bretley42

Don't worry. I'll find plenty of unique places to hang out. I'm just going to use the saucer to continue my glass collection. heh.

besides, its close to the office. heh.

-b

man; don't move to Houston and then just hang out at a satilite beer hall. Houston has soooo much more to offer. The Saucer is one thing in FW, but you really have to broaden your horizons down here. Take advantage of Houston's size and depth of offerings in relative comparison. Hanging at The Saucer is like moving to Rome and then eating at Pizza Hut.

Quick follow-up for everyone.

I now have an apartment a couple blocks off Montrose * (a dump with a capitol DUMP). for the next 6 months.

While waiting for the landlord to show up (I was early), I was able to walk over to Montrose, have a cup of coffee, walk around and explore some.

Nice stuff.

I had already decided to have lunch at the Flying Saucer once I was done with everything.

I parked in one of the lots soon to be the Pavalions (if they ever break ground on that mess) and went in to do some business at the new job. As part of that, I walked down to another Chase building down on main and did the last of my business for the day in Houston.

On my way out of the building I was about to head back to the car and punch the Flying Saucer into my nav system, when I noticed that I'm standing right across the street from the place.

Nice to know it is downtown, my Wednsdays after work are set (and its about 3 miles to the apt).

Stop by one day and remind me that I'm not crazy for moving down there.

* I still have topay my mortgage in Fort Worth until we sell the house, so 450 sq ft is all I'm going to need. I won't be there for many weekends, as I'll be driving back to see my wife and kid each weekend until we've sold and bought a house. It is a dump, but the parkinglot has decent cars in it, and the area itself seems cute and fairly safe (we'll see).

-b

(getting closer)

Ahhh, that place is terrible. Downtown Fort Worth is more than Sundance Square though. Like all cities, it takes some exploring to find more of what you're looking for.

Here (I'm in Fort Worth for another week) it isn't as much about the dance club as it is the live music club. Much the same as Deep Ellum was in Dallas back when it was good (at least to me), although again, not on the same scale.

And yeah, it is smaller. You're talking about a city that barely sneaks into the top 20.

just a couple quick thoughts.

-b

Since I've been in Dallas, I've heard about FW's downtown. I've been down there a few times at night, and it is very clean and safe, and plenty of people. But DTFW is also very SMALL (I couldn't believe how small downtown is) and I found the offerings (bars, restuarants, clubs) very bland...lot of chain bars and restuarants. Nothing funky, cool, or edgy. The one danceclub is one of those where there's several clubs under one roof. It's the cheeziest place I had been in...ever. I don't know why some people in Dallas call it funkytown when the city is funkless. Instead of feeling like in an urban city, I felt like I was in a section of Disneyland.

Thanks for the tip. I'll look at the metro info now.

-b

Congradulations!!

As far as being outside the loop, I think an important consideration is proximity to a Metro Park n Ride. That was an important factor when we moved recently (within Houston). It sure is nice knowing that if we ever had to make the daily commute to downtown or uptown, we only have a short 7 minute drive to the Park n Ride. Metro Commuter routes have HOV access and the trip si about 30 minutes....versus over an hour if I drove. Anyways, just something to consider.

OK,

This morning I faxed my offer latter back to JPMC.

I start in the 18th.

I looked (via realtor,com) and it looks like I may not be able to afford to live inside the loop (well, not afford it and the other stuff we like to do).

That said, I may be looking outside. So far things look promising. I'd probably be on the north side (family would be coming down, and knocking an hour off the drive helps).

Anyhing I should watch out for up there? Spring is where my manager lives. realtor.com makes it look *very* affordable, almost to the point I have some worries about what to expect up there (will check the HAIF forum on the norhtrn areas).

thoughts?

I'm prolly looking to keep a house under 200k.

you guys have been a big help, and good salespeople for your city. Now comes the fun part for me.

thanks guys,

-b

Well,

I'm awaiting an offer.

My wife drove down with me, which was pretty cool.

We ate at the Hobbit Cafe (veggie friendly, and unique). This was what I was looking for too, a place that while doesn't exactly scream "this is Houston" is quite unique to Houston. An old establishment (although I believe has moved once or twice) as far from Chillis as one can possibly get.

It was a nice treat.

As far as private schools, we're not sure yet whether we'll be using a Christian private school or not. While we're both Christian, neither of is is heavily into religion .....(organized religion has hijacked human spirituality --Robyn Hitchcock). *and* that is several years down the road, so we've got few worries about that.

We had a nice day (other than the 4 hour interview process that JPMC uses.. ouch), and if an offer comes, we'd be ready to go.

-b

I know you're looking for local.. *but*......

If you want to order some from not *too* far away, I believe the best tamales in TX can be found at Hot Damn Tamales on Magnolia in Fort Worth.

http://www.hotdamntamales.com/

For the record, I am in no way involved with them, just one very satisfied (sometimes too satisfied, and a nap is required) customer.

The Veggie selection from the menu is as follows:

Item/description Price

VEGETARIAN SELECTIONS

More pictures & info...

Black Beans & Oaxaca Cheese

Black Beanskissed with fresh Cilantro and Cayenne Pepper mingle with mozzarella-style cheese from the Mexican state of Oaxaca. You've never had a bean tamal like this one! The fusion of distinctive flavors makes a heavenly treat as satisfying as any meat tamal. Black Bean and Oaxaca Cheese Tamales are cloaked in a delicious seasoned masa made with 100% vegetable shortening and hand-rolled in real corn husks. Vegetarian friendly!

$8/dozen

More pictures & info... Wild Mushroom & Texas Goat Cheese

Enjoy the earthy flavor of Wild Mushrooms accented with smoky Chipotle Peppers and the subtle zing of fine Dallas Goat Cheese from the Mozzarella Company. We blend six exotic wild mushrooms to produce an exquisite flavor with subtle undertones. To this we add a hint of chipotle and smooth Texas goat cheese. We finish with a blanket of our seasoned lard-free masa and hand roll them in genuine corn husks. Muy bueno and vegetarian friendly! $12/dozen

More pictures & info...

Spring Tamales

If you want a light tamal with lots of zip, Spring Tamales fit the bill. We combine sweet Red Bell Peppers and shredded Carrots with fiery Serranos to make a "blind" tamal with just a little bit of burn. This tamal makes a wonderful light meal or snack anytime. Try some with an icy horchata, liquado, or lemonade for a refreshing change. Or crumble them for a sensational holiday stuffing. Fabuloso and vegan friendly!

$8/dozen

Pictures & info coming soon!

Fresh Corn Poblano Tamales

Our newest vegetarian offering, our Fresh Corn Poblano Tamales combine fresh corn straight off the cob, tossed with roasted poblano peppers, cilantro and cheese. You'll love the rich texture and the pleasant crunch of fresh corn! Also known as a drunk tamale. Muy rico and vegetarian friendly!

$9/dozen

3 things:

1) I'll stick around the forum anyhow, as it seems to be a good group of people, and there is no better way to know more about a city than this.

2) if I were to move, schools are not *that* big of a deal to me, I will not be sending my child to a government school (public school makes it sound too good), and we'll be homeschooling until at least middle school, and chosing a private school from there.

3) I have an interview at JPMC Thursday the 24th (on my 35th birthday no less).

Anyone recommend a good place for lunch following my interview?

thanks again guys.

Oh yeah, I did think of baseball indoors already. Esp as I head to the Tex-Sea game tonight. Ugh, its going to be a hot one.

But alas, JPMC is moving a bit slower than I like, and I may accept an offer up here beforehand. We'll see.

I've learned a good deal about the city in the past week, and by this point, I'll be disappointed if I don't end up moving. heh.

-b

That's some good info folks. Thanks a lot.

I used to make it to Houston once a month dropping off promo records to few places (Cactus being the most memorable).

I've never understood the whole Dallas vs Houston / Dallas vs Fort Worth thing myself. oh well.

We'll see how the job offer finalizes.

I've got the wife sold already (she loves Galveston, and not that it means anything for next year, but the summers this year may have had a little to do with it.. we're set for 105 again today. ouch).

If it all does fall into place, I'll become a regualar to the forum here, if it is as I predict (and this is how the Fort Worth forum is) then folks who care about the city, will have better insight and better vision when it comes to outlook, 'inlook' and overall thoughts about the city as a whole.

The worst part about moving would be missing watching the Trinity River Vision come to pass over the next several years. I'd be able to watch it from a distance, but that is something I've been exited about here.

Which, reminds me.. there *is* (at least to my eyes) a huge difference between Dallas and Fort Worth; our local governments. Fort Worth seems to be able to do stuff, while Dallas seems to fight over which groups are going to benefit more from projects. Terribly frustrating, I can tell you, as it is part of the reason I went to Fort Worth to begin with. Heh, the local citizens didn't even get a chance to vote for the football stadium, it was already out of the city, it had a chance to come back.. and now, its not even going to be in the county. ouch.

How does Houston fare with government, and the like?

thanks again folks, this is all been great information. I'm glad I found this forum, I knew once I read some, and saw how close it was to the FTW forum, the answers would be here.

-b

Not exactly sure where this should go, but this seems the most logical place (mods please move it if this is not the best place).

I'm a forum member up on the Fort Worth Architecture board, so I feel sorta comfortable here.

I am seriously thinking about taking a job in Houston (downtown, in a patricualty tall building.. heh). I'm a firm believer in 'every city has good stuff, every city had bad stuff, they all have their share of morons, etc, etc.'

All that said, can you guys fill me in on what I may be getting myself into?

here are some basics:

We're in our mid-30's, with a 3 year old. Here in FW we're into indie music, our musuems (mostly the kimball and the modern) local music, indi films, non chain resturants, our zoo (these are also reasons we're in FW and not so much Dallas). Also kayaking, angling , almost vegetarian.

We live in a 1918 tudor in an historic district (actually not historic, but thats better due to politics) just outside downtown (Brekely Place, for those who know FW)

This should give you a pretty good idea of who we are, how would we fit in? Cost of living is pretty mcuh the same, so I'm not too worried about that side of things.

thoughts?