Why Do You Love Dallas?

We’re working on something for the “print product.” I am soliciting your input, if you’ve got a few minutes. What is it that you love about Dallas? Okay, call it North Texas. Think less in terms of a favorite dish at a beloved restaurant and more in terms of culture and people. For instance, one of the reasons I love Dallas is that a man can wear cowboys boots with a suit, if he so chooses. If you’d rather not put it out there for the world to see (and risk a snark attack), feel free to send me an e-mail directly.

96 comments

  1. And those gorgeous women with big ‘ol perfectly coiffed hair, makeup, and jewelry with sweat suits..

    @ 10:45 am on March 10, 2009
  2. I love it when those fabulous Dallas ladies pull out their full length mink coats the moment it drops below 68 degrees.

    @ 10:49 am on March 10, 2009
  3. I love it when the weather hits below 70 the same gorgeous women pull out their full length fur coats to wear.

    @ 10:51 am on March 10, 2009
  4. I love the fact that it is a big City but does not have a big city feel just the right amount of hustle and bustle.

    @ 10:52 am on March 10, 2009
  5. @Ed

    “And those gorgeous women with big ‘ol perfectly coiffed hair…”

    Big hair? What part of Dallas do you live in, the part where it’s still 1982?

    @ 10:52 am on March 10, 2009
  6. because i was able to buy a 2,000 sq ft home with a two-car garage and 100×25 backyard that’s less than eight miles from my downtown office for a mortgage payment that’s about $500 less per month than what i paid for a one-bedroom apartment in Jersey City, NJ

    @ 10:56 am on March 10, 2009
  7. Correction to skigirl: full length mink coats with sandals.

    @ 10:57 am on March 10, 2009
  8. As a born and bred Dallasite who is enjoying living back here (for a decade now) after being in Boston for three years, it is definitely the people. I don’t know if it’s the tightly compressed living space, the tightly compressed public transit, or the weather, but people in the northeast are very particular about being friendly to strangers. Eye contact, holding doors or elevators, small talk, a friendly smile or nod in passing — none of that jibes with your average Bostonian. I really missed that daily… I won’t even call it “fraternization,” as it’s more like just simple and common courtesy between strangers. It makes sense that our state is named after a Native American word for “friend.”

    @ 10:58 am on March 10, 2009
  9. 1. Lola
    2. The Ticket
    3. DISD Magnet Schools

    @ 10:58 am on March 10, 2009
  10. I love Dallas for constantly challenging my preconceptions of it. Five years ago, I told my boyfriend (now husband) that I’d move anywhere with him when he finished his MBA… except Dallas or Houston. Sure enough, he got a job in Dallas, and we’ve been here ever since. I love it now – the arts, culture, food, and lots of nice people. And I have an adorable house in Oak Cliff that cost me half (or maybe even one-third) of what it would have cost in Austin.

    @ 11:07 am on March 10, 2009
  11. 1. I love the variety of things to do on any given day…the possibilities are endless, always something happening.
    2. The always present homeless that will “work for food”, but when you offer them food only want money.
    3. The Quick that seems to show up on my doorstep every Thursday like clock work, in my apt complex, although I’ve never ordered it or any other newspaper for delivery.
    4. The ability to make it anywhere in 20 minutes, unless it’s a weekday.

    @ 11:17 am on March 10, 2009
  12. Chuy’s.

    The mandatory live shot of Central & LBJ whenever there’s a hint of icy precipitation.

    Outside at Lee Harvey’s on a cool autumn night.

    Being able to fire up the grill 12 months of the year.

    @ 11:20 am on March 10, 2009
  13. Is this going to be the top 64 things competing like last year? I just hope Dirk or Ghostbar doesn’t win the March Madness again this year. EDIT – I think The Ticket won, but Dirk and Ghostbar did fairly well…sad, really.

    @ 11:23 am on March 10, 2009
  14. I grew up in Dallas (LH Wildcats!) and couldn’t wait to get out. I thought there was nothing to do. After being gone for 7 years, I’ve now been back for 6. Here’s a bit o’ what I love:
    1) The People
    2) The new replacing the old – the new arts district (Nasher!), uptown, Bishop Arts, Knox/Henderson
    3) Mavs games @ the AAC
    4) DISD’s turnaround (and the fact that DCC is still as dysfunctional as ever)
    5) the food …
    6) the food …

    @ 11:25 am on March 10, 2009
  15. The never ending source of amusement that the City Council provides, the constant hilarity of local media thinking that a 20 minute story on Jerry Jones is “news” and that precipitation in the weather forecast means weathercasters start citing the “risk” for rain and reminding people to find their safe closet, the truly funny people who think shopping at NorthPark makes them “somebody,” and the “Big Airport” for making it possible to get away to a real big city so such amusements are further appreciated upon return.

    @ 11:28 am on March 10, 2009
  16. I love that women can wear pieces of jewelry that weigh more than their tiny dogs

    @ 11:31 am on March 10, 2009
  17. Wearing jorts in December.
    Wheels off interviews from Gordon on The Ticket.
    Megan Henderso…never mind.
    Restaurants everywhere I turn.

    @ 11:31 am on March 10, 2009
  18. I love being able to play golf year round and having so many courses to choose from.

    @ 11:40 am on March 10, 2009
  19. Entreprenurial spirit

    @ 11:49 am on March 10, 2009
  20. I love that I can get D CEO every month… Wait, what?

    @ 11:53 am on March 10, 2009
  21. Despite today’s overcast weather, I love that it’s sunny so much of the time. I love that people are almost uniformly polite, even generous. I love that we don’t pay state income taxes. I love that John Wiley Price is engaged in an ongoing southern sector shakedown, gets called out for it by another southern sector politician, and there’s a that’s-how-they-do-business-down-there complacency about it. Oh wait, I hate that last part.

    @ 11:57 am on March 10, 2009
  22. @Chris Chris
    Jorts?
    Gag me Amadeus.

    ::rolling over and playing dead:::

    @ 12:10 pm on March 10, 2009
  23. It may not be a great place to visit, but it’s a great place to live. As such, we don’t have to deal with gobs of tourists and/or snowbirds.

    @ 12:16 pm on March 10, 2009
  24. I love that people hate dallas, I love this place. anybody from anywhere, coming here, ends up loving it. (cept in July).
    but I love Paris, I love Austin, I love London. I love Ok city, I love Ft Worth… its all love. oh, and my hometown, Houston is ok with me.
    It is true, if you go oversees and mention you live in Dallas, you get a big smile. then you wish you were home.

    @ 12:20 pm on March 10, 2009
  25. I no longer live in Dallas, but as a native and somebody who has spent 95% of his life living in Dallas, my favorite day of the year is that mid-September (sometimes October) day when the daily high hits the low 80s/upper 70s. You could open your windows and sort of breathe a sigh of relief knowing that the next eight months wouldn’t have four consecutive days of extreme weather.

    @ 12:27 pm on March 10, 2009
  26. for the State Fair, Adair’s, Hall of State, The Blue Goose, Bluebonnets, and the burlesque community…I could go on and on, of course I was born here and I’m fifth gen Texan…

    @ 12:30 pm on March 10, 2009
  27. “Dallas is no different from generic cities like Columbus Ohio or Newark New Jersey….”
    Not really……
    What I love most about Dallas is it greatest strength and greatest weakness.
    Part of the problem that Dallas has always had is its own self-identity crisis. It does not know whether to imitate a North Eastern Metropolis, trudge through as a Midwestern city, grasp its Southern roots, or look to the west and embrace “yee-ha, ya’ll” and urban sprawl. And because of so many people have different beliefs or thoughts on the way Dallas should be developed, what often gets lost is its own history. 508 Park may get destroyed because of ‘progress.’ The State Fair almost got destroyed if money didn’t run out for the demolition in the 70’s and 80’s.
    On the other hand because Dallas has such a confluence of “American Culture” meeting here on the plains, we get the benefit of a real cultural diversity of America. While L.A., New York, San Fran and others can claim “World Diversity”, what I love about Dallas is that it is a quintessential American City.

    @ 12:31 pm on March 10, 2009
  28. mountain views?

    @ 12:43 pm on March 10, 2009
  29. 1) The Ticket
    2) Horror Remix (horrorremix.com)
    3) Fireside Pies (greatness!!!)

    @ 12:45 pm on March 10, 2009
  30. Farmers Market, Central Market, Whole Foods, Northaven Gardens

    @ 12:49 pm on March 10, 2009
  31. Movie watchin’ is a spote in Dallas.

    @ 12:49 pm on March 10, 2009
  32. awww! Thanks Sandra Newberg!

    I love Dallas b/c you can garden here 12 months out of the year. AND, we can grow tulips, daffodils and crocus. You can’t do that in Austin.

    @ 12:57 pm on March 10, 2009
  33. 1. I think that Dallas is amazing in its Arts (regional theater, symphony, Nasher, etc), it’s Sports, and it’s verve. And best of all, you can do almost any of these things at a moment’s notice.
    2. It’s naivete, in a good way, that really allows it to at least try to do something. I was commuting to Pittsburg PA when DART was first voted on and they were amazed that Dallas would try something like that.

    @ 12:58 pm on March 10, 2009
  34. Kuby’s
    Henks
    Black forest bakery
    Half Price books
    The original Neiman’s downtown
    Fair Park
    Lee Park
    Reverchon Park
    White Rock
    Turtle Creek
    McKinney ave
    North Henderson
    Farmers Market
    Tenison Golf
    NorthPark
    and much much more

    @ 1:03 pm on March 10, 2009
  35. The fact that there are many ways to rapidly get the heck out of it!

    @ 1:09 pm on March 10, 2009
  36. I love Dallas because it’s not in Austin.

    @ 1:09 pm on March 10, 2009
  37. Kayaking.
    Lower Greenville.
    A tremendous variety of food.

    @ 1:11 pm on March 10, 2009
  38. @ Peterk

    Oh….Black Forest Bakery….I love that place! Thanks, now you’ve made me hungry for their delicious desserts! I think I can leave here and be there in 20 minutes, oh, wait, is it a weekday? Better wait till my next Kona Grill night. Yum!

    @ 1:16 pm on March 10, 2009
  39. Legendary Philanthropists. Take a stroll through the Arts District and consider how Dallasites have shared their wealth not just to get their names on a buildings, but because they believed that Dallas deserved a world class arts district. After many years of hard work and unstinting generosity, it’s finally a reality.

    @ 1:23 pm on March 10, 2009
  40. I was born and raised here – 42 years strong – and I absolutely love it when we Dallasites close down our schools, take off from work, raid the stores and rent movies to hunker down at home – all because of a little ice on the road.

    I look forward to it each year and I’ve never been let down yet.

    It’s hilarious and it’s so Dallas.

    @ 1:30 pm on March 10, 2009
  41. I love that I can say that is “SO DALLAS” and everyone knows EXACTLY what I mean!

    @ 1:36 pm on March 10, 2009
  42. @Dallasite
    Think more JSimp than Sue Ellen. In Dallas, hair is an accessory! And I love that.

    I also love the irony of Dallas. Women are well coiffed and dressed, but that doesn’t translate to ditzy and dull. They are some of the most powerful fundraisers and charitable women in the country.

    @ 1:40 pm on March 10, 2009
  43. it’s only 4 hours away from really good BBQ.

    @ 1:45 pm on March 10, 2009
  44. -That while we may not be the *best* at anything (compared to other major cities), we are *great* at a ton of things: business, the arts, devotion to kids and family, food, music, local sports, (even) journalism. Innovation and creativity in all of those areas. There is amazing balance in our town.

    -People here are the best. Friendly, helpful, and full of can-do.

    -Of course, 300+ golfable weather days every year.

    @ 1:46 pm on March 10, 2009
  45. I like opening my door in August and getting the exact same blast one would get from a commercial oven — dry, searing and raw. It’s seasoned with the scent of prairie grass, and issues from a sky that seems hallucinogenic somehow, spare yet pliant.

    It’s only dry like that about a third of the time in the summer — the rest of the time it’s frankly miserable — but I love it.

    @ 1:51 pm on March 10, 2009
  46. 1. Fall, winter, and spring
    2. Picnics @ the Arboretum watching the sailboats on White Rock
    3. A pint on the patio at any pub
    4. Ice hockey year-round
    5. Seeing a horse stable or barn remain in a neighborhood, in spite of all the new monster home construction around it. Watching pea****s wander through the yards.

    @ 1:56 pm on March 10, 2009
  47. 1. Kessler Park
    2. Javier’s
    3. OU/Texas at the Cotton Bowl
    4. Neiman Marcus (our neighbor/friend Sam is the best!)
    5. The Kessler School
    6. The Patio at the Stoneleigh Hotel
    7. Up in Smoke in Uptown
    8. The Patio at the Ritz-Carlton
    9. Frontburner
    10. Lone Star Park @ Grand Prairie

    @ 1:59 pm on March 10, 2009
  48. In spite of all the trials, tribulations, heartache and intense malaise they can bring me, the Dallas Cowboys.

    @ 2:21 pm on March 10, 2009
  49. Anytime you travel anywhere around the globe, as soon as you say you are from Dallas people ask if you own an oil well and/or know JR Ewing.

    You can play tennis year-round (nearly).

    The paletas vendors with their refrigerated push-carts.

    Lots of smaller universities but not one BIG one that overtakes the whole city.

    Crazy cheap cost-of-living compared to other large cities.

    @ 2:24 pm on March 10, 2009
  50. No longer living there. It does make for a nice contrasting point. A yang for the yin or vice versa.

    @ 2:27 pm on March 10, 2009
  51. The North Texas Irish Festival; allows music and culture lovers to open the year in the proper, festive fashion. Again, this year another record crowd.

    @ 2:28 pm on March 10, 2009
  52. I love the way we pack out patios on any day between 60 and 90 degrees, even if its cloudy, even if it’s windy, even if the said patio is simply a tiny fenced off portion of the parking lot.

    I love the way a girl can go to brunch in what she wore out the night before.

    I love Turtle Creek and the parks alongside it.

    …And sorry, but I love Mi Cocina.

    @ 2:36 pm on March 10, 2009
  53. Beyond the fact that Dallas led me to my wife, I love Dallas for the fact that it is so much more than just one city … it’s an entire region.

    Much of Dallas’ diversity can be attributed to it being the heart of the DFW Metroplex, an area comprised of old small towns, newly developed suburbs, medium sized cities, and two larger urban hubs. If you drive 10-20 miles from downtown Dallas, you’re likely to find yourself in a completely different neighborhood/town/suburb/city with its own unique identity. Then, you add to this available amenities that area offer (major sports franchises, fine dining, world-class arts venues/events, shopping, boating, hiking, biking, etc.) and you have in a word Dallas. When I think of Dallas, it rarely shows up as the #1 city in the U.S. or world for anything. However, it ranks at the top of the list for so many things that its sum of good qualities make it a great place.

    On a more personal level I love Dallas for the conspiracy theorists at Dealey Plaza, the sights and smells on the first floor of Neimans at NorthPark, a tasty beer at the Gingerman, a leisurely bike ride down the Katy Trail, the zaniness of the Lower Greenville St. Patrick’s Day Block Party, a harrowing ride on any one of the High Five ramps, a chile relleno at Chuy’s on an evening nice enough for the patio ‘doors’ to be open, and knowing that the Cowboys have just made a big play – not from watching the game yourself – but from hearing the roar of excitement from each of your neighbors’ houses.

    @ 2:37 pm on March 10, 2009
  54. I use to love front burner….since the “new look”….not so much. Too slow and updated three times a day.

    @ 2:38 pm on March 10, 2009
  55. - convertible weather in February
    - people can call you “darlin” and nobody gets uptight about it
    - running into friends all over town, no matter where that is
    - The Loon

    @ 2:56 pm on March 10, 2009
  56. yea Dallasboiler. on the head!

    @ 3:04 pm on March 10, 2009
  57. Who’s afraid of a Snark Attack? Or: MEMORANDUM: When the likes of Merritt Patterson find it acceptable, it is way. beyond. time. to move on

    I don’t like anything about Dallas, until I’m away from it and its current state melts from view and is replaced by wonderful memories and facts:
    -I love that Brooke H. worked her arse off to get the club kids here. I love that Jenny Talia walked directly off a runway wearing a Gaultier necklace and flew straight to Dallas to party, propelling her to heights of Club Kid Legend.
    -I adore the whole entreprenurial selling of Ecstacy when the Feds banned it in the early 80’s.
    -I love that JFK was assassinated here. Jack Ruby was a bit of alright, too.
    -I love that it was founded by SOCIALISTS(haha take that Republicans!)
    -I loved Tunnelvisions, and so did many, many visitors and residents.
    -I used to love going to Tejano West and pretending it was still Metropolis.
    -I love Southfork and J.R. Ewing.
    -I love looking south to downtown and seeing the “green” building tilting ever-so-slightly west.
    -I love that despite its air of conservative moralism it is home to one of the largest-and skeeviest-sex industries in America the world.

    And I love that no matter where I go in this world, the crime of being an American is rendered void because EVERYONE seems to love Texas, and you can find common ground nearly anywhere by saying “Dallas”-everyone knows about the Cowboys and their cheerleaders, and The Ewings, and most love to ask about it…

    @ 3:05 pm on March 10, 2009
  58. @ 3:07 pm on March 10, 2009
  59. Northpark is an icon, symbolic of Dallas, and is unlike any shopping center in the country in terms of its significance to the community. Anyone who grew up here knows it’s much more than the local mall. I realized this when watching my kid run up and slide down the same tile fountains that I did over 30 years ago.

    @ 3:12 pm on March 10, 2009
  60. Bishop Arts
    Uncle Calvin’s
    The Arboretum
    American Airlines Center and surroundings
    Affordable real estate
    Off the Bone Barbecue
    Hotel Belmont
    Katy Trail
    White Rock Lake

    @ 3:18 pm on March 10, 2009
  61. I love the tile mural at the museum that used to be on the overpass on Central Expressway. And aqua buildings like 211 N Ervay. Dallas used be very aqua blue.

    @ 3:34 pm on March 10, 2009
  62. The fact that we have a full-fledged working vineyard and winery at Delaney Vineyards in Grapevine. Go ahead, make a comment about the wine … BUT, really, in the middle of the DFW Metroplex having a place like that to pretend like you’re in Napa for an afternoon is pretty cool.

    @ 3:40 pm on March 10, 2009
  63. Asking for a spit cup at a bar and not getting the evil eye.
    The attitude of not waiting for our government to do anything for us.
    The fact that we don’t want to be like other cities.
    Eva-Why must you apologize for being an American abroad? The chosen one is in office and hope and change are abound. I love Texas, but I wouldnt’ take one ounce of insult from any corner of this world for being American….sounds like your issue.

    @ 3:41 pm on March 10, 2009
  64. Anne,

    Lightcatcher, just west of Fort Worth, is better … they don’t grow their grapes on-premises (Delaney only grows a small percentage), but they have a quasi-rural, Hill Countryesque spread that feels much more like a vineyard. Also, their wine is better than Delaney, which is to say, still not very good. And a bit overpriced. But.

    @ 3:50 pm on March 10, 2009
  65. I love cruising White Rock Lake, i grew up here and started out riding my bike around the lake. Does anyone remember the “tunnels” over by the spillway?

    @ 3:58 pm on March 10, 2009
  66. Great music shows at the various music venues

    @ 4:14 pm on March 10, 2009
  67. 1. White Rock Lake Park.
    2. Lakewood and it’s support for DISD.
    3. Fair Park and the State Fair of Texas.
    4. Agreed on Northpark. It’s an icon of the good and bad in our “mall culture.”
    5. The fact that everyone who leaves Dallas, eventually comes back.
    6. Both the men and women in Dallas just try harder to look good.

    @ 4:18 pm on March 10, 2009
  68. 1. D/FW – direct flight nearly anywhere in the U.S.
    2. Pro-business culture
    3. The half-price books on NW Hwy
    4. Big wide roads (ever been to ATL or PHL?)
    5. COST OF LIVING!
    6. No income tax (sure, that’s TX, but I’m not going to live anywhere else in TX.)
    7. Cantina Laredo’s brandy butter sizzle brownie

    @ 4:28 pm on March 10, 2009
  69. Adair’s…White Rock Lake…Campisi’s…The Lakewood Landing…Swiss Ave…The State Fair…the Cowboys, Rangers, Mavs, Stars…The Ticket…Texas/OU weekend…Shiner and margitias on porches or patios…The St. Patty’s Day Parade on Greenville…Sue Ellens…NorthPark…The Granada…

    And as the great Peter Gent said, “Dallas is the apex of the American Soul.”

    @ 4:35 pm on March 10, 2009
  70. Running through Downtown during the Turkey Trot
    The Pegasus symbol on top of the Magnolia Hotel
    Driving through Highland Park at Christmas time
    Y’all
    Dallas is down home with the right amount of superficiality
    Drivng past Neiman Marcus (Downtown) at Christmas time
    Fresh iced tea no matter where you go – 365 days a year

    @ 4:44 pm on March 10, 2009
  71. Saturday afternoon patio time at Black Friar, people watching on Katy Trail, McKinney Avenue and all it’s glory, salsa at MiCo’s, Lee Harvey’s happy hour, pool parties for 4 months out of the year, crawfish boils and BBQs, philanthropy and Dallas’ CAN DO attitude, TX/ OU weekend, big hair and the Texas State Fair.

    @ 5:04 pm on March 10, 2009
  72. Oh God, please do not call it “North Texas” I do not want to go home with the armadillo.

    @ 5:14 pm on March 10, 2009
  73. If you can break it down to annual events:

    This Saturday on Greenville Avenue – it’s everything nobody expects from Dallas.

    Dallas Blooms on White Rock Lake.

    Easter in the Park at Lee Park/Turtle Creek

    The 52nd Annual Musical at Woodrow (April 16-19 “The Secret Garden”)

    The Dallas Summer Musicals (secondary, ‘natch’)

    The Lakewood 4th of July Parade is guaranteed to give you goosebumps.

    Woodrow Homecoming when the stadium fills with folks from 1928 to present.

    The State Fair — it’s really better than Oktoberfest in Munich (minus the beer part). Oh and TX/OU (I went to SMU).

    Halloween on Cedar Springs — see Greenville Ave iconoclast.

    Jingle Bell Run and White Rock Marathon.

    I’m sure I’ve left something out but raising a frozen margarita (invented by our Mariano) on a patio fits in there…

    @ 5:23 pm on March 10, 2009
  74. A boy’s best friend is his mother – so how could I forget Swiss Avenue on Mother’s Day?

    @ 5:26 pm on March 10, 2009
  75. You can find a club, store, or institution to indulge your favorite hobby or obsession, no matter how insanely obscure. You can even add sport to the list, with the understanding that you’ll have to travel with the fellow members of your local group if you want to go snowskiing. If dining is your thing, not only can you choose between great Mexican, Indian, Asian, and Arab restaurants, but there are numerous full supermarkets dedicated to each. Maybe this is a characteristic of any well balanced big city, but which else would you choose? One on the right coast? Who wants to deal with the grating accents and cold weather? One on the left coast? It is great for movie stars and multi-millionaires, but is a horrible place to be upper average. Maybe Atlanta could be worth consideration, but the difference comes down to rednecks versus cowboys. The average redneck is truly mean spirited. The average cowboy will stop and help a stranger change a tire.

    @ 5:33 pm on March 10, 2009
  76. We’re nice to everybody Earl. It’s just that, well, nobody likes you.

    @ 7:54 pm on March 10, 2009
  77. 1) Lower Greenville St. Patty’s Day parade
    2) Lobster Shooters and Angry Dog burgers
    3) Watching the fights at the White Rock Lake dog park
    4) Watching the kites fly at White Rock Lake
    5) The feeling I get when I arrive from a trip and see the Dallas skyline again
    6) Texas Pinball Festival
    7) A city full of neighborhood bars, with characters giving the joint atmosphere

    @ 7:57 pm on March 10, 2009
  78. As a native Coloradan who was taught to hate Texans at the same time I was taught to walk…LOL…I have found it took awhile to found the positives.

    Hook, Line and Sinker
    Om(jewelery store on Harry Hines
    Central Market
    Ladies in fur coats over shorts and sneakers
    The Gay community
    …and last but not least, the Texas husband who took me the way I am! God Bless Texas!

    @ 8:18 pm on March 10, 2009
  79. Everyone who has thus far contributed to this thread has my appreciation. Really, thank you. Thoughtful contributions. Keep em coming, please.

    @ 8:36 pm on March 10, 2009
  80. - the sheer panic at Channel 8 at the slightest threat of ice;
    - Ebby Halliday;
    - not losing 20% of my home equity like other parts of the country;
    - the beautiful horse ranches north of Frisco.

    @ 10:02 pm on March 10, 2009
  81. As a guy who is a self-proclaimed and die-hard Dallas apologist, I honestly thought that the comments on this post were going to be a running list of negativity and potshots. Yet reading through these has served as an overwhelming confirmation of why exactly I love this city. And more importantly why I love the people in this city. Even you jrp.

    @ 10:04 pm on March 10, 2009
  82. I do enjoy when friends from other Texas cities, especially Austin and Houston , come to visit Dallas and expect to see an endless supply of strip malls, only to be shocked at the really cool and distinct neighborhoods we have. You can spend a weekend taking them to various spots in: Lakewood, the M Streets, Lower Greenville, the Cedars, Bishop Arts, Kessler Park, Knox/Henderson, Downtown, Uptown, Turtle Creek, Oak Lawn, Deep Ellum, Exposition Park, Highland Park/University Park, and neighborhoods I can’t think of off the top of my head. People in our own state have this vision of what Dallas is supposed to be based on stereotypes and what they see on TV, and you can pretty much shatter it in an afternoon.

    @ 10:55 pm on March 10, 2009
  83. love you, too, man, but still hate your Cowboys

    @ 11:02 pm on March 10, 2009
  84. I love Dallas because of its….

    1. private schools
    2. good restaurants
    3. defeat of the unnecessary toll roads
    4. tall, large breasted, germanic-looking native Texans
    5. alcoholic, moody editors ala a young Lou Grant
    6. reporters who call out ambitious politicians who are caught running for their next position or shaking down other businesses
    7. entrepreneurial, can-do spirit
    8. The Gingerman’s or Old Monk’s patio on a spring evening.
    9. Any bar dominated by buzzed, bored and trust funded SMU coeds.
    10. Really smart, pretty journalists who are secretly plotting to leave their high profile and very controlling husbands.

    @ 11:54 pm on March 10, 2009
  85. I have to echo some earlier comments, and add a bit more. “Dallas” is a state of mind almost as much as “Texas.” I travel world-wide, and while people may not like Americans from time to time, Texans are always accepted and Dallas people will get asked about J. R.

    At home, the people are friendly. Sure, we’re being over-run by assh*les from other parts of the country, but even most of them mellow out after they’ve been here awhile.

    Dallas the city needs to learn to be happy to be Dallas. We’re never going to be NYC (and they can have it.) We’ll never be Atlanta (Thank God!) We’re just us. That’s good enough for me.

    @ 12:00 am on March 11, 2009
  86. Along I-35 between Dallas & Denton, my Lexus limped–with a flat tire–into the parking lot of a ramshackle BBQ hut. I was in plain view of the diners through the shack’s dirty windows. I picked up my cell and started dialing a tow service to send someone to put my spare on.

    After about 20 minutes, a tall older (60ish) cowboy–hat, boots, the whole 9 yards–comes out of the BBQ hut, stands about 6 feet from my car, and peers inside. I roll down the window a few inches.

    “You okay? What’s goin’ on?” he asks.

    I told him I have a flat tire, but that a service was on their way to help me.

    “Ok, well, you know, ya see a strange car settin’ here and ya gotta check it out…”

    At that moment, his cowboy buddy that he’d been having lunch with pulled up behind my car in his pickup. He rolled down his window and called to the first cowboy “What’s she doin? Everythin’ all right?”

    “Yeah, she’s got’er a flat but she’s got someone a’comin” first cowboy replied. Then he turned back to me. “Well be safe now.” And with that he strolled over to his own pickup and they both pulled away.

    I’m convinced that if I had asked, they’d have put the spare on for me.

    @ 12:40 am on March 11, 2009
  87. Our humility. Hands down.

    @ 1:18 am on March 11, 2009
  88. I love the gentlemen! I lived in LA briefly and when I moved back to Dallas I felt a greater appreciation for the men in the area. I remember being in the back of a crowded elevator full of men at my new job back in Dallas, when the doors opened to the first floor, every man turned and made room to let me (the only woman) get off first. It happens all the time, doors being held, etc. It’s really nice and I appreciate it more now. I think men elsewhere are great too, but they aren’t raised with the “ladies first” mentality in other parts of the county.

    @ 1:32 am on March 11, 2009
  89. Deep Ellum
    Live music
    Dolly Python
    Keller’s Hamburgers
    American Airlines Center and the teams that play there
    The number of days you can spend outside versus most other places
    Paperbacks plus
    4949 Swiss Avenue
    DMA
    The ability to go from eclectic to artistic to snarky and uppity by just hopping across central expressway
    Urban living
    The skyline – especially at night
    My job – the company I work for
    Mark Cuban
    Tex Mex
    Cafe Brazil on Elm Street
    Oliver Peck and Dillon Trent – world class tattoo artists who have their home shop here
    Dallas’ bravest
    and – last but not least:
    Summer nights spent on a patio outside of a quaint eatery while sipping a glass of wine

    @ 7:20 am on March 11, 2009
  90. Things I miss:

    Central Market

    ample parking

    the exquisitely disfigured trees under the power lines

    the sprawling networks of gated apartment complexes with silly names

    @ 9:03 am on March 11, 2009
  91. OU/tx weekend and the state fair
    st patty’s day on greenville
    living in the m-streets and rarely using the highways, b/c there is no need to go much farther…
    tex-mex (mi co, rafa’s, matt’s)
    the loon
    the weather, 95% of the time
    HP Village lights at christmas
    steak (thank you nick and sam’s, hibiscus)
    white rock lake, katy trail
    the AAC, and the teams that play there
    crazy cowboys
    porches and bars on henderson
    louie’s pizza
    bishop arts district, lakewood
    the people, even the ones that try too hard.

    @ 9:11 am on March 11, 2009
  92. Helpful people who turn out to help a friend in need.
    Texas OU weekend (especially when Texas wins)
    Brentfield Elementary
    The fact that my kids are 5th generation Dallas-ites
    The reaction I get from people in other states / countries when they find out I am from Dallas! They are fascinating by our city and state.

    @ 2:51 pm on March 11, 2009
  93. The flying red pegasus still visible downtown
    Central Market
    The Arboretum in spring when the azaleas are blooming
    The State Fair of Texas! And my kids getting the day off from school to go for free
    The drive back from airport when you can see the horizen every direction you look
    All the fountains in University Park
    March
    November
    Migas and tamales
    Blonde hair and beautiful manicures
    Northpark Mall
    The Angelika and Inwood theaters
    Ranch-style homes

    @ 3:42 pm on March 11, 2009
  94. This comment thread.

    @ 10:36 pm on March 11, 2009
  95. jeans are acceptable everywhere except church

    @ 11:31 pm on March 12, 2009
  96. I love that it rarely snows and that folks take air conditioning seriously. (When I first moved here, I saw an A/C repair truck with a light bar on top. I thought, “wow! Really, I knew it got hot here, but …” Turns out the driver was the chief of a volunteer fire department! LOL) I love that it is a big city, with a small town charm to it. I love the big trees, and old houses in east Dallas. I love the state pride! I’ve never experienced anything quite like it. I like that I finally know all the roads — how some are referred by numbers and some by names — well enough to be able to give directions when asked. I love that most people you meet are so friendly and happy to help. I love the cultural diversity. I love the STATE FAIR! I moved here in 1984 and never thought I would stay — but — here I am, with no intentions of leaving. Thank you Dallas!

    @ 10:33 am on March 13, 2009