You really don't understand just how much bigger EVERYTHING actually is in Texas until you SEE it. You really know you're not from Texas when...
1. You grew up saying “your guys’s house” when making plans concerning where you and your friends were going to hang out.
I know, I know… it makes NO grammatical sense whatsoever. That's why.
2. You adopt Texan slang and southern vernacular REAL quick.
All of the y'alls. ALLL of the y'alls.
You also say "Yes, ma'am," "No, ma'am," and "Yes, sir," "No, sir" because it's the polite thing to do and why wouldn't you want to be addressed that way it's so endearing!
3. Your extended family doesn’t live in same neighborhood, city, or even the same state.
I have family in Colorado, Florida, Illinois, New Jersey, Virginia, New York….you get the idea.
4. You didn’t know about true, real, unwavering “state loyalty” until you moved to Texas.
But honestly, I actually LOVE how much Texans love the great state (country) of Texas. It makes me love Texas and the fact that I live in Texas that much more (and yes there are still some people who think Texas should secede).
5. Your idea of Tex-Mex WAS that ever-special Taco Tuesday you have like maybe, once a month.
But NOW, IN TEXAS, you can get ALL THE TACOS AND ALL OF THE OTHER WONDERFUL AND LOVELY SPICE FILLED MEXICAN FOOD. ALL OF IT. ALL DAY. EVERY DAY.
6. You still find Southern Hospitality just a little odd, but you actually really love it, especially considering what you grew up with.
I grew up in the Chicagoland area, so making eye contact with strangers, smiling, and waving at them is not a normal thing to see. But in Texas, practically EVERYONE is friendly. It's rather refreshing. Chicagoans could learn a thing or two… or 10.
7. Your idea of farming includes corn, soy, wheat, corn, corn, and more corn.
But when that's literally two-thirds of the entire Midwest it's kind of hard for you to picture farming as anything else.
8. You don’t know what real country music until you’ve been two-stepping and line-dancing.
Sorry (not sorry) Illinois, just because you may go to the Country Thunder Music Festival DOES NOT MEAN THAT COUNTS as knowing country music. Get over it.
9. You realize how big Texas actually is when you talk to your friends about all the road trips you took as a kid.
Road trips were a staple aspect of my childhood. My family and I would take road trips all over the country. One time my family and I were visiting my Grammie and Pop Pop (my grandparents) out in Williamsburg, Virginia, and we drove for about 14 hours (including gas, food, and bathroom stops) to there, passing through four other states on our way.
Now, in TEXAS, (and this is according to Apple Maps which lets be honest, may not be the most accurate estimate but you use whatcha got), a drive from the most western city in Texas, El Paso, to the most eastern city of Orange, TX, takes a whopping 12 HOURS AND 14 MINUTES. AND THAT'S ENTIRELY IN ONE STATE.
10. You start to love football A LOT MORE than you EVER anticipated you would.
Now that I live in Texas, I love football a WHOLE lot more. Part of it happens to be that I'm a college student and college football is WAY better than the NFL, that's just my opinion though.
And whenever there was a football game on TV in my house, it usually wasn't the Chicago Bears game…
BUT, whenever they were playing Green Bay, you best believe we watched to see if the Bears would actually beat those Cheese Heads (that rivalry is real, y'all).
11. You realize which words bring out your non-Texan accent the most when you talk around your Texan friends.
Personal Photo by Liv Nortillo
OK, now, everyone repeat after me: It's shuh-CAAAAHH-go, y'all. NOT she-CAW-go.
12. You either revert back to talking like a Midwesterner (or…wherever you’re from) when you talk to your family on the phone.
Or...
13. You realize how TEXAN you sound now compared to your family.
Living here for 4 years come this August has definitely changed me. One being the way I talk for sure, and it's HILARIOUS because I can hear just how different I sound now compared to my mom.
14. You can’t count the number of friends you know who’ve gotten engaged recently on your hands BECAUSE YOU DON’T HAVE ENOUGH FINGERS.
I guess it's a Southern thing? Maybe? Possibly? #RingBySpringIsARealThing
15. You learn a whole lot more about college sports rivalry. And man, are their histories loooong.
http://grantland.com/the-triangle/college-football..
Baylor Bears vs. TCU Horned Frogs.
Baylor Bears vs. A&M Aggies.
Baylor Bears vs. UT Longhorns.
'Nough said.
16. You’ve never seen sunsets prettier than the sunsets in Texas
But actually y'all, Waco sunsets are STUNNING.
17. You don’t understand what flat land looks like until you move to Texas.
Ever heard the phrase "flat as a pancake?" Yeah, that's Texas for ya.
18. You didn’t know two cities with completely different atmospheres could exist just 4ish hours from each other.
If Dallas is kind of like the southern grandparents from old money that enjoy classy southern-belle type living, going to the Dallas Art Museum, and avoiding Deep Ellum at night like the plague, then Austin is the rowdy 'let's get LIT' millennial that knows all about kombucha, espresso and nitrobrew coffee, music festivals, colorful murals, and thrift stores.
19. You don’t realize how wonderful of a miracle HEB is until you go back home for a visit.
Jewel Osco, Kroger, Food Lion… nah man, I'll take HEB over all y'all ANY DAY.
20. Your first taste of Bluebell Ice Cream changed your life.
Bless the Lord for Bluebell, AMEN AMEN!!!
21. You don’t understand what real heat is until you move to Texas.
And I thought Chicago summers were hot.
I WAS WRONG. I WAS HORRIBLY, HORRIBLY WRONG.
But hey, I'll take the heat over the snow, ice, and bone-chilling northern cold EVERY time.
22. You see multiple churches on the same street and still find that odd.
In Waco, you could go visit a different church every single Sunday for 2 whole years, AND STILL not be done church hopping.
23. You became familiar with the phrase ‘church hopping’ when you started trying to find a church and college ministry after moving to Texas.
Yeah I didn't know that was even a thing people did when I was growing up.
24. You realize that you have become re-sensitized to the cold and now realize what your friends mean when they say, “It’s chilly today!” when it’s below 75 degrees.
Yeah… I'm not proud of this one. I've become a weather wimp.
25. You were taught Deep In The Heart Of Texas like it was the most important song in existence since the Star Spangled Banner.
"The stars at night are big and bright"
*CLAP* *CLAP* *CLAP* *CLAP*
*screams as loud as humanly possible*
"DEEP IN THE HEART OF TEXAS!!!!!"
26. You finally understand what a bon fire REALLY is.
No they are not those tiny adorable fires you have in your tiny backyard fire pit. These are the ones with flames that can reach over 10 ft. high and you can't stand too close or your arm hair will singe off. Now THAT's a bonfire.
27. You know what REAL PIZZA is.
I don't care what anyone else tells you CHICAGO is the ONLY PLACE to get REAL deep dish pizza. Or any kind of pizza. PERIOD.
28. You don’t realize how big a city can be until you visit a city in Texas.
Seriously, it could take you over an hour, OVER AN HOUR, to get from one side of Houston to the other side of Houston. Or Dallas. Or Austin. Or San Antonio.
29. You thought a town of 5,000 people was a “small” town.
HA. HAHAHAHAHAHA.
30. You can’t see yourself living anywhere else anytime soon.
Because this place has become your home, these people have become your people, this community has become your community, and this city has become your city.
Waco is a Wonderland.
