Leave Austin, Turn Right?
Monday, Feb 13, 10pm. Austin, TX.
Years ago a two of my friends were arguing about whether it was reasonable for an educated, progressive, cosmopolitan person to move from California to Texas. "Austin is like a slice of San Francisco in Texas," the Lone Star booster boasted.
"Yeah, but it's surrounded by 500 miles of Bakersfield in every direction," the other shot back.
I think back to that exchange every time I visit Texas. Yes, Austin is a more progressive place than just about anywhere else in Texas. But even Austin can be a bit of a culture shock for a left-coaster.
I was reminded of that this afternoon as I drove to my hotel from the airport. I rented a car because after going carless in suburbia last time I vowed not to do it again. Especially because this time the hotel is not a short walk from the client's site. It's over a mile away. Across an interstate highway. But renting a car is not what reminded me of the culture shock. It's what I found when I turned on the radio and started hunting for a reasonable station. More than half the broadcasts were Christian preaching or conservative conspiracy talk radio. And that was on FM, not AM! I wouldn't have been surprised to find that well outside of Austin, but right within city limits it seemed out of place.
I mentioned it to my friend Pat this evening. I met him again for dinner. This time we didn't try to outdo each other with downer stories about how 2016 sucked. Instead we talked about Trump administration politics. Yes, that was actually better. That just shows how bad parts of 2016 were. Anyway, Pat's comment about the airwaves was, "Austin itself is fairly liberal, but go outside of it, just outside the city limits, by any amount, and it turns conservative. Very conservative."
"So if someone asks for directions to anywhere else in Texas it's, 'Leave Austin, Turn Right?'" I asked.
"Yup."
Years ago a two of my friends were arguing about whether it was reasonable for an educated, progressive, cosmopolitan person to move from California to Texas. "Austin is like a slice of San Francisco in Texas," the Lone Star booster boasted.
"Yeah, but it's surrounded by 500 miles of Bakersfield in every direction," the other shot back.
I think back to that exchange every time I visit Texas. Yes, Austin is a more progressive place than just about anywhere else in Texas. But even Austin can be a bit of a culture shock for a left-coaster.
I was reminded of that this afternoon as I drove to my hotel from the airport. I rented a car because after going carless in suburbia last time I vowed not to do it again. Especially because this time the hotel is not a short walk from the client's site. It's over a mile away. Across an interstate highway. But renting a car is not what reminded me of the culture shock. It's what I found when I turned on the radio and started hunting for a reasonable station. More than half the broadcasts were Christian preaching or conservative conspiracy talk radio. And that was on FM, not AM! I wouldn't have been surprised to find that well outside of Austin, but right within city limits it seemed out of place.
I mentioned it to my friend Pat this evening. I met him again for dinner. This time we didn't try to outdo each other with downer stories about how 2016 sucked. Instead we talked about Trump administration politics. Yes, that was actually better. That just shows how bad parts of 2016 were. Anyway, Pat's comment about the airwaves was, "Austin itself is fairly liberal, but go outside of it, just outside the city limits, by any amount, and it turns conservative. Very conservative."
"So if someone asks for directions to anywhere else in Texas it's, 'Leave Austin, Turn Right?'" I asked.
"Yup."