I know what you’re saying to yourself right about now: “Why the heck do I live in a place that’s hot as the face of the sun?” There are dog days of summer and then there are fire-breathing, rabid Doberman days of summer that we Texans endure from June to about a week after Halloween. I certainly question my latitude and longitude around this same time each year.
At least we have an ocean to gaze at … if you count the six-plus-hour drive to the BP oil slick in the gulf. OK, well, there’s always the beautiful mountain ranges of North Texas—wrong again. Texas has three distinct visual attributes, and I think everyone will agree that flat, hot and ugly is no way to go through life.
Then again, if you’re a parent, the Lone Star State—and the North Texas region, specifically—is without a doubt the perfect place to raise your kids. Even in this heat. The magazine you hold in your hot little hands offers hundreds of reasons why North Texas rocks. But let me give you a few of my personal favorites:
Texas rocks because you can actually afford to own a home AND still go out to eat once in a while. I lived for four years in Los Angeles and, yes, they’ve got both an ocean and mountains. They’ve also got traffic, smog and house payments that would choke an elephant. Pay $300,000 here and you get a nice, new, Texas-sized house. Pay $300,000 in SoCal and you would probably live under the highway.
Texas is also the best place on the planet to raise sports-loving kids. For sports fans, this is a major league town. We’ve got the Cowboys, Rangers, Stars, Mavs and FC Dallas. (Well, four out of five is pretty good.) We’ve got big-time college football every October in Dallas (OU vs. UT) and every month of fall in Fort Worth (the nationally ranked Horned Frogs). For youth sports leagues, this area is unrivaled for football, baseball and soccer. From Aledo to Allen, North Texas offers more youth fields, more Select team options and the most competitive youth-sports landscape anywhere. Sure, hockey leagues are probably a tad better in Calgary than in Frisco, but give us a bit more ice time and we’ll likely have something to say about that, too.
And, we actually live in the perfect longitude and latitude. Yes, it’s hot, but if you’re a parent who travels often on business, we’ve got the most centrally located airport in the country. Our airport sits less than four hours from either coast, which makes getting home quicker and easier. (Ever try to get from Atlanta to Seattle and back in less than three weeks?) Yeah, we know your flight might get delayed, and they might misplace your luggage from time to time, but believe me, for parents who want nothing more than to get home to their kids, DFW International rocks.
Reason Texas Rocks No. 4: Our public schools—for the most part—are superb. Yes, there are some rough edges to this one, but overall, good public schools are plentiful in and around our area. Move the family to Florida or Alabama or Louisiana or New Mexico or Arizona, etc., and tell me how many of your public school options don’t scare you into homeschooling.
Finally, no state in this fine country rivals—or will ever rival—Texans for state pride. (See what I mean?) On your next family road trip across Texas, ask the kids to count the Texas flags they see (I said Texas state flags, not Confederate flags). If the trip lasts more than three hours, I’m guessing that the kids burn out after hitting triple digits. Try the same game in any other state and the tally won’t exceed 10. Seriously, I’ve tested this theory in California, Michigan and Florida, three of my previous addresses. I would wager my salary for writing this column that most residents of those states couldn’t tell you what their state flag even looks like.
So there you have it: some of the many reasons that, even in July, Texas is super cool.
