what non houstonians need to know...

[notfromhouston]

Hi

you guys have probably read something like this a billion times before but oh well one more time won't kill you. I will be moving over to Houston from the UK soon as that's where my husband is from. I've been there a few times before and was not impressed (extremely segregated and way too reliant upon cars), but i know i have to get over it as my husband will not yet (stubbornly) consider moving away. So tell me people what do i need to know about the place if i'm going to live there i.e. best area to live, schooling system, in short EVERYTHING! I need a perspective other than my husbands.

Any feedback would be much appreciated, and no sarcastic comments plz.

Edited March 20, 2006 by ssullivan

[editor]

Let me be among the first to welcome you to Houston. Though you may not have enjoyed your brief encounters with the city thus far, you may find it grows on you in certain ways. If you just relax and accept the city for what it is, and not what it isn't, then you may just have an enjoyable time.

You are correct: life in Houston is highly dependent on the automobile. That is something you will have to get used to. In time you might even learn to like it. Remember that the city was founded by wanderers in a nation settled by adventurers discovered by explorers. We're all about mobility, though that's hard to remember when you're sitting in a traffic jam for 45 minutes.

Remember that it's a different lifestyle. Remember the motto espoused by the Brits Monty Python who said, "Adopt, adapt, and improve. That is the motto of the Round Table."

[ajl1986d]

Well I live in kingwood now and and i think kingwood is a good area for schools as I graduated last year from kingwood high school.Its short drive from downtown the airport and you wont be stuck in traffic....well not vary often!

thats just my 2 cents

[FalconRanch]

I just recently moved to Houston Too, and i do agree Houston is to reliable on automobiles. But anyways, besides that, try going to the suburbs. Of course depending if you have children or not, Katy ISD in Katy ( Suburb of Houston) was just recently ranked in the top 17 % of all school districts in the nation.

http://www.katyisd.org/services/communicat...news_068-06.htm

I myself live in katy, here are some great subdivisions:

Cinco Ranch : www.cincoranch.com

Seven Meadows : http://sevenmeadows.com/

Grand Lakes : http://www.grandlakes.com/

There are also other subdivisions right next to these like: Falcon Ranch, Parkway Oaks, Katy Creek Ranch.

Good Luck, and welcome to Houston.

[dalparadise]

Please don't come to Houston. You will hate it here. Atlanta or Dallas are much better places. I speak for all Houstonians when I say that almost no one from outside Texas is welcome here. Do not believe what you hear from a few misguided boosters here. The editor is even welcoming you from CHICAGO and only pretending to be here. Houston is a tapestry of lies, bad schools and minority bashing. It is an awful place.

[bachanon]

now, now dalparadise. i hear ya.

let's keep houston all to ourselves! ah ha haaaa! >

welcome to houston notfromhouston. it can take 2-3 years to get houston, and then, you'll never want to leave.

ditto the editor's comments.

[travelguy_73]

I was SO in your position a few years ago. I have lived here for nearly 10 years, but have NY in my blood. When my ex and I split a few years ago, I had the opportunity to move and was determined to do so. The thing is, this place has grown on me.

I travel quite a bit for my job, and have been all over the Europe, Latin America, and Asia. After each trip, I find something I enjoy about the city I visited, but I always come back "home" to Houston. I can't explain it, but there is something comfortable about this place. It is easy to navigate (freeway routes make sense), the people are friendly, the housing stock plentiful, lots of culture, and there are numerous job opportunities. And OMG this past winter was probably the nicest on record, and felt more like a very extended fall.

It short, it will be what you make it. I came in with a poor attitude, but now realize that Houston has been very welcoming. The least I can do is spread the love, LOL.

Edited March 21, 2006 by travelguy_73

[The Great Hizzy!]

Here's some factoids that will shock you:

1) Houston has traffic. Can you imagine? I mean, in this era, where cities are all devoid of bad traffic, congested highways that are poorly designed as well as neighborhoods that have, in one way or another, been severed by wide thoroughfares that Houston would be plagued by such things. Either that's incredibly bad luck or incredibly bad city management. But it's true. Houston has traffic. Shocking.

2) We don't give trendy little names to our urban projects. Now, I know, I know, we don't have any urban projects (as an enlightened few will readily tell you) but assuming we did, we weren't slick enough to give them wonderful project names like you'll find in cooler cities. A cool city has to have cool project names so that you'll KNOW that there's an actual development going on. Wouldn't expect you to look at something and see for yourself. It has to be branded first!!!

3) We don't have an amusement park anymore. Yes, I know, it brings tears to your eyes, but it's true.

4) We have refineries to the east of the city. You KNOW what that means! You can't have a prosperous city when there are refineries and chemical plants nearby. Don't believe me? Just look at San Francisco, which does NOT have chemical plants and refineries in the East Bay, or Los Angeles, which does NOT have chemical plants and refineries in East Los Angeles or Montebello or its near east neighbors.

If you'll accept these truths and suck it up, you should be fine. Or not.

[jghall00]

I'm from NYC and I spent 10 years in Houston before moving to California. Since you seem familiar with the minuses, I'll fill you in on the pluses:

1) Eateries - Houston has a large and varied ethnic community, and you'll find food representative of dozens of cultures.

2) Restaurants - Houston has lots of great places to eat out.

3) Food - There are a lots of great places to eat, to suit any budget.

And that's about it.

Just kidding!

There's lots of culture as far as music, theatre, museums, sporting events, etc.

Housing is cheap.

Now I'm really done.

Oh, as far as schools, just get into the richest or newest area you can afford. Pretty much any school that has a large concentration of poor, immigrant, or minority students will perform poorly. Sad, but true.

*Flame suit on*

[Gary]

Man, all of the Houston bashing lately has brought out the sarcasm in you guys. I love it.

[dalparadise]

Thank you. Now people are making substantive, thoughtful statements. The editor's rubbish about how much Houston"grows on you," typed from his highrise in Chicago was lame -- as was the contingency of Kinglands, Meadowranch and Cincotheimer ISD bosters talking about their lame ass schools and clean neighborhoods in the middle of nowhere.

NotfromHouston: it is silly to be so general in your views of the city with such limited exposure to it. I wrote some generalizations of my own about the UK, based on three visits, but they were edited. My intention was to show you how ridiculous these generalizations can be, but the thought police on this board have itchy trigger fingers. Surely even someone from the old stick-in-the-butt UK knows that a city of 5.3 million people must have some diversity and redeeming qualities.

You make it seem as if you are being dragged here against your will by a stubborn maniac. You're looking to the opinions of strangers to ease your apprehensions. There is plenty written in legitimate sources to help you find out what's to like here. The opinions of this lot, including my own, are worthless to someone making as important a move as you are. You will only find out what Houston is all about by living here.

What I expect is that you will come here in the heat of summer, and be truly shocked by how miserable you are. You will curse your husband and long for home. You will mistake our friendliness for misplaced familiarity and you will not like it. You will be shocked at the disparity of rich and poor. You will hate that as much as 1/4 of your income may end up going to using and maintaining your car. You'll learn how it really feels to be a stranger on foreign soil -- this is, after all the mosquitos' and cockroaches' home.

Then, something will happen.

You'll begin to see that our weather makes things grow... really freaking big and lush. You can grow tropicals here, without even knowing what you're doing.

You'll also start to enjoy the freedom a car gives you. There are plenty on this board who kid themselves into thinking we have adequate public transportation. They are lying to themselves and you. Having a car may be an expensive indulgence in anachronistic thinking, but it rocks. Get yourself a nice one and embrace what it means to live in a big, sprawling US city. Then drive around and discover what we have to offer.

Yes, the poor areas of town are terrible -- third-world terrible. But, guess what? Most of those segregated away in our ghettos are there because they're lazy, as is their right to be. Many others are illegal immigrants who can't get good paying jobs, just like in the UK. However any of us feels about that, the law here is similar to many other places around the world. Bottom line, anyone who applies himself here can get a fair shake. You will find, even in our most crafted suburbs, a real mix of races and nationalities. Places like Sugar Land, Mo City and Pearland are the very picture of whitebread suburbia, yet you'll find huge populations of Asians, Indians, African Americans, Blacks and Brits, all living side-by-side with Whitey in $200K-$500K houses. Now, The Woodlands and NW -- that's Whitey's joint, but so be it.

Other places tend to have a mix representative of the general mix. The East side is largely Hispanic, but I think that's more of a holdover from past segregation. Nowadays, I think residents of this area live there because that's where their family is and they like it. I think the neighborhoods along Harrisburg are nice and there are tons of Hispanic-owned businesses around there. There are banks and home owners and city parks and schools...if that's segregation, we could probably use some more of it.

So, you'll begin to see Houston as an ideal American city -- a place of opportunity, where living is affordable, culture is accessible and people are industrious and interesting. Then you'll understand why so many misunderstand it, who themselves live in racially divided, expensive cities that feed the cycle of missed opportunities and priviledges for only a few. You'll also see why so many have come to love this town. Have someone tell you his "I came here with $10 and a dream" story. There are hundreds of thousands of them in Houston.

Good luck and bring a can of bug spray. The mosquito and roach problem is the one thing we haven't solved yet.

Edited March 22, 2006 by dalparadise

[The Great Hizzy!]

Freakin' bugs...

[Guest danax]

Freakin' bugs...

To all of you with pier and beam homes, I have stumbled upon a cockroach "cure". It's only been 6 months but I've seen 2 roaches period since then, and they looked sick.

I had some termite infestation on the joists and subfloor under my house so I decided to, rather than have someone spray the soil, which only lasts for a few years these days due to toxicity concerns, seek a "healthy" alternative.

I found Boracare, which is a borate gel concentrate that is mixed in water and sprayed (I used a plant mister) on all exposed wood. There's an ingredient that causes the substance to be absorbed deeply and is supposed to be good for 40 years. Tests show that even Formosan termites won't touch the treated wood at all. I sprayed almost all of the underside of my house.

I found it online after much research and it's very low toxicity (I still had a vapor mask, long sleeves, hat and gloves). There's a place in Webster that sells it and the counter guy raved about it. He also said it works on roaches. I was concerned about the termites but did have roaches fairly frequently no matter how food-free my kitchen was. So I'm still unsure how long they'll stay away but I highly recommend it.

Anyone with any great mosquito cures?

[torvald]

will be moving over to Houston from the UK soon as that's where my husband is from. I've been there a few times before and was not impressed (extremely segregated and way too reliant upon cars),

i go almost everywhere by bicycle (i do have a car, though) and bike to work everyday. i'm not one of those sporty types, just using a standard ten speed.

i did just read in a biking magazine (not sure which one it was in a lobby) that houston is ranked the 3rd worst town to bike in. depending on what sort of errands/work you do, perhaps you could still bike a bit...

[editor]

I found Boracare, which is a borate gel concentrate that is mixed in water and sprayed

I wonder if it's related to boric acid. That's the only stuff I ever found that would tame Houston roaches.

[mrfootball]

I've heard there are well over 150,000 British expats living in the Houston area, with more coming every day.

Go ahead and bring your crappy attitude (and a six-pack of Watney's Red Barrel Ale - for me). I think you'll find you'll be pleasantly surprised.

Edited March 25, 2006 by mrfootball

[TJones]

"Segregated", me thinks she's lost her bleedin' fish and chips.

Believe me my soon to be "fellow Houstonian", there is NO segregation of this town. I would absolutely put it as THE top "melting pot" of America, even over Spew York !

[torvald]

"Segregated", me thinks she's lost her bleedin' fish and chips.

Believe me my soon to be "fellow Houstonian", there is NO segregation of this town. I would absolutely put it as THE top "melting pot" of America, even over Spew York !

"segregated" may not necessarily mean that exact thing.

she could mean concentrated cultural, social or financially

common areas...

there are definitely some houston areas that are in ways

their own little communities... montrose, river oaks,

forth ward, height's etc..

[Guest danax]

I wonder if it's related to boric acid. That's the only stuff I ever found that would tame Houston roaches.

It's got a borax compound in it and that's definitely what repels both cockroaches and termites.

As for the segregation comment, we are segregated, because there are still very established areas of certain groups, as dalparadise said.

I'm really not sure what "diversity" means these days. Some think it means non-white, others think it means a city with pockets of various groups forming some kind of mosaic, but without very little interaction. Then saying, "Our city is more diverse than yours" is like saying "we have a better human zoo than you".

And there are those areas which are mixed, not because of necessarily wanting to be together, but due to a transition from white to black, for example. I think "white-flight" is still alive but to a lesser degree than in the past, as people are becoming more comfortable living together.

Then there are those who think it's where different races live together in the same neighborhoods. There is a fair degree of that in the more "yuppie" areas, both suburban and urban. It's the poorer/less educated nabes that tend to huddle together in sub-cultural pockets.

This city is a definite work in progress. Get in while it's still relatively cheap and watch diversity, development, beauty and culture all blossom over time, along with the usual city problems. The process itself is the best part.

[Subdude]

i go almost everywhere by bicycle (i do have a car, though) and bike to work everyday. i'm not one of those sporty types, just using a standard ten speed.

i did just read in a biking magazine (not sure which one it was in a lobby) that houston is ranked the 3rd worst town to bike in. depending on what sort of errands/work you do, perhaps you could still bike a bit...

Really? That's surprising. I have always thought that Houston is a great city to bike in. Nice weather, no hills, generally accomodating drivers (with the exception of that woman in the SUV who found it necessary to keep honking at me in Hermann Park last weekend. ).

[torvald]

Really? That's surprising. I have always thought that Houston is a great city to bike in. Nice weather, no hills, generally accomodating drivers (with the exception of that woman in the SUV who found it necessary to keep honking at me in Hermann Park last weekend. ).

couldn't find the original article online but it is cited here and houston is listed in the bottom paragraph from bicycling magazine, march 2006 issue. the article i read (was in a doctor's lobby so i don't have it to reference) mentioned houston as the second worse city because of the removal of bike lanes (like w. alabama) and the constant procrastination in making promised new bike lanes and trails which were supposedly approved a few years ago.

Edited March 27, 2006 by torvald

[Subdude]

couldn't find the original article online but it is cited here and houston is listed in the bottom paragraph from bicycling magazine, march 2006 issue. the article i read (was in a doctor's lobby so i don't have it to reference) mentioned houston as the second worse city because of the removal of bike lanes (like w. alabama) and the constant procrastination in making promised new bike lanes and trails which were supposedly approved a few years ago.

I suppose that makes sense. I just posted an article on how the city is backing off from restoring the Alabama bike lane.

[MiDTOWNeR]

"Segregated", me thinks she's lost her bleedin' fish and chips.

Believe me my soon to be "fellow Houstonian", there is NO segregation of this town. I would absolutely put it as THE top "melting pot" of America, even over Spew York !

someone does not not get out much.

[dbigtex56]

You make it seem as if you are being dragged here against your will by a stubborn maniac.

I venture to say that there's a substantial portion of Houstonians who've arrived by that route.

Give it five years. You'll dump the UK jerk, go blonde, get implants and love the place.

[torvald]

"Segregated", me thinks she's lost her bleedin' fish and chips.

Believe me my soon to be "fellow Houstonian", there is NO segregation of this town. I would absolutely put it as THE top "melting pot" of America, even over Spew York !

out of curiosity...

what part of town do you live in?

[houstonfella]

Freakin' bugs...

I found that Roach Prufe (sp?) works. When I moved into my house in 1989, I bought this stuff and put it into all the cracks and crevices out of harm's way (I have a pet) and I don't and never have had roaches. Of course, there will be the one huge, airplane sized one found every so often. Don't know how they get in other than the fireplace opening...