[isande]

My family and I plan to relocate somewhere in a few months and we're thinking hard about Oklahoma. We've really only done our research on Durant, so there may be a better place for us -- please let me know if you have other suggestions.

So far, from what I've seen, Durant has pretty much everything we're looking for. Woods, interesting weather (plenty of rain/thunderstorms and something resembling four seasons), cheap property, hunting & fishing, gathering (wild mushrooms, nuts, berries, etc.)...

But there are a few things we're still wondering about --

Snow! We've been in the far, far south of Texas (right on the tip, near McAllen) for about seven years now. We would like to live somewhere where there is at least *some* snow in the winter, even if it's not a whole lot.

Broadband is an absolute must. No way around it, at least 1.5 mb (we have 6 mb now) DSL or cable. Satellite or dialup won't do -- I'm a freelancer and get paid on piecework... slow Internet will kill my effective hourly rate.

Availability of rentals. 3 BR apartment would be okay, but a house would be better. Doesn't have to be super-nice or super-cheap but I do need to be confident I can find a place to rent in a fairly short period of time. (Better yet if there's not a credit check involved... my credit got trashed by my ex-husband when I was divorced a few years ago and I'm still recovering *sigh*)

Attitudes/tolerance... this is only important really in the context of school for our daughter. We're not social people, which isn't to say that we aren't friendly, but we don't really develop friendships with people. We don't care to go out and we don't really like to entertain people in our home either.

What does matter is that our daughter (entering Kindergarten in the fall) isn't ostracized because she comes from an atheist household, and that my husband doesn't run into problems when he's the one going to parent-teacher conferences and whatnot. He's a stay-at-home dad.

I'm a little paranoid about this because I had some really horrible experiences growing up in a small town in SW Missouri during the 80s and early 90s. Not just the kids, but the teachers too. When questioned (after politely declining an invitation to join an after-school Christian group), I finally admitted I wasn't a Christian and was bullied relentlessly, had to deal with stage whispers by teachers, pelted with thrown Bibles... the whole works. I really don't want my daughter to experience this kind of thing.

Another situation I ran into in SW Missouri growing up that I would like to avoid was the sidewalk-prayer-gangbang. I was frequently accosted by salesmen for Christianity who would literally surround me and insist that I pray with them. These guys wouldn't take no for an answer and it was very, very uncomfortable.

We do want someplace rural, where we can settle down with a nice parcel of 10 or 20 wooded acres and maybe a fixer-upper. We'd rather not be too close to a large city like Tulsa or OKC.

Thoughts?

--K

[Amazonchix]

I think the plus side to Durant would be that it is a college town, so there are more libral views than many your typical small towns. I'm very familiar with that area. You should be able to get the internet access you need without issue. But call the Chamber of Commerce to check on that...or a local internet provider for that area. I do think that with regards to religion you should continue to be who you guys are. The world is made up of diversity for a reason. Personally, I never attended church while I lived there...nor was it pushed on me (that I can recall)...but it was a big event to some. If I was invited, I thanked them for the offer but declined and shared that it wasn't my thing. Since this is a college town, this town has exploded with new homes and apartments. You may contact a local realtor to ask about rentals...yes, some realtors help with home rentals. As for snow...Durant gets snow may be once a year. Typically it is nothing more than a few inches. I know you are wanted acres of wooded land...and I am sure that exists in Durant...but that may push you out towards even smaller towns that I can not attest for.

[blueyedgurl79]

My husband and I lived in Durant for a year and we loved it there. It's got the small town feel but it has pretty much everything that you need there. If you want to go shopping with a variety of different stores, Sherman and Denison, TX are 20 minutes or so up HWY 75 and Dallas is about an hour and a half to 2 hours (I think. Only drove down there once when we lived there).
I can't remember a time anyone ever asked us about our religion or pressured us to go to church. We're Christians but never found a church to go to there and no one condemned us for that. The one thing that you may run in to there is Jehovas Witnesses knocking on your door to talk to you about their church but you can either ignore the knock or tell them that you're not interested and shut the door. But I've ran into that in every smaller city that I lived in Oklahoma.
You may get snow living there but ice happens more than snow. There have been times that southeastern Oklahoma has gotten hit pretty hard with snow but that happens once every few years.
Durant does have high speed internet. We got ours through the local cable company.
Rentals are not too awful expensive but keep in mind that during the school year there aren't as many houses/apartments available for you to choose from. Even though moving in the middle of an Oklahoma summer isn't something I'd want to do because of the heat, I would suggest waiting until after school is out and more homes become available.
As far as your daughter being ridiculed, I can't really say anything as we have no kids yet. I do hope that she never runs into the kind of problems that you ran into though.
All in all Durant is a wonderful place and we really enjoyed our time there. And there are plenty of smaller towns outside of Durant.. Calera, Colbert, Kenefic, Coleman.. Just to name a few. As Amazon said, just contact a realtor or you should be able to look online at the Durant paper and check out their classifieds at http://durantdemocrat.com and also for jobs you can sign up at https://servicelink.oesc.state.ok.us/ada/
which lists all job postings through the employment office for towns and cities in Oklahoma.

[linicx]

Grove. OK is four seasons. AT&T broadband is very stable. If you want quality programing skip cable and do Direct TV - good kids stuff. New library. Good school system that is parent supported. They best way to discouage bible thumpers is to tell then you are Catholic or Jewish. Generally speaking although Grove is a Christian town, no one beats you up over it unless you riun into In the real ultra right wing crowd. Generally speaking unless it is election time. you don't see too much of that. Its one of the reasons I stayed in Grove. If you do not go to church no one cares. There is a Chrisitan pre-school. Grrove does have a junior college.

Grove is foothills of the Ozark mountains not far from the AR or MO boder on Grand Laie O' the Cherokees It's 60 miles long with 1200 miles of shoreline. If you want stable bradband you'll stick close to Grove. Great pediatrician and pretty good little hospital. All kinds of outdoor living. And some awefully nice people.. Not as hot as Texas. It isn't too far from a larger town that has a mall and grocery stores like Food 4 Less and Aldi's.

Google Grove, OK Chamber of Commerce - as they manage the city website. Grove has a ton of services and acativities as it is the largest city on the lake. In fact, it offers more than other towns of he same size.

[fromdust]

ok, ive never lived there but my old job had me go there everyday for 3 yrs until they laid everyone off.
i spent 5 to 6 hours there a day and this is what i can tell you.
for a town of about 15,000 ppl it has lowes, blockbuster, chilis, walmart, cato, several nationally known hotel chains, and a huge ass casino.
dont ever go to the theater, its horrible. go to sherman or denison. from what i understand dont get the cable. apparently it sucks.
they are the worst drivers, and i live in okc. they think they are in dallas or something. i tell you i would spend half the day pissed off cuz of how bad they are. sorry, if the people that posted that lived there and disagree with that. i was in delivery and all i did was drive around all day. theyre bad.
i think they have 3 elementery schools.
the newest apartment, nearest walmart, are overpriced for the area and i belive only 2 bedroom.
if you have money there is a housing addition on mockingbird where the well-to-do live. seem to be ok sized lots.
oh yeah, there is a large medical complex, for the size of the town. its regional for that part of the state. if they have a patient that needs extra special care i would generally see an ou helicopter (okc) or a black one that goes to dallas.
the choctaw nation is the towns largest employer followed by the hospital and big lots, which has a large distribution center.
weather is humid in summer and the 3 yrs i was there it snowed maybe once and iced i think twice.
i talked to many many people a day and for the most part they are ok. when i talked to a great portion they seemed snooty cuz they live in durant. i guess cuz its se ok's big dog, and there are many people not from the area. think cali, and when i would talk to them they got the same impression of the "locals" of hey i live in friggin durant.
anywho, hope that helped.

[amyjohi]

my entire family on my Mom's side is from Durant. I have never experienced the whole "snooty" feel while I spent summers there. Actually the complete opposite. I would say they are more down to earth "hillbillies". That is not to be an insult by anymeans. I can not believe the growth spurt that has taken place over the last 10 years.

Seems, and this may be completely off the mark, but there seems to be a liberal viewpoint down there. Lots of Democrats!

Here is a bit of insight...to the locals it is pronounced Doooo Rant, not Durr- rant, if your get that down, you will be looked at like you have been there all your life.

I personally think the only downfall to Durant is the summer humidity! YIKES!

[fromdust]

for sure. they sure didnt like it when i called it dur-rant, but yes snooty is what i got from some of the locals and i talked to a lot of them.

[Amazonchix]

I never experienced any snootiness. I suppose it's a matter of perception.

[LadyRobyn]

Originally Posted by amyjohi

Here is a bit of insight...to the locals it is pronounced Doooo Rant, not Durr- rant, if your get that down, you will be looked at like you have been there all your life.

http://i61.photobucket.com/albums/h61/jimeezlady/smileees/nodgrin.gif (broken link) This is very true! My Hubby's family is from Durant...all the way back to the land rush days.

[amyjohi]

Originally Posted by LadyRobyn

This is very true! My Hubby's family is from Durant...all the way back to the land rush days.

mine lived there back when it was considered Durant, Indian Territory. Wonder if your hubby's family and mine ever sat a spell and chewed the fat?