Life in Sedona

[Arizona1]

Originally Posted by ExNooYawk

We live in Oregon at present and are happy here but this gloomy weather is getting to me. This is our third winter here and it's not getting any better. I spend so much time in the house. We aren't winter sports people so living near Mt. Ashland does nothing for us. My DH likes to take pictures and I like to play tennis and swim. We're both wonky book people and love to read.

California is out because, well, it's California. So, we have our eye on Sedona. It's dry (supposedly) but has 'enough' rain and a little snow. We haven't been there in awhile but remember all the good stuff from a tourist's POV.

Is finding a house with a pool difficult? Are there scorpions? We've been told that there's not much to do there. We don't care. We don't do much anyway. I'll be happy to sit by the pool, or inside looking out at the lovely landscape, going for walks, batting a few tennis balls and having dinner out. My DH just wants to take pictures.


Comments would be MOST welcome, including sarcastic ones.

In view of the recent light shed on some of the new age cults there, I'd use some caution about going to any church in the area. I'm sure even the traditional conventional churches have added kook UFOisms to the using spiritistic blather.

[Dawn37]

I am considering moving to williams az my H has a brother out there and i want to know more about it.
I like small quaint towns and the idea i can get were i wanta go by walking I have 2 children so what is out there for them and are people pleasant and friendly and any crime?

[adventuregurl]

Originally Posted by poolgirl51

You should give Fork in the Road a try. It is excellent even though the service can be a bit spotty. It is in Tequa Plaza. Enjoy.

will do!

[adventuregurl]

Originally Posted by Arizona1

In view of the recent light shed on some of the new age cults there

Moderator cut: personal If it's the recent sweat lodge deaths, firstly they are currently investigating the retreat leader James Arthur Ray (who is from CA, not Sedona) and his staff, and that wasn't a cult related event. Maybe people saw him as somewhat of a 'guru' which to me is always a little dangerous, but each person has free will. Yes there are some groups that could be called 'cults' here, but they are everywhere, not just in Sedona....to exist in this world you have to have a bit of a backbone and make good choices for yourself, and if you can't do that, then you will run into problems anywhere you live.

I don't go to the churches here but it's not because I think they are cults and will hook me in but more because I feel closer to god while out on the red rocks.

[mohawkx]

Originally Posted by adventuregurl

Moderator cut: orphaned quote firstly they are currently investigating the retreat leader James Arthur Ray (who is from CA, not Sedona) and his staff, and that wasn't a cult related event. Maybe people saw him as somewhat of a 'guru' which to me is always a little dangerous, but each person has free will. Yes there are some groups that could be called 'cults' here, but they are everywhere, not just in Sedona....to exist in this world you have to have a bit of a backbone and make good choices for yourself, and if you can't do that, then you will run into problems anywhere you live.

I don't go to the churches here but it's not because I think they are cults and will hook me in but more because I feel closer to god while out on the red rocks.

Moderator cut: personal attack
Living in the area for quite a while I would say that there are all the standard denominations of worship available in Sedona and some alternate spriritual paths for those that seek them. Many people who seek spiritual comfort come to Sedona as it is known as a spiritual center. It follows that Cult leaders will come to Sedona to recruit members and relieve them of their money.

[bongofury]

The Sedona sweat lodge story has been much too long-lived in the national and local news. The biggest Sedona news stories usually involve local politics and events in town such as the infrequent flooding and/or area fires. Sedona is frequently characterized as having too many spiritual kooks and New Age seekers. The former are few and far between, and the latter are a minority of the population and almost always rather benign people seeking some personal educational/spiritual quest. Most Sedona residents are quite community-minded like most anywhere in mainstream America. Local Sedona churches are like most anywhere in America - I've been to plenty of them. Believe it or not much of Sedona is populated by people and visited by people you'd consider moderates in their thinking - neither to far right nor to far left, but right about in the middle. I find the red rocks inspiring in their beauty, but looking at them everyday when I lived and drove to work from the Village of Oak Creek took a bit of the luster off the experience. Sedona is a tough place to secure a living wage job (I kid you not), and it is a mix of tourists, retirees, rednecks, old timers, second homers, timeshare hawkers, retailers, and working folks commuting in from Cottonwood and Cornville. I knew Sedona locals who drove up to Flagstaff five days a week to teach at Northern Arizona University (which I'd much prefer over going to Phoenix to work). Even some Sedona residents with million dollar + houses have to work too! Here's an idea: Make your reservations and come eat at Elote in Sedona on a Friday/Saturday evening and rub shoulders with Margarita inebriated locals and visitors, and don't be surprised if half the diners seem to be from California - they just can't get enough of Sedona and the Grand Canyon, and who can blame them?