California vs. Texas

[Altitude]

fmicle - If you want to move to Texas to get away from "liberalism" Austin would not be the place.

As for the police chief, blame it on the public safety Unions. It's like that everywhere.

The rest of your complaints are not uncommon across the US. I live in one of the most ultra conservative and religious communities you would find in this country and we suffer from the same issues you've noted. The only difference is our problems come from the fact that no one here wants to pay taxes at all. Throw in hundreds of religious non-taxable organizations and you get a city that's dying a little bit every day.

I choose to live here for the geography and beautiful scenery not because I fit in with the crowd (I don't.) I guess what I'm trying to say is don't move thinking that local politics will make your life more enjoyable, move somewhere you find likeable for reasons other than politics.

[fmicle]

Originally Posted by Altitude

fmicle - If you want to move to Texas to get away from "liberalism" Austin would not be the place.

Don't scare me man Actually that was my feeling as well from what I've read about Austin. I was just hoping that it's not as exaggerated as it is in San Francisco for instance.

I mean San Francisco's official policy is to not comply with federal immigration law. When I read that I was like, WTF???

Originally Posted by Altitude

As for the police chief, blame it on the public safety Unions. It's like that everywhere.

The rest of your complaints are not uncommon across the US. I live in one of the most ultra conservative and religious communities you would find in this country and we suffer from the same issues you've noted. The only difference is our problems come from the fact that no one here wants to pay taxes at all. Throw in hundreds of religious non-taxable organizations and you get a city that's dying a little bit every day.

I choose to live here for the geography and beautiful scenery not because I fit in with the crowd (I don't.) I guess what I'm trying to say is don't move thinking that local politics will make your life more enjoyable, move somewhere you find likeable for reasons other than politics.

I hear you and I appreciate your feedback. My motives are economical and financial really. I use the political crap as an excuse to motivate myself that this is the right decision to make I guess...

The idea of being able to afford a nice single family home (which seems out of my reach around here, unless it's older than 50 years - yuck!) and not have all my money go to the mortgage payment is the biggest enticement.

[Gideon]

I do live next to one of the worst cities in the US, so I may be biased, but I lived in Wichita Falls for a few years (lived on base housing for Sheppard AFB) and it was very much an enjoyable place to live.

Cost of living is significantly cheaper, people are alot friendlier (so long as you say "Howdy!" and not "Ce faci" )

Never encountered a tornado though while I was there. Lots of sirens and taking refuge in the hospital basement though. (Good place to socialize with neighbors I learned! )

[Altitude]

Well - I should qualify my comment about Austin being liberal, it's probably the most liberal city in Texas (odd because it's also the capital) but by comparison it's nothing like California (this is not a slight on California either so please don't anyone get upset.) I think the only reason Austin is considered and is becoming more liberal is due to the music and arts scene that has been growing there for a while. It's not a bad thing.

If I had to move to Austin for work I wouldn't have an issue with it. In fact, of the places I have been in Texas the only two I wouldn't consider would be Houston (for the horrible humidity and heat!!!) and El Paso (too desert-like for my tastes.)

As for housing everyone else is right, it's much, much cheaper in Texas than it is in Cali.

[fmicle]

Originally Posted by Gideon

Cost of living is significantly cheaper, people are alot friendlier (so long as you say "Howdy!" and not "Ce faci" )

wow, I'm impressed, that's perfect Romanian spelling

My wife won't have problems, she's American and can even speak with a Southern accent... I on the other hand, will have some work to do

[fmicle]

Originally Posted by Altitude

Well - I should qualify my comment about Austin being liberal, it's probably the most liberal city in Texas (odd because it's also the capital) but by comparison it's nothing like California (this is not a slight on California either so please don't anyone get upset.) I think the only reason Austin is considered and is becoming more liberal is due to the music and arts scene that has been growing there for a while. It's not a bad thing.

If I had to move to Austin for work I wouldn't have an issue with it. In fact, of the places I have been in Texas the only two I wouldn't consider would be Houston (for the horrible humidity and heat!!!) and El Paso (too desert-like for my tastes.)

As for housing everyone else is right, it's much, much cheaper in Texas than it is in Cali.

I gotta start packing...

[Gideon]

Originally Posted by fmicle

wow, I'm impressed, that's perfect Romanian spelling

My wife won't have problems, she's American and can even speak with a Southern accent... I on the other hand, will have some work to do

You give me too much credit, I double checked it on Google since I speak Romanian (barely these days) but I've never written it before.

[fmicle]

Originally Posted by Gideon

You give me too much credit, I double checked it on Google since I speak Romanian (barely these days) but I've never written it before.

Wow wow wow, how come? I actually assumed Google had played a role and I appreciated the thought and the effort to search and get it right, but now I'm even more impressed! It's not like they teach Romanian in highschool around here Although with some Spanish and even more so with Italian, one would be able to pick up certain words.

[DandiDani]

i say do it. you only live once. it will probably be a good experience and you will be able to save more money for your family if the cost of living is significantly cheaper like everyone says it is. i went to austin last year for about a week. i know thats not a long time lol but i did enjoy myself. next time we go tho we will NOT be driving there! 17houuurrss

[fmicle]

Yeah, so far I'm very much inclined to do it...

[Gideon]

Originally Posted by fmicle

Wow wow wow, how come? I actually assumed Google had played a role and I appreciated the thought and the effort to search and get it right, but now I'm even more impressed! It's not like they teach Romanian in highschool around here Although with some Spanish and even more so with Italian, one would be able to pick up certain words.

My best friend in school was Romanian. They had immigrated to the US a few years before I met him so the rest of his family much preferred to speak in Romanian a majority of the time, so after many sleepovers and dinners with them I asked them to teach me out of courtesy so I could join in on the conversation at the dinner table.

I actually was going to ask "Vorbiti romaneste?" when you were over picking up the seats, but it had been awhile since I had heard a Romanian accent and didn't want to embarrass myself if I ended up being wrong.

Hopefully you don't leave before the next meet that you can attend here locally so you can bounce some words off me. I've forgotten a lot but day to day stuff I still remember as well as some dirty phrases.

[MadMax]

fmicle

Remember, when we Texans say Austin in liberal, that is judging by Texas standards. Compared to where you live, it may seem very conservative.

But it sounds like you'd like things a lot better out here in Texas!

Good luck with your decision!

Cheers! M2

[JBougie]

Originally Posted by MadMax

fmicle

Remember, when we Texans say Austin in liberal, that is judging by Texas standards. Compared to where you live, it may seem very conservative.

But it sounds like you'd like things a lot better out here in Texas!

Good luck with your decision!

Cheers! M2

I think that is standard for anywhere in the south - Southern liberals are still pretty conservative to the rest of the countries standards (most of the time).

[fmicle]

Originally Posted by MadMax

fmicle

Remember, when we Texans say Austin in liberal, that is judging by Texas standards. Compared to where you live, it may seem very conservative.

But it sounds like you'd like things a lot better out here in Texas!

Good luck with your decision!

Cheers! M2

Originally Posted by JBougie

I think that is standard for anywhere in the south - Southern liberals are still pretty conservative to the rest of the countries standards (most of the time).

And that's what makes American politics so interesting. Conservatives are pretty much the same around the country but democrats are different from California to South Dakota. That's why they can't pass anything, because they can't even agree among themselves. I like the core conservative values but when they start saying things like "if you vote for them, the terrorist will steal your liberties" I feel insulted... But that doesn't matter because I can't vote anyways... yet I have to pay taxes though

I hope this will work out well for me, fingers crossed

[fmicle]

Originally Posted by Gideon

I actually was going to ask "Vorbiti romaneste?" when you were over picking up the seats, but it had been awhile since I had heard a Romanian accent and didn't want to embarrass myself if I ended up being wrong.

Hopefully you don't leave before the next meet that you can attend here locally so you can bounce some words off me. I've forgotten a lot but day to day stuff I still remember as well as some dirty phrases.

Dude that is so awesome, you should have said something and watched my face. That's one more reason for me to try to make it to the next meet besides showing off my supercharger of course

I don't think I'll be moving in less than six months unless my company has a contract with Harry Potter or something...

[Corykins]

I've lived in Texas for 19 years and I really like it! I'll try to be as unbiased as possible...

Pros:
-typically nice weather
-typically nice people
-Big Red (believe me...major pro)
-Austin is the live music capital of the world! Holla!
-As many have said, Austin is quite a bit more liberal than the rest of the state
-Austin is actually very green and environmentally friendly
-It's a new opportunity in a new place!
-No matter what time of day/night it is, there's always something going on!

Cons:
-lots of hobos
-traffic/bad highway system (this is Austin, San Antonio's hw system is awesome!)
-College town (don't let anyone know you haven't sipped the UT koolaid...)
-A little uppity in certain areas where there's an obvious "I'm better than you" vibe.
-lots and lots of bikers that LOVE to ride on the main streets. Seriously annoying.
-Cost of living is a little higher in Austin that in other parts of Texas
-It will take you 5 hours to leave the state driving in pretty much any direction.


Other than that some things that can be on either list depending on your preferences are the very diverse population regarding ethnicity, sexual preference, political views and income. Plus the majority of the population seems to be pretty young because we're a college town. Although we have been placed in the top 5 cities for singles! Not even sure if that's relevant but thought I'd through it in there, heh.

Hope that helps your decision a little, Texas isn't for everyone I'm sure, but if you decide to give it a try we'll be happy to have ya!

[tomato]

^ aww, man, what a nice comment! I'm on my way

BTW, Austin City 's live music FTW!!! I saw many, many awesome PBS broadcasts from Austin!!

[MadMax]

Oh, Austin rocks! Trust me, back in my younger days, it wasn't uncommon to hit the bars on 6th Street so much that we'd walk out of one wondering why it was so bright out, then realizing it was morning!

Of course, we'd end up sleeping until late afternoon, then doing it all over again!

But great live music is not confined to Austin (although they do have a great music scene). I live near Floore Country Store in Helotes and there's always something going on there! Heck, the sign out front still says "Willie Nelson Every Saturday Night" on it!