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Old 06-18-2007, 07:48 PM
 
41 posts, read 327,926 times
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Well I have read a great deal of information on Dallas and from what I gather is that the residents of the city tend to be rather materialistic and snooty.

I know that Austin has a significant educated population and I'm curious to know if Austin is similar in nature to Dallas with the uppity lifestyle.

I'm 28 y/o teacher from NYC and I'm trying to escape the rat race and the expensive cost of living. I feel that the folks here are either flaky & extremely bitter, flaky & have a low mentality, or flaky & snobbish.

I can easily fit the mold of "snootiness" because I'm good looking, educated, and come from a financially sound background. However, I tend to enjoy the company of friendly down to earth people that are real and not superficial.
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Old 06-18-2007, 08:13 PM
 
Location: Colorado Springs, CO
93 posts, read 307,332 times
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Austin is very friendly and down to earth
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Old 06-18-2007, 09:41 PM
 
Location: Austin
4,105 posts, read 8,286,495 times
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Austin is not Dallas snooty just yet, but that type of mentality is making inroads here. Case in point: The Domain shopping center/apartment complex with Louis Vuitton, Neiman Marcus, et al. Coming from New York, Austin will seem quite down to earth, but from what I hear it's not the way it used to be.
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Old 06-19-2007, 01:03 PM
 
Location: Hutto, Tx
9,249 posts, read 26,685,553 times
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There is more snootiness here than there used to be, but not on par with Dallas. I notice this a lot when we take our boat out on Travis. I see people who practically have massive yachts pull up at resturaunts, for example, and don't smile or wave at anyone, unless they have a boat of similar size. Happens with ski and jetboats too. When we went to Carlos and Charlies a few weeks ago, my husband was trying to ask someone else parking their boat a question, but they were so rude, they just looked at us, and didn't respond. And no, we're not hairy and covered with warts. Luckily this isn't the vibe everywhere here. People who act like that stick out like sore thumbs and tend to attract negative attention to themselves.
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Old 06-19-2007, 05:07 PM
 
Location: Austin, TX
1,235 posts, read 3,768,460 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by krazymack View Post
I know that Austin has a significant educated population and I'm curious to know if Austin is similar in nature to Dallas with the uppity lifestyle.

I'm 28 y/o teacher from NYC...
Austin is nothing like Dallas. But most of the snootiness I've experienced here has come from the flood of migrants from places like Dallas, California, and (ahem) NYC. Please, come and enjoy the place and don't bring NYC with you!

Just a quick example: A friend from Los Angeles was visiting. When he first arrived, I took him to a restaurant where I spent about 3 minutes chatting with the waitress, not flirting, just friendly jaw-boning. After she took our order and walked away from the table, my LA friend was really uptight and complained about the "slow service" and "meaningless conversation." He had no comprehension of life in Texas.

Anyone who wants to move here and demand faster, more efficient service, please stay away! Anyone who wants to come here and slow down, enjoy the quirkiness of the home-spun restaurants and stores, and chat with neighbors on the front porch without being in a rush --- y'all come on down and set a spell.

The best of Austin does not lie in its ability to imitate the class structured societies of New York and Southern California. It's about being in the heart of Texas. And as for Dallas, got not use for it myself. Stunning skyline, though!
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Old 06-19-2007, 06:02 PM
 
16,087 posts, read 41,147,800 times
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The real Dallas is not snooty...for example - Lakewood. It has plenty of rich people but they aren't afraid to send their kids to public school with kids from 'the wrong side of the track'. Go into any restaurant, bar, shop or any other establishment in Lakewood and probably the last question anyone will ask you is, "what do you do?"

The Park Cities and Northern Sub-urbs give Dallas a bad reputation. But remember, that isn't Dallas.
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Old 06-19-2007, 06:37 PM
 
Location: Austin, TX
1,235 posts, read 3,768,460 times
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Lakewooder, I've heard scattered rumors of wonderful areas around Dallas. I don't mean to drift off-topic, but can you list some? There was one area I saw that I loved, it had a huge botanical garden and lake and it was just north of downtown. Whitelake or something like that? Beautiful! Nothing like the normal image of Dallas.

Also, some of the space between Dallas and FW seems pretty nice, with individual communities that have their own identity, nice topography, interesting older buildings, big trees, etc. But Plano is a nightmare to me. Pure generic sprawl. And tons of gorgeous young women. Why does generic sprawl attract gorgeous young women?
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Old 06-20-2007, 12:28 PM
 
Location: Austin, TX
1,280 posts, read 4,290,459 times
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I've only been in Austin since 2000 but I've noticed a lot more rudeness from people than what I used to see. It's especially obvious in traffic or any other place where many people are in the same spot. A lot of people blame it on "the damn Californians" but honestly there are people moving here from everywhere and bringing their attitudes with them.

Personally, I love that Austin is growing and that so many people want to be here. I just think that if you come here, you should try very hard to be a part of what makes it so great. Don't move here and expect everyone else to accommodate you because you refuse to change. Learn how to smile, learn how to wave, learn how to be patient and learn how to let people over in traffic.
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Old 06-20-2007, 01:09 PM
 
Location: Austin, TX
1,235 posts, read 3,768,460 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jread View Post
I've only been in Austin since 2000 but I've noticed a lot more rudeness from people than what I used to see. It's especially obvious in traffic or any other place where many people are in the same spot. A lot of people blame it on "the damn Californians" but...
I generally agree with you, it's mostly a problem of over-crowding, traffic and growth, not Californians per se. However, my California friends who have visited me or moved here have often seemed impatient by comparison with locals, so I do think that the attitude is partly imported and not just a result of the faster-paced lifestyle that accompanies population and income growth.
Quote:
Originally Posted by jread View Post
...if you come here, you should try very hard to be a part of what makes it so great. Don't move here and expect everyone else to accommodate you because you refuse to change. Learn how to smile, learn how to wave, learn how to be patient and learn how to let people over in traffic.


I wish people had to go through a "Texas Friendly" boot camp for a week before being allowed to move here. I go out of my way to preserve the old ways, letting people cut into my lane, paying for something at a store when a person is a dollar short, random acts of kindness. It's a part of Austin that is being snuffed out by the urban crush.

I can't blame anyone, I'm not going to point a finger at Californians. After all, I'm a Californian and I'm a lot more friendly than many of the people who were BORN in Austin. I'm in full agreement with you, memo to the world: Welcome to Austin, please be friendly, patient, generous and SLOW DOWN. This isn't New York or LA.
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Old 06-20-2007, 01:59 PM
 
16,087 posts, read 41,147,800 times
Reputation: 6376
Quote:
Originally Posted by TheHarvester View Post
Lakewooder, I've heard scattered rumors of wonderful areas around Dallas. I don't mean to drift off-topic, but can you list some? There was one area I saw that I loved, it had a huge botanical garden and lake and it was just north of downtown. Whitelake or something like that? Beautiful! Nothing like the normal image of Dallas.

Also, some of the space between Dallas and FW seems pretty nice, with individual communities that have their own identity, nice topography, interesting older buildings, big trees, etc. But Plano is a nightmare to me. Pure generic sprawl. And tons of gorgeous young women. Why does generic sprawl attract gorgeous young women?
Harvester - that is my area - Lakewood/East Dallas and that's White Rock Lake you are thinking about. We not only have the beauty of the largest urban lake in the USA, we also have dog parks, hike and bike trails, several golf courses and an amazing assortment of mom-and-pop establishments including funky shops, great restaurants and bars. You will find many of them in the Lower Greenville Avenue area over to Knox-Henderson. We are also close to the largest Art Deco complex in the world, Fair Park (1936) and Deep Ellum (artsy, funky, bars, galleries) and a few minutes from Downtown.

Your best gorgeous women hunting ground would be Knox-Henderson, Uptown and Downtown. But beware there could be some "Golden Corridor" (areas on either side of Preston Road all the way north to Plano) snobs in that group. Lower Greenville and Lakewood are more down-to-earth.
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