True that, as a person who grew up outside of Houston, I have only been to Austin a handful of times, and hated every time I went. Its too "weird" for me. I love the Texas History Museum, and Barton Springs, though, and made a point to visit both every time (if I could find parking).
Yikes. That marketing campaign is so overblown. If you really found Austin weird I'm curious what your day to day is like.
> if I could find parking
Urban vs suburban. I'm willing to walk and want my kids to feel the same way. I remember suburban life well, and don't miss the superficial need for parking within 30 seconds (or 2 minutes) of your destination.
None of these were in protest, just typical Austoninan's from around 2003-2011
A procession of people crossing the upper level I-35 in wheelchairs... is weird.
Non-homeless and non-drunk people just sitting/laying down in the middle of the sidewalk on 6th Street, S Congress... is weird. I get it, it is too hot to walk in the summer, go inside, or to the springs.
Semi-Jokingly: Republicans in Austin... is weird.
But more than these specific things, its a lot of little oddities that didn't occur in more traditional places like Houston.
That said, I moved to NYC in 2015, so I can't claim Austin was THAT weird compared to what I saw every day for a couple of years before moving upstate.
> Yes, but you have to compromise sometimes and you need to be willing to live somewhere with a lower cost of living (ie: probably not in a big city).
I think this is trading off too much for cost of living vs income. As I said in a sibling thread, our family is on one (software engineer) income in central Austin. We walk to most things, we own a big home and a yard, but I don't optimize for cost of living, I guess. Austin pays well enough, and we live with all the amenities on a single income.
In reply to your comment, we also have a super fast internet connection, unlimited cell phone plans, and go out to eat often. None of these things add up to even close to the difference in salary we get in Austin vs being in the middle of nowhere. I am all for reducing the time you spend working so you can be around family, but if you are working ~40 hours for a low salary and making up for it by cutting corners -- I'd much rather work my 40 in Austin and have it all.
If you're working 15-20 hours in the middle of nowhere and cutting corners, then that's another thing altogether.
I live in (very) central Austin with my wife and kids on one income. I escaped the suburbs of my childhood, too, (and wouldn't recommend them to anyone) but I don't understand how a software engineer income doesn't support a family in an urban area between the coasts.
Urban Austin and a Houston suburb are barely comparable.