.

I'm thinking right now with the heater at my feet, "I'd like to see a little of that weather again right about now".

[Indianspringsguy]

Originally Posted by Rowdy

Interesting observation professornator. It's hard for an outsider like myself to tell if Houston is full of arrogance or perhaps severe insecurities. Pretty sad in either case.

OK, I am willing to take the punch. We have pride. To me the place is hot but not nearly as hot as the mid section of this country. I've been to many places that are really hot. In Ohio, I thought I was going to die of heat in August. In Oklahoma, I thought the same in July. In New Orleans, I could not walk two blocks without suffocating in the summer. I could not wait to get back here from most places I have been to in the summer. I lived without an air conditioner here, just a ceiling fan in The Heights. Yep, sometimes it was hot but the majority of time it was not (at night). North of town is totally different. I live in the forest and it is not hot here. It is much hotter on the red clay soils of East Texas. I think hot is just relative to where you are accustomed to living and many people forget the bad. It is very convenient to remember the good and forget the bad. Better place is of course not defined only by weather. The Woodlands is a place where I can walk, run, ride a bike in hundreds of miles of wooded trails. Local restaurants are varied and good. Shopping is quite good as well. It is a well respected place for concerts. Some of the fine arts are better when going to Houston althought there are opportunities here. Professional baseball, soccer, basketball hockey and football are in Houston and we are all proud of our teams. We have the ocean reasonably close by. The amenities are endless and getting better all the time. Now what do we need? Mountains perhaps. Snow perhaps. In all sincerity, I can't think of a better place to live. I have spent a lot of time in California (nice but not a place to live in my book), Canada (limited amenities), various short times in other states, lived in Corpus Christi, Arabia, Kazahkstan, Venezuela, and visited about 40 countries. Houston is my home and I like it. I would not substitute it as a home for Dallas, San Antonio, Austin nor any place I have been (Maryland, New York, Connicticut, Michigan, Ohio, Tennessee, North Carolina, Florida, ...). Personally, I hope there is never a big migration here again. There's too many people here now. I do agree the place is not perfect. There is no such place. Traffic is a problem, even up here north of town now.

[Seaglass]

CanTex: We had an ice storm while we lived there, and we were without power for 3 days and it got down to 0F at night. We ultimately had to abandon our house after the first night since the portable heaters and fireplaces couldn't keep up. We were so lucky that we had no water lines freeze. That experience was the final straw for us ever again living in a cold winter climate. Even if the A/C goes out in the summer, you can SURVIVE here.
===
It's all relative. Those of us very used to sub-arctic climates don't think anything of it; we're often very well-versed in survival skills (not joking). I lived in Maine for more than 30 years and was there for the ice storm of 1998 with two small kids; we lost power for nine days. In Maine. In January. Since we had a big Generac generator, a full pantry, and two woodstoves, we did just fine. Personally, I'd much, much rather lose power and try to stay warm than the opposite...you can always put more on, but there's only so much you can take off!

To get back on track a little bit...I've been in Houston for ten months and like it very much.

[Huckleberry3911948]

thought you would never ask.
there is a class barrier in houston 4 feet thick. an invisible barbed wire sign above the sign that says river oaks.
that is why the good lord invented the military and foreign countries so a poor boy did not spend his life pumping gas in greens bayou. thanks for listening.

[houstoner]

Originally Posted by Seaglass

Personally, I'd much, much rather lose power and try to stay warm than the opposite...you can always put more on, but there's only so much you can take off!

And to that I say

1. Water (bottled and/or swimming pool)
2. Ice
3. Hand fan

and sometimes

4. A towel
5. Open windows and doors
6. Porch

Use these in any combination that pleases and

Voila!

[I LOVE NORTH CAROLINA]

Originally Posted by Indianspringsguy

I'm thinking right now with the heater at my feet, "I'd like to see a little of that weather again right about now".

You used a heater today? I would have melted with a heater on today

[blkgiraffe]

Originally Posted by Wysiwyg

I'm sure there are lots of beautiful people here in houston. I think the sun's heat and overall demographics of houston make them stay indoors

I guess I'm imagining things when I see people out jogging and walking around Downtown and TMC. You won't see people walking because public transit sucks.

[crbcrbrgv]

I left Houston just the other day, but only because the nearest Whole Foods is in Sugar Land