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>* Houston beats California hands down in terms of quality of life (with the exception of the heat)...* I lived in Houston, (Museum District/Third Ward/Whateve
by bilbo0s 8y ago
>* Houston beats California hands down in terms of quality of life (with the exception of the heat)...*
I lived in Houston, (Museum District/Third Ward/Whatever you want to call it), for a good long time. (Three or four hurricanes.) I actually loved it. That said, I would not say, at all, that it beats the valley for QoL. Setting that expectation up in peoples' minds just leads to disappointment. And it's the genesis of a lot of the bad stories we hear about peoples' experiences in Texas on a daily basis.
If you have realistic expectations, and subscribe to the "When in Rome..." philosophy, you will find a lot of fun things and fun people in Houston. You will have a really good time. If you come with the expectation and demand of a great QoL, a QoL that rivals San Fran, or Boston, or Chicago, etc, you're likely to be disagreeably surprised.
We need to start measuring cities on their own merits. Measuring cities against the bar set by what are really becoming early stage city-states is a little unfair. Houston is great. Omaha is AWESOME. Minneapolis is a blast. Don't even get me started on how awesome places like Charlotte or Madison can be.
But you have to be open to what's there, and not go there looking for everything you had in San Fran. You do that in Houston, and you'll just be disappointed, and then the yearly floods will come, and you'll be pissed off on top of being disappointed. But if you look out your window after the storm, you'll probably see everyone on your block out grilling! (May as well get rid of any meat in your fridge by grilling it, because you don't know when the power will come back on!) I mean, it really can be a blast! Seriously, Just do without the wifi for a few days. (Or weeks if it was a hurricane.) You'll be happy you did.
- stirfrykitty 8y agoI agree with you. For me, it's better than CA. I live near The Woodlands, so the hurricane thing is not so much of a worry. My wife has family down in Montrose, and it can be fun down there, but I would not live in Houston proper due to the sheer amount of time it takes to get places, as you know. It takes a vast amount of time to drive across Houston, even at night. People don't realize that Houston, area wise, is like a small country. If I want to go to the beach from here, it's like 2 hours. Like I said in another post, if I ever came into serious money, I'd buy some land and build a house outside Burlington, VT. Proper four seasons, proper fishing, proper winter activities.
- bilbo0s 8y ago>if I ever came into serious money, I'd buy some land and build a house outside Burlington, VT... I hear you man, I live on a lake in Wisconsin. (In my case it's not as impressive though, because in Wisconsin nearly everyone lives on, or near a large lake.)
- smokey_the_bear 8y agoMy family moved from Berkeley to Auburn Lakes, right outside The Woodlands last month. It is different, but we see a lot of great things so far. My email is in my profile if you'd like to meet up sometime!
- malvosenior 8y agoI think your depiction of Houston is accurate but it also applies to SF, Boston and Chicago (especially those cities!). Each has a very specific culture that is great if you fit with and horrible if you don't. Ever try to get good Mexican or Indian food in Boston or Chicago? SF is a bit different as it does have many options that aren't available in second tier cities. That being said, the QoL is the lowest of all in many ways due to cost of living, commute... It also has a very specific political culture that many don't find appealing.
- purplezooey 8y agosmoke these meats!