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Think of it this way. What if everyone from Wisconsin was really forward and over the top about how great Wisconsin was. What if every time something was brought up, people from Wisconsin would laud Wisconsin. What if every time people from Wisconsin got together, they would extol on and on about how great Wisconsin was, and ignore pretty much everyone else in the group. And what if people from Wisconsin were known over the entire country as being pretty proud of the Badger State and they didn’t care what you said about it.
I think it would be AWESOME if people in Wisconsin were that proud of their state! I think it's more fun to have an optimistic attitude and a realistic, pessimistic, stale and boring attitude to your homeland.
When you look at every place from a realistic perspective, the whole world kinda sucks.
Somehow I can"t think of a clever song utilizing that catchy word... Wisconsin. Texas is just so singable!
I remeber a local band in FLORIDA who put it into a song... Florida's great... the song- the word "Florida" in a song??? Not so good.
I believe Texas is more singable just because of the attitude the natives have towards their state. I'm sure some might argue that Texas is not singable, to which most Texans would protest. I just thought it'd be nice if more states (or all states) had most of their local residents already proud of their home. If that was the case, you probably would have already heard a hit song or two mentioning Rhode Island, New Hampshire, Ohio etc.
I see and hear you. I wish (for them) that they (other states) had that feeling too.... I still think Texas has a two syllable, easy to set to music sound... better than "Rhode Island" etc... just a thought. Your thoughts on "looking at places realisticly..." -so true... I think the romantic notion of Texas... the music.. the history... the cowboy culture... really sped up my "love at first sight" experience with this state.
As well as other kinds of music, I'm a big country music fan. Some of my favorite Texas songs "All my Ex's live in Texas", "God Blessed Texas", "Amarillo By Morning", "If Your Ever Down in Dallas" (Lee Ann Womack), "Texas Sized Heartache?" (well at least it's part of the lyrics )
we are in the midst of preperations for our move to the goliad area as my wife's family roots are extremley deep there and each and every person i have met from my wifes family is a truely a breath of fresh air,, no airs... only truely nice people that still believe in god country and in old fashioned values to this day. we are going home! where you can say good morning to anyone walking downtown without the fear of offending anyone,they might just say mornin back,,,,, on our way in less than two months
Sorry for the long post, but I am going to sum it all up here.
First, Texas is hardly mountainous in most regions except the desert parts. There are some fairly decent sized mountains in the desert. There is really only ONE mountainous region that is not competely desert (or two depending on how you count it), and this is in the highest elevations near Fort Davis in the Davis Mountains, where the yearly rainfall can exceed 25" and the peaks above 7000 feet here can sometimes get over 30" of annual rainfall. It is the only place in Texas where you will sometimes find VERY green looking mountains (mostly in summer time after rains). This area also includes the Glass Mountains, mountains near Alpine, and the highest peaks of Big Bend National Park (which are dryer but can still get green).
Want to know about Texas and the climate?
OK, I've been to every part of Texas and have lived in 4 different cities - Austin / Dallas / Houston / and for a short time West Texas. I have also lived in Colorado and have been to nearly every corner of the US.
Here is how I would rate Texas Climates
Starting from the best to the worst:
1) The best climate of Texas is easy to figure:
This is the Fort Davis / Marfa / Alpine area, but this area is too desolate for most people to live in. You cannot beat this climate because it is high in elevation (5000 feet), dry but not a desert in all areas (some areas just up in the mountains get over 25"+ rain year). It does get semi-cold at night in the winter, but not brutally so. It often gets into the 20's, but warms right back into the 50's or 60's during the day. It rarely gets above 90 during the hottest summer days and when it does humidity is usually less than 30%. The climate is much better than any place in Colorado or New Mexico, because it is less extreme here. The climate here is more like the cities of California that are bordering the mountains (not LA but higher up). It is fairly dry, but gets plenty of "greening" rain in the summer time. The temperature is usually between 50 and 80 most of the year. This is the best mountain scenery in Texas by far, as the mountains are completely green at least 3 months out of the year, and partially green most of the year. Almost all the other mountainous regions in Texas are just too dry to really have good scenery, but not here. There is even a pine forest on the top of Mount Livermore. It does get ugly and dry during parts of the year though, such as late winter. There are some areas that exceed 7,000 feet in elevation which can be easily reached by car (highest major road in Texas, and there are some really good views here. It is not quite to Colorado's standards on scenery, but it is closer than you would think. It is a relatively small area that has this scenery though (about 25 mile area). Once you get past a certain point it turns back into desert, although some desert mountains are cool looking too.
2) The second best climates:
(extreme edge of Hill Country to Southern Panhandle)
This is going to get more subjective than the above info, but I would have to say Abilene, Lubbock, San Angelo, and the far north-western edges of the hill country such as Junction. You could also throw in Midland/Odessa and El Paso but they are too dry for my tastes. Abilene and Lubbock are kind of ugly (although I like Abilene better than Lubbock). These places get between 20" and 30" of rain per year, but they often cool down at night a little even during the heat of the summer (more so in the drier areas). They do get hot in the summer, but it is a dry heat and for a shorter period during the day. They snow almost every year a little, so you at least get a taste of winter (it snowed over 20" one time in Lubbock). Lubbock might be slightly on the cold side when it comes to winter for some people, but it's a fairly short winter. The northern parts of this area might be a bit too windy for some people, but the wind is actually nice after a hot summer day, where it cools into the low 70's or even upper 60's with a nice brisk wind to keep you cool. I didn't include Amarillo because after cold fronts it is really miserable, and even Lubbock can be borderline miserable because of the windy cold fronts). In Amarillo, we are talking 30mph sustained winds with gusts to 50mph are VERY common while the temperature outside is 10 degrees or less. This creates wind chills closer to what you find in the lower elevations of Colorado. I've seen Amarillo wind chills get down to -20 more often than you would think. Lubbock is slightly more moderate and Abilene is much more moderate in the winter.
The worst climates of Texas:
The worst parts of Texas as far as climate are the southern and Eastern parts of Texas - Laredo, Mcallen, Brownsville, Houston, Corpus, and basically all of south and southeast texas. Why? Because it is humid and hot most of the year in this part of Texas, there are few breaks and "winter" which is really more like spring is very short-lived and is also often humid (at least near the coast). Ouit of all these cities named, Houston is a bit cooler, but it's so humid that it feels just as bad as most of the other cities.
Austin / San Antonio / Dallas / Fort Worth Climate
I consider these climates all fairly similar, although Fort Worth is a bit colder than Austin and even slightly colder than Dallas because it's farther west and drier. The climates in this area of Texas are still better than much of the remaining parts of South Texas or East Texas, because it doesn't rain quite as much as East Texas and the summer does not last as long as far South Texas. You have to realize though, that it can occassionally get 105 or even 110 in Austin and Dallas, but this is rare. It will usually hit 97 to 100 on a hot summer day and then cool back down into the upper 70's (but usually bareable because of the dryness after the heat burned off all the humidity). The spring time and winters are fabulous weather here. I love the winter, it does get cold but it doesn't last that many days in a row. There is an occassional snowfall (once or twice a year), although a little more so in Dallas than in Austin. It depends on what part of the cities you live in too, it snows more NW of Austin in the hill country or up closer to Abilene, but it also sleets or snows in Austin almost every other year at least. It snowed twice this year, but only an inch each time.
So in summary, West Texas above 4000 ft. elevation (about 200 miles east of El Paso) has the best climate.
Extreme Northwest Central Texas and the southern Panhandle have the second best climates.
Central Texas and just north of Central Texas - Austin / Dallas / San Antonio have the third best climates.
Southeast Texas and extreme South Texas have by far the absolute worst climates and some of the consistently most miserable weather in the US. One time I was just NE of Brownsville, and it was 108 outside until a rainstorm dropped the temp. into the upper 90's and low 100's. Well after it rained, it climbed back to 100 degrees with 80%+ humidity, and I think the heat index was around 125 or so. I remember this day because it was the absolute most uncomfortable weather I've ever experienced in my lifetime. Usually it's like 45% humidity and 105, but not much better :P
By far my favorite city is Austin, although it's getting a bit too big with too much traffic. The worst big cities in Texas to live in are Houston and Dallas, I prefer Dallas over Houston (depending on what part of the city you live in). However, the absolute worst place to live in Texas is the bordertowns, not only is there bad crime and lots of poverty, but the climate is basically the worst in the US, or very close to it. I don't really like Lubbock or Amarillo as they are cow-towns, and even smell like cow towns. I prefer Abilene over Lubbock and Amarillo (not sure why maybe because it looks cleaner and smells less). Although some parts of Amarillo are ok.
Best cities are:
Austin
San Antonio
Smaller Cities such as Waco, Temple, etc...
Houston
Dallas
El Paso if you like the desert (but it is a bordertown so I don't like it)
Midland, etc...
Really, Austin and San Antonio are the nicest cities to live in Texas IMHO.
Actually, the border towns are very very safe. For example, Brownsville, had NO murders in 2002. In 2003, i believe they had 1. I believe I also read a while back how the Texas border towns are one of the safest regions in the state.
The problems with the border towns are THEFT. Petty things like stealing bikes, breaking into cars, etc.
I agree with you on the weather....the weather sucks, but in early spring, it is probably the closest thing to PARADISE.
Actually, the border towns are very very safe. For example, Brownsville, had NO murders in 2002. In 2003, i believe they had 1. I believe I also read a while back how the Texas border towns are one of the safest regions in the state.
The problems with the border towns are THEFT. Petty things like stealing bikes, breaking into cars, etc.
I agree with you on the weather....the weather sucks, but in early spring, it is probably the closest thing to PARADISE.
El Paso has been one of the safest large cities in the country for the last 10 years or so. We don't get a lot of violent crime out here, but auto theft is a problem. The proximity to mexico make certain vehicles ideal targets for the chop shops. Still, pretty safe for a metro area of 2.5 million+ between el paso & juarez. The weather here is also great with low humidity and plenty of sunshine. About the only thing I don't like weather-wise is the windy season in the spring.
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Texas - From a Life Long Texan
