www.byzcath.org Forums General Discussions Town Hall POLL: For the BYZVILLAGERS!

Though the ecology is quite inviting, I don't think I could convince my husband to move to Tasmania. It is summer time at Christmas there, afterall!

I've asked Dr. Eric to provide more information about his native Missouri. Nathan's list of hopeful attributes is comprised of the following:

1.) Cheap [My note: What do you call cheap?]
2.) Not just farmland, but forest areas as well, for hunting, firewood, and natural beauty.
3.) A river, lake, or pond would be nice.
4.) Pasture, maybe community owned, maybe not.
5.) Less than 3 hours away from a major metro area (for occasional jobs, and airport access)


To that I add my ideals:
1. Reliable high-speed internet connection
2. Within 2 hours of a metropolitan area
3. Within 15 minutes of a normal town for everyday needs and within 30 minutes of a city for more infrequent needs such as a mall
4. Moderate climate
5. Family-friendly laws
6. It would be great if there were state/county/city incentives for using green energy like solar

Wondering,
Just for the record, I'm not a native of Missouri. I'm from Illinois. I live about an hour south of St. Louis and about a half hour north of Cape Girardeau which is a city of about 40,000 people or so:

http://www.cityofcapegirardeau.org/

It is the home of Southeast Missouri State University:

http://www.semo.edu/

Now the town I'm in is 60% Catholic, 30% Missouri Synod Lutheran (the ones that the rest of the Lutherans told to go back to Rome ) and 10% other Christian. This town is at the southern tip of the Archdiocese of St. Louis. Except for the Archdiocese of St. Louis and the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph, the rest of Missouri is Baptist and Lutheran Country. The Diocese of Cape Girardeau-Springfield which covers the whole southern portion of Missouri is only 2% Catholic. So we would have plenty of opportunities to Evangelize!

The whole of Southeast Missouri is very conservative, on our local CBS station there was a poll about homosexual unions and only 2% of those who voted were in favor of them. We also passed a law banning homosexual unions in the state of Missouri by 98%.

This map shows the gas prices in America by county and Missouri has the lowest gas prices in the country by far!

http://jimmyakin.typepad.com/.shared/image.html?/photos/uncategorized/gas_prices.jpg


Like I said before there are plenty of natural resources for running, jumping and climbing trees.

About an hour and a half west is Elephant Rocks State Park:

http://www.pittstate.edu/services/scied/Teachers/Field/Camp/Elephant/elephant.htm

In the same area is Johnston's Shut Ins:

http://community.webshots.com/album/34224119liYqjp

Here they both are:

http://homepage.mac.com/kvmagruder/Family2005/PhotoAlbum166.html

Also near is Tom Sauk Mountain which is the highest point in Missouri. Not as high as the Rockies or maybe the Alleghenies but still nice.

In the middle of the state is the Lake of the Ozarks:

http://www.funlake.com/

http://www.livelakeozarks.com/

The area is gorgeous with mountains that shoot straight up out of a large twisting lake. (I suggest you see it on a map.)

I have high speed access and it's great!

We have 2 prolife senators and my district has for sure a prolife congresswoman. I guess the only down side to Missouri is...Branson!!!

Missouri is ok with me.

Land seems cheap:

http://www.landandfarm.com/lf/asp/search_results.asp?landstateid=34

Nice areas, woods, some lakes, hills.

You could either be close to St. Louis or Kansas City.

I wonder how many families we would need to make it worth while? 10?

Would I have to pick cotton and learn to speak with a southern accent (Teen might give lessons)? The mint julip things sound OK though.

ICXC
NIKA

Our senator (Brownback) and Congressman (Jim Ryun) are more prolife than yours...(had to get that one in)

I lived in Missouri prior to moving to Kansas, and I must say I prefer the Sunflower State now -but Missouri is a good place as well, don't get me wrong. We don't have any Bransons or Lake of the Ozarks tourist traps - which is to my liking very well.

Regarding homeschool laws, we've homeschooled almost all the way through on one - one more year to go - and it has worked out very well. The homeschool groups/coops and the defense/ advocacy network in Kansas is far more organized from what I can tell relative to most states. Actually here it is a matter of deciding which groups/activities not to belong to. Perhaps we need to start a separate homeschooling thread since so much could be said just on that topic.

Nathan - we live on a gravel road but we can get to Kansas City International Airport in 1 1/2 hours (with traffic). For my family, being within a reasonable distance of cultural activities (concerts, etc.) in addition to the obvious one of a parish was a very important consideration for us - as music, arts, etc. must be in the equation if we are to participate in, as St. Pius X admonished us, instaurare omni in Christo.

The Fraternity of St. Peter folks started a nice little community about 1/2 hour away from us, have a school and church, etc. which shows that it can indeed be done in these times and circumstances.

It seems this general area of the Midwest (Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma) offers good options when combining cost of living, homeschooling considerations, price of land, general moral atmosphere, etc. And we have all four seasons...
DD

Not in Missouri or Kansas. You're looking for the southeast, there, with the mint julep thing. Something like Virginia or South Carolina. In Kansas [blogthings.com] you'd have to dodge tornados and learn about the Wizard of Oz to answer all the jokes. In Missouri [blogthings.com] , you'd have to learn geography so that you could tell people from every other state where Missouri is in relation to their home state since no one knows anything about Missouri.

http://www.dsireusa.org/

"The Database of State Incentives for Renewable Energy (DSIRE) is a comprehensive source of information on state, local, utility, and selected federal incentives that promote renewable energy. DSIRE now includes state and federal incentives for energy efficiency. Choose one or both databases to search using the check boxes below."

We have plenty of sites for windmills...
FDD

If I'm reading it correctly, Kansas [dsireusa.org] would exempt the increased value of the property from any renewable energy sources from property tax, there are grants able to be applied for when doing larger projects, and an adjoining easement can be obtained in order to ensure nothing is built to block direct sunlight from hitting solar panels. Missouri [dsireusa.org] doesn't look any better with loans available and easements able to be negotiated, unless you live in Columbia where they are required to purchase alternative energy.

Austin, Texas [dsireusa.org] however, will pay for 80% of cost up to $100,000, as well as several other incentives.

It looks to me on the whole that those states with good incentives [dsireusa.org] are the worst states for homeschooling. Austin does seem to be an exception to that rule.

Anywhere is fine, as long as it has that small wooden chapel by the lake, for the very strict monastery.

the unworthy,
Elias

Texas just seems so.....hot. I've heard that it's not that bad in NE Texas, but I don't know. What grows in Texas?

The stars at night
are big and bright
deep in the heart of Texas!

woops.

Average Fahrenheit temp in Austin by month.
January 50
February 54
March 61
April 68
May 75
June 82
July 84
August 84
September 79
October 70
November 59
December 52

Not so high. And TX has no state income tax or property tax, either. So that should factor into cost. http://www.austinrelocationguide.com/

I didn't know what grows in TX, so I looked that up. According to the USDA, the main Texas crops are:
Cotton
Pecans
Sorghum
Sugarcane
Citrus and Fruit
Hay
Potatoes
Soybeans
Vegetables (Onions)
Corn
Peanuts
Rice
Stocks
Wheat

Texas A&M has a much larger list here [aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu] .

It would seem that the area near Joplin/Springfield is in Tornado Alley so I woudl think that the center of Missouri would be the best area. Not only that, as it was written in the Evangelization section, the Antiochians actually go to a place where there are no Orthodox to set up their missions so they're forced to Evangelize. Central Missouri is ripe for the pickin' (for Pavel!)

(By the way Pavel, people from the Midwest actually sound just like American TV. The strip of land between Kansas and Ohio is where the actual Standard American Accent is spoken. Sorry, Pittsburghers, you don't speak American!!! )


As far as how many families, it would probably take at least 50 to 100 families to have a substantial self sustaining village.

Is anyone actually seriously considering this idea?

We would move in a heartbeat. It would be a dream come true. I think we could start with around 10-20 families for an intentional community with the hope of growing as it becomes more established. Most intentional communities I've seen start with around 7-15 commited families who plan it out, then grow exponentially when it gets to the implementation and building phases.