[old_grouch]

My husband and I noticed that Oklahoma was the only state where every county voted Republican. We are seriously considering leaving the Northeast for an area where we can feel more compatible with the majority of residents. We have lived most of our lives in this area where this is not the case. I would be interested in suggestions for areas of Oklahoma where you think there is strong support for smaller government, Second Amendment, property rights, sanctity of life, and the original Constitution, and where it might stay that way for a while.

I lived in Harrah, Oklahoma from 1979-1981, and found it a very relaxed friendly place. We live in the country and would be looking for enough property that my husband could have a little shooting range and no one would hear our barking dogs because we have a breed that tends to be barky. My husband is a potter, and we currently sell from our home studio and at local shows. Any suggestions of areas to look into would be appreciated.

[linicx]

Oklahoma is kind peculiar. it is not unusual to have Democrats run the city and vote Republican in national offices. I think you might like NE OK and a town called Grove. Hunting, dogs, guns, boats and fishing are the norm. There is plenty of county space to buy; the prices are reasonable. The City fathers are progressive thinking but they keep the cost of living down. You'll find chain stores, mom and pop stores, plenty of activities, several very good restaurants., pretty good docs and hospital, history, a terrific library, bowling alley, golf course, skating ring, lake cruises, character, volunteeris, and a lot of very nice people. I suppose due to the influx of retirees from different parts of the US, Grover residents never learn to be snobby. The local cops are as much tourist guide as law enforcers. It's really a neat town. I lived there 15 years. There are several churches. Religion is never an issue but politics get a little heated. Most mornings you;ll find the farmers and rancers in the restaurant on Main Street talking crops and stock. On rainy days you'll find them in Walmart looking bored while the wife shops. The downside is proximity. If you want true upscale shopping and dining, the closest you'll find it is Tulsa or KC. .

[Synopsis]

Down in the area I'm from (Ada/Allen/Gerty) is a very relaxed environment. Gerty is a small town of 85 about 2 miles off highway 75 in the East/Southeastern corner of the state. It's about as laid back as it gets. It's in Hughes County.

Holdenville might be another area you want to check out. It's the county seat of Hughes County. It's population is about 4K.

Good luck on your move!

[PanhandleOkie]

I think towns like what you described can be found pretty much statewide, I guess maybe be a little more specific about what your looking for. Conveniences? Scenery? Activities?

[colleeng47]

Originally Posted by linicx

Oklahoma is kind peculiar. it is not unusual to have Democrats run the city and vote Republican in national offices. I think you might like NE OK and a town called Grove. Hunting, dogs, guns, boats and fishing are the norm. There is plenty of county space to buy; the prices are reasonable. The City fathers are progressive thinking but they keep the cost of living down. You'll find chain stores, mom and pop stores, plenty of activities, several very good restaurants., pretty good docs and hospital, history, a terrific library, bowling alley, golf course, skating ring, lake cruises, character, volunteeris, and a lot of very nice people. I suppose due to the influx of retirees from different parts of the US, Grover residents never learn to be snobby. The local cops are as much tourist guide as law enforcers. It's really a neat town. I lived there 15 years. There are several churches. Religion is never an issue but politics get a little heated. Most mornings you;ll find the farmers and rancers in the restaurant on Main Street talking crops and stock. On rainy days you'll find them in Walmart looking bored while the wife shops. The downside is proximity. If you want true upscale shopping and dining, the closest you'll find it is Tulsa or KC. .

That was great info, linicx, thanks for posting it. I never knew all of that about Grove.

[old_grouch]

Thanks for your replies, linicx and Synopsis and PanhandleOkie. PanhandleOkie, those are good questions. As far as conveniences, a nice supermarket not too far (within 20 miles) and a good lumberyard/hardware store, those seem to be the stores we frequent the most. Broadband access -- am I assuming too much that this is available everywhere? Or are there areas of OK with only dial-up? We like rural areas and the outdoors.

Where we live now in PA, it was rural but over the last 30 years and especially the last 10 years, it is overflowing with people from NYC and NJ, who are rapidly changing the area into what they moved away from. So we would like an area that is likely not to be a mecca for city folks for a while.

We were looking at the southern half of OK and also Texas over the border -- I need to look at the tax situation more -- because there is a good clay supplier in Dallas -- we have a pottery studio and the further supplies have to be shipped the more expensive. We have family in Houston, but that is too humid for us, plus we don't want city. As I remember OKC wasn't very humid, but when I look at the humidity charts, the numbers in OKC aren't that different from Philadelphia, which seems odd to me.

This is a longterm project, because we have elderly parents here now, and also I am not retired yet. But we are thinking of planning a driving trip maybe next year to explore.

[colleeng47]

Originally Posted by old_grouch

Thanks for your replies, linicx and Synopsis and PanhandleOkie. PanhandleOkie, those are good questions. As far as conveniences, a nice supermarket not too far (within 20 miles) and a good lumberyard/hardware store, those seem to be the stores we frequent the most. Broadband access -- am I assuming too much that this is available everywhere? Or are there areas of OK with only dial-up? We like rural areas and the outdoors.

Where we live now in PA, it was rural but over the last 30 years and especially the last 10 years, it is overflowing with people from NYC and NJ, who are rapidly changing the area into what they moved away from. So we would like an area that is likely not to be a mecca for city folks for a while.

We were looking at the southern half of OK and also Texas over the border -- I need to look at the tax situation more -- because there is a good clay supplier in Dallas -- we have a pottery studio and the further supplies have to be shipped the more expensive. We have family in Houston, but that is too humid for us, plus we don't want city. As I remember OKC wasn't very humid, but when I look at the humidity charts, the numbers in OKC aren't that different from Philadelphia, which seems odd to me.

This is a longterm project, because we have elderly parents here now, and also I am not retired yet. But we are thinking of planning a driving trip maybe next year to explore.

We moved here from NJ - right outside of Philly - and we found the humidity in OKC to be much more bearable than where we moved from. I don't understand the numbers, either, because it was certainly hotter than NJ, but not as humid. Good luck with your move. Let us know if you need anything else.

[karibear]

Originally Posted by old_grouch

Thanks for your replies, linicx and Synopsis and PanhandleOkie. PanhandleOkie, those are good questions. As far as conveniences, a nice supermarket not too far (within 20 miles) and a good lumberyard/hardware store, those seem to be the stores we frequent the most. Broadband access -- am I assuming too much that this is available everywhere? Or are there areas of OK with only dial-up? We like rural areas and the outdoors.

Where we live now in PA, it was rural but over the last 30 years and especially the last 10 years, it is overflowing with people from NYC and NJ, who are rapidly changing the area into what they moved away from. So we would like an area that is likely not to be a mecca for city folks for a while.

We were looking at the southern half of OK and also Texas over the border -- I need to look at the tax situation more -- because there is a good clay supplier in Dallas -- we have a pottery studio and the further supplies have to be shipped the more expensive. We have family in Houston, but that is too humid for us, plus we don't want city. As I remember OKC wasn't very humid, but when I look at the humidity charts, the numbers in OKC aren't that different from Philadelphia, which seems odd to me.

This is a longterm project, because we have elderly parents here now, and also I am not retired yet. But we are thinking of planning a driving trip maybe next year to explore.

I'll second what Synopsis said. Hughes County is a good place, even Holdenville is pretty laid-back and easy going. I'll also second Colleeng regarding the humidity. I grew up in St Louis, where the humidity in the summer generally matched the temps, then spent over 30 years on an island in Alaska, where it was not only always humid, but rained constantly - not a downpour, but a steady drizzle day after day. It just doesn't feel as humid here, no matter what the numbers say. Hughes County is also fine horse country, and if you have a big enough parcel it should be pretty easy to build your own shooting range. All you need is a high enough berm with a stack of hay bales on each side, and there seem to be plenty of people willing to do cat work. As for taxes, I also looked into moving to Texas, but the property taxes seemed awfully high. You'd save more in real estate tax, living in OK, than you'd spend having clay shipped. Or you could combine a trip to your relatives in Houston with a stop in Dallas to get a pickup load of clay and glazes - that way you'd kill two birds with one stone. And you might even find a place with usable clay on it - that would be really neat to work with. Most places have either broadband or satellite, and you can also get a decent package if you combine it with TV and cell phone. There are decent lumber yards, hardware stores, and grocery stores in most of the small to medium sized towns - not a lot of frills like ingredients for various African or Asian cooking, but more than enough variety to make up for it. And there's always on-line ordering.

[Synopsis]

The property taxes in Texas are out of this world high. The only drawback I see as to living in Holdenville (for you) is the broadband Internet. I'd much rather live in the Holdenville area, but Ada has broadband Internet and there are plenty of places to shop and eat, and they have a University which always seems to be good for a community. Ada is also about four times larger than Holdenville and they have a regional Hospital (Valley View), as well as an Indian Hopspital as it is the Headquarters of the Chickasaw Nation.

I'm partial to Hughes County because that is where I grew up, but I was born in Ada and lived many years there in my younger days (oh, I never thought I'd say THAT, "younger days.." )

[karibear]

Originally Posted by Synopsis

The property taxes in Texas are out of this world high. The only drawback I see as to living in Holdenville (for you) is the broadband Internet. I'd much rather live in the Holdenville area, but Ada has broadband Internet and there are plenty of places to shop and eat, and they have a University which always seems to be good for a community. Ada is also about four times larger than Holdenville and they have a regional Hospital (Valley View), as well as an Indian Hopspital as it is the Headquarters of the Chickasaw Nation.

I'm partial to Hughes County because that is where I grew up, but I was born in Ada and lived many years there in my younger days (oh, I never thought I'd say THAT, "younger days.." )

Holdenville has AT&T broadband, plus landline, cell phones that actually work here, and one of the TV packages. The other high speed internet works on a line of sight thing, RB and Peggy have that, but where I am is too low/has too many trees. There is also Hughes Net, but I've heard more negative things about them than positive, though I have some friends in rural NW Louisiana who are happy with it. There's also a hospital here, but the doctor situation seems a bit weird. I just heard today that anyone expecting a baby needs to go to either Ada or Shawnee to have it. Ada is only about 40 miles away, but still... However, the entire state of WA has had a lot of trouble keeping OB's because of the humongous cost of malpractice insurance. Seems like when something goes wrong, someone blames the doctor and gets litigious, even if the rate of complications are low and a lot of them could be more appropriately attributed to poor to non-existant prenatal care or just plain fate. I mean, it's not the doc's fault if the expectant mother drinks like a fish or does drugs.

As for that 'younger days,' welcome to life in my world. Every once in awhile if I catch sight of myself in a mirror accidently, I wonder what my gran is doing in there!