Why the high pay in Texas?

TraumaMaster · Apr 7, 2004

Texas is not all dry & brown though. East Texas is fairly "hilly" with lots of beautiful green trees and lush landscapes. Not to mention, it houses the rose capital of the world!

Roland · Apr 7, 2004

Since I don't fit in with conservative OR liberals (or my own family for THAT matter) the politics is not a problem for me!

vaRN · Apr 7, 2004

I'm here less thatn a year and I love it awesome weather nice people slower pace (outside of work) than east coast youll love it wanna work couplet care

Thanks, but I'll be starting CRNA school at Fort Sam. They will not let me work. No, I am not joining the Army, I am one of 3 Veterans Hospital civilians attending the program. What's a good neighborhood close to Fort Sam? The section on the map that the realtor keeps sending me says Kirby. Ever heard of it? I am planning to rent a house or a duplex. As for the conservative complaints that I have been hearing, I am moving from Alabama! There is no way that SA could be more conservative!

Roland · Apr 7, 2004

Also, the point should be noted that New Mexico BARELY went for Gore in 2000 (it came down to a few thousand votes). Furthermore, there are areas of Texas such as metro Houston (and maybe Dallas, but I'm not certain) that went for GORE. So a liberal living in Houston would find that he was probably in the majority. Although, there probably is a difference between a liberal Texan, and one say from say Mass. For instance on the dealth penalty the liberal Texan probably believes in a trial before the hanging! (I couldn't resist).

Of course if I lived in New Mexico I could spend my free time investigating the Roswell UFO incident, and alleged goverment coverup that followed. Also, I don't think that Carlsbad caverns have been completely explored so spelunking there would be interesting.

Cherish · Apr 7, 2004

Originally Posted by vaRN

I'm headed to San Antonio in 2 months. Is it that bad?

No its not BAD! Maybe I don't think its bad cause I'm 21 (there are a lot of things to do for young people there). I was there when I was 18-20 (I just turned 21). Yes Killeen sucks! But its a military post with nothing near it for 45 mins (waco and austin). So yes if your moving to a rural remote area like killeen then I guess you would hate it. But the cities are tight (my fav being austin). San Antonio is a military town but you won't notice it (it houses army and airforce bases within the city). Since your going there go to the Riverwalk. Oh yea Schlitterbahn (its a BIG water park) is near there. Also San Antonio has Fiesta Texas (Six Flags) and Sea World so if your bringing family theres A LOT to do there! But Austin is WAYYY better (and yes its VERY LIBERAL-have you seen the people on 6th street? and its the CAPITAL), lol sorry I'm partial to there. Hope you have fun. Best advice to give you is you will experience it on your own. I'm from the east coast and was raised there and have been to MANY states and Countries (love Germany, England, and Italy!) If your not used to different cultures you will experience a culture shock (San Antonio is like 40% hispanic maybe more). Also theres a lot of asians in Austin to. Please don't be closed minded when you go there. Its not Cowboys and Hillbillie King of the Hill talk there (not always but you will see it but not as you may expect). They do have a lot of trucks there though, lol. Hope you have fun. Its hot but hey who doesn't mind wearing shorts or a miniskirt and a tank all year round??? LOL :)

Hellllllo Nurse, BSN, RN · Apr 7, 2004

What a silly question,
As the world knows, everything is bigger in Texas.
Seriously though, most of the high paying jobs are in terrible places to live. IMHO that is most of Texas.

I am in Texas and I agree!

Although pay is very low up here in the Panhandle. Nursing in The Rio Grande Valley was the worst experience of my career. Be afraid- be very afraid- of the border towns!

I also agree w/ others who think that Texas is too conservative. Lots of co-workers "wittnessing" all the time. Plenty of "rebel" flags displayed, as well.

Also, people feel free to spout their Christian-fundamentalist views anytime, anywhere, which I find offensive.

Sheri257 · Apr 7, 2004

I am in Texas and I agree!
Although pay is very low up here in the Panhandle. Nursing in The Rio Grande Valley was the worst experience of my career. Be afraid- be very afraid- of the border towns!

Well, that also can be true in California border towns.

:chuckle

Kiwi, BSN, RN · Apr 7, 2004

"I appreciate that question because I, in the state of Texas, had heard a lot of discussion about a faith-based initiative eroding the important bridge between church and state."

- W

nilepoc · Apr 8, 2004

Also, the point should be noted that New Mexico BARELY went for Gore in 2000 (it came down to a few thousand votes). Furthermore, there are areas of Texas such as metro Houston (and maybe Dallas, but I'm not certain) that went for GORE. So a liberal living in Houston would find that he was probably in the majority. Although, there probably is a difference between a liberal Texan, and one say from say Mass. ......

This is no where near the type of liberal living I am talking about. I am talking about living in a city where I can paint my house purple, Drive a 1952 volkswagon bus and have long hair without anyone thinking I look or act funny. Actually, I may be short two or three cars with only three. I am talking about a state where Gay marriage is being considered. The former governer (republican BTW Roland) wanted to leagalize it (you know what I mean), he was a marathon runner, hang glider and overall pretty nice guy. Most of the country thought he was crazy, but he fit right in there.

I want real mountains, and open space to roam.

Liberal means different things to different people.

kristyTX · Apr 8, 2004

Forbes just rated a Texas city best city to live for both singles and for career. Its not a border town but it is a great place to live.

And for liberal living...Austin by far. Hippy hollow, Threadgills, UT....

Hellllllo Nurse, BSN, RN · Apr 8, 2004

Whenever I am blue and feel trapped here in AZ I go on line and look at the beautiful homes in Houston and feel ready to go on. I LOVE them. So much less expensive than here however the cost of property taxes made me almost fall over. I think I'm a Texan in my heart.

That is so ironic- I am a native Arizonan forced to live in Texas!

Oh, how I miss the beautiful Sonoran moon of AZ!

Roland · Apr 8, 2004

Here's a similar question. Why the LOW pay in the North East? It seems like many jobs in New York barely break 100K for CRNA's. This is the area of the country with perhaps the highest cost of living. California also has a high cost of living, but pay there seems reasonable. In addition, here is something that some might find interesting. I did a salary comparison on salary.com for a basic critical care ICU nurse. Then, I did a comparison of "cost of living" for the same cities. Here is how they fared:

1. Houston Texas the average income (for critical care basic RN nurses) was 51,022 and you would need to earn $48.200 to equal Indy. Thus, it is both cheaper and pays more on average than Indianapolis.

3. Pittsburg comes next with an average of $49,200, but you would have to earn $50,700 to maintain an Indy equivalent lifestyle. It's a little more expensive than here.

3. Tampa makes a good showing with an average pay of $46,313 but you would need to earn $49,200 to equal that wonderful Indianapolis lifestyle.

4. Phillidelphia pays an attractive $51,954 on average BUT it would take a whopping $58,800 just to maintain our lifestyle.

5. Finally, just for the heck of it I calculated what Oahu would be like if we just said "scXX" CRNA school and moved there as ICU RN's. The pay is really good at $55,487, unfortunately it would require $70,199 just to maintain equivalency!

For those of us who might want to someday apply to become SRNA's the winner would probably have to be Pittsburg, followed by Tampa (more schools in Florida than Texas), and finally Houston.

As I have said before it is too bad that they don't also provide a "demand index" which reflected the relative job market (by profession) in each city. One might even imagine that quality indexes could be made for various things that people like such as hiking, The Arts, or even strip clubs. I've also wondered why they shut down that thread with over eighty thousand hits that where everyone listed where they lived, and what they earned (I suspect that perhaps some hospitals complained, since you wouldn't want the peons to have that sort of "market information" with which to bargain more effectively). Enough, my Aspergers syndrome like behavior is starting to take over, soon I will be dreaming of index, indexes.