Could You Move to a Small Town

[Armybrat 40,822]

No Dairy Queen = small town.

[baboso 6,054]

MaybeACoordinator has led an interesting life.

[High Plains Drifter 11,032]

On 1/3/2020 at 9:31 AM, MoJames said:

I saw Eric Johnson play a gig in Alpine, was great.

 

I saw Willie play there about 15 yrs ago, was also great.

 

[chitwood 155]

21 hours ago, Iceman said:

Thought you lived in Hickory...

On a related note, I did play basketball in a couple of the gyms used in the movie.  Some of those gyms were still used by junior highs when I was there in the 80s.  Also watched some of the filming when I was a senior in high school.

[MaybeACoordinator 8,349]

5 hours ago, NotActuallyALonghorn said:

I wonder if it was something like happened to Marshall. Marshall was a prosperous town with lots of nice houses and booming business a while back, but they were too clannish and wouldn't let outsiders in. So now there are tons of really nice old homes that are falling apart there.

I have yet another cousin who lives there part-time. She married some rich dude there...If you are keeping score, my paternal grandmother was from Clarksville, my maternal grandfather's drunk brother sired the Bogada brood, and the Marshall cousin is my paternal grandfather's brother's kid. (I finally spelled Bogada right. I have always known how to pronounce it.)

My understanding is that Marshall is extremely racially divided, even by normal east Texas standards. The whites say the blacks ruined Marshall by not giving a shit about preservation since they took political power in the 1970s, and the blacks wonder why they should give a shit about the homes of their former slave masters.

It's self-defeating on both sides. Whites should realize that those old homes mean something different to blacks, and blacks should realize that preserving the town brings tourism, which means more money for them and everybody in town.

Edited January 7, 2020 by MaybeACoordinator

[jw4381 3,070]

Bumpty bump

We've lived in small towns since leaving Grapevine in 1993.

Steamboat Springs

Los Alamos

Taos.

I didn't post about this yet. Kind of been wondering when to do so.

After our last progeny left home in 2020, we decided to jump to this awesome little town. There's no DQ.

We used to come here for any occasion - birthdays and anniversaries, music (Robert Plant and Allison Krauss will be here in June), and just for the hell of it. We were in Los Alamos for almost 24 years. Raised all our chitlins there.

So it was our dream to get here somehow someway, sometime.

In August of 2020, we were driving through, the Mrs. announces she's starting to look at properties. 5 months later we closed on a pretty damn cool place, I must say.

Population here is about 6,600. We have about 32 places to eat/drink within a 15 minute walk. Wilderness within 15 minute drive. World class skiing within 30 minutes. Got a new hot tub.

We sold our gym to one of our coaches a month after we left Los Alamos; still coaching locally at CrossFit Yeti.

It's awesome.

 

 

[dcbc 14,465]

On 1/7/2020 at 6:28 AM, NotActuallyALonghorn said:

I wonder if it was something like happened to Marshall. Marshall was a prosperous town with lots of nice houses and booming business a while back, but they were too clannish and wouldn't let outsiders in. So now there are tons of really nice old homes that are falling apart there.

The version of the story I heard was that Marshall was steadily growing, but when in the 1960s Stroh's was looking to open a brewery in east Texas, Marshall was in the conversation but lost out to Longview because the Marshallites didn't want none of that devil beer being produced in their town.  From there on, Longview grew and Marshall did not.

Old post, I know.  And whether there's any credibility to this story, I do not know.

Edited March 5, 2023 by dcbc

[jw4381 3,070]

Part of the allure of this area:

Taos

[tx 3 putt 76,873]

No DQ is very small 

[Guest]

Yeah, No DQ is like barely 6-man football small.

You can have a DQ, a  Sonic, an Allsups, and a Napa/ Autozone type parts store and still be a pretty damned small town.

[MaybeACoordinator 8,349]

Hunt Bros Pizza = the baseline for a "dining scene" in extremely tiny towns.

 

Domino's is actually moving in on rural America something fierce too, but generally in towns of 5000-plus.

[SydneyCarton 48,057]

9 hours ago, jw4381 said:

Bumpty bump

We've lived in small towns since leaving Grapevine in 1993.

Steamboat Springs

Los Alamos

Taos.

I didn't post about this yet. Kind of been wondering when to do so.

After our last progeny left home in 2020, we decided to jump to this awesome little town. There's no DQ.

We used to come here for any occasion - birthdays and anniversaries, music (Robert Plant and Allison Krauss will be here in June), and just for the hell of it. We were in Los Alamos for almost 24 years. Raised all our chitlins there.

So it was our dream to get here somehow someway, sometime.

In August of 2020, we were driving through, the Mrs. announces she's starting to look at properties. 5 months later we closed on a pretty damn cool place, I must say.

Population here is about 6,600. We have about 32 places to eat/drink within a 15 minute walk. Wilderness within 15 minute drive. World class skiing within 30 minutes. Got a new hot tub.

We sold our gym to one of our coaches a month after we left Los Alamos; still coaching locally at CrossFit Yeti.

It's awesome.

 

 

The population may be low, but in not sure living in a resort town qualifies as a “small town.” Your dining options sort of prove that. 

[Armybrat 40,822]

9 hours ago, jw4381 said:

Part of the allure of this area:

Taos

One of my sons worked at Philmont for 3 summers in the mid 1990s. 
He loved the area.

[jw4381 3,070]

We have 2 Allsups, an Autozone AND O'Reilly's. Domino's and a Sonic, too.

Well, ok, I'm now thinking we're a metropolis.

That's cool @Armybrat. Did you ever come around these parts to visit him? There's a place up that way called the Valle Vidal. It was once owned by Phillips Petroleum I think and they donated it to the US Forest Service. We drove through there a couple of years ago. Really magnificent spot.

[SimonBolivar 10,957]

2 hours ago, MaybeACoordinator said:

Hunt Bros Pizza = the baseline for a "dining scene" in extremely tiny towns.

And don't forget Chester's Fried Chicken either.

[Longhornstampede 3,181]

33 minutes ago, SimonBolivar said:

And don't forget Chester's Fried Chicken either.

Gizzards! 

[closetohumping 17,435]

No

[Nueces River Rat 5,537]

3 hours ago, slorch said:

Yeah, No DQ is like barely 6-man football small.

You can have a DQ, a  Sonic, an Allsups, and a Napa/ Autozone type parts store and still be a pretty damned small town.

You forgot Dollar General.    They show up in towns that barley still have a Post Office.   

[SHOOTER12 8,800]

On 4/9/2018 at 1:02 PM, South Austin said:

I see.  Didn't now about the two high schools.  So cross Boerne off the list.

Obviously I've missed this thread forever, but that's a shame about Boerne.  I haven't been there in decades, but it used to be a really cool small town.  Made quite a few friends from there through sports.

[Brothahorn 10,087]

You forgot Dollar General.    They show up in towns that barley still have a Post Office.   

Don't forget about the Family Dollar/Dollar Tree hybrids popping up.

[Nueces River Rat 5,537]

2 hours ago, SHOOTER12 said:

Obviously I've missed this thread forever, but that's a shame about Boerne.  I haven't been there in decades, but it used to be a really cool small town.  Made quite a few friends from there through sports.

It still has the small town feel in my opinion.  Downtown is largely void of national chains like Starbucks, etc.     The areas coming into town and the Interstate are left for that sort of stuff.  The ISD has a large foot print including a lot of the spill over from San Antonio which almost touches the La Cantera/ Dominion areas.    

[tx 3 putt 76,873]

Boerne is way out SA 

[Neonmoon 38,129]

I did move to a small town. I had to switch careers, but glad I made the jump. 

[SydneyCarton 48,057]

2 minutes ago, Neonmoon said:

I did move to a small town. I had to switch careers, but glad I made the jump. 

Is your “small town” something like Park City or Jackson Hole?

[Herbie Hancock 7,345]

No DQ is very small 

DQ is dying in general. The one in Knox City closed 20 years ago. The one in my current town closed over a decade ago and the one in the next town over closed about 3 years ago and they have a QT and RaceTrac.

[Neonmoon 38,129]

6 minutes ago, SydneyCarton said:

Is your “small town” something like Park City or Jackson Hole?

Coming from Austin, it’s small. 
 

/it’s real to me dammit 

[SydneyCarton 48,057]

3 minutes ago, Neonmoon said:

Coming from Austin, it’s small. 
 

/it’s real to me dammit 

Oh. Congrats on living in Hilton Head. 

[billfromlaketravis 11,448]

7 hours ago, MaybeACoordinator said:

Hunt Bros Pizza = the baseline for a "dining scene" in extremely tiny towns.

 

Domino's is actually moving in on rural America something fierce too, but generally in towns of 5000-plus.

Haha Hunt Bros. I confirm there's one in Stanton. 

I could probably do it, but just not in Texas. I need mountains and nice weather if I'm giving up all of the amenities of a city. Maybe somewhere outside of Boise would work. 

[Chopper 17,230]

If you're not from a town small enough that getting married "in suburban Seguin" wasn't aspirational, then dammit you're not from a small town.

[swraith 345]

Yeah. It’s a quick no. I can’t live in a small town. 

[nbmishoid 949]

Bainbridge Is seems small at 28000.  Almost all rural.  If one needs to fetch a 62 Strat, well Seattle is a ferry ride away.

[Poolflood 845]

If we move to a "small town" a view like this would be required. 

[DefinitelyNotHollywoodColt 12,301]

Yes, yes I could.

[mchookem 16,322]

nah, still not ready to slow down that much. maybe some day, but not yet. we still enjoy city life a lot.

small town Texas specifically is literally the last place on earth i'd want to live. 

Edited March 6, 2023 by mchookem

[fattyflattie 4,639]

11 hours ago, Nueces River Rat said:

It still has the small town feel in my opinion.  Downtown is largely void of national chains like Starbucks, etc.     The areas coming into town and the Interstate are left for that sort of stuff.  The ISD has a large foot print including a lot of the spill over from San Antonio which almost touches the La Cantera/ Dominion areas.    

It was big for me about 20 years ago. Of course I was living in Pipe Creek, which makes anything seem big town. I know right as I was leaving the area, a couple of huge neighborhoods were being proposed over that way.   

[Homercles 10,205]

6 hours ago, mchookem said:

small town Texas specifically is literally the last place on earth i'd want to live. 

If my two years attending Burkburnett HS (while living on Sheppard AFB) is any indication of a generic small town here…then I’m with you.  I swear 90% of those folk’s gene pool is more like a circular lazy river: marrying each other out of high school, having kids at 20, and then their kids do the same.  
 

Granted Burk is practically Oklahoma, but that entire place was the most depressing monument to an oil boom town past filled with mostly people afraid of anything outside its tiny borders.  

[Nice Guy Eddie 13,509]

7 hours ago, mchookem said:

nah, still not ready to slow down that much. maybe some day, but not yet. we still enjoy city life a lot.

small town Texas specifically is literally the last place on earth i'd want to live. 

Yep. I would only want to live in a small town if the town was unnaturally created due to nothing but wealthy people living there. Probably rules me out though. I would want the amenities that those residents require. 

instead small town Texas is the opposite. Most small towns require large sacrifices and for very little benefit.

the only exception that I see is if your dream is to live on a ranch and be fairly self sufficient. Perhaps leave the property as little as possible.

[Armybrat 40,822]

Being a military brat, I didn’t really have a hometown growing up before Dad retired to Austin when I was in high school. 
So we regarded his very small hometown as our permanent address up until that time (his parents were still residents there). 
Graham, Missouri had a population of about 190 then, and less than that now. This is what one side of the main business street looked like in the early 1950s as I remember it. Only one of those buildings - on the left - still exists.

Edited March 6, 2023 by Armybrat

[texasdago 7,568]

On 3/4/2023 at 11:05 PM, jw4381 said:

Bumpty bump

We've lived in small towns since leaving Grapevine in 1993.

Steamboat Springs

Los Alamos

Taos.

I didn't post about this yet. Kind of been wondering when to do so.

After our last progeny left home in 2020, we decided to jump to this awesome little town. There's no DQ.

We used to come here for any occasion - birthdays and anniversaries, music (Robert Plant and Allison Krauss will be here in June), and just for the hell of it. We were in Los Alamos for almost 24 years. Raised all our chitlins there.

So it was our dream to get here somehow someway, sometime.

In August of 2020, we were driving through, the Mrs. announces she's starting to look at properties. 5 months later we closed on a pretty damn cool place, I must say.

Population here is about 6,600. We have about 32 places to eat/drink within a 15 minute walk. Wilderness within 15 minute drive. World class skiing within 30 minutes. Got a new hot tub.

We sold our gym to one of our coaches a month after we left Los Alamos; still coaching locally at CrossFit Yeti.

It's awesome.

 

 

I know where you are based on that description... cold cold place or so I've been told.  You've got world-class skiing for sure about 30 minutes away and another mountain about 45 minutes due east.  Amirite?

[JesusSweatDuck 17,781]

There are two different small towns. One where you can drive a half an hour into a larger town/city that has more stores/restaurants. Then there are west Texas small towns, where you are truly isolated.  As you get older access to decent healthcare becomes critical.  Driving multiple hours to see a specialist has been a huge burden on my parents and grand parents who both live in San Saba.

 

I could do the former, not the latter.  Bertram and Burnet remind me of the former

[RPM 26,317]

I've heard reports the Dairy Queen in Bridgeport has closed. That was a great location 50 years ago. Now downtown is on life support. Everything moved to the perimeter roads.

[South Austin 52,454]

24 minutes ago, Armybrat said:

Being a military brat, I didn’t really have a hometown growing up before Dad retired to Austin when I was in high school.

That was my childhood, though for the most part we moved back and forth between Quantico, Virginia and Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, so I guess I had two hometowns.  And those bases were pretty much small towns.  My first two years of high school were in Quantico, and my sophomore year the senior class had 24 students.  My final two years were in Camp Lejeune, and there were 86 kids in my senior class. 

I wouldn't trade my experience for anything, but am glad that I got out of the small town environment after high school (lived in Raleigh, Austin, and Dallas since).

[Armybrat 40,822]

38 minutes ago, JesusSweatDuck said:

There are two different small towns. One where you can drive a half an hour into a larger town/city that has more stores/restaurants. Then there are west Texas small towns, where you are truly isolated.  As you get older access to decent healthcare becomes critical.  Driving multiple hours to see a specialist has been a huge burden on my parents and grand parents who both live in San Saba.

 

I could do the former, not the latter.  Bertram and Burnet remind me of the former

That is why Mrs. Brat & I decided to stay in the Austin area. Otherwise I wouldn’t be here annoying the younger assholes.

[jw4381 3,070]

18 hours ago, Chopper said:

If you're not from a town small enough that getting married "in suburban Seguin" wasn't aspirational, then dammit you're not from a small town.

Grew up in Seguin so cerca de la casa. 

[jw4381 3,070]

1 hour ago, texasdago said:

I know where you are based on that description... cold cold place or so I've been told.  You've got world-class skiing for sure about 30 minutes away and another mountain about 45 minutes due east.  Amirite?

Yup. 
 

and another 2 within 45 minutes. 
 

We get several nights each winter with sub zero temperatures and generally doesn’t get above 45* from Nov-April. But it’s a dry cold…

[texasdago 7,568]

1 hour ago, jw4381 said:

Yup. 
 

and another 2 within 45 minutes. 
 

We get several nights each winter with sub zero temperatures and generally doesn’t get above 45* from Nov-April. But it’s a dry cold…

Not to mention this giant hill...

[Hefeweizen 5,310]

Well I never lived in anything but big cities in my life and now live in a town of 15,000.  And I’ve got to say I miss nothing.  I never was one for crowds, got older and decided I’d rather  Texas football on TV, and love the feeling of knowing (even if just by sight) most of the people I come in contact with.  
 

So not only could i live in a small town but I don’t think I could ever live in a city again.  Hard to say never but I’m pretty sure about that.  Of course I’m biased because my small town is right in the Pacific Ocean and it never freezes or gets above about 75.  

[closetohumping 17,435]

2 minutes ago, Hefeweizen said:

Well I never lived in anything but big cities in my life and now live in a town of 15,000.  And I’ve got to say I miss nothing.  I never was one for crowds, got older and decided I’d rather  Texas football on TV, and love the feeling of knowing (even if just by sight) most of the people I come in contact with.  
 

So not only could i live in a small town but I don’t think I could ever live in a city again.  Hard to say never but I’m pretty sure about that.  Of course I’m biased because my small town is right in the Pacific Ocean and it never freezes or gets above about 75.  

Yeah, I think you're a stones throw from SF?  That's different.  I could do that.  Small town Alabama?  No

[Al_4_ISU 12,451]

1 minute ago, Hefeweizen said:

Well I never lived in anything but big cities in my life and now live in a town of 15,000.  And I’ve got to say I miss nothing.  I never was one for crowds, got older and decided I’d rather  Texas football on TV, and love the feeling of knowing (even if just by sight) most of the people I come in contact with.  
 

So not only could i live in a small town but I don’t think I could ever live in a city again.  Hard to say never but I’m pretty sure about that.  Of course I’m biased because my small town is right in the Pacific Ocean and it never freezes or gets above about 75.  

One thing I realize almost immediately when I visit cities is how much of your time gets lost to just waiting.  Waiting in line at the store, waiting in traffic, waiting for parking spots, etc.  In a small town, you just don't have to fight those fights much.

[Hefeweizen 5,310]

58 minutes ago, closetohumping said:

Yeah, I think you're a stones throw from SF?  That's different.  I could do that.  Small town Alabama?  No

Not a stones throw from anything but pebble beach, but point taken.  It’s an hour drive to Santa Cruz, and another hour from there to San Francisco.  San Jose is about 1.5 hours without traffic.  Which is never on “the 101” as they call it here.