A Whole New World . . .

In a few months, we'll have lived in TX for half a decade. Shocking to me, who had never even been to TX before we flew down here to look at houses. It certainly has been an interesting experience :) It took us a few years to get used to living down here and I have to admit that I still get homesick for New England every fall when we have one 80-90 degree day after another and I send my kids to school in t-shirts and shorts rather than jeans and sweaters. My favorite time of the year down here is spring, which shows up usually in February or March. I have to admit that I love having 70 degree days in March and being able to have the kids play outside almost all year round.

There are a few differences between New England and Texas ~

The slang is different. Growing up in MA, I am very used to the use of the word "wicked" as an adverb, meaning "very" (i.e.- that show was wicked awesome). They don't use that down here, however there are words that are slowly sneaking into my repertoire, such as "y'all". I don't think I will ever be able to use the phrase "all y'all", which is not uncommon (i.e.- what do all y'all want to do), nor do I ever see myself using the term "fixin'" (i.e.- I'm fixin' to get my truck fixed).

The weather is different. Megan's first year of kindergarten, we did not have a day when it rained at the time I was suppose to walk and pick her up the entire school year. I doubt we would have had very many weeks without a rainy day had we stayed in New England. It rains down here, but not the same way. In New England it's usually a slow, steady rain that lasts for at least a day or two. You can look outside in the morning and be able to tell if you need to bring an umbrella to work or not. In TX storms can blow in within a matter of minutes and leave at the same speed. The storms are bigger though. I have never seen thunder storms like TX storms. They literally shake the house. The first year we moved here they kept me up all night as even after they passed, I'd have to stay up for an hour or two to make sure it was over. Forecasts mean different things down here too. A 55% chance of rain in New England meant that the whole area had a 55% chance of rain. Down here a 55% chance of rain means that 55% of the area will get rained on, however your chances of being in the 55% seems directly proportional to your need to do something outside.

Storms aren't the only thing that is bigger in Texas. Everything is bigger. The houses are ginormous with McMansions everywhere. Yes, every third house looks the same, but they are huge. We live in the most "cost effective" (cheap) neighborhood in the area and still have three living rooms, a study, a formal dining room, and a jetted tub in our master bathroom. I thought we were getting a really nice house until we moved down here and saw what other houses look like. Seriously some of them are insane. Just off one the highways we drive fairly often, someone is building a castle, complete with turrets and towers, and yes, it's a residential house.

People talk more - a lot more. I remember once when Rob and I were down here looking at houses, we stopped at a store to pick something little up. Rob waited in the car and I ran in. 30 mins later I made it back out again. Rob asked what took so long. I answered him by giving him a detailed life story of the lady at the check out counter. I knew more about her at that point than I did about the people we lived next to in RI for four years.

Everyone is religious. While there are a lot of religious people in New England, they tend to keep their religious beliefs to themselves. Not so down here. Several years ago when Rob didn't pass a financial test needed for his job, his boss came up to him and told him "God must have other plans for you" and that we would be in her prayers. When Megan was sick last year, some of Rob's co-workers put her on their prayer group's list. It was a bit surprising to hear someone openly talk about religion like that.

Food is different. New England has wonderful seafood, Chinese and Italian restaurants. Texas has everything . . . with one exception. I have yet to find a really good Chinese restaurant. They have everything else though. I didn't realize Texas was so ethnically diverse. Everything has more flavor down here too. The last time we went back to New England, we visited a few of what used to be our favorite restaurants and were surprised to find the food sort of bland. Everything is Texas has flavor - lots of flavor. And I have now been introduced to BBQ. REAL BBQ, which for those of you not from Texas has nothing to do with BBQ sauce. It's a method of cooking. BBQ is meat cooked over real wood fires for a really long time. Rob loves it. I think it is just meat that tastes like wood. I try not to say that in front of Texans though as I've seen the response I get when I do :)

Construction is approached differently in Texas. In New England construction projects seem to drag on forever. In Texas there are so many of them that they get them done as fast as possible in order to move on to the next one.

Bugs fall into the category of things that are bigger in Texas as well. When we moved here, I was afraid of spiders. I am no longer afraid of New England spiders. It seems kind of pointless when you have tarantulas in your backyard. Fortunately we have a wonderful pest control guy and so we no longer have tarantulas in our back yard. Pest control was not something we ever worried about in New England, except for termites. It is a necessity in Texas. Even the ants bite. And ant bites hurt. When we moved here, Megan loved bugs. She and I would sit in our backyard and watch the ants and she would let them crawl over her fingers. She tried that once the day we moved into our house down here. 20 bites later, she developed a strong desire to kill every insect she encounters, which she has passed on to the other three children. We are trying to teach them that most beetles are nice, especially ladybugs and the girls don't kill roly-poly's, caterpillars or butterflies, but everything other than that is quickly squashed.

It's taken a few years for me to feel comfortable down here. I think my body has finally adjusted to the heat as 60 or 70 feels slightly chilly to me (although I still reserve the right to complain when it stays over 100 for months at a time). I enjoy the friendliness of Texans. Everything just seems brighter and happier here. I miss the trees (they are NOT bigger in Texas), but love the Texas sunsets (which are absolutely magnificent - I've never seen anything like them). I miss the ocean, but love the fields of wildflowers. I miss the seafood, but love the highly seasoned steaks. I miss New England autumns and especially Indian summer days, but love Texas thunderstorms. Looks like we're here for a while, so might as well enjoy it!