How about Tahlequah? (Oklahoma City, Tulsa, Jenks: trip , work, homes)

[gonefishing]

The Nickel Family Nature and Wildlife Preserve, a 15,000 acre site is near Tahlequah and has wild elk.

[pejuta]

hi. nice seeing south dakota here. i lived in rapid city,and now spearfish. im a nomad. cold isnt so bad as sun in this part of country in winter. dry cold too not as bad as wet. rapid city has dangerous traffic. i also fell on ice there and broke wrist. dr didnt put cast on right and i ended up with more problems. i take a pinch of cayenne pepper powder with a meal (never on empty stomach) everyday for arthritis pain and find it helps circulation and cold weather much more tolerable. people here just wear padded jackets, sweaters,shirt, and jeans,weatherproof pants when nec. ive seen (and do,too,) people walk in light snow with athletic shoes,so cold isnt much of problem. ice is.

[pejuta]

ive traveled around a lot. lived in diff states. florida panhandle nice. yes,we're all trying to find better place. did you know the car "music" that is so loud and vibrates can and does kill people? i died twice in roswell ,new mexico. luckily came back. it alters the heartbeat of many people and some actually die and cannot be resuscitated. i have known one woman who did die because of it and others who had to go to hosp. also people will come up from behind me on bicycle,running,etc, children and adults, and come so close and i dont know they are there and if i were to take a step the wrong way to avoid a crack or something in sidewalk they could cause me and maybe them serious injury. and people,esp, senior disabled,like me,can die from complications of a fall! now as to not wanting to talk about beliefs other than your own, you are missing out on much. while i am a christian(diff) i also practice some native ways as i have indian ancestors. i read all kinds of things whether i agree or not and can talk on most any subject with most anyone as long as all are respectful. my life has been greatly enriched being this way.

[nativeharmonysings]

For all curious about Tahlequah . . . I was born and raised here. I have traveled much and visited many a town with populations such as ours and I'm glad to to say - there is no other place like Tahlequah. The seasons are always beautfiul here. We have wonderful lakes all around us with beautiful backdrop scenery. We also have the Illinois River that is just a mere 5 minutes from town with all sorts of canoeing businesses. The fall and spring are gorgeous and one must always take time to see the seasonal changes on a drive around beautiful Lake Tenkiller and Cookson Hills.

We are only an hour and 15 minutes from splendid Tulsa (picturesque urbania) and Fayetteville, Arkansas (2nd picturesque urbania). We are a clean town trying to maintain some of our historic integrity. Northeastern State University still utilizes Seminary Hall (formerly Cherokee Female Seminary) from the late 1800's to 1900's. We are home to the Cherokee Nation - a tribe of over 200,000 (and no, we all do not live here ) Annually, we have a celebration called The Cherokee National Holiday and we are host to thousands of visitors that include tourists and tribal participants of many different tribes.

The town really has no "home roots" in racism or discrimination. I'd like to believe that comes about from those whose roots AREN'T here. We do have a diverse population . . . primary Native American (Cherokee but do have other tribes in our midst ); NSU is home to a high Japanese student exchange program; lots of Hispanic population. Really, our population is a mix from of Anglo, African American, Native American/American Indian, Middle Eastern, Chinese, Japanese - we're like a very small "melting pot" and I mean that with no offense to anyone. I can also say that in living here, I know for a fact that the African American population has increased as well; as for intermarriage, we have lots of that too. We have experienced lots of growth in the past several years and many new more "urban" business have found their way here (e.g., Chili's, Lowe's, Wal-Mart Supercenter, Starbucks, Advanced Auto Parts) to our wonderful delight. Also, RUMOR is that we'll have Red Lobster, Walgreens, Wendy's, etc.

We have many a financial institutions to offer just as other towns. We have theater productions, matinees, small scale "Broadway" type shows" - all availabe because we house NSU's Playhouse, Shawnee Theater, the Jazz Lab (yes, BB King came to be with us one year!); variety shows; Down Home Theater (country); other shows via NSU's Fine Arts and local theater as well (via community playhouse or church venues). Once in awhile, there are child cook-offs; plain ole cook-offs. We have the County Fair, the circus comes through once in a while, small carnivals. We are full of surprises!

For hunters and fishermen/women, again, we are close to Lake Tenkiller (beautiful!); Grand Lake (about an hour away); Lake Ft. Gibson; Keystone Lake (1-2 hours); Illinois River; country hunting areas (or if you get in good with one of the locals). By the way, Bass Pro Shop is an hour away in Tulsa.

Last but not least, yes, we have many churches of different faiths (e.g., Baptist (Anglo, Cherokee & one African American), Methodist (anglo and Cherokee congregations), Catholic, Episcopal, Lutheran, Latter Day Saints (Mormon); Seven Day Adventist, Unitarian, Jehovah's Witness, etc. The some are culturally specific, NO, they are not exclusive in their membership for all are invited to The Table - I have attended all at some point in time. Please, Jerry Faldwell will not be standing at your door (unless you want him to). We all seem to live our lives the way we want to regardless of anyone else's view points (even the criminals which we have very few of - meaning, we're not LA or NYC). Our crime rate is really low compared to the national average and other comparable towns our size (per Tahlequah PD).

I just can't say enough about this beautiful town I grew up in - I always said that if I ever moved away, I would always come back here because no other town/city is like Tahlequah. Yes, I am a [i]little[i] biased, but hey, this is MY town!

So, just come and see for yourselves - I think you'll like us, nope, wait, I KNOW you'll like us Oh yeah, and we have wonderful long-time, hometown bakery called Morgan's bakery and for years all of us remember growing up with "The Tiger Cookie" - can't tell you how YUMMY this treat is - every child should experience this cookie growing up while walking with friends after school!!

And, we have our own little speciality shops with the latest trends as well as yes, a Health Food Store (you know, organic, wholesome and healthy - YUM!)

Thanks for listening and believe me, I could write more and more and more and more and more and more and more

[jessaka]

nativeharmonysings,

do you work for the chamber of commerce? lol. I live in Tahlequah too, so I can vouch for all that you are saying. And if you do, i want to say that we need a used book store--a really good one. so we are now getting a red lobster, wendy's, and walgreens? what we also need are some really good ethnic restaurants, and i don't mean mexican and chinese, but greek, thai, vietnamese, east indian, etc.

when is the cherokee national holiday?

you know what else we need, now that we have the red fern festival and are heading in the right direction? a chistmas fest. they started one in my home town, and it is so neat. they decorate the victorian houses on a few blocks of the same street, and then they have people dressed up as characters in The Christmas Carol, and scrooge stands on the balcony of one house and yells at everyone--bah humbug, what are you looking at, etc. other read stories to the kids, probably the christmas carol, they have hay rides and food booths.

but if you are not from the chamber of commerce, first time i meet one or our lovely major, i will suggest it.

i can also say that the hometown plays here are really good. i just went to see The Plot last Sunday, and they served a wonderful lunch beforehand.

Does Morgan's Bakery still make tiger cookies?

[91marquis]

Originally Posted by Jammie

Ponderosa, you're not crazy about thinking of OK. We're also looking at OK for a future place to live with a bit nicer climate then we have in So. Dak. We know several people who have been there and they love it there. I guess the people are friendly and even the drivers are supposed to be courteous there. Can you imagine that for a town Tulsa's size? The cost of living seems very reasonable and they have a long summer and a short winter. I have a friend who's sister works in Tahlequah as a nurse in the hospital. She commutes, but loves the town. I'm sure they may be more glamourous places to live then OK, but they have a nice climate, reasonable cost of living, supposedly have friendly people, employment, etc. Sounds like the place for me. Oh, and only three more weeks and we'll know if we like it there or not. We'll be taking our first trip to the Tulsa area. We also hope to stop by Grove either on our way down there or home. It's supposed to be very nice there. Happy hunting and I hope you find what you're looking for.l

Grove is very nice, wife and I stayed at Shangra-La one weekend. But a word of warning to anyone, and I'm a Tulsa Paramedic. The drivers in Tulsa are some of the worst I've ever seen. There are way too many vehicles for the current traffic flow design of the streets. A 4 mile trip to school can take an hour and a half. Motorcyclists should be very alert. The Tulsa Police do not aggressively discourage dangerous drivers, and it shows. Fatalities are far too common. I've lived in Houston, Albuquerque, OKC, Orlando and L.A. Some folks are very openly racist in Tulsa. There was a significant race-riot here in 1921 and there are still hard feelings. I'm pleased to say I'll be leaving soon.

[jessaka]

But that is Tulsa. This is Tahlequah, and drivers here are very courteous. I have not seen any open racism here, but the day is young.

[Jammie]

91, thanks for the heads up about the traffic. We were actually a bit concerned about driving in Tulsa since we didn't know our way around and we knew it'd be heavy traffic. But actually, we were pleasantly surprised. We thought that the drivers were quite considerate OR were just scared of us cause we had an out of state license plate. But since you live there and deal with the accident part of it, we will be more cautious and aware the next time down there.

[Kurt]

Hey, you all. Been reading all the nice stuff about Tahlequah. Since I have a place on the very south end of Grand Lake and like the area down by Eucha and Spavinaw, I don't feel all that far away from you folks. Actually, Grove is about 35 miles northeast of me, but it is the biggest town in my county--Delaware.

Jammie: If you are looking for employment, I suppose Tahlequah is a better bet as it is larger. Tulsa sounds too big for me. I am so chicken of the traffic that I now fly into Bentonville rather than Tulsa. Of course, Bentonville is a lot closer to my neck of the woods than Tulsa. Can't wait to hear the report of your trip. I cannot breakaway from my work to visit again until the last week in July.

I am thinking that if I want some of the ambiance of a college town I will have to just buzz down to Tahlequah for a visit. When I do actually live on south Grand I can see myself really liking that corridor beween between Jay and Tahlequah along the Illinois River.

I hear so much about Ten Killer. It is indeed clear and deep. Being from Northern Minnesota--as one poster noted--I am not really into clay and muddy water. That is why I had to be on the very south end of Grand Lake near the dam as the water is deeper and clearer there. I do not think you can build much on Ten Killer, though, as it is mostly public lands. I know you cannot put in a dock or boat house. That is not necessarily bad as it will keep it more pristine--but I need a lake where I can own to the shore and have a dock. So that means Grand for me.

I still go for Grove-Grand Lake because I am reliving my boyhood on a lake in Northern Minnesota in a warmer climate and the whole economy and lifestyle is built around the lake-resort feel that I want.

But as Tahlequah grows it will probably be my preference for specialty medical needs and some culture. Goodness, you even have a Starbucks! That has not come to Grove, yet. Grove is growing but is definitely a tourist town. But I grew up in a resort town in Minnesota, so that is really what I like. Not for everybody. And it is going to get more expensive here than in Tahlequah, but there are many outlying areas away from the waterfront that remain reasonably priced. Tahlequah is also a bit closer to major urban area of BA, Muskogee, Tulsa.

I hear Big Eufala Lake is often pretty muddy. Waterfront appears to be cheapest there. Well, I ramble, but it is great to hear from Jessaka, et. al. about Tahlequah.

Three cheers for Oklahoma's Green Country from North to South. I hear Poteau is a nice place, too.

[Jammie]

Poteau is a beautiful place and it's not too far from the Talihena Drive. It is sort of nestled in the hills and a lot of homes are built WAY up in the hills. It looks like a perfect retirement spot, but I don't know if I'd recommend it for someone who is still working.

Tahlequah does sound very nice. I believe I've mentioned that I have a friend who's sister works at the hospital there. She lives in Muskogee, but works in Tahlequah. They both just have the best things to say about the town.