Texas is big. I feel I have given a few places their own time. So far, in my 40 years, West Texas has been my favorite.
I was born and raised in Weatherford, Texas. DFW, if you will. Now booming thanks to Covid and Taylor Sheridan.
During the summers it gets hot and humid. Mosquitos are the size of small birds. There are lakes nearby and some nice hiking spots, if you get out of town a little bit. There is lush green grass and small rolling hills spotted with plentiful vegetation.
Weatherford, is still a small town, to me.
If we traveled through school life together, most of us stay in contact. A lot of us went to college together too. It made for a very fun upbringing.
We have some fun High School Reunions. Considering there were 465 of us that made it out alive in 2003, our bonds have always been tight. Parker County is close enough to Fort Worth but far enough from Dallas. Plenty of “city life,” options to choose from and still escape to the country. Alas, the traffic gets worse every month, the suburbs seem to now spread further and further and the property taxes are getting a little out of control.
The 2nd place my soul chose to reside was in Central/South Texas. I made that place my home from late 2005- early 2013.
Talk about a shock. Coming from Weatherford to San Marcos, Texas in 2005. As I am typing this my age is now settling in, hold on, let me process this feel.
If you are not familiar, San Marcos sits on I-35, in between Austin and San Antonio, about equal distance from both. I-35 is one of, if not the most, populated corridors of Interstate in Texas.
Plenty to do and lots of access points to get here and there. Hot and sticky summers. Those summers are filled with water play. Central Texas has great rivers and lakes so if your soul craves water, which mine does, it is a great place to be. Winters are usually mild. If you love a good cold winter, every winter, Hayes County would not be your place.
In-between 2008 and 2013 I jumped all over the place due to work. Mostly staying in the San Antonio area and then a little bit of Houston. Man, just typing the word Houston, brings back the feelings of humidity. I am a distance runner. Running in Houston is a BEAT DOWN! I a few years ago, a group of female runners from our run crew in Midland attempted the Houston Marathon, without training in their humidity. The worse complaint, the humidity. YUP, it is BRUTAL. As well as the traffic. I think the ONLY way I would live in Houston is if my future partner had a jet and we could, as they say in oil money private plane lingo, “wheels up,” anytime. (Watch,3 years from now I am going to fall in love and be typing a blog from Houston. Without a jet.)
When I travel outside of Texas, hell, even in Texas, and I tell people where I am from, 60% have no clue where Midland is. “Oh, thats by Fort Worth?” “Oh, by Mexico? ” That reminds me of the brief 8 months of my life where I worked as an Insurance Adjuster for Liberty Mutual. The big whigs in Dallas thought they could have ONE adjuster from El Paso to Abilene;Amarillo to San Angelo. Guess who that was? Yours truly. When I decided to leave that job, they could not grasp why. That is 144,000 square miles that I was in charge of. So, if you had a hail claim between March of 2013 and October of 2013, I apologize, I did my best. Texas is HUGE y’all!
However, in those 144,000 square miles lay the MOST beautiful land in Texas, in my opinion.
In 3 hours you can be in the mountains, those to South at Big Bend, those to the West at Fort Davis(less than 3 there,) and to the North/North West, the magnanimous Guadalupe Mountains.
In that area, also resides the tallest peak in Texas, Guadalupe Peak.
Carlsbad Caverns, which Rill Rogers described as, the “Grand Canyon with a roof on it.” If you have never been, it is a magical. I would have zero problems making a cave our home. Except for the bat poop. Never fear, it only stinks for about 10 minutes as you trek down into the abyss…then your brain gets use to it.
About 40 miles back to the West, behind the Guadalupe Mountain ridge, is a place called Sitting Bull Falls.
When I say it is WAY back there. It is WAY back there.
It is stunning. Bring a lunch. Bring a cooler. Bring a book and PLAN to relax. I would suggest staying in Carlsbad. Enjoy it. Relish in it. Being in the desert doesnt offer many opportunities for lush green hiding holes that back up to the World’s most spectacular underground caverns.
The point of this story, which was put on hold due to personal issues for a while, is that West Texas is cool. It’s survivable. apparently, one of the BEST ZONES in the Country to live when it comes to surviving natural disasters, according to a super smart person I went one one date with. I would have enjoyed it more, except that he ask me why my voice was so deep, asked me if I was an ex smoker. “No,” I replied with a laugh to myself, then thought, “but damn,” I could sure use one now. Peace out.
Love your place. Love your home. Find the beauty! – J.
J's Place 