It looks like I'm going to have the opportunity to move back home, where most of my family is (amarillo) basically a lateral job move, probably breaking even in pay. RIght now I'm in north dallas. Just wondering, how many of you, if you could find basically the same job your in now, would move back to the panhandle?

Already here. Wife's job was transferred from Amarillo to Houston years ago. We said "no thanks".

I would have to say no. I grew up in Plainview, went to tceh for a couple of years and transferred as soon as I could. I have visited over the past few years and it just seems like the town is going backwards.

Hereford, no.
Amarillo... maybe.


But jobs in my field pretty much don't exist there anyway.

will the job change put you closer to topping out in your field? it's just hard to advance in a lot of fields in the panhandle. you have to factor that in.

My father asked me the same question not too long ago. I thought about it, but after all the places that I have been to, the Texas Panhandle is pretty far down the list. Nothing wrong with it, and it was a great place to grow up in, but I would have to have some extraordinary incentive to move back.

I'm insulted, Lyon!



Seriously, I think God created a few people with the Panhandle gene, so we would enjoy this crazy country.

Though if I had a job in town, rather than farming, I would be less enamored of the wide open skies.

My ideal place to live would be on the caprock near Palo Duro Canyon. I'd have a few sections of flat land up on top to farm, and twice as many off the cap to play in.

Then I'd have an airstrip on top so I could fly to the mountains for fun, and fly back when it got cold. I'd also fly to every A&M home game.

Gonna have to start buying lottery tickets.....

I would agree that there are some people who genuinely cannot live in the Panhandle. I'd love to live there again, eventually. But I can't work anywhere in the Panhandle in my current field. But there will come a time when I have to go home again - at least for a while.

Grew up in Amarillo. Graduated A&M. Lived in Dallas, Tulsa, Chicago, Atlanta, Amsterdam, back to Dallas in that order over about 7 years. Got a chance to come back to Amarillo (my family is here) and I jumped at it.

Best decision I ever made, and I was one who thought I would never return to this "god forsaken" town when I left high school.

Things change as your get older. Family is more important. I am very thankful that I have my parents here to enjoy their grandkids. My work/life balance is 200% better than when I lived in bigger cities. The pace is slower here. Nobody blinks an eye when you tell them you need to make a kids softball game at 5:30. I don't have to worry about sending my kids to public schools (a major topic of discussion with my peers in Dallas/Chicago right now). I can meet my friends out for happy hour and still make it home for dinner becuase we all live 15 minutes away from anywhere.

It is possible that you are giving up some advancement opportunity with your job by leaving company HQ. But I believe you will get that back two fold in other benefits of the community.

Not to mention that cost of living is significantly lower out here. Your dollar will go a lot farther if your salary will remain similar to what you're making now.

I grew up in Plainview as well and went to A&M before living all over the Southeast. There was never a question of me wanting to come back, I always did.

I look at it this way...if everyone wanted to live here, we'd be nothing but another version of any random big city with all the associated problems. We have our unique issues, but the people that remain here are the cream of the crop. The duds give up and decide to live in Dallas and Houston.

Not that there arent good people in those places, but they seem to be outnumbered by the duds overwhelmingly.

No insult intended Canyon

Sounds you and M. made the right call moving back, though.

I have been waiting six years for an opportunity to move back to Amarillo. I am going to be headed back in December and I could not be happier. There is just something about the panhandle that you can't get anywhere else. Yeah there are things that Dallas, Houston, and Austin offer that you can't get at home but if you ask me I am willing to give up some potiential job opportunities and some lesure activities for everything that the panhandle offers. Its not like there aren't jobs or fun things to do so I don't really consider it much of a sacrifice to be around the greatest people in the world.

I've occasionally regretted moving back -- I gook a really massive pay cut to come up and help one of my brothers.

But my mother fell on Easter Sunday and broke her hip. Fortunately, I walked in the house a couple of minutes later and found her on the floor. If I hadn't been there, she might have been there for two or three hours before being found.

It also means that I'm around to help take care of her. I think that the doctor/hospital discharged her far too soon -- she should have been there at least another week or two. Tonight is her second night and I'm getting ready to take the night shift of doing whatever I can to help her stay comfortable.

I love the Panhandle and the people there. But I could not move back. I have gotten accostomed to my trees and creek.

After graduating from Tech I took a job in Houston. I worked there for 5 years and then the wife (an Aggie) and I got an opportunity to move to Lubbock and we jumped on it (we're both from West Texas).

We've been here almost a year and couldn't be happier. In our opinion, the quality of life is just better as opposed to Houston/Dallas/etc.

Good luck with your decision.

"Quality of Life" is definitely a pull for places like the Panhandle.

It's why I keep my eye out for a suitable opportunity to bail out of engineering and go back to a small town in TX some day hopefully soon.

Whether it's the Panhandle or not is another thing.... I'd almost rather go back to the central or southern areas. A&M spoiled me.

im couting down to moving OUT of the panhandle

i love houston! but i guess ppl born in the panhandle dont have time see whats cool about it..ive lived in the panhandle 3 years and other than friends..i hate it here

I'd really like to know what you dislike. Just for information, not to argue.

I dislike the crowds and lack of seasons in Houston, so I guess we're even.

lol, I lived in Houston for almost 10 years and it's a great place to live as long as you don't mind sweating for 10 months at a time and spending 30 percent of your life in stop and go traffic

Yeah I did my time in Houston, too.

Was so glad when that sentence was over. But then they banished me to Indiana.

I agree with CanyonAg, Houston has more than its fair share of traffic and humidity. It isn't about time to find out cool things, I think we'd all agree that Houston does have lots of interesting things to do and see. The trouble is...you have to put up with all the crap to have it available to you. I visit the area about once a year to remind me of all that I'm not missing out on.

It's just not worth it to me, but I'm from the South Plains. Maybe true Panhandle folks really don't have the time to appreciate the good things about Houston.

And, nobody has to count the time to getting out of the Panhandle. If you can't find the opportunity to leave, you probably aren't looking too hard. The problem is usually finding your way back. I hear people complain about Lubbock when they are attending tech's law school and am astonished some CHOSE this place to attend when there are law schools in other places as well. Why, in the name of all that is holy, would you come to this part of the world by your own power to choose and then constantly complain about it?

Of the big cities, Houston is easily one of my favorites.

It's mainly because the lack of zoning appeals to my libertarian instincts.

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I dislike the crowds and lack of seasons in Houston, so I guess we're even.

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Not to mention the time it takes to drive anywhere. I work 10 miles from my house here in the panhandle and it takes me 12 minutes to get there. My church, grocery store, movie theater, bank, restaurants, and golf course are all under 4 minute treks.

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My ideal place to live would be on the caprock near Palo Duro Canyon. I'd have a few sections of flat land up on top to farm, and twice as many off the cap to play in.

Then I'd have an airstrip on top so I could fly to the mountains for fun, and fly back when it got cold. I'd also fly to every A&M home game.

Gonna have to start buying lottery tickets.....

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How about this instead.

From http://www.ranchandcountry.com/Childress_Buckle_L_Ranch-id-2738.html?osCsid=9da862c6532bbb1d011bee95be8afee1,

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The historic Buckle L Ranch, comprised of approximately 37,224.71 +/- acres encompasses 58 square miles, and is one of the large famed, one-tract ranches left in Texas today. It is located in the heart of "Big Deer Country" in Cottle and Childress Counties, just outside of Childress, Texas. The Buckle L's rich history is as large as the ranch itself. The artifacts left behind indicate this must have been a favorite hunting ground of various Indian tribes. From the days when the Indians were the only inhabitants of the land, to when the Wild West was settled, through today, the Buckle L has a story to tell. Prior to the establishment of the Ft. Worth and Denver Railway in 1887, the ranch was part of a 300,000-acre ranch known as the Oxbow (OX), and was the heart of the open range land Texas was known for. The establishment of Childress and other rail towns compelled the OX owners to do away with grazing rights in favor of the state land laws and to fence in their pastures. As a result, the Buckle L was established, among others. Back in the days of the Wild West, the many canyons, creeks and river bottoms on the ranch seemed to have served as an adequate hideout for one bank robber that we know of. He was allegedly on the run with a posse on his trail. Wounded with his horse about to give out he ducked into a cave located on the Buckle L. He was subsequently found dead and Dead Man's Cave got its name. The Buckle L's diverse terrain features over 23 miles of meandering frontage on both sides of the Pease River, nine named creeks, tremendous elevation changes, native grasses, and productive range land. These tremendous natural features are the reason the Buckle L has a long history as a productive cattle ranch. Today, it is also well on its way to establishing itself with world-class white-tails and tremendous mule deer coming out of the Pease River Basin. To date, a 193" Typical whitetail has been harvested without any supplemental feed. The Buckle L has unlimited potential for becoming a world class hunting ranch. By developing a plan for boosting the natural resources of this ranch, and implementing a comprehensive program for enhancing the most beneficial plants, grasses, and forbs this ranch is poised to be in a class all its own. The Buckle L Ranch is ideally suited for the unique individual who has gained an appreciation for the rich history and romance of the ranch, the lore of a by-gone era, and for all of the unbridled natural features that only the Buckle L has to offer. Not only is the Buckle L a symbol of personal achievement, but it is also a result of God doing some of His best handiwork. With the Pease River basin serving as the artery through this vast terrain that is full of deer, quail, turkey, dove, hogs, great fishing opportunities, and an array of other wildlife, this could be the ultimate sportsman's paradise or corporate playground. The prestigious Childress address and the fact that this region is fast becoming one of the hottest areas for producing World Class Whitetails ensures that at only $690 per acre, this ranch will not be available for long.

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[This message has been edited by eric76 (edited 4/27/2007 9:23p).]

Since none of the ranch land out in this part of the world is worth remotely close to what it's selling for, it pains me to say this, but $690 per acre? That's some of the cheaper land I've seen in a while. The size may be prohibitive, thereby keeping it on the market longer than it would if it were a couple of thousand acres, but still. I wish I had the ability to obtain $25 million, I'd be all over that.

get your nose back in those law books and follow the lead of John Edwards and you can buy 1/2 of west texas

20 years ago you could have bought that ranch for under $150/acre.

It is a rough place with alot of red cut banks and cedar. It was the ranch that burned up during the really bad grass fires about 10 years ago.

The hunting can be great, if it rains.

I left the South Plains and told the world I would "NEVER" go back...you know what they say - never say never. I had the opportunity last fall to move back to the Panhandle/South Plains and jumped on it. Besides this being one of the worst winters in a long time (snow and ice) I have loved every minute. I didn't realize how much I had missed until I came back. I do miss the short distance to the motherland, but you know, Amarillo has an airport.

I'm sitting here in Houston right now. It's grown on me somewhat over the last 2 years but I can't say that I enjoy living here. I've really wanted to go up to Chicago and work for a while. That's my favorite big city in America. So much to do and just a cool place to be.

The weather in Houston gets annoying. The traffic I can handle for the most part. I still hate driving to downtown though (takes 2 hours sometimes for 15-20 miles, even as late as 7PM). I would move back for the right $$$$$ but I wouldn't mind if I never ended up that way again. Big cities just have more places to go in the long haul.

Good topic. I love the size of Lubbock and Amarillo. Like others have mentioned, you are basically 15 minutes from anything. You can meet your friends at the golf course, happy hour after work, you name it, with no concerns about traffic. I do like the trees, water, etc. of other parts of the state. The wind up here can also drive you nuts, although I think it is often overexaggerated. I still think I would prefer it over the humidity of Houston. Lots of good people in the Panhandle/South Plains area.

My theory is that what makes the Panhandle seem so much classier (to me, anyway) than many other parts of the country is because all of the area's retards are off gettin' schoolin' at tech or OU.

good town to raise a family in. not too big not too small. i'd move back for that.

to Amarillo? Hell no