6 ms·

Just about everywhere else I've lived is culturally richer, DC, Chicago, Miami, London, Houston, all had better cultural and art scenes. I'm big in theater, ba

Just about everywhere else I've lived is culturally richer, DC, Chicago, Miami, London, Houston, all had better cultural and art scenes. I'm big in theater, ballet, and art. San Francisco is way too expensive for artists to live in anymore and the art scene there is very limited, inorganic, and a bit stale. Further the distance to San Francisco means it's a chore (and a drive) to get there from the South Bay where all the jobs are. Now I can take public transit to cultural institutions, and walk to a lot too. We have organic arts districts with real artists in residency, regular gallery showings and art walks, and some amazing local musicians. You might get that in Oakland these days, but even Oakland is getting prohibitively expensive.

stevenwoo 10y ago
I lived in Houston about 30 years ago, and you had to either love driving in bumper to bumper traffic or live inside the loop to have easy access to the arts for people with normal working hours. Walking to anything would make me want to take a shower by the time I got to my destination.
technofiend 10y ago
As a denizen of Houston and a very interested party in salary discussions I'm glad to see you mention us. Most people don't think of Houston beyond "Houston, we have a problem" and stereotypes of pickup trucks with gun racks in the window. However Houston is now more ethnically diverse than NYC [1], has a thriving arts scene [2] and as Wikipedia puts it "... is one of only five cities in the United States with permanent professional resident companies in all of the major performing arts disciplines: opera (Houston Grand Opera), ballet (Houston Ballet), music (Houston Symphony Orchestra), and theatre (Alley Theatre)." Are there downsides to living here? Undeniably. The biggest being sprawl and traffic. However next to Austin's city council actively fighting growth and traffic management investment we're in better shape despite an unfortunate anti-rail mentality. [1] https://kinder.rice.edu/uploadedFiles/Urban_Research_Center/Media/Houston%20Region%20Grows%20More%20Ethnically%20Diverse%202-13.pdf https://kinder.rice.edu/uploadedFiles/Urban_Research_Center/... [2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Culture_of_Houston#Arts_and_theatre https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Culture_of_Houston#Arts_and_th...
- zeamaize 10y ago
  We loved Houston and since going back to visit the area has only improved. Neither of us had ventured south of the Mason-Dixon before moving there.
- techsupporter 10y ago
  > Are there downsides to living here? Undeniably. The biggest being sprawl and traffic. I think you missed the two biggest that will never change: The weather (105F and 90% humidity for 3 months out of the year, hurricanes) and the politics (Lege doesn't like what you're up to? Prepare to be stomped in the Capitol building like Denton was). I'm a native Texan who grew up in Dallas with all of the baggage that entails--including an innate dislike of Houston because "rivalry"--so I know where I'm coming from. Ever since moving to Seattle years ago, I've become a lot more of an outdoor person because going outside doesn't physically hurt for six months out of the year. My first job was pushing grocery carts on a blacktop parking lot for Sack 'n' Save and the temperatures haven't gotten any better since. And the politics...oh, the politics. I really love living in a state that doesn't do things to cause it to be openly mocked by the rest of the country. I love my home state, I visit quite often, and I'm genuinely proud to be a Texan but it truly escapes me how any one can say "hey, y'all come on down, the legislature and the sun won't hurt you that much" because they both really do.
  - paulddraper 10y ago
    > I really love living in a state that doesn't do things to cause it to be openly mocked by the rest of the country. Not sure what you're referring to. Living in WA, I'd be asked non-stop by others how the pot was.
  - trome 10y ago
    Yeah, I have to say while Texas is a pretty nice state, the politics and some of the people I met are not my cup of tea. When it comes to people its better than Cali, but politics are worse than the west coast. Hopefully the city council here in Seattle can get out of its own way and dezone the city so that it may densify. Height caps and parking minimums are forcing suburban hellscape style infill in Seattle, which is very destructive and guts the neighborhood of its classic charm. Large buildings clustered around transit would be much more productive for our city versus tearing down 100 old homes to replace them with 200 odd 2800sqft boxes on postage stamp size parcels.

stevenwoo 10y ago

I lived in Houston about 30 years ago, and you had to either love driving in bumper to bumper traffic or live inside the loop to have easy access to the arts for people with normal working hours. Walking to anything would make me want to take a shower by the time I got to my destination.

technofiend 10y ago

As a denizen of Houston and a very interested party in salary discussions I'm glad to see you mention us. Most people don't think of Houston beyond "Houston, we have a problem" and stereotypes of pickup trucks with gun racks in the window. However Houston is now more ethnically diverse than NYC [1], has a thriving arts scene [2] and as Wikipedia puts it "... is one of only five cities in the United States with permanent professional resident companies in all of the major performing arts disciplines: opera (Houston Grand Opera), ballet (Houston Ballet), music (Houston Symphony Orchestra), and theatre (Alley Theatre)." Are there downsides to living here? Undeniably. The biggest being sprawl and traffic. However next to Austin's city council actively fighting growth and traffic management investment we're in better shape despite an unfortunate anti-rail mentality. [1] https://kinder.rice.edu/uploadedFiles/Urban_Research_Center/Media/Houston%20Region%20Grows%20More%20Ethnically%20Diverse%202-13.pdf https://kinder.rice.edu/uploadedFiles/Urban_Research_Center/... [2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Culture_of_Houston#Arts_and_theatre https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Culture_of_Houston#Arts_and_th...

zeamaize 10y ago
We loved Houston and since going back to visit the area has only improved. Neither of us had ventured south of the Mason-Dixon before moving there.
techsupporter 10y ago
> Are there downsides to living here? Undeniably. The biggest being sprawl and traffic. I think you missed the two biggest that will never change: The weather (105F and 90% humidity for 3 months out of the year, hurricanes) and the politics (Lege doesn't like what you're up to? Prepare to be stomped in the Capitol building like Denton was). I'm a native Texan who grew up in Dallas with all of the baggage that entails--including an innate dislike of Houston because "rivalry"--so I know where I'm coming from. Ever since moving to Seattle years ago, I've become a lot more of an outdoor person because going outside doesn't physically hurt for six months out of the year. My first job was pushing grocery carts on a blacktop parking lot for Sack 'n' Save and the temperatures haven't gotten any better since. And the politics...oh, the politics. I really love living in a state that doesn't do things to cause it to be openly mocked by the rest of the country. I love my home state, I visit quite often, and I'm genuinely proud to be a Texan but it truly escapes me how any one can say "hey, y'all come on down, the legislature and the sun won't hurt you that much" because they both really do.
- paulddraper 10y ago
  > I really love living in a state that doesn't do things to cause it to be openly mocked by the rest of the country. Not sure what you're referring to. Living in WA, I'd be asked non-stop by others how the pot was.
- trome 10y ago
  Yeah, I have to say while Texas is a pretty nice state, the politics and some of the people I met are not my cup of tea. When it comes to people its better than Cali, but politics are worse than the west coast. Hopefully the city council here in Seattle can get out of its own way and dezone the city so that it may densify. Height caps and parking minimums are forcing suburban hellscape style infill in Seattle, which is very destructive and guts the neighborhood of its classic charm. Large buildings clustered around transit would be much more productive for our city versus tearing down 100 old homes to replace them with 200 odd 2800sqft boxes on postage stamp size parcels.