Things Californians Should Know Before They Move To Texas
The following is a list of things people moving to the state of Texas should know to prevent a complete culture shock.
1. The Texas Myth Is Real
“If there’s one lesson I’ve learned as an outsider looking in, it’s that there’s a sense of purpose to these people like I’ve never seen. A central passion runs through Texans unlike any other American identity. Pride percolates here. It’s something people who aren’t from Texas just can’t grasp.“
-Robert Dean, Austin American Statesmen
Have you ever rolled your eyes at the pompous claims of a Texan transplant, or a Texan native? If you have, you have had a direct encounter with the Texas Myth, the idea that Texas is just great, even better than anywhere else. Whether it’s the El Paso desert, or the Texas Hill Country a Texan is convinced that Texas is the fulfillment of American ideals, therefore Texan land is superior to that of any other part of this country — even if it sucks. This isn’t new either, it’s been around for as long as the state has existed.
The Texas Myth as a general attitude is a subset of the American myth. For Texans, American ideals meet their consummation in the state of Texas. You may feel the need to dispute it, and Texans will grant you the liberty to do so, but your argument will fall on deaf ears. The myth is pervasive.
In fact, the Texas Myth is a topic discussed by the Philosophical Society of Texas.
In her presentation
First, the Texas myth is a version of the hero myth…We admire the rugged individualist, the wildcatter, the risk-taker, whether he’s up or down. There’s no end to stories about Texas heroes. They’re so familiar to us that I won’t dwell on this aspect of the Texas myth, but move on to the next…
Second, the Texas myth is related to the land itself. It’s a distinctive version of the Promised Land myth… Texas was described as a kind of Eden so often that the first book published in English in Texas mentioned this hype. The book was written by Mary Austin Holley and was based on letters she sent back from a visit to Austin’s colony. In this book, Holley criticized the extravagance with which admirers of the Texas myth talked about the land — “as if enchantment had indeed thrown its spell over their minds.” This was 1831 — and we were already bragging about our land…
And that leads to the third feature of the Texas myth, which is that the Texas myth is a subset of the myth of the United States as the home of liberty. In fact, Texas founders consciously grafted what they were doing onto the U.S. myth of the Revolution — even though the story didn’t exactly fit, because our relation to Mexico was not the same as the colonists’ relationship to Great Britain. But we did graft our myth onto that myth, and then it simply froze into place…
If anyone can transform a myth, I think Texans can. Why? Because of the fourth feature of the Texas myth — that we hold our myths as myths. We tell them consciously as myths. In fact, many Texans buy their first pair of boots only when they’re heading off to Harvard. We may never wear boots in Texas, but we’ll put them on before heading up north.
We support our myth overtly. It’s not just Kay Bailey Hutchison and George Bush who were cheerleaders. We all are when it comes to Texas and we’re outside of Texas. We’ve been known to exaggerate, to tell tall tales. We’re master storytellers. And that means that we have it in our power to transform the story of who we are and what we aspire to be.
2. You really should chill the hell out
We get it, you’re enthusiastic about politics, religion, or veganism. You know what we like? For you to mind your damn business, let us vote for who we want to vote for, then grab a beer with us after work. AND guess what? You can do that too! Even if it’s for the other guy. Politics, diet, or religion shouldn’t prevent you from having a beer with co-workers or dinner with a family member. We don’t fight the way people do in California. We understand issues can be critical and we know you really believe your side, but it shouldn’t inhibit you from having a relationship with a co-workers or lunch with your parents. Republican, Democrat, Catholic, Atheist, Evangelical, Gay or Straight we’re all friends here and those issues we take to the voting booth are worth discussing if we can temper our discussions with self-control. So be enthusiastic just don’t be an ass about it.
3. Texans love their flag
“Honor the Texas flag; I pledge allegiance to thee, Texas, one state under God, one and indivisible. “
-Texas Pledge of Allegiance
We love it so much that we make our kids pledge allegiance to it every morning. You see it on cups, barns, murals, cars, and t-shirts. Our flag is plastered all over the state because it is a symbol of pride and identity.
4. Southern etiquette permeates Texas
“Yes, Sir” or “Yes Ma’am” is commonly used all over. In the city, you will hear it used casually among friends or at dinner with family.
It’s not uncommon to hear parents who ask their children a question, who after the child responds with a simple “Yes” or “No” are corrected with “Excuse me?” The child then responding: “Yes, ma’am or Yes, sir.” It’s common etiquette.
Taking an early morning walk? It isn’t uncommon to hear a “good morning” from a fellow walker, or someone tending to their garden.
Flustered and heading into the office? Passing several strangers, many will smile or nod. Strangers will also strike up conversations in the grocery line.
They’re not weird or being flirty, this is normal.
5. We all use ‘y’all’
This is common parlance. Some of us will even say ‘y’alld’ve’ which is even strange to natives. Not all Texans have a southern drawl but many if not most use the word ‘y’all’ and you probably will too.
6. Mexican Americans prefer “Hispanic” to “Latino.”
“…among those who do have a preference, “Hispanic” is preferred over “Latino” by a ratio of about 2–1. But there’s one striking exception: Texas. Among Hispanic Texans 46% prefer the term Hispanic, while just 8% say they prefer the term “Latino” — roughly a 6-to-1 ratio. “
Americans of Mexican descent in Texas prefer the term “Hispanic” to Latino by margins of 6-1, while Hispanics in other parts of the country prefer it 2–1. The article doesn’t attempt to understand why but I wouldn’t consider it a stretch to say that the “Texas Myth” plays some part to it. Tejanos are also more likely to support the GOP. They have higher employment rates, are more educated, make more money, more likely to own a business, more likely to have served in the military, and more likely to own a home compared to California.
7. Barbecue reigns, but Tex-Mex is Law
“ RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the State of Texas, the Senate concurring, That the 65th Legislature in recognition of the fact that the only real “bowl of red” is that prepared by Texans, hereby proclaims chili as the “State Dish of Texas.”
Barbecue is a big deal, of the top 33 Barbecue joints in the country, nine of them are in Texas. But Tex-Mex food is enshrined in our laws. Proper chili according to Texas can only be properly made by Texans. There was an attempt to replace it with barbecue a while back but as it stands Tex-Mex chili is officially our state dish.
8. Whataburger is a Texas Treasure
“RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 77th Texas Legislature hereby congratulate Tom Dobson and all those affiliated with Whataburger restaurants on the 50th anniversary of this fine company and extend to them sincere best wishes for continued success; and, be it further
RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be
prepared for Mr. Dobson as an expression of high regard by the Texas House of Representatives.”-HR 705, 77th Regular Session
It was on Hollywood Blvd that I had my first In N Out burger and it was a complete disappointment. Texas burgers are tart, they don’t come with thousand island dressing. They’re typically unhealthy because by nature a burger is not a salad. A Whataburger with mustard (not mayo), pickles and everything else (including jalapenos) is what a Texan expects in a burger. While In N Out is a tolerable option, it doesn’t meet (in any sense) the standards of a what a Texan expects in a burger. Of course, Texans like options so like Wendy’s we don’t mind having an In N Out as an option on the occasional off day.
9. Texans aren’t keen on royalty, but Texas does have a royal family.
“If you haven’t climbed up to Enchanted Rock,
Drank a cold Shiner down in Luckenbach,
Taken your baby to the River Walk,
Then you ain’t met My Texas yet.”— You Ain’t Met My Texas Yet, Josh Abbott Band
The Queen of Tejano music Selena and the King of Country music George Strait are joined by their ‘royal court’ that includes distinguished hip-hop artists like Beyonce. Texas Country musicians like The Josh Abbott Band, and Kacey Musgraves. From Hip Hop to Country Music there are plenty more like Willie Nelson, Lyle Lovett, Pat Green, and Pimp C.
10. Don’t get so upset with us when we complain about all those Californian’s moving in.
Like every large migrant community; you bring customs, and habits that we find strange. Unlike other migrant communities you also wield tremendous power, the power of the American voter, and we are just worried that our consistent habit of voting for people who are friendly to our low regulation, and low tax environment will be affected by people who haven’t made the connection between the cause of their migration, and their voting habits. So, if you have then no worries, we’re not talking about you. If you haven’t, we’d just want you to recognize the simple fact that the political climate of your state resulted in the toxic cost of living, and it’s high tax environment. So, think twice before voting the same here in Texas.
Finally welcome home, it wouldn’t be Texan of us to reject fellow Americans anyway.
