Midland, TX

Midland, Texas. People have asked me in the last month why I decided to come out here. I'm not in the oil industry and Midland is... where?

My answer: opportunity.

For me the decision was hard. In the middle of July I left my job at Lifograph, the startup I was working for, to pursue my dream of being a reporter. Within two weeks I had two offers: work at a Palo Alto-based startup as a paid intern, or work for the Midland Reporter-Telegram as their business reporter.

I'd be lying if I said I wasn't torn. On the one hand I had the option of staying in Palo Alto while making a decent amount of money. On the other hand I could move to West Texas and jump into journalism head first.

But when MRT gave me the thumbs up, I took it.

Like my other blogs, this one will look to chronicle my experiences living and working as a journalist in the communities I serve. Unlike my other ones, I plan to have this blog span my career.

But before my career started, I had to get to Midland.

My trip spanned four days and took me through California's drought-stricken Central valley, where signs next to I-5 begged people to lobby the government to "Stop the Congress Created Dust Bowl." While some areas by the interstate looked barren, it was surprising to see a fair amount of growth and activity despite the crippling drought that has swept the west coast.

My first stop was Los Angeles, a place I have avoided for years due to my own misconceptions. LA surprised me, full of people and traffic, yes, but also with beauty, good people, and pleasant weather.

UCLA

Not a proud statistic. Who's #1? Florida.

The next day I headed east to Phoenix, and once I got past the wind farms around Palm Springs, I nearly fell asleep with boredom. The landscape was stark, with nothing but the severed heads of palm trees surrounding abandoned buildings and, at one point, a strip mall surrounding a 20 floor casino.

"Indio and other habitations"

And if the lack of anything to look at was bad, the heat just adds insult to injury. During the trip it averaged 90 degrees, and when I left Phoenix at 9:30 am, it was already 93.

El Paso was the next stop. The city shares the border with Ciudad Juarez, which in 2010 saw 3,600 people killed during turf battles between drug cartels. According to a man I met who works on the Mexican side of the border, only about 400 people died last year and, he believes, it is safe enough to go there for pleasure. A metal wall separates the two sides, and reminded me a lot of the similar barrier that I saw in Israel.

Looking into Mexico.

If you do happen to find yourself in El Paso, it is a pleasantly surprising city. I didn't have much time to explore, but I found two bars, both with good beer selections and different but nice atmospheres. The first is Craft & Social, in the downtown area. It has ~20 beers on tap and a relaxed atmosphere. The other bar is The Hoppy Monk, which boasts over 60 beers on tap and a boisterous atmosphere. From the Monk's patio you can watch thunderstorms roll in over the foothills while sipping a beer.

From El Paso I did my final leg into Midland, and it was far from what I was expecting. The first two hours were spent among small mesas and rolling hills, and only the last hour or so of my drive did the landscape flatten out into endless plains broken up by a multitude of oil rigs.

Welcome to West Texas

Before I got to Midland, I had to stop by Ratliff Stadium, the centerpiece of H.G. Bissinger's 1990 book Friday Night Lights. It was strange to find this stadium on the edge of town, a mile away from its high school with an impressive looking parking lot laid with fresh tar and a press box that could have been at Stanford Stadium. I hope to go to at least one game under the glow of those towers.

Midland has turned out to be a city full of everything I was told it would have: heat, flatness, oil rigs, and a lot of trucks. Needless to say my Prius sticks out like a sore thumb, but no one has given me a hard time for it yet. But I think that this place will have a lot of little surprises in store for me, and I'm excited to find them.

My roommates have been a blast just three days in, showing me good barbeque and hospitality. We're all transplants from California, but they've given me a good start here. I have found it hard to do much during the day due to the heat (regardless if you're in the shade or not) and I'll be glad to get out and start working.

As my job starts I'll continue to post about my experiences, special stories, and whatever else crosses my mind. If you have a questions about something feel free to ask. Until next time, thanks for reading.