Babs2u
Senior Member
Seems
Fun Facts and Fiction about Texas
- Thread starter Deya
- Start date
Wombat
Member
- Location
- Wollongong, NSW
I guess Texas is bigger than Tassie and Victoria but not much else
As an aside it makes me laugh that no matter how far you zoom out Alice Springs always appears on a map of Australia. Population? 34,000. Mind you it is the second biggest town in the NT
As an aside it makes me laugh that no matter how far you zoom out Alice Springs always appears on a map of Australia. Population? 34,000. Mind you it is the second biggest town in the NT
I guess Texas is bigger than Tassie and Victoria but not much else
As an aside it makes me laugh that no matter how far you zoom out Alice Springs always appears on a map of Australia. Population? 34,000. Mind you it is the second biggest town in the NT
Gosh, you’re comparing our state to your continent ..
Paladin1950
Still love 50's & 60's music!
- Location
- Mohawk Valley, NY
I went to Texas one time. My impression was very, very, very, negative. But it was a long time ago. It was around 1971, seven years after the civil right bill was passed. Yet there I saw discrimination still in full force in El Paso, Texas. In the depot blacks were on one side and whites on the other.
When my bus arrived that was going to Tucson, Arizona, I got in line and looked back and saw all of the black passengers waiting for us white folks to get on. As the black passengers got on, some found seats, others were denied seats to sit in because of their color. 3 or 4 passengers had to stand for 3 or 4 hours, until we got to Tucson. I let a young black woman sit next to me. I was so damn angry. Some people put their belongings on the seat next to them, so no one could sit there. What a culture shock that was.
When I got on a bus in Albany, New York, we all got on together. I know that was 54 years ago, and things have changed greatly in Texas, but I will never forget that experience.
This is not to insult people who live in Texas. It's just one New Yorker's experience in the state over 50 years ago.
When my bus arrived that was going to Tucson, Arizona, I got in line and looked back and saw all of the black passengers waiting for us white folks to get on. As the black passengers got on, some found seats, others were denied seats to sit in because of their color. 3 or 4 passengers had to stand for 3 or 4 hours, until we got to Tucson. I let a young black woman sit next to me. I was so damn angry. Some people put their belongings on the seat next to them, so no one could sit there. What a culture shock that was.
When I got on a bus in Albany, New York, we all got on together. I know that was 54 years ago, and things have changed greatly in Texas, but I will never forget that experience.
This is not to insult people who live in Texas. It's just one New Yorker's experience in the state over 50 years ago.
Wombat
Member
- Location
- Wollongong, NSW
Gosh, you’re comparing our state to your continent ..
No, that wouldn't be fair, Its comparing it to the different states - the picture is comparing Texas to WA which is a state but Texas will also fit easily inside most states and territories apart from Victoria, ACT and Tassie. The states are clearly marked on the map.
Texas = 695,662 sq km
WA = 2,527,013 sq km
Queensland = 1,729,742 sq km
NT = 1,347,791 sq km
SA = 984,321 sq km
NSW = 801,150 sq km
That's a like for like comparison isn't it? Australia is a commonwealth of six states and two territories each with their own government. In the 1990s The NT held a referendum on becoming a state, it decided to remain a territory 52% to 48%.
This would be comparing continents. America comprises many different countries (35 I think) compared to a continent like Australia which is only one and also the smallest continent - definitely no comparison.
The United States alone is a similar size as is Brazil and Canada (not sure if Greenland is part of America)
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Lawrence00
Senior Member
Those Highway Patrol Mustangs can't catch you, speed all you want.
Jules
SF VIP
We RV’d one winter in Texas and thoroughly enjoyed it. There were two BBQ places near our RV park. We went to the dumpy one with the full parking lot. It was full for a reason - the best BBQ I’ve ever eaten. My DD RVs there every winter. They move about but always spend part of the time on San Padre.
ChiroDoc
Senior Member
- Location
- The Dixie Riviera
I live on the Miss. Gulf Coast, and I've been to Texas many times. I really like Texas and I like Texans. If they ever secede from the Union, I may move there.
To paraphrase "Popeye" Doyle, "I'd rather be a lamp post in Dallas than be the mayor of New York City"...
To paraphrase "Popeye" Doyle, "I'd rather be a lamp post in Dallas than be the mayor of New York City"...
1971 … I have no personal knowledge of Texas back then, as I was a Yankee kid growing up in NE Ohio ..
… after college, hubby & I wanted to see the country … headed west and then settled in Houston in 1978 - never looked back.
..
An aside .. we traveled to every state over the years (never got to Alaska) .. so of the 49, we decided that life was good here .
I’m on my own these days, but don’t regret anything.
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My dad was born in a small town called Clifton in 1930. His relatives had deep roots in the area. My mom was born in Dallas in 1931. My two older sisters were born in Texas. My parents moved to Phoenix a few years before I was born in Phoenix. Every summer my parents took us to Clifton and Dallas to visit the relatives and I felt like an outsider. I always attributed it the fact that all my relatives were born and raised in Texas and I was not. I think the real reason why I felt like an outsider was because I was shy when I was a kid . I prefer the "I was not born in Texas" reason better.
The main thing I remember about those trips is it took two days to reach either Dallas or Clifton by car. Every trip we always stayed at a Best Western in Van Horn Texas after the first day of driving. The other things I remember about those trips is that it was always hot (this was the late 60's and early 70's so neither my grandmother or grandfather had AC), people had their main meals around 2 pm (and it was a lot of food) and the very small town my dad grew up in was nothing like Mayberry.
Later in life I did go to Dallas for a few conferences and always enjoyed my time there. And I went to a few SXSW festivals in Austin and had a blast there. I prefer Texas BBQ over BBQ from KC and I like chicken fried steak way too much. Willie Nelson grew up in a small town not far from where my dad grew up and one day my dad drove me to show me the city Willie Nelson grew up in. I thought that was cool . So I have mixed thoughts about Texas.
After my incoherent reminiscing, I will say the one thing that will always standout for me about Texas are the Dallas Cowboys. One fall weekend, my parents allowed me to fly back to Texas on my own ( I was only around 9) to stay with my grandfather in Dallas so he could take me to see my first NFL game. It was at the Cotton Bowl. I still remember the details of that game well.
The Cowboys became my favorite team after that and I grew up being a huge obnoxious Cowboys fan. But when the Cardinals moved from St. Louis to the Phoenix area, the Cowboys were going through a lot of changes and so I ditched the Cowboys and started my sad journey being a Cardinal's fan. But I will always have great memories of those great Cowboy teams from the late 60's through the late 70's.
Those are my own personal facts about Texas.
The main thing I remember about those trips is it took two days to reach either Dallas or Clifton by car. Every trip we always stayed at a Best Western in Van Horn Texas after the first day of driving. The other things I remember about those trips is that it was always hot (this was the late 60's and early 70's so neither my grandmother or grandfather had AC), people had their main meals around 2 pm (and it was a lot of food) and the very small town my dad grew up in was nothing like Mayberry.
Later in life I did go to Dallas for a few conferences and always enjoyed my time there. And I went to a few SXSW festivals in Austin and had a blast there. I prefer Texas BBQ over BBQ from KC and I like chicken fried steak way too much. Willie Nelson grew up in a small town not far from where my dad grew up and one day my dad drove me to show me the city Willie Nelson grew up in. I thought that was cool . So I have mixed thoughts about Texas.
After my incoherent reminiscing, I will say the one thing that will always standout for me about Texas are the Dallas Cowboys. One fall weekend, my parents allowed me to fly back to Texas on my own ( I was only around 9) to stay with my grandfather in Dallas so he could take me to see my first NFL game. It was at the Cotton Bowl. I still remember the details of that game well.
The Cowboys became my favorite team after that and I grew up being a huge obnoxious Cowboys fan. But when the Cardinals moved from St. Louis to the Phoenix area, the Cowboys were going through a lot of changes and so I ditched the Cowboys and started my sad journey being a Cardinal's fan. But I will always have great memories of those great Cowboy teams from the late 60's through the late 70's.
Those are my own personal facts about Texas.
The only state tax is sales tax. You are right -- no state Income Tax.
BUT...each county assesses property taxes according to their needs. Large cities are awful. I left San Antonio and Austin because the property taxes and insurance were higher than the mortgage payment.
Colorado does have a state income tax, 4.something%. Property taxes are pretty low, though. For me, retirement lowered income, so that works better.
Since I live in Dallas, I'll weigh in.
Why we moved here:
I grew up in and lived in Central and South Florida until 2006. Living in South Florida, I had started to think society had just become rude and uncaring. I knew we needed to move an I had a salesperson in the Dallas area who said we would absolutely love it here. I also managed a sales force around the US and it was easy to get to either coast from here. We visited several times before moving and were blown away by how friendly people were.
I started doing some research and saw that Dallas was 16% undervalued vs. South Florida that was 35% overvalued, and the cost of living was lower so it seemed like a no-brainer. We bought a well-finished home in Dallas that we could have only dreamt of buying in South Florida for less than we had paid for the crappy house we sold. We sold my mother's home and paid a fraction for a brand new villa in a 55+ community. She loved living there.
Why we love it here:
We are ideally located and in time our sleepy little neighborhood has become surrounded by growth and gentrification, along with the desire for people to be in nature. We are near a large lake that became very popular during the Covid era. Even though we've seen such an increase in population, it still takes us 15 minutes to get to a major mall, 10 minutes to get to a theater, 15 minutes to go see a play and 20 minutes to see a concert at American Airlines Arena.
We live in an older, established area, and the people here are still warm and friendly. I have very few friends these days but if I just want to start a conversation with a stranger they don't look at me like I'm crazy. Which leads me to "networking". I've never once had to look for a contractor or repairman. I've simply gone to my neighbors for recommendations. And the Latinos here are some of the nicest, most hard-working people I've ever met. Most of my contractors are Latino, from my electrician to my landscaper to the contractor that remodeled our house, and they have been obsessive about their work.
Re: the weather, the humidity in Dallas doesn't compare to Miami or Houston. Yes, it gets hot but the lack of humidity makes it tolerable. Suffice to say I've been in and out of the car this entire summer and haven't broken a sweat once. It has probably been the same temperature here as it has been in the Northeast this summer. Texas weather gets a bad rap. We went through two major hurricanes the year we sold our home in South Florida and that was the last straw for me. We've had one tornado come close in the 19 years we've lived here. I hid in the coat closet with a blanket over me and it passed.
We love living here. It is no longer as affordable as it used to be but to me it's still worth it.
Sorry to be so lengthy but those are my thoughts about Texas.
Why we moved here:
I grew up in and lived in Central and South Florida until 2006. Living in South Florida, I had started to think society had just become rude and uncaring. I knew we needed to move an I had a salesperson in the Dallas area who said we would absolutely love it here. I also managed a sales force around the US and it was easy to get to either coast from here. We visited several times before moving and were blown away by how friendly people were.
I started doing some research and saw that Dallas was 16% undervalued vs. South Florida that was 35% overvalued, and the cost of living was lower so it seemed like a no-brainer. We bought a well-finished home in Dallas that we could have only dreamt of buying in South Florida for less than we had paid for the crappy house we sold. We sold my mother's home and paid a fraction for a brand new villa in a 55+ community. She loved living there.
Why we love it here:
We are ideally located and in time our sleepy little neighborhood has become surrounded by growth and gentrification, along with the desire for people to be in nature. We are near a large lake that became very popular during the Covid era. Even though we've seen such an increase in population, it still takes us 15 minutes to get to a major mall, 10 minutes to get to a theater, 15 minutes to go see a play and 20 minutes to see a concert at American Airlines Arena.
We live in an older, established area, and the people here are still warm and friendly. I have very few friends these days but if I just want to start a conversation with a stranger they don't look at me like I'm crazy. Which leads me to "networking". I've never once had to look for a contractor or repairman. I've simply gone to my neighbors for recommendations. And the Latinos here are some of the nicest, most hard-working people I've ever met. Most of my contractors are Latino, from my electrician to my landscaper to the contractor that remodeled our house, and they have been obsessive about their work.
Re: the weather, the humidity in Dallas doesn't compare to Miami or Houston. Yes, it gets hot but the lack of humidity makes it tolerable. Suffice to say I've been in and out of the car this entire summer and haven't broken a sweat once. It has probably been the same temperature here as it has been in the Northeast this summer. Texas weather gets a bad rap. We went through two major hurricanes the year we sold our home in South Florida and that was the last straw for me. We've had one tornado come close in the 19 years we've lived here. I hid in the coat closet with a blanket over me and it passed.
We love living here. It is no longer as affordable as it used to be but to me it's still worth it.
Sorry to be so lengthy but those are my thoughts about Texas.
Yes, the property taxes in Dallas County are pretty high as well. The saving grace is Homestead Exemption, plus a freeze on property taxes when one reaches 65.
I am wildly envious, @seadoug. I'm in central ND, and the nearest cultural activities like you mention are an 8-hour drive away (Minneapolis–St. Paul). And the people are standoffish to the point of being flat-out unfriendly. Finances are preventing me from moving at this time.
From what I've read in this thread, TX sounds pretty great.
JeeperDon
Member
- Location
- New Mexico, USA
I was told the state flag represents the score on a 5 star scale.
You'll love this. When I was working, one of my accounts hosted a conference in Dallas. I'm not a big sports fan, even though I love the Cowboys. Hubby is a big sports fan. They hosted a dinner at Cowboy Stadium while it was closed. We got to go onto the field for dinner and afterward visit both the Cowboys and Cowboys Cheerleaders locker rooms. I was impressed. Hubby was downright euphoric. I wore a Prescott jersey to the conference!
Lawrence00
Senior Member
Nice little botanical garden on the east side too.
I don't know much about Texas but my nieces really like it there. One has been living there for around 20 years and the other around 6 years I believe. I know it gets really really hot 
there. I've never been there but would go if given the chance.
I just remembered that around close to 50 years ago I rode through it on a Greyhound bus. It was beautiful! I recall beautiful
flowers blooming. I was in the deep southern Texas. It holds good memories for me,!
there. I've never been there but would go if given the chance. I just remembered that around close to 50 years ago I rode through it on a Greyhound bus. It was beautiful! I recall beautiful
flowers blooming. I was in the deep southern Texas. It holds good memories for me,!
jujube
SF VIP
Rudy's? We went to the "original" site and it was a true dump. Fantastic food, though, and apparently almost a "pilgrimage site"...LOL.
Jules
SF VIP
Not Rudy’s. This place was truly a shack. I’m trying to remember if the RV site was in McCallen or a suburb. Too many years ago.