Having Second Thoughts (Houston, Dallas, Cool: house, buy, high school)

[jd2008]

Well, I am about to make the move back to Texas but I am starting to have second thoughts. I really liked living in the Midtown area last summer while I was a clerk, but now I am starting to question if I will like Houston long-term.

I am coming from a place with some pretty amazing weather but I wasn't concerned with the weather in Houston. Last summer was a breeze. But now I am hearing that last summer was something like the coolest summer in recorded history. Uhhh...

Also, at heart I am a city person. I grew up in Texas (not Houston) but I left because I hated the suburban lifestyle that seems to be so dominant. Midtown was fine, but still seemed very lacking when compared to some of the North East cities where I used to live. After doing more and more research, it seems that local politics is dominated by suburban commuters who don't care about transit, density, or frankly livability. I remember telling a Houston native recently that I would love to live without my car and the guy looked at me like I was crazy.

Finally, a big thing that really scares me is the politics of the state. I am not conservative at all and although I have heard people paint Houston as a "liberal" place, it still seems very right-wing. I didn't have too much of a problem with it last summer because I honestly was only there for a couple of months and I worked a lot. I just don't really know anyone in the city and I'm afraid the locals only socialize around church (I'm not religious) and perhaps conservative groups (Republican party). Is a single guy in his late 20's who doesn't really know anyone going to be able to meet people...especially single women? Everyone I know that stayed in Texas is married with the 2.5 kids business.

Anyway, this is probably just last minute jitters, but I am really starting to question whether I will be moving back east within a year or so if I don't like the place. Scares me to death because given my career, moving jurisdictions is not the easiest thing in the world.

[Dallas native]

Originally Posted by jd2008

Well, I am about to make the move back to Texas but I am starting to have second thoughts. I really liked living in the Midtown area last summer while I was a clerk, but now I am starting to question if I will like Houston long-term.

I am coming from a place with some pretty amazing weather but I wasn't concerned with the weather in Houston. Last summer was a breeze. But now I am hearing that last summer was something like the coolest summer in recorded history. Uhhh...

Also, at heart I am a city person. I grew up in Texas (not Houston) but I left because I hated the suburban lifestyle that seems to be so dominant. Midtown was fine, but still seemed very lacking when compared to some of the North East cities where I used to live. After doing more and more research, it seems that local politics is dominated by suburban commuters who don't care about transit, density, or frankly livability. I remember telling a Houston native recently that I would love to live without my car and the guy looked at me like I was crazy.

Finally, a big thing that really scares me is the politics of the state. I am not conservative at all and although I have heard people paint Houston as a "liberal" place, it still seems very right-wing. I didn't have too much of a problem with it last summer because I honestly was only there for a couple of months and I worked a lot. I just don't really know anyone in the city and I'm afraid the locals only socialize around church (I'm not religious) and perhaps conservative groups (Republican party). Is a single guy in his late 20's who doesn't really know anyone going to be able to meet people...especially single women? Everyone I know that stayed in Texas is married with the 2.5 kids business.

Anyway, this is probably just last minute jitters, but I am really starting to question whether I will be moving back east within a year or so if I don't like the place. Scares me to death because given my career, moving jurisdictions is not the easiest thing in the world.

Houston will be what you make of it. Look at voting history. Like all major cities, it leans towards the democrats. I too am very liberal and I lived very happily in NYC for many years. It is also possible to be happy in Houston or Dallas (I live there too) and work/socialize among other like minded people. It's not going to be like NYC or Boston, but Houston is full of people from other cities, states and countries. Diversity tends to breed tolerance for other ideas. If you come here with an open mind, you have an opportunity to find what you are seeking. On the other hand, if you come here with a lot of preconceived notions and negative stereotypes you will also be able to confirm them if you try hard enough. There's just too much going on here to label Houston as "conservative", "religious", etc... If you have a good opportunity here, then I encourage you to take it!

[houstoner]

Houston is only 50% religious according to Sperling's Best Places, which is less than some Northeastern cities. There's a pretty active urban arts scene, a plethora of cafes, bars, and restaurants, lots of stuff to do, and plenty of singles. Sounds like you need to stop hanging with your buddies from work and explore the city some more. Houston - News

[jd2008]

Thanks. I am trying to go into it with an open mind. It is really a good opportunity and given the amount of debt I have right now after financing school, I really have no other realistic choice. I am keeping my options open though for down the line. I am working on licensing for DC (which is a city I love) so I can always go back there if Houston just doesn't do it for me. But I am going to give it a shot. Just not looking forward to being attached at the hip to my car.

[jimboburnsy]

Dallas Native is right. The city will be what you make of it. If you are not a fan of the "suburban bourgeois" scene, don't buy a house in the suburbs. Houston has a thriving "artsy-fartsy, whosy-whatsy, Bohemian-Texas-Style" scene as well. I think it probably is a bit on the difficult side to meet people completely from scratch here as the population is very spread out and there are a lot of circles of late twenties, intact high school cliques that have intermarried and are aggressively prosecuting the whole 2.5 kids thing, however, there are also enormous volumes of late twenties people just like you who have arrived with zero contacts and a completely empty black book. As long as you keep trying to meet people, you will. It probably sounds terrible to be tied to your car if you are accustomed to the DC Metro or walking everywhere in NYC, but you'll get over that quickly, its a small matter really and shouldn't dictate your attitude towards this place. Once you find that gal from Philly who doesn't know anyone either and you two get the first 40% of that 2.5 you'll never want to leave.

[theSUBlime]

Not to scare you off, but simply put, if you're looking for the Northeast it's not in Houston or Texas for that matter. You can find bits and pieces though.

Houston is one of the few major cities where you can actually have a (relatively low-cost) home-- not just a place that keeps you off the streets until you have to go to work again (or borderline puts you on the streets when you have to pay rent) and it allows access to major city amenities and that appeals to a lot of people. It's a definite "cross-over" city. If you're looking to join the car-less minority of America, unfortunately this ain't the place... at least not yet.

[houstoner]

Yeah, you'll want to have a car, but if you live and work close in you won't have to use it much. I rarely leave the loop myself.

Here's some links for you to get plugged in to artsy-fartsy, Bohemian-style Inner Loop style living... just a few things I have bookmarked.

Hot Town, Cool City | Locations

richmondrail.org

HAIF® - Houston's largest internet community

MySpace.com - Houston Critical Mass - 27 - Male - HOUSTON, Texas - www.myspace.com/criticalmasshouston

Houston Roller Derby (http://houstonrollerderby.com/public/default.aspx - broken link)

Free Press Houston

MySpace.com - THIRD WARD THURSDAYS - 52 - Male - HOUSTON, Texas - www.myspace.com/thirdwardthursday

Houston Arts and Media : Home : A Non-profit organization for history education,documentaries and books about Houston

DiverseWorks: Celebrating 25 Years

Discovery Green Houston Downtown Park - See. Touch. Hear. Taste. Explore.

Inprint!

Brazos Bookstore (http://brazos.booksense.com/NASApp/store/IndexJsp - broken link)

MySpace.com - Antidote - 21 - Female - HOUSTON, Texas - www.myspace.com/antidotecoffee

AEROSOL WARFARE (broken link)

HoustonSoReal

Houstonist: Houston News, Food, Arts & Events

And there's tons more. It's fairly easy to meet people here, but entertainment isn't coming to your doorstep like in the NE, you gotta go to it. Hope this helps!

[jd2008]

Thanks for the links. I will definitely take a look at them.

Honestly, I'm not necessarily the "artsy" type person (even though I love the arts). I pretty much dress in a suit everyday, wear Italian shoes, and I like my cappuccino and European cheeses. I realize that in Texas one would probably assume I am conservative but I guess I'm more your typical DC/NYC single, young professional liberal. I try to drive as little as possible, recycle, shop local, and use cloth bags at the market.

Again, I am going to give it a shot. I really don't have a choice at this point anyway. I guess part of the reason I am getting a little worried is that most of my friends from school are off to San Francisco, DC, and New York.

[houstoner]

Right, well, you don't have to be "artsy" to go to the events/places. I think you'll find you're a dime a dozen and you shouldn't have much of a problem fitting in and meeting people. Houston is a pretty welcoming, egalitarian city. You should be fine once you plug into whatever it is you're into. Oh, and the heat in summer is no joke; no way around that. Good luck.

[jimboburnsy]

Originally Posted by jd2008

Thanks for the links. I will definitely take a look at them.

Honestly, I'm not necessarily the "artsy" type person (even though I love the arts). I pretty much dress in a suit everyday, wear Italian shoes, and I like my cappuccino and European cheeses. I realize that in Texas one would probably assume I am conservative but I guess I'm more your typical DC/NYC single, young professional liberal. I try to drive as little as possible, recycle, shop local, and use cloth bags at the market.

Again, I am going to give it a shot. I really don't have a choice at this point anyway. I guess part of the reason I am getting a little worried is that most of my friends from school are off to San Francisco, DC, and New York.

You've got a leg up on all of your friends, then. They will all wind up moving here to settle down. After all, one can only handle so much anonymous sex, 48 hour partying, recreational drug use, inflated salary, and unadulterated fun.

Seriously, if you feel like you need to do the whole giant famous city thing, you may very well wind up back east or out west in a few years, but Houston is a solid place and as long as you aren't committed to being miserable and "hating it here" you'll enjoy the time spent in my fair metropolis.