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Austin dreams


texasdago

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Man, I had to drive out to Leander and Round Rock for soccer tournaments last week.  F that noise.  How do people live out there?  I'm 13 minutes to Zilker - happy where we are. 

This drives me crazy with coworkers. They think Leander/CP is the middle of the universe and circle c/sw Austin is super far out. Nope
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5 minutes ago, Updawg said:


This drives me crazy with coworkers. They think Leander/CP is the middle of the universe and circle c/sw Austin is super far out. Nope

Gotta admit, I do miss my treks to the Circle C HEB 15 minutes after the LifeTime Yoga classes.  Had the timing DOWN!

I'll be in my bunk.

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What’s funny to me is how people in Austin bag on Houston and Dallas for sprawl and strip centers when most of Austin is the same damn thing. Other than West of Mopac, there isn’t too much to differentiate Austin from Dallas or Houston. In fact, there are pockets or Dallas and Houston that are just as “cool” or “hip” as any place in Austin.

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2 minutes ago, Hate said:

What’s funny to me is how people in Austin bag on Houston and Dallas for sprawl and strip centers when most of Austin is the same damn thing. Other than West of Mopac, there isn’t too much to differentiate Austin from Dallas or Houston. In fact, there are pockets or Dallas and Houston that are just as “cool” or “hip” as any place in Austin.

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I lived 10+ years each in Houston, Dallas, and Austin, including burbs in Dallas and Houston.

I can confidently say fuck Houston, Houston burbs, Dallas, Dallas burbs, and Austin burbs.  Burbs are the fucking same in any city. Burbs are generic shit. You can blindfold most people and drop them in any burb and they'll have no idea which city they are in.

Nothing compares to Austin proper, even with the homeless and shitty city leadership.

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4 minutes ago, Hate said:

What’s funny to me is how people in Austin bag on Houston and Dallas for sprawl and strip centers when most of Austin is the same damn thing. Other than West of Mopac, there isn’t too much to differentiate Austin from Dallas or Houston. In fact, there are pockets or Dallas and Houston that are just as “cool” or “hip” as any place in Austin.

Having just moved back recently, Austin as a whole is still much prettier than Houston or Dallas. And the parks and greenbelts blow those cities out of the water when it comes to hiking, swimming, taking the dogs out etc. 

It's also more entertaining to people watch in Austin imo - it's not as "weird" as it used to be but people in Austin in general are still much more eclectic than Dallasites or Houstonians. Even though Austin is much less diverse when it comes to ethnicity or nationality. Also the women are better looking on average and more relaxed and down to fuck imo, which was a huge draw for me moving back. 

But there are obviously things I miss about Dallas - or that are better there. There are more options for food and shopping, there are actual professional sports, driving on the roads doesn't make me want to stab myself in the eye with an icepick. And maybe the biggest draw is that people are so much less annoying and tend to mind their own fucking business. I always found most people in Dallas (proper at least) to be nice, accommodating and straightforward, whereas so many people in Austin always seem to be pushing some ridiculous agenda. Or are just fucking crazy. 

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7 minutes ago, crash_davis said:

I lived 10+ years each in Houston, Dallas, and Austin, including burbs in Dallas and Houston.

I can confidently say fuck Houston, Houston burbs, Dallas, Dallas burbs, and Austin burbs.  Burbs are the fucking same in any city. Burbs are generic shit. You can blindfold most people and drop them in any burb and they'll have no idea which city they are in.

Nothing compares to Austin proper, even with the homeless and shitty city leadership.

Until you get old.  Than your opinion changes.  Again.

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Just now, RollLeft said:

Until you get old.  Than your opinion changes.  Again.

Nope, kids are off to college. Basically empty nesters. Enjoying spending more time SUPing on Town Lake and running the hike and bike trail. I can load up the board on my SUV and be on  Town Lake in 15 mins. That includes unloading and parking. That alone beats anything Dallas or Houston has to offer.

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There's plenty of eclecticness (word?) to Houston in Montrose, Museum Distrcict, Heights, Washington, etc. but Austin has more of it and, as crash said, the opportunities to take go paddleboarding, cliff jumping, , hikes, biking, all that noise is way better.  I never stop commenting to my wife (she's sick of it) how much prettier it is here.  Again, much I miss about Houston... and then we head to Jester King, have a beer/pizza and watch the goat whisperer or put in the SUP at Town Lake or eat some decidedly average food at Ski Shores, I forget about Houston.  

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12 minutes ago, Patricio Swayze said:

Guys, this is Surly, y'all don't have to pretend that you do the stand up paddleboard for the exercise or beauty of Town Lake/Austin skyline.  It is for the amount of ass you see paddling alongside you.

I sometimes take out of town friends on the lake on weekends. They are always are amazed at the amount of talent, especially with Party Island (sandbar in front of Barton Creek). 

Speaking of Party Island, Town Lake gets trashed every weekend now from dipshits. It's borderline starting to get overrun by the tatted meth Guadalupe River crowd. It started with Covid and Barton Spring being closed. A few people realized that all you need to get to get on the lake is $5 blow up inflatables and then you can bring coolers for drinks. Then word spread and by the end of May, that lake was a fucking zoo. Unfortunately with the incredible ass comes the trash.

Edited by crash_davis
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this just in...according to top men in Texas...large cities in Texas with over a million people all have "cool/hip" parts of town.  Locals, reportedly, are fucking stunned.  Philadelphia is bigger than Dallas, San Antonio, or Austin and it has cool parts of town too and is tolerable in the Summer.  Big fucking surprise that large cities have cool parts of town.  Wow, I did not see that coming.   

I'm not overly devoted to Austin...I just like that my neighborhood is super close to a bunch of fun shit, really close to UT, really close to Lake Austin, the elementary school for my oldest is great, the city is decent for my business model, the airport (if and when I fly again) can get me to very single significant financial destination in the U.S. with zero stops, and my part of town is just draped in hot ass year-around.  I could easily live in Fort Worth as an alternative.  1a alternative would be either San Antonio or El Paso.  And then down the list a tie between Houston and Dallas.  Nothing against any of those places, no judging. 

Because if you're paying attention, you'll see ALL of my alternative cities are still in Texas.  At no point does Florida, New York, California, or Chicago come up.  Everybody likes their city because they feel they're entrenched there, they're a well-known brand.  Truth is, we ain't.  But we're the last of a dying breed.  Every generation after us is gonna jump around the country as hired guns, looking for whatever opportunity suits them.  And I said, "God bless, get after it!"  

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51 minutes ago, crash_davis said:

I sometimes take out of town friends on the lake on weekends. They are always are amazed at the amount of talent, especially with Party Island (sandbar in front of Barton Creek). 

Speaking of Party Island, Town Lake gets trashed every weekend now from dipshits. It's borderline starting to get overrun by the tatted meth Guadalupe River crowd. It started with Covid and Barton Spring being closed. A few people realized that all you need to get to get on the lake is $5 blow up inflatables and then you can bring coolers for drinks. Then word spread and by the end of May, that lake was a fucking zoo. Unfortunately with the incredible ass comes the trash.

don't Lake Austin my Lake Travis.

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10 minutes ago, Lobo said:

Her buttocks are sublime.  And let us devote the rest of this thread to her rear, but fucking block out "rustic wanna-be philosopher Spin Doctors dude."  

An herbal American to be sure, however.  

Probably does shots of Patchouli oil.

He must have thought it was white boy day...

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8 hours ago, billfromlaketravis said:

The best way I can articulate living in Houston : It's place where you come for work. At first you learn to tolerate it. Later you come to mildly enjoy it. It's improved dramatically since hosting the Super Bowl in 2004. I can't understand retiring here, but plenty of people do it. 

I know people want more house, better schools, and a big pool,  but living in the Houston suburbs is a tough beat. 

100% I won’t retire in Houston 

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It does seem like a really shitty place to retire.  But they do have that kickass medical center that is the envy of the western Hemisphere.  that would explain all those condos nearby with people that only live there a part of the time.  Who knows what the fuck the healthcare platform in this country is gonna be 30 years from now though?  I guess keep a place in Houston or Austin and half the year in someplace without 110 degree heat indexes trying to kill me every morning?  

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5 minutes ago, Lobo said:

It does seem like a really shitty place to retire.  But they do have that kickass medical center that is the envy of the western Hemisphere.  that would explain all those condos nearby with people that only live there a part of the time.  Who knows what the fuck the healthcare platform in this country is gonna be 30 years from now though?  I guess keep a place in Houston or Austin and half the year in someplace without 110 degree heat indexes trying to kill me every morning?  

A friend's parents have a place in Barton Creek West and a place on one of the 10,000 lakes in Ontario. They spend Mid-June to Mid-September at their lake house, and the rest of their time in Austin. Seems like a pretty sweet setup. I'll probably end up settling for a double-wide in meth addled northern New Mexico or something...anything to get out of the goddamn blast furnace for a few months. . 

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43 minutes ago, Pescado_Rojo said:

A friend's parents have a place in Barton Creek West and a place on one of the 10,000 lakes in Ontario. They spend Mid-June to Mid-September at their lake house, and the rest of their time in Austin. Seems like a pretty sweet setup. I'll probably end up settling for a double-wide in meth addled northern New Mexico or something...anything to get out of the goddamn blast furnace for a few months. . 

Subscribe. Just middle man between the cooks and small dealers a couple times a month to cover your expenses.

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I have lived in Austin, Houston, Los Angeles and NYC.

Can say Austin is my favorite but Houston and LA have various things I liked about them more than Austin and can easily see why some would prefer Houston to Austin (for example, if you prioritize culture, museums, food, fine arts, and diversity over abs, legs and physical beauty from women, lakes and hills).  Without a doubt for me though, I would put NYC in last place of the 4 and not even close.

And people trying their hardest to justify weather differences between Houston and Austin sound desperate, like talking themselves into a boring boyfriend after they got cheated on.  Do you need a/c or not or stfu.  You're bragging about only needing a 17 Seer a/c running all summer long here in austin, not an 18 Seer like hot ass Houston.  We get it man, Lamarr Houston fucked your wife in undergrad, let it go.

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57 minutes ago, 6th Street said:

Question for the folks in Austin. I mean it's fun and all for awhile, but don't you guys want to get out and experience living out of state for a bit?

I've lived on the East Coast, the West Coast, Chicago, several cities in Texas, and even in Western Europe for several months at a time.  Austin has all kinds of flaws.  I just stay here because it's where my wife and daughters are, and they like it here.  And they are the only things keeping me tethered to this planet.  But fucking-A, it's really hot here sometimes.  Like aggressively hot, for no reason. 

I've always wanted to live in Southlake/Grapevine or somewhere in Ohio.  Longtime dreams of mine.  

I can't imagine living my life as if where I was born was a defining characteristic of my life, since I had absolutely zero to do with it.  I've moved around...a lot.  For now, I love it here because my family loves it here.  But I'll be restless again soon enough.  

"I am tormented by things remote.  I love to sail forbidden seas."  

-South Austin's Mom as told to Melville 

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Question for the folks in Austin. I mean it's fun and all for awhile, but don't you guys want to get out and experience living out of state for a bit?

We’ve probably taken 30 trips since 2018 and I’ll tell you lake Travis is my happy place, Disch Falk too. But other than that Austin doesn’t do it for me anymore. I’ve been here for 40 years. Once my kids are out of school I’ll be happy to split time between the lake and Colorado or California, Mexico, an island somewhere, Seattle, Canada, Europe just about anywhere with good summer weather.

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17 hours ago, Hate said:

What’s funny to me is how people in Austin bag on Houston and Dallas for sprawl and strip centers when most of Austin is the same damn thing. Other than West of Mopac, there isn’t too much to differentiate Austin from Dallas or Houston. In fact, there are pockets or Dallas and Houston that are just as “cool” or “hip” as any place in Austin.

The difference is the plethora of swimming spots in and around town and lots of protected land to go hiking in. Austin has all other large Texas cities beat when it comes to the outdoors. Austin is much prettier than Houston, Dallas, and even San Antonio. Also, much, much less violent crime and pollution than Houston or Dallas. 

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10 hours ago, troph said:

We’ve probably taken 30 trips since 2018 and I’ll tell you lake Travis is my happy place, Disch Falk too. But other than that Austin doesn’t do it for me anymore. I’ve been here for 40 years. Once my kids are out of school I’ll be happy to split time between the lake and Colorado or California, Mexico, an island somewhere, Seattle, Canada, Europe just about anywhere with good summer weather.

Had this discussion with some friends recently. In my 20s I thought I'd never leave Austin. Now, I can't imagine staying...at least not full time...once my kids are out of the house. I've gotten to where I hate this place from July to the end of September. 

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11 hours ago, 6th Street said:

Question for the folks in Austin. I mean it's fun and all for awhile, but don't you guys want to get out and experience living out of state for a bit?

I’ve been to all but 2 states and have traveled extensively around this country and have found maybe 2 other cities where my wife and I could both be happy. She needs somewhere it doesn’t get too cold and I need somewhere with a lot of live music. Her folks live in SD so southern CA is out of the question. 

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20 minutes ago, Bolero88 said:

Also, much, much less violent crime and pollution than Houston or Dallas. 

Eh. Property crime is just as high as Dallas and higher than Houston. Rape cases are significantly higher than both those cities. Murder cases and aggravated assaults are much lower but there also aren't really any "bad" neighborhoods in Austin. Most of Dallas is pretty safe if you keep your wits about you. Can't speak to Houston, haven't lived there but I imagine it is the same. 

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5 minutes ago, Pescado_Rojo said:

Had this discussion with some friends recently. In my 20s I thought I'd never leave Austin. Now, I can't imagine staying...at least not full time...once my kids are out of the house. I've gotten to where I hate this place from July to the end of September. 

I was pretty tired of Austin after 7 years of school.  Back then (early 90s and prior) it was hard to find a good job, so undergrad friends were either chronically underemployed and "slacking" or elsewhere.  It was nigh impossible to find a law job other than with the state.

So it didn't seem like a good place to start off a career at all.  Some of that has probably changed, some probably hasn't.  One thing is you need a pretty damn good job to live there due to the cost of housing.

Dallas has bad traffic, but it's easy enough to avoid.  Not sure that can be said about Austin.  

Completely concur on best city for outdoor pursuits and those have become especially important to me of late (particularly with the virus, but even without).  Still, the goal of retirement is to simplify and cut cost and I don't think Austin is very conducive to that.  The outer burbs might be an option, though.

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