[brad84720]

My partner recently brought up the idea of moving back to his home state of OK and living a "simpler life" on a farm. I am very intrigued by the idea of doing this and we're planning a trip out to some towns south of Tulsa to give me a sense of the area and what things are like.

I'm wondering if you can offer this southern Californian (now living in a small town in Utah) some advice on what to check out when we're there. I've read some of your thoughts on the goods/bads and realities of life in Oklahoma. What would you recommend to a big city guy looking at life in a small Oklahoma town?

[Synopsis]

I'd recommend that you live within an hour commute of a large city like Tulsa or OkC so you can go into town and get things that you are accustomed to but still far enough out to have the "country" feel.

Terlton, where GP lives is a very small town but within 45 minutes of Tulsa.

There are an untold number of small towns and rural areas in and around the Tulsa and metro OkC areas.

[Goodpasture]

When appraising in that area, I look for potential environmental problems such as oil spots. I look for indications of flooding or standing water. I like to see if there is any real dirt there....can it be gardened or is the soil so rocky you have to bring in dirt and do raised beds. A personal preference is to not be too near either hog or chicken facilities.

Try and get at least 10 acres. That is sufficient to keep one horse, a cow or two, or llamas, goats or sheep. Try to be outside any city limits so there won't be any problem with livestock and poultry. If you buy an existing house make sure the appraiser knows rural properties. Check for termites, rodents, and other infestations. If you are looking at a manufactured house, make sure there are no soft spots on the floors, look particularly around the shower and toilet....that is where they tend to go first....there and along the underfloor duct work (condensation, shower dripping and guys missing will do in a floor in short order).

Most people in Oklahoma have a live and let live attitude unless you get in their face with an alternate lifestyle, religious faith, or political opinion.....if you are a lesbian wiccan biker communist, keep it to yourself. Frequently you will find hard core conservative democrats in the country as well.....I have several neighbors who are democrat and have voted republican since Nixon.....they tend to vote Republican nationally and Democratic locally.

What else do you want to know? The lowest cost and best feed for animals can be found at a local feed mill........I prefer the mixed grains for my geese and chickens that are all natural local mixes rather than a Purina/ADM-type medicated production run product available at most retail stores.

[_redbird_]

Do you want to live in a small town or on a farm? Most folks who farm live in rural areas ~outside~ of small towns.

If you live in rural Oklahoma, you can forget about keeping your car clean. Here is the road to Hooterville from our place. It floods during heavy rains. Keeps the city folks out!



There is more privacy in living rural. I work with a townie and he knows all the gossip on everyone in Hooterville. It is a reality of life for some people in small towns. Not all people in small town Oklahoma are ultra-baptist or gossipy.

Personally, I could care less what the neighbors do, or WHO the neighbors do, but for some, that is better than TV.

[StillwaterTownie]

I wouldn't live in the country unless the road that goes by the place was paved or asphalted.

[karibear]

I'd be sure to check on the quality of water available. City water - which can run to some rural areas - can be safe to drink, but still taste bad enough to drive one to the nearest place that sells beer. I live in a small city and have city water, but the only ones who drink it straight are the dogs and the horse. I use Brita filter pitchers, they work great - or just let it set on the stove and boil it once, then it's okay too. More of my neighbors have wells than don't, and I'm thinking about it as a future possibility. But there are also places where oil well drilling has caused problems with wells, so you want to make sure any well on the property is good, too.

[_redbird_]

Originally Posted by StillwaterTownie

I wouldn't live in the country unless the road that goes by the place was paved or asphalted.

LOL~! I hear you, and our paper delivery girl felt the same way. She even refused to deliver our paper after a good rain. And I thought Hooterville girls were tough!

My Honda takes the dirt roads fine and I have never had any car problems from the roads.

On the other hand, we grew up with dirt roads. To me, they represent "home". My earliest memories were of my Grandmother's house in rural SW Oklahoma with the long dirt driveway and all the dirt roads surrounding her home.

A paved road is good for clean cars and may be convenient, but a gravel road leads to peace and tranquility.

[karibear]

Originally Posted by redbird4848

LOL~! I hear you, and our paper delivery girl felt the same way. She even refused to deliver our paper after a good rain. And I thought Hooterville girls were tough!

My Honda takes the dirt roads fine and I have never had any car problems from the roads.

On the other hand, we grew up with dirt roads. To me, they represent "home". My earliest memories were of my Grandmother's house in rural SW Oklahoma with the long dirt driveway and all the dirt roads surrounding her home.

A paved road is good for clean cars and may be convenient, but a gravel road leads to peace and tranquility.

Gravel roads also lead to some serious washboarding and frost boils in the spring. But poor quality pavement can also result in some spectacular slippage, too, on a steep hill. What was originally the main road leading out of town where I lived in AK was a corduroy road built originally by the Russian fur traders, and when the city finally decided to redo and pave it around 15 years ago, they had to dig down as much as 12' in some places to get below the old logs. The big problem for vehicles there wasn't the roads, it was the salt air. It rotted cars and trucks in no time.

[HeatherDawn]

Lord, I hate living in town. I feel like my neighbors are all up in my business. I just gotta make it to December! LOL it's like that old song, "If We Make it Through December".

Brad, I think you're gonna have to get more specific with your questions before you're going to get much substantive advice.

[mkfarnam]

Originally Posted by StillwaterTownie

I wouldn't live in the country unless the road that goes by the place was paved or asphalted.

Now that's what I call a City Slicker...

The Dairy farm I was raised on was on a 5 mi. gravel road that I had to walk to school on.