Is Lubbock, Texas that bad? (Austin, College Station: apartments, houses, living in)

[Westerner92]

Originally Posted by homeinatx

Lubbock, Oy. I am kinda with your father on this one. I teach at UT Austin, and have been on faculty exchanges at many of the Big 12 ( past and present) campuses over the last decade for periods of 2 weeks to up to a semester - Ames IA, Boulder CO, Lawrence KS, College Station TX, Manhattan KS, Columbia MO, Norman OK, and Lubbock TX was by far the worst of those places for me. The campus is reasonably attractive but the city ( such as it is) is bland, sterile, windblown, dusty. Culinary options are limited and bad. There is almost nothing for grown-ups to do at night. It also smelled really BAD on and off for the time I was there. It is the only exchange I regret. Palo Duro Canyon is beautiful, and it might be better for a Tech student, but for me it was 3 months of my life I will never get back. Boring, ugly and remote - all the drawbacks of small town with none of the charm, and it is actually a small city the size of Waco, but it makes Waco look like Berlin. I have heard Stillwater OK is worse.

Apart from Boulder (I like Boulder and considered CU briefly for its location alone), I find it hard to believe that you found Lubbock lacking compared to the other Big XII cities. Lubbock is larger and serves a much larger regional population base than any of the other places, so common sense (and anecdotal in a few cases) says there that there are more offerings there than in the other cities, especially Manhattan, College Station, Columbia, and Waco. Ames, Norman, and Lawrence have advantages in that they're close to larger cities, but I can't imagine that you'd drive 45 minutes on a Tuesday night just to dine on the Ethiopian food that Des Moines is so known for.

Honestly, the more thought I give to it, I actually find it baffling. Not that Lubbock is anything exciting, but I know for a fact I would be bored to tears in College Station, Norman, Waco, and Manhattan. Eh, different strokes I guess.

[ETex2]

Originally Posted by Westerner92

Apart from Boulder (I like Boulder and considered CU briefly for its location alone), I find it hard to believe that you found Lubbock lacking compared to the other Big XII cities. Lubbock is larger and serves a much larger regional population base than any of the other places, so common sense (and anecdotal in a few cases) says there that there are more offerings there than in the other cities, especially Manhattan, College Station, Columbia, and Waco. Ames, Norman, and Lawrence have advantages in that they're close to larger cities, but I can't imagine that you'd drive 45 minutes on a Tuesday night just to dine on the Ethiopian food that Des Moines is so known for.

Honestly, the more thought I give to it, I actually find it baffling. Not that Lubbock is anything exciting, but I know for a fact I would be bored to tears in College Station, Norman, Waco, and Manhattan. Eh, different strokes I guess.

I'd have to disagree with you here, esp. on the lack of good dining. That is one thing Lubbock has going for it. I can't find one decent Thai food place within 15 miles of my house, but my daughter has two excellent places within 5 minutes of her house there. I've had some excellent Mexican and Italian food there as well. Lubbock has a lot to offer for an isolated city of it's size.

[Westerner92]

Originally Posted by ETex2

I'd have to disagree with you here, esp. on the lack of good dining. That is one thing Lubbock has going for it. I can't find one decent Thai food place within 15 miles of my house, but my daughter has two excellent places within 5 minutes of her house there. I've had some excellent Mexican and Italian food there as well. Lubbock has a lot to offer for an isolated city of it's size.

I would agree with you here. I don't recall implying that Lubbock was lacking at far as dining. Some decent southeast Asian food, a few pretty good Mediterranean places, several great teppanyaki places (that are cheap too, which is rare), several regional variations of Mexican food, and I've yet to find a calzone elsewhere that can compare to One Guy's or Georgio's. Not counting Austin and maybe Boulder, I can't imagine that any Big XII cities would have comparable dining.

[augiedogie]

I've lived in many places in the USA, and Lubbock has a lot lacking. Once our jobs are done here, my family and I are gone. Yes, lots of places to stuff your face, but that is about all there is to do. NOt only that, but to go anyplace and do something is a long long boring drive. But Petroleum Engineering should be good for years to come. They are still punching holes all over the place, Midland, Eagle Ford in s. TExas and N.D.

[alohafriends]

I don't think it is 'bad' but there are so many better options! I went to Tech but it wasn't until I moved from Lubbock that I realized there are lots of places that offer so much more. Lots of awful sandstorms ... no scenery.

[nategdh]

I think the flatness of Lubbock gets to a lot of people. The only hills we have are the fly over ramps on the interchanges throughout the city lol Jk But it does get a bad rap for the lack of a beach front or mountains. Other than scenery Lubbock is everything you can ask for. Bigger cities usually have a bad side and so does Lubbock.

[marcopolo2000]

yes

[stanwood]

The south plains has a zen beauty to it. It's the lack of what's there that defines the beauty.

I understand that a lot, if not most people, don't see it. But for me personally, when I drive up the cap rock from Post and look west across the vast plains, see the far away occasional strand of trees and the shimmering heat rays along the horizon, there's a peacefulness that I feel that's hard to describe. It's like I'm meant to be there.

[doctorjef]

Originally Posted by stanwood

The south plains has a zen beauty to it. It's the lack of what's there that defines the beauty.

I understand that a lot, if not most people, don't see it. But for me personally, when I drive up the cap rock from Post and look west across the vast plains, see the far away occasional strand of trees and the shimmering heat rays along the horizon, there's a peacefulness that I feel that's hard to describe. It's like I'm meant to be there.

This exemplifies the fact that the peculiar geographical aesthetic of Lubbock can be appreciated once you get used to it. When we first moved there when I was a teenager, I thought it the strangest looking place I'd ever seen (coming from recent years in Virginia, DC, and a brief stint in a fairly wooded and lush area of northern Louisiana). However, I got to appreciate the empty, unbroken plains, the enormous sky and the breathtaking sunsets during the few years I lived there. At the same time, when I then moved to Austin for the second half of my BA, I felt I had returned to a "normal" place that had hills and trees. While most people can probably come to appreciate the look of the South Plains, I also suspect that only those who are native to that area can really identify with the topography of the place. This is my own experience at any rate: I can appreciate it for what it is, but it is the topography and vegetation of the Mid-Atlantic states that I subjectively experience as normal. I'm likewise reminded of Mitt Romney's statement that it seemed to him that the trees in Michigan were just the right height -- one statement from Mittens that I'd credit as almost certainly being sincere. Whatever you imprint on as a kid is most likely to be what you subjectively experience as normal and aesthetically most pleasing.

[ETex2]

Originally Posted by stanwood

The south plains has a zen beauty to it. It's the lack of what's there that defines the beauty.

I understand that a lot, if not most people, don't see it. But for me personally, when I drive up the cap rock from Post and look west across the vast plains, see the far away occasional strand of trees and the shimmering heat rays along the horizon, there's a peacefulness that I feel that's hard to describe. It's like I'm meant to be there.

I can appreciate what you're saying. I've always thought I wanted at least a few small hills and trees, lots and lots of trees. We bought what we thought was going to be our future retirement place right smack in the middle of thick woods. What we got - scorpions, snakes, wasps, and no breeze. Beautiful but each type of scenery has it's own set of drawbacks. My grandmother always preferred the flat plains area of Texas. She wanted to look and see the sunset every day, and to be able to see the lights from the next small town 5 or 10 miles away.