And by the way, we don't mind insulting/offending Texans. They generally deserve it.
After all, they are Texans.
After all, they are Texans.
To each their own. I don't care for Bethany. Comparing Midwest City to Del City just shows you know nothing about the east side of OKC.
I was born in Minnesota and lived half my childhood in Sioux Falls, Pierre, Watertown and Humboldt. After I retired from the Marine Corps I decided to live in Midwest City/Choctaw. Couldn't be happier.
For most of Oklahoma, your winter time goals are reasonable expectations... not a lot of snow, usually gone within a day or two, but we're probably more likely to get a little ice than snow. Wintertime highs in the 50's are not unusual at all, but anywhere in this state? A 90 degree high in July or August is a REALLY nice day...
You might take a look at Muskogee. Third largest town in OK, so it's not huge, but not tiny. I'm not sure you'll find any cajun food there. Anywhere in the state, you can throw a rock any direction and hit a tex-mex place though. It's about 10 hours from New Orleans, but you can't get closer than about 7 hours.
Man, if tornados are any less frequent than they've ever been, I haven't really noticed it. Every spring is an adventure. But people who only know what they HEAR about OK usually have an exaggerated sense of how bad tornado season is. Obviously they can be devastating, but most of them don't touch ground, and most of those that do are not in populated areas. As someone said above though, they love Moore!
From what you've described about your "likes", Oklahoma would be for you as it is for most of us... not perfect, but mostly positive. Hope you take a look and like what you see!
You might take a look at Muskogee. Third largest town in OK, so it's not huge, but not tiny. I'm not sure you'll find any cajun food there. Anywhere in the state, you can throw a rock any direction and hit a tex-mex place though. It's about 10 hours from New Orleans, but you can't get closer than about 7 hours.
Man, if tornados are any less frequent than they've ever been, I haven't really noticed it. Every spring is an adventure. But people who only know what they HEAR about OK usually have an exaggerated sense of how bad tornado season is. Obviously they can be devastating, but most of them don't touch ground, and most of those that do are not in populated areas. As someone said above though, they love Moore!
From what you've described about your "likes", Oklahoma would be for you as it is for most of us... not perfect, but mostly positive. Hope you take a look and like what you see!
Born and raised in Watertown, baptized at 9th Ave Methodist, went to both Cornerstone and Four Square and graduated from Castlewood High School. Been in SF for about 5 years now. I'm glad to find another SD native!
How do you know if someone is from texas? Wait a minute or two, they’ll tell you. I’m from Texas!!!! Well whoop de do, aren’t you special. Lol.
Which side of SD are your from? The east side of Oklahoma is humid and little to no wind, the west side is always windy, sometimes crazy windy and the humidity stays fairly low in the spring and summer when it matters. I don't care much for humidity or crowds so I'll always live west of I35 and north of I40.
OKC and Tulsa are not too bad on traffic except during the rush hours. I grew up in one of the largest cities in US, I know bad traffic. Bad here is a good day in la. Cajun food is only truly found in South Louisiana There are places here but it is not the same. Dallas, Houston, San Antonio, Austin are all horrible with traffic and liberal agenda issues. Fort Worth, Waco, Temple still feel a bit like Texas. Tyler is lovely and has really bad issues with traffic. There are towns all over there which might fit the bill. Land will be generally cheaper in Oklahoma. Winters a bit more, summers not as hot and humid. Lots of lakes and public land to visit in Oklahoma. I44 seems to attract tornadoes. it is about a mile a minute to get to the big city. If you travel with Wife you could just go all over the country. There are lots of rv opportunities and several forums dedicated to the lifestyle.
Welcome to OSA. I live in Yukon just west of OKC and couldn’t be happier.
Ditto on what everyone has said about the weather.
Ditto on what everyone has said about the weather.
It seems the traveling medical specialist is a growing thing as your story is not a new one to me. I would, however, give you some cautionary guidance as I know of a marriage that failed when confronted with the career "rocks and shoals" where one spouse is living their best life and the other is along for the ride. I certainly am not saying this is inevitable with this career model, just that reality can bite when you least expect it. I experienced it with long absences working an out-of-town construction gig when my kids were young. We survived it and are about to hit 45-years of being married.
You've obviously looked into the weather and other posters have provided insights & web resources for further info. I'd add that about once per decade, OK will see a snow event that will make you think MN, only nobody has a snowblower and the local authorities are overwhelmed due to little equipment. This is sometimes exacerbated by an ice/freezing rain event to kick things off with a really slippery underlayment. This is when you learn the "Braum's scale" for winter weather preparation. And OK is definitely the place for "humongous rolling thunderstorms and tornadoes."
Amenities: as most have mentioned, your search should look for either a medium-sized town with most of your requirements or a safe suburb of a metro area that allows for easy access to all the amenities. If you strongly need to check all the blocks plus maximize career opportunities for your wife, I'd say the OKC metro suburbs should be high on the list. Before we moved to Tulsa, we raised our kids in the Mustang/Yukon area and would not have a bit of a problem with returning there. I mention career opportunities for your wife and would point you to the OU Research Park development near the State Capitol for potential employment in her field.
Food: good Cajun is available near a local gun store/range in OKC, as already mentioned. Lots of other geographic cuisines and cultures to explore, too.
Church: you seem to have a good understanding of what you need. Lots of smaller congregations of various flavors are ready for you. Personally, I'm not a fan of the mega-churches so they're automatically off my list.
Welcome to OSA, if you do come to the OKC area try Cajun King in Warr Acres. I haven't been in a while, but it's pretty good food.
