Thinking about relocating from Oregon to the Piney Woods or Hill Country (Houston: transplants, law school)

[jm21]

I was born in small town OR, lived in Southern California for a bit (hated it...all concrete and smog. ****ty pissed off materialist-as-hell people), moved back up to Portland, OR for law school (way too liberal for me, and tons of competition for professional jobs).

I've been eying texas a bit because of the extremely low cost of housing compared to the NW, and all the Texans I meet some awfully friendly. Getting a little tired of the too-reserved people up here and the dismal winters, though TX summers seem way too hot and I like the respect for privacy up here. I had a stereotype of TX that it was all desert, and only recently realized there are some nice forested places in TX (the Piney Woods area seems fairly similar to parts of Oregon from the pictures I've seen online).

I've been lurking here a little and the only bad thing I've heard about TX so far is the bible thumpers, which is a bit of a turn-off considering I'm an atheist, but no Texans I know seem to be prying.

I'm a bit tired of the (generally foreign) liberals in Portland and Seattle controlling the Northwest, and despite having a great deal of love for the country up here...an area with more conservative values, cheaper cost of living, and still some beautiful natural areas (especially forests) seems great...think I could find that in the Piney Woods or Hill Country, or am I dreaming?

[NOTAM]

i think you would love the Hill Country-come check it out! and by the way, i have never felt that i am surrounded by bible thumpers. i am not one, but am relatively conservative. i couldnt handle the liberalism of the west coast

[tstone]

I second the hill country but stay close to Austin. As far as the Piney woods, I wouldn't go much further than the entrance to it, like Kingwood, The Woodlands or maybe Conroe. Deeper in is deep-south southern heritage including God & Guns. That may be a turn off considering your (lack of) beliefs, but if you let it go and mind your own business no one will bother you.

[jm21]

I grew up in a religious town. Never met another atheist besides my bro until I went to college. Religious people don't bother me, but I had some pretty bad experiences growing up (people trying to convert me, parents of friends being suspicious I was trying to convert their kids, friends having to ask permission to be friends with me, etc) so I'm not sure I'd wish a religious town on my offspring when I have some, and I have some difficulties trusting people who are very outwardly religious (the preacher types). I'm a live-and-let live sort of person. Don't try to sell my beliefs, or even talk about them much (just mentioning them here because it's a bit worrisome for me), and appreciate the same from others.

EDIT:
And BTW Belle, we aren't all liberals out here. Many/most people born and raised in the pacific northwest tend to be kind of libertarian, which seems liberal sometimes but is usually conservative. There's been a huge influx of out-of-staters the last few decades though, especially to the Portland and Seattle areas, as well as certain towns like Bend. At my school, probably 95% of the students are from out of state. Also a lot of younger people who leave the state when they go to college or grad school. So a huge portion of the people aged 20-40 or so aren't really Oregonians here...I feel completely out of place here in Portland and I grew up an hour drive from here. Hahaha, sorry to go on, I just got a little defensive about the "west coast liberalism" comment . Liberalism on the west coast is mostly restricted to the cities and southern California. Lots of Ron Paul supporters in the NW, for example.

[Insomniac]

JM, you should look into the San Antonio metro area. You have the Hill Country as well as it's not overly liberal and not overly conservative but just like Goldie Locks and the Three Bears, just right.

[blueskies49]

Originally Posted by jm21

EDIT:
And BTW Belle, we aren't all liberals out here. Many/most people born and raised in the pacific northwest tend to be kind of libertarian, which seems liberal sometimes but is usually conservative. There's been a huge influx of out-of-staters the last few decades though, especially to the Portland and Seattle areas, as well as certain towns like Bend. At my school, probably 95% of the students are from out of state. Also a lot of younger people who leave the state when they go to college or grad school. So a huge portion of the people aged 20-40 or so aren't really Oregonians here...I feel completely out of place here in Portland and I grew up an hour drive from here. Hahaha, sorry to go on, I just got a little defensive about the "west coast liberalism" comment . Liberalism on the west coast is mostly restricted to the cities and southern California. Lots of Ron Paul supporters in the NW, for example.

Really? As far as out-of-staters to your area? I didn't realize that was going on there. So you understand how us Texans feel about the influx to our own state. I feel for you! I don't want to leave Texas, though, but for personal reasons I feel like I'm stuck in the big city for now and this is where alot of transplants are. We would like to someday move away from the city and the suburbs but still close enough within an hour's drive. The way growth is happening here in the DFW area, though, we'd have to move further and further out every 5 years!

[jm21]

Originally Posted by blueskies49

Really? As far as out-of-staters to your area? I didn't realize that was going on there. So you understand how us Texans feel about the influx to our own state. I feel for you! I don't want to leave Texas, though, but for personal reasons I feel like I'm stuck in the big city for now and this is where alot of transplants are. We would like to someday move away from the city and the suburbs but still close enough within an hour's drive. The way growth is happening here in the DFW area, though, we'd have to move further and further out every 5 years!

Seems to be happening everywhere as people wanting to get out of the big cities to raise a family go from one hot spot to the next. They come here to what they see as idyllic countryside and small towns perfect for raising families in, and try to use government to make the state the way they want it...generally screwing over the locals.

Of course, I'm a bit biased, and the problem probably isn't quite as bad as I make it out to be, especially outside the cities...but I do believe the influx is enough to tip the balance.

I would have thought Texas would be suffering less than the NW though. Most people seem to think Texas is "backwards", while I've heard Portland and Seattle compared to San Francisco more times than I ever thought I would...but I guess I've heard Austin thrown in that group as well lately.

[tstone]

Well Oregon countryside is pretty nice looking, esp the coastline. The impression I got reading demographic info and looking around Tillamook is that good jobs where you can actually "be somebody" are hard to come by. That and the whole town smells like a giant cow turd since dairy is #1. That can't be much better for your health than city pollution!

Texas can be pretty backward in the smaller towns and cities, but the larger cities are not. You can't be that backward in so many large metropolitan areas anywhere! We may be more conservative leaning because of economic reasons. Otherwise, I'd consider the Houston suburbs I've lived in more libertarian. Pro-business, small government conservative combined with living the way you want to... just don't impose it on me or my family. And I'd much rather vote Rep than Dem for economic reasons alone!

[BstYet2Be]

Originally Posted by jm21

Most people seem to think Texas is "backwards", while I've heard Portland and Seattle compared to San Francisco more times than I ever thought I would...but I guess I've heard Austin thrown in that group as well lately.

Most of them, indeed, DO view Texas as "backwards", but their love for their almighty dollar seems to be the swaying factor (i.e., lower cost of housing here, no state taxes)!

Now, if they can just leave us "backwards", we'll get along fine!

By the way, I think that Oregon is by far the most beautiful area I've ever been to! Especially along the coast highway! It's the only place I've ever been to that has it all... huge trees, mountains and lush greenery, along with an ocean, too! Absolutely breathtaking! And, the sand dunes around Florence was another unbelievable area... looks like you're in the middle of the Sahara Desert but actually in-between all of the rest! You'll miss it for sure!

[jm21]

Yeah, it's beautiful here, but the economy isn't very good and everything keeps getting more expensive...and the laws keep getting more and more intrusive. Just saw a guy who had returned from Iraq, some guy got in his face at a bar, he over-reacted and clunked the guy over the head with a bottle...looking at 6 years jail minimum if he goes to trial. What a joke...all 'cause some paranoid freaks want to be 100% safe.

I met a friend of mine from high school, who dropped out of college his first year (he's 26 now), working at a mill making a "measly" $25k/year and happy to be moving to a different mill with $40+k starting because it's unionized...HMMM....wonder why there are so few jobs and everything is expensive...HMMMM.....young guy with no skills and a high school diploma making $40+k/year...almost as bad as the auto workers union.

I understand the sentiment of wanting to be left alone. The liberals seem to ruin everything they touch...just can't stand to live and let live.