Laura and I are about to move to a city that is 25 miles west of where we live now. The challenges and the changes will be there, of course, but it is certainly with an open and grateful heart that the two of us have the feelings and opinions we have regarding the matter. The two of us, my daughter and I, were born right here in the middle of Oklahoma City. We were raised in and around the area, having left it for about 5 years when we moved to Indiana. I won't go into all the places I have lived; we're talking about where we've lived since 1989, when she came into my world.
I should have figured it out in 1995, when the day of the Oklahoma City bombing (and I was misstaken by her father as being one of the people who had passed) that I wasn't going to be able to shake Laura loose from my side -- that was literally 30 years ago, and she's still making decisions for me; for us both. I can't hardly go to the other side of the house without catching her secretly watching to be sure I've not gone somewhere -- she was shaken once; she won't allow it to happen again! I am most assuredly under her watchful eyes at all times.
We are living in a very nice house; a renovated 1937 stone and brick home with three good square bedrooms, two very nice bathrooms, a big dining and living space, and a kitchen that could be better if either of us had designed it, but it's really very pretty until you look a little closer and realize there isn't any true countertop space. There isn't a dishwasher either, but the pantry is nice! It's a really nice house; I'll give it its due. We rent from the same complex we've been at for over 10 years, since we returned from Indiana. It's time to buy our own place. It's just time.
I think I held out and didn't buy anything because I thought surely, Laura would fall in love and get married and move away -- when that didn't happen, I decided to do the next best thing. If I want any peace and quiet or "me" time, I'm going to have to get the woman a horse...or five. In order to make that happen, I had to buy a place that could host at least five horses, and by God... yes, by His grace, we have found it. It has a very lovely home on it, and the 14 acres (already fenced for the most part) will suffice -- my plan is working!
Let's compare. Oklahoma City has 712,000 people. I'll narrow it down to my zip code. Our current zip code has a population of 33,000+. The one I'm moving to has about 17,800. The area of my current zip is 7.6 sq miles, while the new one has 80.5 sq miles. The density factor is amazing! We're virtually living on top of each other now, but where we are moving to, there are only 142 people per square mile. I can deal with that. The crime is different, too. Where I live now, the prevalent crimes are property and violent in nature, whereas where we are moving to, it is more about drug possession and public drunkenness (and usually after midnight in a certain area far from where I live).
There are approximately 150 uniformed police in the zip code I currently live in, and 26 in the one I'm moving to. Let's do the math: Old = 1:220, one cop to 220 people. Where I am moving to is: New = 1:712 — oops, that's not good. Lucky for me, it's a much less dangerous area, and of course, we're armed. I think it's a given that every home in my new zip has more guns than residents - let's see what the stats say. Oh, wait, you don't have to register your guns in Oklahoma -- not like other states. I have 3, and there are 2 of us in the household. It's the same here and there, but I may buy a shotgun just because we will live a bit further out.
One of the best differences and/or changes will be the sounds. We have constant traffic sounds now, but we won't have it there. We have cars, buses, sirens, and large trucks. There's a highway literally 1/4 mile from my window, and two hospitals within a stone's throw of my backyard. That won't happen where we're moving. We'll hear the dogs bark, but no one else will - and that's awesome! There are two neighbors now who like nothing more than to complain about our dogs, even though they're the ones making them bark constantly! I won't miss that.
OK, here's a funny one -- we have our groceries delivered to us by Kroger. It's just the way we prefer it. We don't want to venture to the stores here. We will do more of it when we move, but we'll still ask Kroger to deliver the bulk of it. Our nosy neighbors literally asked the Kroger deliveryman how much the groceries cost and how much the delivery is, rather than taking the time to Google it. I was super happy to hear the driver shout out, "You can Google that, or you know, go to the Kroger website yourself and apply online. I'll stop by your place if you do." I think of just how many fewer noses I'll be dealing with, and how many fewer eyeballs! I've stopped going out into my backyard to work out -- if that tells you anything.
One last comparison -- It won't just be the lack of traffic noise, but the lack of any noise that I'm looking forward to. Like I said, we'll hear the dogs bark, and that's about it. The street we live on is a rather busy street for a small town, but our house is 1.68 acres from the ingress -- silence. Unless it's a siren, I won't hear it. No more car alarms. No more honking horns. No more screaming fights from those who just can't remember that they live in a civilized neighborhood -- unless you count Laura screaming at the computer when she's died in the games she plays online -- that won't change.
To say I'm excited is an understatement. I've not had a dishwasher in about 5 years since the one we had gave out in the other place and was never replaced. That one thing is so very wonderful -- and yet, it is only one of so many great and marvelous changes about to take place in my life. Being happy is good, but being thankful is more. I choose joy!! Thank you, God, and thank you, Jesus, and Spirit. I am so very grateful. By the way, we're also bringing the angel we asked to protect us in this house - he's going to join his friends at the new place. He's ours -- the new renters can get their own guardians!
Photo Credit: Havenlight.com
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