I just visited Lubbock, and was impressed by several things. There was actually a possibility that I would move there, given the fact that New Mexico, where I now live, has become unsustainable for family reasons. Certain family members have to find a place to live, and Lubbock was a possibility. We lived there 2012-2016, and I still have a fondness for the place.

First, as a city, it's incredibly manageable. It's easy to get around. It doesn't confuse you or get you lost much. When you have an address you can figure out where it is. It has everything but it's not too big. Well, not everything - no major-league baseball, for example, but Tech provides most of that excitement pretty well. And its airport is functional and accessible.

Second, my friends there are still close friends. Something about the ultraconservative nature of it makes it so all of us in the "other" category have a lot in common. And they have stayed friends even over the five or six years we have been gone.

My joke as a musician went something like this: Person 1: "Lubbock is so hot, and dry, and dusty, and flat, and miserable, about all you can do is sit around playing music." Person 2: "Yeah, that's what I like about it."