We moved to Houston last May, following a calling to a new job here, and we really are enjoying the job, and we really like our neighborhood (one of those older, established neighborhoods with copious amounts of massive trees), but, for the record, we're not too thrilled with Houston. While stopping at a gas station/convenience store/gift shop/bakery/department store during a recent road trip, we saw a sign for sale that read "Life's too short to live in Houston." I actually saw such a sign while I was trying to decide whether or not to take the job offer and move here, and it was the first time I'd seen it. Was it a sign from God and I failed to recognize it as such?
We can now understand the motive for creating such a sign. Houston is boring. It is generic urban big city. Lots of concrete, glass, steel, grime, graffiti, and noise. Stores, malls, chain restaurants peddling mass-produced goods (goods?) to throngs of consumers who just want their products delivered to them without uniqueness. Houston feels like a place without personality, without a soul.
The air quality in Houston is horrible. We're right on the Texas coast, and if you drive down there, you'll smell first, and then later actually see a whole lot of petroleum plants. Being the fourth largest city in the U.S. means that we also have a whole lot of vehicles, and being in Texas means that most of those are pickups or SUVs. Houston also gets a fair amount of rain, and when it's not raining, it's very humid and this creates a perfect environment for lots and lots of allergens.
I've been singing in churches for seven years now, but since I've moved here, my voice and throat are giving me issues. Last Friday, in fact, my throat began to hurt very suddenly. Every time I swallowed, it was as if I'd gotten a large, sharp-edged object lodged in my throat. It was extremely painful, and so I called a doctor I know, who asked me to come over right away. After looking me over, he deemed that it was allergies and gave me a shot of cortisone.
Forgive me if I sound like I'm whining. We moved from Austin, which is a beautiful place, full of unique personality, and right on the edge of the Texas Hill Country. You really should go there sometime. Know also that I aspire to live in the Rocky Mountains someday, or in New England, so Houston is a move in the wrong direction.
We moved here following a calling, feeling that we were led to move here because there is a job for us to do, and we feel no less certain about that now. I've never heard anyone say they love Houston, and yet here we all are because this is where life has us. Maybe we're here to join with some others and bringing some soul to this place. Whatever the case, we're stuck here for now, so we'd better just learn to breathe.
