[sameoldsonganddance]

I have been reading through these posts, and see a lot of people who want to move to a small town. I l have lived in the Bay area, Las Vegas, Nv, OKC and the central valley of California, and a midsize city in Louisiana. I also lived in a small town in Northern California. I am currently living in Eufaula, Oklahoma.
Its pretty here. But, thats about all I can say about it. My husband fell in love with the lake. Which he NEVER goes to, because he works all the time. I grew up in Louisiana and California. Here are my observations. I am not putting anyone or any place down. Everyone seems to think a small town is better for kids. Well... That depends on HOW small. When it is so small there is no theater or shopping centers or a place for kids to go, they find "something" to do. And in my experience, it is often alcohol and drugs. Remember, small towns have drug problems too. Eufaula is a good example of that. I never had anything stolen in the cities. When we moved to Oklahoma, we have been hit hard by thieves. We had two storage units broken into. In different places, at different times. Our tags were stolen, our lawn mower, etc. We even had some guys just drive up into our yard, back the truck up and try to hitch up to our utility trailer to steal it AND our riding mower. (The first utility trailer was stolen in OKC!) Boy, were they surprised when my daughter came out with the shotgun! Anyway, I find it odd that we have had more stuff stolen in a small town and in Oklahoma than ALL the years we lived in the city. Keep in mind there is not much in the way of entertainment in a small town either. There is always so much hype about small town life. Some of its good and some of its bad. Its subjective.

[115db]

It depends on the small town. I know some people near OKC who really havent had any problems in the decade theyve lived there except maybe occaisionally some kids form the school will go topple a few grave markers over, at the cemetary. Its when people from other areas move in there (to any small town), they bring their lifestyles and crime with them. But to each their own. No place is going to be 100% perfect every time, but the more people somewhere=the more chances of crimes. We've been to Lake Eufaula and its so serene there but it depends on which part of the lake, its so big, that you go to I suppose.

[Goodpasture]

Originally Posted by Livewire

It depends on the small town.

It also depends on the way people react when they move to a small town.

Originally Posted by sameoldsonganddance

Everyone seems to think a small town is better for kids. Well... That depends on HOW small. When it is so small there is no theater or shopping centers or a place for kids to go, they find "something" to do. And in my experience, it is often alcohol and drugs.

Theaters and shopping centers don't have drug, alcohol, and unprotected sex problems?

Originally Posted by sameoldsonganddance

We even had some guys just drive up into our yard, back the truck up and try to hitch up to our utility trailer to steal it AND our riding mower. (The first utility trailer was stolen in OKC!) Boy, were they surprised when my daughter came out with the shotgun!

When you were living in a city, was your trailer in your driveway, inside a fenced back yard? Is your current yard fenced? Is it accessible to a side street? Was it "tied down" and locked? Had your daughter brandished a shotgun in defense of your property in the city, would she have been jailed? Would the thieves been able to collect damages for scaring them? In Eufala, had she shot them, she would have been asked a few questions and the cops, most likely, would have thanked her for solving some theft cases for them.

Originally Posted by sameoldsonganddance

Keep in mind there is not much in the way of entertainment in a small town either.

Depends on what you call entertainment. I know FFA kids who stay entertained all year around. If I recall there are a couple of roping arenas in the Eufala area where they have regular ropings....now that is fun to watch, even more fun to do.....and in my opinion beats the heck out of movie theater or hanging out at the mall.

Originally Posted by sameoldsonganddance

There is always so much hype about small town life. Some of its good and some of its bad. Its subjective.

Different stokes, eh? that is the way it works. If we all liked the same things we would be no different than the Borg.........

[Annemieke Roell]

I never allowed my kids to use theaters and shopping malls as forms of entertainment to keep busy. They learned out to chop firewood, cook, sail, grow their own vegetables, etc. Believe me, they were never bored and were allowed to go to the movies or mall (for an hour) as a treat.

Livig right by the lake shold give your kids all kinds of opportunities to learn sailing and other water sports.

[karibear]

Originally Posted by Schousse

I never allowed my kids to use theaters and shopping malls as forms of entertainment to keep busy. They learned out to chop firewood, cook, sail, grow their own vegetables, etc. Believe me, they were never bored and were allowed to go to the movies or mall (for an hour) as a treat.

Livig right by the lake shold give your kids all kinds of opportunities to learn sailing and other water sports.

My kids learned to work for what they wanted as well. They knew all about having to care for animals, gathering firewood, etc, and since we lived on a lake, they also - one of them, anyway - learned to swim. My daughter has been earning her own spending money since she was 8, and my son was out of high school and on his own by 14 or 15, working as a commercial fishermen. There was a movie theater, but once they got older, it was their choice whether to go - when they were smaller, I took them to see things like Star Wars, but I enjoyed those as much as they did. We spent a lot of time in the library, and both still read voraciously.

As for crime and drugs and so on, it's everywhere. Doesn't matter whether it's a small town or a big city. The real difference is that in a small town, you pretty much know who's who, and who's doing what. It's a lot easier to avoid situations in those cases, while the same kinds of things happening in cities seem a lot more random and impersonal, beyond one's control.

I like my small town, anyway. I suppose it has it's share of jerks and racists and rednecks, but they haven't bothered to introduce themselves, so I don't know them. I have nice neighbors, and it didn't take me 6 years or more to get to know them, either. When I was growing up in an urban area, we lived next door or across the street from the same people for literally years and never knew anything about them other than perhaps their names - not even always their names. When I first got here and was staying at Camp Peaceful, there were some storms and heavy rains, and after nearly every one, someone would drive down to check on me and make sure I was okay, and I have no idea who any of them were. The only other place I've ever been where people worried about their neighbors was my nearly as small town in Alaska.

[Mattie Jo]

I grew up in a small town, and I didn't have the TV, toys, computers, etc. I spent my time at the river with my dog. I did other things as well, but I don't recall what, and I was never bored as a child. After I grew up and moved away my mom said that people from Los Angeles were moving here to get their kids away from crime, and lo and behold my hometown got gangs and drugs.

Kids do not know how to entertain themselves anymore. Okay, I remember some things. On Saturdays I would go to the movies. In the summer to the swimming pool. Also I would play with my friends. Or I would go downtown and try on men's hats, saying that I was looking for a gift for my dad, and no one told me that I should get out of the store. I also tried on women's hats. I went to the library and got books to read. I had tropical fish, so I was always busy taking care of them too.

[_redbird_]

Originally Posted by sameoldsonganddance

I am currently living in Eufaula, Oklahoma.
Its pretty here. But, thats about all I can say about it. My husband fell in love with the lake. Which he NEVER goes to, because he works all the time.

Sorry to hear about your husband having to work all the time. That happens in our small town too. Just kidding.

Seriously, get a dog. Thieves usually look for easy targets. And thieves are usually meth heads, so they don't want a stupid dog raising a racket. We have a huge GSD, but our dog would most likely lick them to death, but most thieves don't want to take that chance.

Could be those people who ripped you off were meth heads. And I am sorry you had to be the one they targeted.

On the other hand, if your daughter pulled a shotgun on someone in Los Angeles, they would most likely be back within an hour doing a drive by.

Still, I will take rural life over Fresno, CA, Los Angeles, or any city anywhere including my beloved Lost Wages, NV.

Why just last night I was sitting outside around 10:00 pm or so and looking up at the night sky and saw the Milky Way. You can't buy that. Its so quiet here, no sirens, and no drive-by's, no idiots playing their car radios so loud with that stupid THWUMP BOOOM BOOOM tsss BOOOM going all day and all night.

I realize that getting ripped off was a cold slap of reality, but at least you are more aware now and it might save you and your family a lot of heartache in the future.

Good luck in the future wherever you live and I hope you don't let the worst of the past sour your outlook on future life.

Whenever you are bored, take a few moments to read this: The Homicide Report | South L.A.: Man killed in drive-by | Los Angeles Times

I read that blog every week to remind of where I came from and also to remind me no frickin mall is worth living in that type of setting. I grew up in Southeast Los Angeles! I also have stories that will curl your hair about crime in Oklahoma. C'est la vie.

[Synopsis]

I'm sorry that you were ripped off, but I have to agree with the other folks who responded. I find the city, with all of the restaurants, malls, sporting venues and such a bore. If I want to have a really good time I travel to the country and get on the lake or a hiking trail. Or, like Redbird said, just to see the stars is wonderful; you can't see that in this city I live in with more than six million people.

Different strokes for different folks like Goodpasture said. Also, when I was growing up I didn't need a mall to entertain me; I had the most fun in my life damming up a creek or climbing trees. I realize that kids don't do that anymore, but perhaps they should. I also worked my rear end of bailing hay, painting houses, or mowing lawns.

Again, I'm sorry you were ripped off and hope this doesn't ever happen to you again. Take precautions as others have advised. Tie things down, put a fence up, get a big dog, and have faith in that shotgun wielding daughter you have. Good for her!

[autotech4dallas]

All I can say is that when you are traveling through small town on U.S. Highway 75, look out for OHP. Especially when you are heading to Dallas on that route.

[briansgi]

Originally Posted by sameoldsonganddance

I have been reading through these posts, and see a lot of people who want to move to a small town. I l have lived in the Bay area, Las Vegas, Nv, OKC and the central valley of California, and a midsize city in Louisiana. I also lived in a small town in Northern California. I am currently living in Eufaula, Oklahoma.
Its pretty here. But, thats about all I can say about it. My husband fell in love with the lake. Which he NEVER goes to, because he works all the time. I grew up in Louisiana and California. Here are my observations. I am not putting anyone or any place down. Everyone seems to think a small town is better for kids. Well... That depends on HOW small. When it is so small there is no theater or shopping centers or a place for kids to go, they find "something" to do. And in my experience, it is often alcohol and drugs. Remember, small towns have drug problems too. Eufaula is a good example of that. I never had anything stolen in the cities. When we moved to Oklahoma, we have been hit hard by thieves. We had two storage units broken into. In different places, at different times. Our tags were stolen, our lawn mower, etc. We even had some guys just drive up into our yard, back the truck up and try to hitch up to our utility trailer to steal it AND our riding mower. (The first utility trailer was stolen in OKC!) Boy, were they surprised when my daughter came out with the shotgun! Anyway, I find it odd that we have had more stuff stolen in a small town and in Oklahoma than ALL the years we lived in the city. Keep in mind there is not much in the way of entertainment in a small town either. There is always so much hype about small town life. Some of its good and some of its bad. Its subjective.

Why do you feel like your kids, or any kids for that matter, need to be entertained?? I grew up in the boonies in SE Kansas and couldn't have been happier with my childhood. Our closest neighbor was 1 1/2 mile down the gravel road, we grew up with party line telephones, remember those? We had no issue staying busy, you know why, because we entertained ourselves by hunting/fishing/reading/playing baseball with your siblings, etc. Raise your kids properly and quit relying on other things to entertain them and you won't worry about being in an environment that you have to worry about them getting into trouble. There was drugs around me, even growing up in the 60's, even in the remote area I grew up, yet I knew enough to stay away from those things.