Houston Burnout?

As much as I love my job and am (a bit too) fond of Texas, there are times when the heat and the concrete are just a bit much. I would love to live somewhere that had seasons rather than varying degrees of summer. At these times, I remember the comment some guys in our apartment complex made when I first decided to move to Houston from Austin (“I wouldn’t wish that on my worst enemy”) and my wife’s early assessment of Houston as “nothing but freeways and strip clubs” rings uncomfortably true and I long for mountains and streams.

The way this usually goes is this mood will trigger me to start looking for other jobs. I will find a few promising leads and investigate further. After a little research and number-crunching it becomes all to clear why we are still in Houston: the cost of living can’t be beat.

Eventually, I realize Houston isn’t that bad. I mean, I do love my job; my wife and kids have good friends here; there are truly fantastic ethnic restaurants here; and there finally is some semblance of cooler weather in the air. Plus, Austin is still just down the highway. And, hey, we do have the Astros–not much comfort this year, but…