Why do you live in Houston?

[Random]

Ditto, McAllen. I've had consulting work in Cameron County since then, however, and I envy you. It's the poorer side of the RGV, but it has more character, IMO.

I didn't like it, I knew enough to understand and articulate why I didn't like it, and I managed (somehow) to take a couple of high school final exams by e-mail so that I could move to Houston a week sooner for no other reason than that I did not like my environs. I still remember the date: 05/24/2002, and I departed "home" at 10:32 AM. But that's exactly the thing; I didn't like my situation, so I changed it!

The Brownsville/McAllen question is a tossup. You could easily argue that the Brownsville area has more character, though you do miss out on some basic big city amenities, which McAllen has many more of. But it was a unique experience and I wouldn't trade it.

But If the area really wants to take off, it needs to work on doing more to educate its population. This is one way in which McAllen is light years ahead of Brownsville.

I think there are also cultural aspects holding Brownsville and the rest of the Valley back. It always struck me as though relocation or leaving home was discouraged. It's also not at all uncommon for a gainfully employed 25 year old to live at home. Many don't leave until they're married. Some stay at home afterwards.

[TheNiche]

The Brownsville/McAllen question is a tossup. You could easily argue that the Brownsville area has more character, though you do miss out on some basic big city amenities, which McAllen has many more of. But it was a unique experience and I wouldn't trade it.

But If the area really wants to take off, it needs to work on doing more to educate its population. This is one way in which McAllen is light years ahead of Brownsville.

I think there are also cultural aspects holding Brownsville and the rest of the Valley back. It always struck me as though relocation or leaving home was discouraged. It's also not at all uncommon for a gainfully employed 25 year old to live at home. Many don't leave until they're married. Some stay at home afterwards.

If by "big city amenities" you're referring to three nondescript highrise office buildings, a new convention center complex with a P.F. Chang's restaurant, and a pitiful excuse for a university (in another city, 10 miles away), then yeah...I guess McAllen qualifies.

I went back recently for a brief visit and apparently could not keep from running into people I knew in middle or high school. Right off the bat, a big city has an aire of anonymity; that's impossible in the RGV. Many otherwise bright people I knew are incapable of leaving home; some have tried but got sucked back in. When I describe my career, which I myself consider to be in the doldrums, I get incredulous glares from people who cannot fathom how I've done what I've done. Their fate: they're married, they have a kid, they went to community college for a while but have no degree, their family lives in the same bedroom in the same house as when I knew them (in middle school). They'd like to be successful in the way that they view me as successful, however don't perceive that there is a path open for them...and not for lack of financial wherewithal, but just because everybody who had the balls to move north has done so, and everybody else in their peer group is in the same situation as theirs. How would they proceed? Where are the role models of success that they could imitate?

The RGV produces bright people. IQ simply doesn't discriminate by region, culture, or race. But the smart alphas leave and do their own thing, and the smart betas languish in a collective malaise.

[Random]

The RGV produces bright people. IQ simply doesn't discriminate by region, culture, or race. But the smart alphas leave and do their own thing, and the smart betas languish in a collective malaise.

I once heard the president of UTB refer to the valley (in private) as the land of low expectations.

But as far as McAllen and big city amenities goes, there is much more to do compared to Brownsville. Even something as basic as the Art Walk, or a small music scene is a vast improvement of what Brownsville has.

[gto250us]

The reason that I live here, as near as I can tell, is because I am borderline psychotic and delusional.

[Gary]

One of the reasons I live here, and I'm not kidding, is the women. Other than that, I love the affordability, the blues music scene (Houston's blues scene is WAY underrated), and the people. Yes I said it, the people.

[IronTiger]

I usually don't have the time to post, but I come to this website almost everyday and I am very familiar with HAIF.

I know there is no rule that everyone who post here MUST love Houston. Even I don't love everything about Houston. I just think it's weird that someone could be interested enough in Houston to go to a website about all things Houston, who wasn't just a little bit enthusiastic about it.

I think this is mostly a Houston enthusiast website. I mean, most people come here because they are interested in what goes on in Houston. How can people be interested in things they don't like?

Of course...that's one of the reasons I joined HAIF!

[CHiPs]

Good question.

I've grown to love Houston and what it has to offer. It's diversity, its affordability, its people, and the things in between. Does it have its flaws? Yes. Been living here most of my life....I'm used to it. I was at a forkroad after I graduated college. I had the door wide open. I was unemployed at the time and applied for jobs in Portland, Seattle, Austin, San Antonio, San Francisco. I thought about packing up and moving to Portland, in hopes of looking for a job once I get there. It was a difficult decision. Most of my family lives here. I was offered a job that I wanted here. I recently purchased a new home, so I may be here for awhile before I decide what to do. In the meantime, I'll enjoy, see, and experience all the changes happening around town.

[AtticaFlinch]

I live in Houston because I like living here. It's that simple. While some people only see the ugly of this town, I tend to stick to the prettier parts - even then, the ugly tends to still have some decadent beauty.

BTW, I didn't even realize this site existed till now. I like this idea far better than City-Data, and what I've seen so far, the discussion is quite a bit more intelligent.

[sevfiv]

Welcome to HAIF, Attica

[JLWM8609]

I live in Houston because it's the place where I was born and raised. I'm a product of Houston schools from Pre-K to Undergrad. My father is from Leon County and my maternal grandfather was from Waller County, so I can't really claim as long and direct of generational connection to this city as others, though my maternal grandmother's father was one of the original inhabitants of Acres Homes. I guess that's something important. I watch TV and see how people in other regions throughout the US either live like sardines and deal with rude folks on a daily basis and/or have a high cost of living and I realize that Houston's got it good. Sure, we have rude transplants from the East Coast and your occasional intolerant person who's wandered inside the loop from outlying rural areas. If you overlook that, we've got it pretty good. People from other cities knock us, but I bet I could find just as many or more undesirable things about their cities, no city is perfect. I wouldn't dream of moving to California or New York. I like my dollar being able to go further, I like being able to find a place to park and a better opportunity to OWN rather than rent, and the weather's just fine by me, as long as the A/C works.

Looks like I'll be staying put here. If I do decide to leave, the only other town that I've found to fit my bill is Atlanta. It's a nice town, but if I get homesick, Houston's just a day's drive or a 1 hr 30 min flight away.

[totheskies]

I for one am glad for forumers that aren't "in love" with Houston. This city (like any place) has a lot of bullcrap that needs improvement, and I think we do ourselves a disservice if we just sit back and accept everything for what it is. I actually like Houston, but I refuse to say that it's perfect and acquiese to every situation that I encounter here. Thankfully, we are in a period of upward mobility, especially on the transportation and densification/ urban walkability fronts. I live in the East End, and everyday I get to marvel at the massive construction of additional bike trails that are going up here, as well as the (painfully slow!) progress of the East End rail line.

I'm from Arkansas, and have lived in D/FW, Kansas City, Western Michigan and here. I liked the other places just fine, but Houston has been the best fit city for me so far. I guess I'm a weirdo... UofH was my first choice for graduate school over UNT, LSU and Indiana. UNT actually offered me the best scholarship package and it is a more prestigious music school than UofH. But it didn't have that "spark" to it that I found in UofH. This experience of course shaped my view on the city as a whole.

So to answer the OP's question, I live in Houston b/c I like it. I like the fact that the city is constantly growing, changing and redefining itself. I like that Houstonians are very open to new ideas and new ways of doing things. I like the fact that in Houston, success is still a quantitative measurement instead of always qualitative. It's great that one can arrive in this city with virtually nothing, and be given a chance to make life work... seemingly regardless of who they know or how well they're supposed to fit in. These are the things I love about Houston... the intrinsics.

It's also a very exciting time to be living here... all of the awesome changes coming to places like the inner loop, the reformation of our transit system, the thriving and expanding artistic communities with their continual support of the contemporary, "weird" and non-traditional, the creation of new skylines like Memorial City, and the hopeless anticipation of what lies ahead. Houston is a powerful and very spirited place. Whether one loves or detests, it always seems to invoke a strong reaction. Basically, I'm a mobile guy... if I get a decent offer in another place, I'll definitely consider it. But for now, I'm happy with Houston, and will always have a wealth of great memories here.