Free State Wyoming Forum
Prospective Free State Wyoming (FSW) Members and Interested Parties => Prospective Free State Wyoming (FSW) Members and Interested Parties => Topic started by: Boston on December 17, 2006, 10:10:10 PM
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Dear FSWyomingites,
This thread is for those relocated here to offer a concise and inspiring
story about your own experience moving to Wyoming, for linking to
the FSW website. What its readers would enjoy hearing about are
the people here, the land, the freedom-oriented culture, etc.
If locals and FSWers have been significantly helpful, please note that, too.
Many of you have already done so on other threads, and you're welcome
to grab/edit/post such here, which is a board accessible to non-forum users
(thus, we can link it to the website). Please note that I may have to
occasionally edit for length or presentability, but this will rare.
I thank you for your help here, which will nicely spruce up the FSW site
and showcase the best quality of the FSW: its people.
Martha has made a very nice first post.
llbisme (Lori, a local and FSW friend), PatriotAR15, Prairie Fire,
rhodges, Paul Bonneau, and DontTreadOnMe also have posted their own stories.
Thank you all for these inspiring narratives!
So, who's next?
~W~
Boston
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Okay, I guess I'll start.? I'm not sure if you'll want to use our story for the website though.?
We moved to Crook county from Sweetwater county, Wyoming this summer.? We wanted to live and bring up our boys in a small town.? Where my vote on local issues still matters.? We had been official "members" of FSW for about 4 months, and we wanted to be a part of that community.? The forum is great, but we wanted to make it our lifestyle.? Tom and I started discussing what freedom and liberty and friendship really were.? At that same time, Tom attended his first Gurnsey shoot.? It was life-changing for him.? He realized that Rifleman is a way of life and not a hobby.? We met our first FSWers there.? Men that were not afraid to be men!
So our house went on the market.? Within 2 months it was sold. However, because of unfortunate and unseen circumstances we lost about $15,000.? Ouch.? That was supposed to be our down-payment on another home.? We ended up living in a campground for 6 weeks.? By we, I mean the whole family, all 5 of us.? If anyone thinks this is easy, or fun, I challenge you to try.? The housing in NE Wyoming is very limited.? We tried weekly, if not daily to rent a place - ANY place.? We found a house in Sundance that was for sale, and the couple that owns it has been very gracious in letting us rent until we are able to buy.? We found out today that they are willing to work a 5 year lease with us.? So we are HERE for at least 5 years!? ?:D
We moved our things from storage one car load or truck load at a time.? We had so much FSW help it was unbelievable.? At that time we hadn't even met PaulWY, and yet he offered the use of his truck and labor.? Jared has become part of the family.? He has offered his assistance every step of the way.? Jed Bodacious made several trips for us as well, even when his own future was up in the air.? Thank you all.
Tom has had 3 jobs since moving to this area.? We have found that many jobs are seasonal so that if it rains, snows or the wind blows too hard, he doesn't work that day.? He worked a total of 8 days the month of November.? Sad to say you can't live on love.? But my husband is flexible and willing to do what is needed to provide for us.? As I homeschool the boys, I am not able to work outside the home at this time.? Tom now works nights in various mines around Gillette, and we are finding that it works for us.? At least until it snows? ;)
We've had other support along the way.? KesWindHunter has given me a great boost of "girl time", and we've had great discussions on everything under the sun.? As a side note - there really needs to be more women!? RazorCityRifleman - what can I say.? He's opened our eyes on many topics.? The personal shooting instruction has been phenomenal.?
Anyway, back to why we moved.? We are now a part of a REAL community.? We don't just network and take what we need.? I love these people.? They are people I will fight - politically, verbally or even physically - for and with.? Has it been easy?? No!? Is it worth it?? In every way because we will be a part of what is RIGHT in this country.
Tom, Martha and Boys?
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First time posting, This is a topic i feel strongly about.
? ? ?I am a single mother of two. Before living here in Wyoming I resided in Denver and San Diego. In 2002 I was once again the victim of school budget cuts and my teaching position was eliminated. I was faced with my 7th move in four years. I and my chjildren had grown very weary of the Gypsy life. A very wise women whom I love dearly suggested I look into moving to Wyoming. My reaction was not favorable. I figured she had been nipping at the sauce again or maybe even something heavier. WYOMING NO WAY I THOUGHT. But, like I said I love this women very much so I did as she suggested and LOOKED INTO moving to THE COWBOY STATE. That motto too nearly scared me off. However I did not hastily judge and I looked deeper. What I found was a few things that convinced me to give THE EQUALITY STATE? (I like that motto better). a try. These are the points that sold me.
1) Schools that still had very low teacher student ratios ( vital to a good education)
2) Schools that for the most part ranked above the national average and often where off the charts
3) Communities I didnt feel like I needed to arm my 5 year old to go out and play in.
4) A cost of living that would allow me to get a HOME for my kids not an apartment or closet
5) A State that is breathtakingly gourgeous in many many areas.
6) The great outdoors in abundance.
7) Room to breath
8) The end to traffic jams (except in Campbell County)
9) Smaller close knit communities
The only challange I have found was the employment situation. I was told by many, " You will never find work here" Well many where wrong. I have not always had my DREAM job but I have had and continue to have A GREAT LIFE and a good job.
? ?
Moving to Wyoming is a decision I grow more grateful for all the time. Gotta love it I know WE DO
RazorCityRifleman - what can I say.? He's opened our eyes on many topics.? The personal shooting instruction has been phenomenal.
Yes RazorCityRifelman is indeed a great man. He too has opened my eyes in many many areas.
Lori
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For me, more than a few reasons. In no particular order...
1. I've been looking to move the heck out of the People'z Republik of Neu Jerzei, just didn't know which state. I.E. Reason #1, ESCAPE FROM NJ!
2. Maximum Liberty! Almost no gun laws!
3. No Income Tax
4. High Job prospects
5. Low cost of living
6. Friends who were willing to help me settle in (thanks to Shawn and Brandy, Havoc, RichardF)
7. Molon Labe gave me the final inspiration and jolt of courage to finally get up and DO IT. (thanks Boston!)
8. High Density of like minded individuals
9. Great place to live!
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I've been here for all but about three of the last thirty years.
In no particular order, here are some of the things that makes Wyoming good for me:
1) Relatively sparse population. People who don't live at close quarters with one another tend to treat others with a bit more respect than those who live in crowded societies.
2) Lots of public land, not the most of any state but it's fairly evenly scattered throughout the State. It's easy to get away and shoot/train/recreate in relative privacy.
3) A harsh winter climate. While I don't really like cold weather, it has to be admitted that it helps to keep some people from staying here.
4) A state government that "tends" to be less of a welfare-oriented state than others. Details are arguable, but bottom line is that Wyoming has a hundred-year history of exporting its unemployment problem as boom and bust cycles occur.
5) Harsh climate again, it helps reduce the bug population: fleas, ticks, chiggers, and mosquitoes.
6) There's more people here than in most places who still feel that they are responsible for what happens in their lives, and don't expect somebody else to fix their problems: whether those problems are caused by bad luck or fate or karma's wheel smacking them upside the head. That sense of personal responsibility is going away in Wyoming as time goes on, but things here are still better than any other place I can think of.
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My voyage to Wyoming took a lifetime in the making. I was raised just outside a rather small city in Northern California. As cities went, it was not really that bad (at first). While there was not a lot of industry and regular jobs, there was some honest work, like the steel mill, pants factory, and concrete plant. By the time I grew up, the town and surrounding areas had caught the tourist-trap disease and the whole place went to hell. Along the way, I also observed how California politics were on the road towards fascism and I finally realized that there was not one damned thing I could do about it. The voters actually WANTED oppression, and it is impossible to outvote them.
So seventeen years ago, I started looking around and decided that rural Nevada was the place for me. In many ways, Nevada reminded me of a place still many decades in the past, before the disease if you will. At first, the stark mountains, open sandy desert, and permanent clear blue skies were a refreshing reminder of a clean future and the stink hole I left behind. But as the years past, the desert lost its charm and I started noticing that some people were starting to show signs of the city people sickness. Developers started stamping out tract houses left and right. Traffic changed for the worse, and nearly every day I saw more examples of rude and stupid drivers. Over the last five years or so, it seemed that state politics went from bland to serious attempts to create another fascist California. The final straw for me was when Governor Gwinn got the Supreme Court to overturn a constitutional ammendment requiring a two-thirds majority for a tax increase so that his pet budget could raise taxes, after it failed for lacking the required votes. To me, this was a clear signal that corruption has become strong and bold enough to dance outside in the daylight. Goodbye, Nevada. Sorry you joined the dark side.
With two very clear examples of how things can go to hell, I started looking at Oregon, Idaho, and Wyoming. I quickly ruled out Oregon because it is also on the dark path, and because the people are clique-ish. One friend told me that in his home town, if you are not BORN there, you will always be an outsider. Idaho, and especially the mountain areas, sounded pretty nice, but I eventually became concerned that the state would forever be ruled by Boise, like Nevada is by Las Vegas and Reno. City people and their poison politics may eventually ruin that garden.
For me, Wyoming seemed to have the best of everything. While there are some large (for me) cities, even the largest claims only about 10% of the state population, reducing the chance of one urban area gaining political power over the state.
The climate is fine, and quite a bit wetter than my old home. Wyoming is NOT DRY. From the charts I studied, most of Wyoming gets more than 10 inches of water a year, and many parts get up to 20. This is MUCH higher than the five or so inches I was used to in Nevada. So I do not need to hear any foolish yapping about how dry it is here. While winter gets pretty cold at times, it can also be pretty nice too. For instance, it is the end of December and we have had a lot of days around 40F where it is downright pleasant to work outside in short sleeves. Summer is also pleasant, with maybe a couple weeks where the temperature gets over 90F. I like having four distinct seasons. While much of Wyoming is very windy, my place in Crook County has very little wind most of the time, probably because of the hills and trees.
The people do not worship big government. While there are always going to be power hungry psychopaths in any place, they seem to have a harder time pushing
their agendas here. The people are generally friendly, but with a healthy distrust of strangers. And neighbors are almost like family. Yes, this is exactly what I was looking for.
Having a group of freedom minded friends to join me in Wyoming is a bonus. Most everywhere I have been, a clear thinking and freedom loving friend is a rare find, and the people in FSW give hope that we will eventually have not just a circle, but an entire community of such friends.
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Good stuff folks, I just wanted to say hello to llbisme and welcome !!! Miles
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Relatively sparse population. People who don't live at close quarters with one another tend to treat others with a bit more respect than those who live in crowded societies.
Yeah, this is a big one for me. I had noticed in Oregon, the further east I went, the more relaxed and friendly the people were. It is the same in Wyoming.
It's almost as if you step into a time-warp and end up in the 1950's when you go to Wyoming. People seem more self-reliant. You can talk to those who are not particularly "successful" in the conventional sense of the term, and not get the feeling they resent you or blame you for their condition; likewise you can talk to those who have "done well" and not get the feeling they are looking down their noses at you (and they probably have dirt under their fingernails too). So what I'm saying, is that people don't seem to identify with "classes" so much, but relate to each other as individuals.
People seem to better understand how the free enterprise system works. Also, one's reputation is very important, another tip-off of a (relatively) free outlook by the folks living here.
It is also friendlier to kids, a great place to grow up.
Is there too much government? Yes, and like everywhere else, and it is growing (fueled by severance taxes, that the people don't feel - which is the silver lining on that cloud). But it is not like other places where there is too much government. It's strange, but even the bureaucrats are nice, and they seem to leave you alone if you want that. It's almost as if the small-town atmosphere prevents them from acting like jerks, because it will come back around at them. Or maybe because the people they deal with are nicer too, I don't know.
Walk around with a gun on your hip, you can do it any place in the state and it will give you that certain feeling of freedom. Kinda grows on a person...
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For Christmas, I got a button that reads: ?I wasn?t born here, but I got here as fast as I could- WYOMING.? As far back as I can remember, Wyoming has always spoken to me in a way that no other place ever did.
When I was about nine years old, my father took me to Seminoe reservoir. I recall endless waters, hidden canyons and sandy fields more vast than I had ever seen; all without another soul in sight. Later that night, lightning lit up our surroundings in a spectacular white-blue that lasted only a nano-second, but was an incredible sight nevertheless. It was on trips like these that Wyoming spoke to me about a wilderness beyond imagination.
A few years later, my friend?s father took us with him to visit a friend of his who had a rather interesting home a few dozen miles past the middle of nowhere. I certainly didn?t know where I was in Wyoming, but I remember enjoying the hot tub at night, and looking up at more stars than I had ever seen on all the previous nights of my life combined. This was Wyoming telling me of its paradise.
Possibly on the same trip, we were at some lake, somewhere. The sun was setting, and it illuminated the lake just so, to where I felt as though I was in some magical dream that I never wanted to leave. It was then that I understood Wyoming?s magic.
At age fourteen, I had fireworks on the brain. Still do, I suppose; but anymore, it seems that firearms do show off a bit more than firecrackers ever did. Now you see; at that age, in my native state of Colorado, I could buy neither sparkler nor fountain, and for those Coloradoans over 16, that?s all that is allowed. But in Wyoming, I could walk into any roadside fireworks stand and trade my fistful of cash for items more thrilling, exhilarating and excitingly dangerous than any full-fledged adult could hope to buy or possess in Colorado. In part, it was the danger that made real fireworks so appealing. They were dangerous, but instead of being told no like in Colorado, I knew that I was on my own, in charge, and vested with the individual responsibility to not misuse them, or else personally bear the consequences. I knew nothing of politics, but I sensed something much deeper and more significant beyond the adolescent thrill of those forbidden fiery reports. By way of fireworks, Wyoming gave me something much more valuable: my first delicious taste of freedom.
As I forged through those difficult years during which one journeys from childhood to manhood and questions just about everything along the way; I learned about freedom. More specifically, I learned of its decline and deterioration. I began to see freedom?s absence and enemies. I kept learning more and more; changing, growing and acting. Much of what I learned along the way was from books, a few of which were penned by some guy pseudonymously writing as some Revolutionary War historical event.
Resolving that something must be done about the government?s unmistakable war on freedom, at the same time I dreamed of winding up in one of the big western states. Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico, maybe Wyoming; one of them. All the while, tagging along with the family on the short trips to Cheyenne here and there, loving Wyoming more and more.
?I suppose I should order that, I?ve always liked Boston?s books.? I thought to myself as I prepared to send away for ?Molon Labe.? It was May of 2004. Well, life went this way and that, and ML just waited on the shelf with an angry patience until I was finally led to read it in October of 2005. I?ve never wondered at that; I know it was simply that God needed me to get to a certain point in life and be a certain way to read ML, and that?s why it sat for a year and a half. I dove straight into it, and lived the book, chapter by chapter, reading it all night at work, after work as I waited on the steps of the federal court house (I do love irony) for the train, and on the train home. I had read of so many fictional/futuristic ?solutions? and I only ever despaired when they always failed in my mind?s eye. Most were too unrealistically optimistic. ?Yeah right.? Or, they?d be defeatingly pessimistic. ?Wow. Why bother? Kill me now!? But- with ML, I found a more-than-could-be-hoped-for blend of both wise realism and motivating optimism. It was a package that made me think: ?Yeah, this can work. This will work. Let?s do it.?
Then, a few weeks later, I was quite honored to have the privilege of hanging out with Mr. Party himself to discuss the book, and the FSW. After facetiously informing him that he owed me 3-4 new highlighters for the ones that ML had soaked up, I later told him what the book really meant to me. Not only did it seem like a workable plan and a brilliant dream; but I knew that we were at a ?now? point in history. I knew that something big was going to happen, and soon, and I had happened across the opportunity to jump on the train while it was just starting to pick up speed. I told Boston that while reading ML: ?I understood what a civil rights worker must have felt like while standing in front of the Lincoln Memorial and listening to Dr. Martin Luther King?s ?I Have a Dream? speech.? Certainly stunned a little, Boston stated: ?Wow. It affected you that much huh?? I suppose it did. I am convinced that, if you have read ML, then you have been a part of history, a history in the making.
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So I set out in March of 2006 to see what I could see, to drive all the way up to Crook County and shake a few hands. It was cold, still winter, and I was making the trip in my 1984 Chevrolet Caprice Classic. The car is 23 years old, and it hadn?t treated me too well the year before. Mechanical trust issues aside, I love my car, and affectionately call it the DTOMobile.?
About five miles or so north of Cheyenne, I had a ?Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring? ?Sam? moment, a kind of ?Wow, this is as far as I?ve ever gone this way, what am I getting myself into?? It was just that the plains stretched out as far as the eye could see, and I really, really, felt the expanse of Wyoming bearing upon me. I felt as though I was driving off into nowhere in car I didn?t quite trust; and it was getting dark.
I was, frankly, a tad bit scared. I thought a little bit about heading back, but mostly about whether or not this was such a good idea. Would I wind up stranded? Would I wind back at home, haunted by defeat and surrender? Or, would I forge on, ?Damn the Torpedoes!? and make a giant leap in self-history? Could there be any other choice? So I sped on, bound and determined. Break-down? Not at all. More like break-out. The DTOMobile seems to like Wyoming more than I do, and performs fabulously throughout the state, and somehow, always starts better the next day than when in Denver.
Later, quite pleased to have made it to Crook County, I was disappointed that it was well after dark, and I wasn?t going to be able to see Devil?s Tower. Wrong again. The first time I ever saw Devil?s Tower was as a massive and imposing silhouette; stark against the starry sky. Now THAT was cool. I really think that?s the only way to see it for the first time; it?s more fearsome, and builds the suspense of seeing it the next day.? ?
I had been invited to spend the night at Richard Hodge?s in Hulett. (Thanks again so very much Richard!) When I woke up the next day; I couldn?t believe my eyes. For some reason, I had expected dull, lifeless plains, but was shocked to see that Crook County was beautiful beyond belief! It had just the right amount of trees and grasses, hills and fields, to be a place that I could spend years at and never regret a moment. Preparing to leave, I worried that my car might not start up at all. Ha! The DTOMobile started up more easily and quickly than it ever had before. Richard opined that I had given it an ?Italian Tune-Up? by driving it all to heck the night before, something about burning all the gunk out of the system. The last thing I got from Richard before I left was a jar of Crook?s unique red soil. I wanted to bring a chunk of free land back to Colorado with me. I still have that jar; and am looking at it as I type this.? ?
The rest of the trip went off without a hitch, and of course, I met more wonderful Free-Staters, beginning relationships that will last a lifetime.
Having traveled to parts of Wyoming unknown to me, and having heard even louder the calls of wilderness, magic, paradise and freedom; I kept coming back. Throughout 2006, I journeyed through Wyoming a half dozen times. Of course, I discovered more and more beautiful parts of Wyoming, and oftentimes even felt as though I was driving through a postcard. But what impressed me more than Wyoming itself, were the Free-Staters already there.
Initially expecting a bunch of angry militant types such as myself, I was surprised to find a wide array of folks, young and old, and from every slice of life you can think of. Smart people too. People who spoke of history and philosophy, and let me see the rings of Saturn with my own eye for the first time in my life. They were all so different from one another. Some gun nuts whose collections rival most gun stores, and some who don?t even own a gun. Some who are ex- and current military, to those who might have called themselves a ?Hippy? some yesteryear ago. The FSW is, wonderfully, an ideologically diverse group that could surely disagree about something with everybody else, but a group that does all agree on one thing: ?Live and Let Live.? And really, that?s just about all that needs to be agreed upon!
Many of them did, however, make me feel that my efforts were a bit trivial. After all, I was only moving from the Denver metro area of Colorado; a weenie?s two-hour drive south of Wyoming. These people dropped everything, and in the same spirit of Pioneers and Pilgrims past, said ?Wyoming or Bust!? and moved here from all over the nation. California. Texas. Washington. New Jersey. Mississippi. Nevada. Everywhere. Hmmph. And here I come, from just next door. Needless to say, these moves of vast distance have been incredibly inspiring and motivating to me.
Well, I guess I should have seen it coming. After all, an old car can only go on many long trips. On one of my last 2006 Wyoming adventures, something finally fell off of the DTOMobile and needed to be replaced. You see, it?s Colorado license plate was getting a little old, and it had to replaced. The new part was functionally the same, but a little different. The new one had a cowboy on it.
~W~
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A couple of years ago, a Worland clerk remarked to me:
"There aren't many folks in Wyoming, and those who are here are good!"
People generally gravitate to wherever they feel most at home.
(Well, if they don't...they should.)
In Wyoming, freedom living is much more a way of life, and people are more
self-reliant and hardy. The state hasn't been ruined by whining liberals, as
has Washington, Oregon, Colorado, etc. Taxes are low to nonexistent, and
will very likely remain that way. If a fellow wants to sling his rifle for a day of
shooting in BLM, the whole state manages not to go bananas about it and
increase the Terror Threat to a code Red.
Wyoming's population could double, and we'd still have only 11 people/mile?.
I moved to Wyoming in stages from Colorado (which no longer felt like home).
It's too bad I wasn't born here; it would have saved me a lot of time and expense!
Oh, well--it doesn't matter when you get here, just as long as you do.
Make a move towards Freedom!
Boston
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Before writing I was concerned that I wouldn't be able to say anything original or inspiring. Well, originality I can manage. Inspiration proves to be tougher. It wouldn't matter, except that inspiring others to do likewise has a lot to do with half the reason I uprooted my family and moved 800 miles from the place we had made our home for sixteen years. I am, however, obliged by hope and principle, to do my best. It boils down to two things, we moved to Wyoming:
#1) To be freer.
#2) To actually do the one single most efficacious thing anyone can for the cause of freedom, and that is to concentrate geographically with like-minded fellows.
There was a time when I naively assumed that someone not already in favor of greater individual liberty, by gentle persuasion, could be made to desire the blessings of freedom. I now realize this to be false, or if possible, to require effort far greater than the gain. Before this realization, I had clung to the fragile hope that Americans, sufficiently swayed by aforementioned persuasion, would someday reverse our country's course. Instead, I now really don't expect very much of the United States to escape a descent into an ever more regulated morass of fascism and socialism. So, rather than go along for the ride in New Mexico, we decided to make the best possible immediate improvement regarding the state of our liberty, i.e., move to Wyoming. I'm convinced that there isn't any better place for a lover of liberty. Just by relocating, we've made ourselves freer. That's #1.
By the way, rural New Mexico, though no paradise, is worlds apart from NJ, NYC, Chicago, San Francisco(ok, all of CA), Washington, D.C., ad naseum. If it weren't for other national crises looming, and the fact that NM will likely continue to slide toward tyranny unchecked, we would've stayed. The improvement for us is small compared to the margin realized by escapees from IL, CA, MD, NJ, etc.
As for #2, the hope I have for the future depends essentially on not being so damnably outnumbered. We've kindred spirits in all corners of the United States, folks to whom maybe it hasn't occurred, "I'm outnumbered philosophically at least five hundred to one." Why not change that?? The sustenance and expansion of liberty requires political clout, so let's "concentrate geogaphically." The "Wyoming Report" at the end of Molon Labe puts it into words and detail far better than I can.
Finally, I like to think that we have walked the walk. We were reasonably comfy where we were, and moving when we didn't have to was not easy at all. We've no relatives here. We didn't wait to see if others would go first, or worry about jumping the gun. Join us in Wyoming ~W~
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OK, Now that I've been here exactly ONE WEEK tonight, I'll explain what brought me here.
I left CA a little over three years ago in a search for a freer life without the taxes, the laws, the regulations, and the liberals!
I thought NV was the answer. A little sleepy town in the desert, population 30K, near Front Sight seemed perfect. Or so I thought.
But before long they were doing all the things that CA did. They had become Californicated!
Zoning came in. Building inspections soon followed. Impact fees just to build a house on your own land. Then there was the Sexually Oriented Business law that put my good friend out of business. Recently they enacted an Abandoned Building law where you had to get a permit if you owned an abandoned building.
I wasn't changing my zoning, I wasn't building a building, I didn't own a SOB, and I didn't own an abandoned building, but it still really p*ssed me off. The dream was fading fast. The 1.25 acre lot with my home seemed to shrink. What seemed like a HUGE lot (compared to CA) now seemed small. The noise of my neighbors bothered me more. I was no longer happy where I was.
That was about the time I read Molon Labe. I was fascinated. I've been following the FSP (not FSW) project for some time, but certainly wasn't going to go back east! So it was that I began to visit the FSW forum as well as several others like the Triad (MT, ID, WY) one. I liked what others on this forum were posting, what they were thinking, what their values were.
And so I fixed it in my mind that I wanted to come to WY. And here I am. Been here a week. It's been stressful for sure. I don't like uncertainty or change. I'm still adapting to the weather. It's been miserable here for the last week. Snowing today. A high of 32. Haven't been able to ride my bicycle at all, and that's a big part of what I do (or did). I miss it. I'm looking forward to some warming weather next week.
I don't really know what I hope to accomplish here regarding limiting the encroachment of government on our lives. But as Jared said once, I've already accomplished the fact that I'm surrounded by a good group of friends who think along the same lines as myself, and that means the world to me. If nothing else comes of it, I'll always have that, and that's a big deal. It's important to live amongst those you respect and trust. I've got that now.
Mac
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I've tried to put my experience into words many times, both here and elsewhere, but it seems good to try again. Anyone who knows me at all knows the "why" as well, but I'll try to condense it into a few paragraphs for those I've not yet met.
I lived in Southern California for the first 59 years of my life. The last ten of those years found me more and more believing that I didn't belong there - indeed, had never really belonged there. I had been out of step with the growing socialism always, even though I endured a 20+ year career in nursing/education - one of the most heavily regulated fields.
I had worked hard for the LP in Calif. for many years (among other things), trying to help stem the tide of statism and socialism there, but in 1980 came to the conclusion that it was all a total waste of time. The statists had already won there. I also came to the conclusion that electoral politics is completely counterproductive for those who wish to live free, without aggression toward others.
Boston T. Party was well known to me through mutual friends, and I followed the unfolding of the FSP with great interest until they chose NH. I had NO desire whatsoever to move east, so was thrilled when Boston announced the FSW. I felt drawn to FSW from the start, but was in such poor physical health that the idea of moving to wild and woolly Wyoming seemed insane at the best.
So, I sat there in my beloved home in the Mojave Desert and prayed. It became obvious to me that God was calling me to Wyoming, but I just didn't know how in the world I could do it. And, of course, I couldn't "do it" on my own. I had to surrender to His will and trust Him. That was the answer to my prayers... but I had to take the initiative and obey FIRST.
I put my home on the market in the spring of '05, sold or gave away more than half of what "stuff" I had, packed a truck the end of September and hit the road with my youngest son driving.
Crossing the line between Utah and Wyoming is probably the most vivid memory I'll ever have. I'd never been here before, and didn't really even know what I was coming to as far as the land, but when we stopped at the first gas station I got out to walk around and realized fully that - somehow - I had finally come HOME. I had never before felt so welcome, so full of hope and joy, so free.
It was everything and far more than I ever expected. And that was before I even met any of the other FSW folks!!! It just gets better and better. :)
The bonus is that I found health and healing here beyond my wildest dreams. I don't know what the future holds for us, but I'm willing and ready to face it - and do what I can to preserve it for myself and all who share my Wyoming home.
God bless you, and welcome. I look forward to talking with each one of you so I can tell you " the rest of the story." :)
MamaLiberty
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I was:
A naive seventh grader in Westchester Ohio who could not understand the fascination with the Democratic Party's 1976 nominee and eventual President, Jimmy Carter.
A disinterested National Honor Society tenth grader who absorbed Ayn Rand's "Anthem" (required reading) and sought out "Atlas Shrugged." Agreed with John Galt, and took up intellectual residence in Galt's Gulch.
A college dropout running a record store in Tampa Florida, safely cocooned from from political and social involvement in what I percieved to be a dying nation. My philosophy was "let them destroy it all. It'll take them longer than my lifetime to do it."
A bored, sarcastic, lonely man lucky enough to have "free" internet access provided by America Online for hosting a chatroom designed to address connection problems for a game website.
This is where everything changed.
I met a fellow chatroom host who eventually became my wife. I could no longer be disinterested, as I found myself stepfather to the proverbial redheaded stepchild. I could not justify raising this boy in a society I cared nothing about. I chose to care again. My "meaningless political and social ranting" (as my sister often put it) suddenly had purpose and weight behind it.
My lovely bride and I discovered early on that our philosophical, social, and political beliefs were quite similar. It surprised niether of us. We were described as "statistically insignificant" by those who espoused the virtue of choosing "the lesser of two evils" in general elections. (As Michael Badnarik asks: If you choose the lesser of two evils and your candidate wins, what do you get?) I felt that my awakened interest in making this nation a better place for our children was meeting the same result I'd seen twenty-plus years before.
We became frustrated. Added to this, as the years wore on, it became evident that my wife was allergic to something in Florida. We knew we couldn't stay there, and not just because of the political and educational climate. I knew if I stayed there, I'd watch my wife slowly die, and my stepson slowly become indocrinated into the vast socialist experiment Florida was rapidly becoming.
Knowing this, we began to examine our options. We stumbled across something called "The Free State Project" (actually, I thought I recalled something like this in my self-induced stupor during the "rekka-sto" era in Tampa...) and almost immediately joined up. We looked at the ten states in the running, and became intrigued by Wyoming. The more we researched, the more we agreed that Wyoming was clearly the best choice for us (as well as the FSP).
We decided to visit. We coordinated vacation time, and flew from Orlando to Denver, and drove to Cheyenne. We had decided to look at Casper, I suppose for the conveniences of the "big city," although it was smaller than any city I'd lived in, and really only slightly larger than the town my wife was raised in.
In December 2003, we knew Casper was where we'd wind up. We planned our move for May 2004. The FSP chose New Hampshire, and we regretfully opted out. My wife had lived in New England for a time, and had no desire to return, particularly given the sense of "we're home" we both experienced on our Casper visit.
So we moved, and left the FSP behind. I watched my wife's health steadily improve. I watched my son (oops...stepson) grow stronger day by day, as he was allowed to play outside without fear of either heatstroke or stray bullets interfering. I experienced the smell of freshly cut grass (missing for twenty-plus years in Florida - there's no bluegrass there) and vowed to someday mow a real lawn again.
We built a house in Bar Nunn. Wide streets, good schools, good neighbors...and we found gainful employment. All that was missing was the potential association with like-minded "Libertarian" folk we'd hoped for with the FSP. "Ah, well, at least we're out of Florida" was my justification. "My family is healthy, my boy is growing up strong and happy, and we're together."
This morning (Independence Day, no less) I opened my copy of the Casper Star-Tribune to a front-page story on "Gun-toting Free Staters" in Wyoming. It took maybe twenty seconds for me to find the website after finishing the article (and I still havent even looked at the sports page) and sign back up. I only regret that I hadn't found it earlier! (And that I can't join up online). I've got the Statement of Intent printed out in front of me, and plan to drop the envelope in the mail later today. (I'm not planning to relocate from Natrona County, however. Hope that won't be a problem.? It is interesting, though, that way back when I was examining the FSP and it's "best" option, I thought Crook County was a clear and evident winner...go figure.)
The Casper Star-Tribune article could not have come at a better time. I still don't think the majority of Americans really understand what Independence Day is really about ("You mean it's not about fireworks and barbeque?"), but it was thrilling to read this story today, and just as thrilling to think there's hundreds (thousands?) more reading it and having the same reaction I had.
Here's to the next wave...and I'd like to be the first to welcome them aboard! (And myself "back" aboard!)
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Ratnik glad you found us ! Miles
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Welcome, folks. Can't imagine how I missed this post earlier!
Don't be a stranger now!
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Wow, thanks....all great stuff that should be reread often.
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Thanks all for this thread.? Hopefully my wife, with time and prayer, will come to a whole hearted moving decision.? I have sold my biz.? The buyer is a little shakey financially and in other ways.? But I feel like the Lord is leading me this way..........? I think it was Cashus Clay/Mohammed Ali who said "it is hard by the yard but it is a cinch by the inch."? So..... we'll take it in inches.....
BTW, Ratnik, very inspiring story.? I couldn't make the this Jam but was at Jam number 1 and the "Grand Western Conferences".? Hope you hunt up a lot of our FSW bunch already in Wyoming.
Regards, Danl ~W~
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I have sold my biz.
Wow, that's something, Danl! Sounds like you're on your way! :)
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I have sold my biz.
Wow, that's something, Danl! Sounds like you're on your way!? :)
Thanks Paul.? I am really working hard on it.? I am also working hard some Biz opportuinities.? I have set up a Wyoming Corp already with a FSW member acting as Registered Agent for me.
Regards, Danl ~W~
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Great news, Dan!
Very cheery to read, and I'm glad that FSWers have been
so helpful for you. Please keep us all posted as you "inch"
your way to Wyoming.
~W~
Boston
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If things continue to work out, I will bring within the next year a manufacturing biz to Wyoming.? Some of the work will be outsourced.? If there is not adequate labor all of it will be outsourced to a location that can handle the work.? I would really like to have that Cowboy Logo (http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/d/db/WyomingCowboys.png)with made in Wyoming on the product.? Wouldn't that be great. Right now I would need to find a firm that can do production sheet metal bending. I am working on a prototype and the patent work will be done in Chicago.....
Regards, Danl ~W~
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I am working on a prototype and the patent work will be done in Chicago.....
It's interesting to hear that you are going after a patent, as I am too. In my case, I am developing a system of very cheap microprocessors that communicate with each other with encrypted messages. I have been advised several times to get a patent for certain parts of my network design, so I decided to wade through the beaurocratic crap and file for a provisional patent. If things look positive for my product family in the next ten months or so, I will file for a regular patent. If nothing else, that should help protect my right to sell my own product without interference from someone else trying to claim my invention.
If you would be interested in chatting about the patent process, please feel free to send me an email or PM.
All the best!
-Richard
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Oh Richard, that sounds so awesome!!! ;D
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Interesting news on the tech front, but back to the topic:
Reading through the other testimonials here, I find that my outlook is a bit different from many folks in this group. What I mean is, I don't long for the rustic life, so much. While I can appreciate the beauty of the great outdoors I'm perfectly happy living in a tract home on a quarter-acre lot with a convenience store within walking distance and a variety of shops and services located within a short distance.
What I do crave, however, is the maximum amount of liberty I can get, primarily, and secondarily, a reasonable cost of living. I hate taxes with a passion, and I hate restrictions on my right to keep and bear arms with just as much passion. I love the freedom to live my own life and raise my own kids as I see fit, limited only by the equal right of my neighbors to do the same.
So being an unrepentant city-boy who craves liberty, I chose Cheyenne as my new home. Casper might have worked just as well, but I have friends and relatives, and a business associate, in northern Colorado I also wanted to be near. (As it happens I was born in Fort Collins but hadn't lived there since I was six months old.)
The transition was fairly easy economically -- selling our SoCal home we had a nice fat down payment for a much nicer home in Cheyenne costing less than half as much as we sold the old place for. Groceries are a bit pricier than we were used to but most other things cost slightly less, our power bill is much lower, and lower sales taxes and property taxes plus no state income tax really helps the bottom line.
But it was difficult for my sons leaving their friends, and the supervisor at the post office here, where my wife transferred to for this move, is such an incredibly abusive s.o.b. that she had to take an early retirement to preserve her sanity. Now she manages the food court at the local Target and even though she makes half as much money as her 20-year postal service job paid, they treat her very well there.
(Although frankly, as a libertarian I was always a bit embarrassed having a wife working in the public sector, even though it's mostly user-fee rather than tax-supported, and I'm glad she's out of it now.)
After two years I'm satisfied that despite the problems this was a good move for us. I like the cooler climate (and lack of bugs), the more relaxed pace of life, and the financial benefits of living here, but I haven't had to give up much at all in the way of urban amenities. What I can't get in Cheyenne I can get by driving 50 miles down the Interstate to Fort Collins. Or via mail-order.
Cheyenne has numerous restaurants (we're getting an Olive Garden soon!), department stores, supermarkets, liquor stores, office-supply stores, computer stores, bookstores, cinemas, a small theatre, entertainment venues (most of them but not all "country" type), museums, a respectable library, a brew-pub, nice parks with an indoor swimming pool and a botanical garden. For armed-forces people, there are both American Legion and VFW posts.
So, I want everyone to know that you don't have to be and iron-thewed Mountain Man to live in Wyoming.
It would be nice, though, to get some more libertarians here in town, so I don't feel so much like the Lone Ranger.
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Thanks for that, Scott. You sound like me...
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So, I want everyone to know that you don't have to be and iron-thewed Mountain Man to live in Wyoming.
That's funny dude. And good to hear for those less stoic than Jared and I! 8)
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Thanks, Scott. We'll send you reinforcements ASAP! ;D
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Folks, let's please keep this thread pretty trim on topic,
and chat about the finer points of things in their own threads.
Thanks,
Boston
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Howdy all!
It's been awhile since we've had folks post here, and many
have moved here to Wyoming in the meantime. Let's hear from you!
This thread will be linked on http://www.freestatewyoming.org, as a portal to our forum (and us!).
~W~
Boston
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The link is now there; thanks LadyLiberty.
Also there is:
What makes a "Wyoming person"?
http://www.fundamentalsoffreedom.com/fswforum/index.php?topic=4999.msg36335#msg36335
Free State Wyoming Blogs
http://www.fundamentalsoffreedom.com/fswforum/index.php?topic=3863.0
All are ready for your contributions!
Thanks,
Boston
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Hello. Dr.Tramp here. Why I moved to Wyoming? Hmm..... First let me tell ya'll a bit about myself.
I've been a wanderer all my life. Never lived more than 6 years in one house and usually much less than that. I've been in every state of the US, parts of Canada, China, Mexico, Vietnam, Australia and I lived and worked in 3 countries in Europe for about 5 years.
Spent a lot of time off and on down in Colorado but it's become to Californicated anymore for my taste.
Always liked the mountains and the plains and when I decided to settle somewhere I picked Cheyenne because here I have easy access to both, it's big enough to have everything I need but small enough to have that small town friendliness to it.
Bought a small house, joined a shooting club and am getting to know the place better.
What do I do besides wander? I fix things. I worked in the motorcycle industry for 25 years, 3 as an instructor for the Motorcycle Mechanics Institute, and I have about 15 years of experience in industrial mechanics.
That about covers it. Any questions just holler.
Ride Safe. Dr.Tramp.................
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What do I do besides wander? I fix things.
Ah, one of the most honorable and noble professions, right alongside the people who build things. Glad to have you around!
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Howdy Dr .Tramp I would love to share a campfire with ya if you are free to come to the get together in June. Sounds like you might have a lot of stories to tell.
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"Dr. Tramp" -- that's funny.
Glad Wyoming is such a good fit for you, and welcome here!
Thanks for your post,
Boston
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This might take a while. Grab a beverage. Make it a soda. They're gonna put a tax on those soon.
Before moving here to Wyoming, my wife and I lived in the Salt Lake City area of Utah. For those who haven't lived there, Utah (especially the Salt Lake and Utah Counties areas) is very unique. It would be a real nice place if it weren't for the people. Specifically the "soccer mom" Mormon types. It's pretty amazing. Believers of the LDS faith who live outside of Utah (we have neighbors now who are Mormon) are much different than those who live in Utah, where they are 49% of the population. We called them the "Mormon Taliban."
They are the reason it's a near-criminal act to buy alcohol, smoke a cigarette, or carry a gun in the city. On top of that, there's the city itself. I hate cities. Salt Lake City was the largest I'd ever lived in. I have no plans to ever go back to that. I consider Cheyenne (which is 1/10 the size) to be "big."
We were definitely stuck in Utah, however. While housing is relatively cheap, the costs of living are huge. Taxes are high and wages are generally low. Worse, there is a huge glut of educated workers in Utah, so even a college degree and a real skill won't guarantee you a good income. Getting out was a priority, but we had a lot going against us.
One night, my wife and I sat down and talked about it. I'd met Boston through my friend Fran and have read every one of his books. I was critical of Molon Labe (I'm hard to please, I didn't like Suprenowitz' Black Arrow either), but greatly enjoyed the analysis at the end of the book regardless. It fit in with discussions that I and my compadres had been in many times. Usually through thick cigar smoke and lots of local brew.
She had just started school on the first leg towards becoming a nurse (Assoc. Medical Assisting) and I was working hard labor because my business had failed. I knew that $13/hour wasn't going to go far for long and she wanted to cut back. I'd thought about starting a new (temporary) career and truck driving seemed to be it. We scraped up the cash and I went to trucker school.
Then I went over the road for a local outfit hauling produce. Trucking is a unique business. What got me interested was the extreme independence most drivers enjoy and the fact that you're paid for performance (miles driven/goods delivered) rather than just for showing up. Despite the heavy (new) federal regulation, there is still some money to be made in trucking. It's not an easy job, though. Someone without self-discipline and forethought will not get far truck driving.
I drove for three years and made pretty good money. She finish school after two years and we started looking towards Wyoming. She wanted to leave Utah, I wanted to go to Wyoming. She was happy with Wyoming. As long as it wasn't Utah or California, she was game. We then looked at our circumstances and narrowed our choice of where to live based on those. I originally wanted to move to Crook County near Hulett, but that wasn't realistic for us. She needed access to a sizable town with medical facilities so she could work and I wanted to be where I could get home once in a while in the truck, even though driving was temporary.
We looked at housing in Cheyenne, but one trip to town told us that we could get more for our buck outside of town and I had no interest in trading one city for another--even one as small as Cheyenne. We eventually settled on Pine Bluffs. What sold me was the town's size (officially 1,200 people, but the city limits spread pretty far, there's maybe half that actually in-town) and the crime statistics. Namely the lack of them. For the year 2006 (the last year available before we moved here), there were the following: 3 aggravated assaults, 1 auto theft, and that's it. The assaults were all at the bar and the vehicle theft was a teenager stealing his parents' car.
One visit to the town sealed the deal and it took little time to find our new house. We moved in on Labor Day weekend in 2008.
My wife commutes to work daily (45 miles each way, all freeway) and I work at home now. We've started an animal rescue group with some locals and teamed up with a shelter in Carpenter. I've managed to piss off the mayor (who's been handily voted out of office) and the town cop (Tom) thinks I'm hilarious (telling my dog, LeRoy, to "act natural, it's the fuzz" whenever Tom comes around helps). Tom also thought it was great (he's originally from Jersey, I try not to hold that against him) that I told the city council during a meeting that their plans and the reasoning behind them were "f@#*ing stupid."
Turns out, one member of the council agreed with me. He's now the new mayor.
There are few places with a political and cultural climate quite like Wyoming's. There's some cowboy, some patriot, and some farmer/rancher all rolled in there. Mostly it's a "lemme alone, gubmint SOB" theme. My neighbor is the caretaker at the local elementary school. He was telling me about the lock down drills they have to do (thanks to the fedgov) and how stupid they are. I asked him why they don't just take down the "no guns" signs. He said that the PTA had been asking them to do that and had actually pushed for the school district to allow teachers with CCW to carry in-school. That didn't fly with the federal rep, of course.
Imagine that? Public schools where the parents and teachers actually want to be able to carry guns in the school.
The other thing you'll find here is friendliness. People wave, whether they know you or not, just because they're passing by. People help one another out, hold the door, say "thank you," etc. Town parades involve the entire town: if you're not in it, you're watching it. Nobody sends the cops over if you haven't mowed your lawn or properly trimmed your trees.
Basically, it's country life. It's not the country life you see on TV with monster trucks and people randomly shooting into the air. It's real country life. Friendly like.
Come out to Wyoming and see it for yourself. Hang out for a couple of weeks somewhere (randomly pick a spot, it doesn't matter). Talk to people. See the sights. I bet you'll only leave to go get your stuff to bring it back here. :)
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....and the town cop (Tom) thinks I'm hilarious (telling my dog, LeRoy, to "act natural, it's the fuzz" whenever Tom comes around helps). ...
Must be a bad, bad LeRoy Brown...dog... ;D
Good to see you on here MacAaron...and look forward to more of your posts about living in-town Wyoming...
Big cities (with nasty ol' Wal-Mart & such) are close enough when they are an hour away...all the convenience none of the hassle.
MANUMIT
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Must be a bad, bad LeRoy Brown...dog... ;D
Good to see you on here MacAaron...and look forward to more of your posts about living in-town Wyoming...
Big cities (with nasty ol' Wal-Mart & such) are close enough when they are an hour away...all the convenience none of the hassle.
MANUMIT
That song is exactly where his name came from, actually. Baddest dog in the whole damn town. :)
Ya, we have access to Wally World and Sam's Club in Cheyenne as well as most of the standard Big Box stores. I do a lot of shopping online and buy a lot of stuff locally as well. I wish I had known last year that there's a Farmer's Market in Kimball, NE (20 miles east). Kimball also has an awesome hardware store (old time, where you walk in and tell him what you want and then talk politics for an hour) and a great thrift store as well.
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My neighbor is the caretaker at the local elementary school. He was telling me about the lock down drills they have to do (thanks to the fedgov) and how stupid they are. I asked him why they don't just take down the "no guns" signs. He said that the PTA had been asking them to do that and had actually pushed for the school district to allow teachers with CCW to carry in-school. That didn't fly with the federal rep, of course.
Imagine that? Public schools where the parents and teachers actually want to be able to carry guns in the school.
Actually this is state law; Wyoming's CCW law is less than ideal because it has too many restrictions where you can't carry concealed. For example, in Oregon you can carry concealed in govt. schools. The obvious answer, if people really want teachers carrying in school, is open carry. "Discrete" open carry would do the job...
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Here I am...
I Flew into BFF on 9/11 with a case full of firearms (take THAT TSA), bought a proper truck (79 Chevy 1/2 Ton) within 2 hours of landing, and, after sleeping/showering off the stench of Chicago, arrived in-country on Saturday (9/12).
I'm here to make sure that those persons held in the new Torrington Prison for commiting force or fraud take the opportunity to reflect on how lucky they are to be alive...and to spread the gospel of ZAP and personal responsibility to them... at least until such time as a properly minarchist/agorist non-state eliminates the state incarceration system. ;)
Now I just need to find a place to rent in Torrington that will accept Cats, Guns and a proper individualist mindset. ;D
CUAGAUPT!
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We had lived in Black Forest, Colorado, in El Paso County for 9 years after an eye opening 5 years in California. It was a nice place, and we probably would have stayed forever on our 5 acres, but layoffs were frequent and the population growth was unbelievable. In 1995 we bought "retirement property" in Wyoming, near Bighorn. Events conspired, and we found ourselves living in California, again (sigh). We sold the property but kept the idea, and in 2002 we bought another place north of Sheridan. Events conspired again, and we found ourselves moving to Colorado in 2007. The state had changed for the worse - more people, more progressives and the supporters of O won the state! Shocking! But fate was not through, and we received notice - a letter from a lawyer, actually - that we would be moving again, thanks to our landlord's bankruptcy. So we notified our tenants in Wyoming that we would not renew their lease. In April we began a 3 month process of renovating the house (it's amazing what tenants will do to a place) and by July were were here. Next time, if events conspire to push us out, we're pushing back!
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Hello Folks,
After years of thinking about it, I finally moved to Wyoming. Arrived yesterday, after a 3.5 day drive alone from Taxachusetts.
The reasons why I moved are similar to those covered in earlier posts...more freedom, less taxes, and a sincere desire to have a better, more fulfilling life, with people who are more like me. I lived in/around Boston for 10+ years, but was a small town girl the entirety of my life before that. Moved there for money (a mistake); left for freedom (mistake corrected!).
Special thanks to those on the forum who reached out that first time I visited: Mama Liberty, manfromnevada and Rich…every one of you made a difference and gave me a positive first impression of Wyoming and, ultimately, made my decision to move that much easier. Further, thank you for your friendship and support since that first visit.
And, of course, a big shout out to Boston. Without your eye-opening BGB…I’d probably still be a prisoner of my home state. Thank you!
Looking forward to meeting more of you, and doing what I can to promote Liberty.
Kelly
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Your Very welcome Kelly!
Congratulations on your move from tyranny and escape to Freedom!
We Welcome you as an official FSW Member, In Wyoming!
Rich
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Yippeeee! Kelly's here! :):):)
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When you get the time c'mon down to Newcastle. I think we can get a few of us together, maybe some folks from Sundance and around the area can make it to.....................CONGRATULATIONS.
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Hello all......
Why I moved to wyoming is different to most here....... Had a good paying job in Texas,but my temper wrote a check my butt couldn't cash, was swiftly terminated. Had plans to move to nebraska, but my baby sis talked me into moving to here, Cody,Wy.
Been here since april 2009. Got a job paying half what I was making in Tx within 2 weeks of moving here, only to be laid off new years eve :-\
O.K. ....apologies first. Before I moved up here, I surfed for info on Park county and Wyoming in general. Came upon your site back then and assumed it was one of the 'extremist successionist' sites, so I just blew it off...........guess I should have looked more closely....
Altho I am currently unemployed, Im trying to be optimistic about wyoming. In many ways its similar to Texas, yet very different of course.....I find myself being gaurded about my 'Texas state of mind'....locals here are very suspicious of Texans,for some reason.....
anyway, I have a lot of forum pages to read yet.....................................
................BTW: As most here are libertarian immigrants.......I consider myself an economic refugee.....for now,anyway ;)
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:-[ :-[ :-[............ooooops!!!! can admins move this to proper location, I goofed up :-[ :-[ :-[
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Hi DesertGypsy,
From another Texan, welcome to the forum!
Okay guys.... So what's this about being suspicious of Texans? What did we do (or not do)?
~TexasGirl
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...So what's this about being suspicious of Texans? What did we do (or not do)?
~TexasGirl
Um, you elected Rick Perry ;D ...soon to roll his neo-CON bouffant into running for Pennsylvania Ave accommodations since history DOES repeat itself....though only if the Diebold machines do their work during the primary vs. Medina. >:D
MANUMIT
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Actually, I voted for the independent so technically I didn't elect him. I'm working the streets basically for Medina. Not in any official capacity but effective none the less. I got one young man excited today and he's telling his work associates. Because they are a hospital, everyone likes the fact that she is an RN. When I share about her, I tell them the only wat she will win is if we each tell a bunch of others and get them out to vote. Now Dad, who lives on a State highway, wants some 4x8' signs. If could happen.
~Karen
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Karen - I am happy to see you supporting Medina. She is certainly inspiring! Perry and Hutchinson make me cringe...
Keep fightin' for her...hopefully the tide keeps going her way!!
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Thanks!
You guys can help too. It's not just a Texas thing, this will have a major impact for the Libertarian cause nationwide. Texas could just be the tail that wags the dog.
Talk to your Texas friends about Debra, explain we all have to work it and go vote. Go online and make a donation, she doesn't have politcal machine financial support like Ricky and Kay do.
~TG
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I havent read anything about Ms Medina, my family in houston area say they will vote for her.........hoping she is more serious than Kinky was.......As for the distrust of Texans......I think that W has a lot to do with that, along with the rivalry among those in oil patch,but was told many other reasons by locals. At least we Texans are more preferrable than californians.
What parts of Texas are you at Tx girl??
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So what's this about being suspicious of Texans? What did we do (or not do)?
I never heard of anything like that. Texas is one of the main states Wyoming gets its immigrants from, IIRC.
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What parts of Texas are you at Tx girl??
S. E. Texas. I have lived within 90 miles of Houston most of my life.
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Texas Girl:
Glad to hear you're asking about what's up with FSW'ers or Wyomingites in general not liking us Texans. Not fair !
(Shoot, here half the folks here get in a snit if I admit I'm just 3 years out of CA, so if - LORD willing we would move to WYO, and there only 25 % dislike Texans, we'd still be ahead of the game, right ? !)
Glad to hear you're working for Medina - us too, quite vigorously. Just put up 2 of the 8' long mini billboards - working phones & knocking doors. My Children & I together.
You're right, her success would be a victory for Libertarians nationwide - I pray the GOP henchmen are otherwise occupied - Perry is so corrupt, in the pocket of every big lobbyist in TX.
Anyhow, if Texas doesn't improve - we're gonna look seriously at Wyoming.
Thanks to you & all, David Texas Minuteman
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The End of an Odyssey
By
Seniortech
The end of an odyssey. Or is it the beginning? I guess it’s both. I’ll tell you something about it, and maybe you can get some idea of how it has been, this odysseyizing to Wyoming.
We found FSW in May of ’06 I believe it was, and that’s how long I have been considering, planning and making the move to Wyoming. Linda agreed with me from the first, making some corny-sounding statement like, “Whither thou goest . . .” etc., etc. We’ve been here before, of course, first about twenty years ago, on vacation, just moseying through, liking what we saw, and returning a time or two for more looking and enjoying. We came a couple of times in ’06, looking at property, trying to find something we liked, but most of what we really liked was way more than we could afford. We meet our first FSW’ers (Jared and Mama Liberty) in September that year. In February ’07, we made a special trip to Thermocouple, uh, I mean Thermopolis, to look at a house which we could afford but which we didn’t like well enough to buy. Besides, we thought we wanted to be in either Crook or Weston County.
I’ve been a working stiff my whole life, not educated beyond high school and never was able to figure out how to make any significant amount of money. Show up for work, do the job, get promoted even, and a nice raise now and then, pay the bills and the taxes, cuss the guvmint lies and boondoggles, save a little money on occasion, buy a place and pay out the seemingly forever mortgage, make advance payments on the principal when possible, get the children raised, getting older (and hopefully, wiser) every year, knowing that the day was coming when I wouldn’t be able to work, and wondering what is going to be the end of things. You all know the drill.
We had a grand time at the ’07 Guernsey Jam, the first we had attended. It was a very good and fun experience and made us want to come to Wyoming even more. We got to meet, a lot of the like-minded folks we knew from the Forum, and we wanted to be friends and neighbors with these people. By that time I had already signed the SOFI, but it was mostly a matter of faith, believing we could work it out some way. There just didn’t seem to be any way that we could not arrange our affairs and be able to move within seven years. I mean, come on now, seven years? What kind of situation is so complicated and difficult that you can’t get it squared away in seven years. I guess you could be in prison with ten years remaining on your sentence or something, but more likely, as often happens, our prison may be one of the mindset. .
Perhaps the biggest hang up is leaving the familiar. We had deep roots in a small southern state with five times the population of Wyoming and with a land area of about half as much. Yeah, it was sort of crowded, and there was a lot of demographic pollution to boot. Never mind the other hazards, such as ever-increasing crime and never-ending tax increases to pay for ever-larger jails to house ever more violent miscreants. Galloping statism of all types.
Even so, it’s hard to pull up a lifetime of roots in the sunny South where trees and water are everywhere, and move off to the frozen Mountain West where the trees and reservoirs are fewer and much farther between. We had strong ties to the land and to our specific piece of ground. In 1910, my grandfather had worked a sawmill on the very spot where my house stood, and my family had owned the land since the 1950’s. There’s no place like home, right? These ties to familiar people, places and things must be broken and it takes a serious commitment for that to happen.
Still though, it doesn’t seem wise to just jump up and move to Wyoming, full speed ahead, damn the torpedoes. We must count the cost, plans must be made, all things must be considered, and we all have obligations that must be resolved in an honorable way. We were able to do all this in less than two years and it only took that long because I felt obligated to help my grandson through engineering school. I guess it’s only fair to say that I was past retirement age, still working only to pay his college expenses and I could only quit work when that was finished. I didn’t have to consider employment issues as most would have to do. He graduated two days before we left on our final move and he has a new job in, you guessed it, Wyoming. His job is 400 miles from where we live but so what. The wide open spaces of Wyoming are one of its main attractions. Looking to the north from where we live in Newcastle, we see the beginning of the Black Hills, and to the south and west we can see, well, it seems like forever across the Thunder Grasslands.
So, it was about two years from the time the bug bit us until we were moving into our new home. Others may take longer or not as long. Everyone’s situation is different and only they can know all the factors and make the proper decisions. I do think that sooner is better. There is no question in my mind that the general situation is going to hell and the only real question is when. We can’t know for sure, and we can only observe the signs, and make the best judgment we can.
After making the decision I was assailed with doubts and second thoughts, as almost anyone might be. But, as someone has said, “If you ain’t having any second thoughts, that in itself is pretty good evidence that you ain’t doin’ nuthin.” I should have done this 25 years ago when I was younger, strong and confident. I’m and old man now and I guess it’s normal to wonder if I’ll be able to be useful in this hoped-for better community of free-minded folks. But what the hell, maybe I’ll grow a mustache and run for sheriff. I already have a nice Stetson hat. Boots, too. Just kidding.
Linda came to Wyoming in August, ’07, to find us a new home. She had almost worn out a computer trying to find something “on line,” and burned up phone lines talking to realty agents. We had no success and we finally decided that that wasn’t the way to do it. One day I suggested that she get in her car, drive to Wyoming and find us a house. She left the next morning. She stayed with a gracious and well-known FSW lady and spent about two weeks scouring the countryside. Finally, one day, she walked into the house where I am now typing this (what is this, anyway?) epistle to the remnant, and decided that we could live here. After consulting with me she made an offer to the realty agent and the owner said okay. The local bank was willing to finance the house with a substantial down payment but I thought their interest rate was too high. So I went to our credit union back “down yonder” and they said sure, they would finance it. You would have thought that they financed houses in Wyoming every day of the week. And their rates were very good compared to what the local bank wanted.
So there I was, a mostly used up old man with a brand new mortgage. I didn’t even know they would finance a house for someone my age. In September, ’07, we hauled our first load of “stuff” up here on a 16’ flatbed trailer, and became residents of Wyoming. I immediately licensed my truck in Wyoming, mostly to show the folks back home (or rather back where I used to live down yonder) that I was serious and the deal was done. Most of that winter we snow birded but were here for February and again for the month of April, each time moving some more “stuff.” By September, ’08 we had resided in Wyoming for more than six months of the previous year, making us legal residents of Wyoming since September, ’07. This was important to me because you must be a resident for a year before you can apply for a resident hunting or fishing license.
Moving is expensive. There is no way that I could afford to hire a mover and pay umpteen thousand dollars to get moved. After that first load I sold the 16’ trailer and bought a 24’ tandem gooseneck trailer with 7000# axles. If you’re going to pull a trailer 1350 miles it should be big enough, strong and sturdy enough to haul some stuff.
Moving is hard work, too. We spent days packing our stuff in boxes, and you never notice how much stuff you have until you start moving. It had rained during our first load in September, and the cheap ($30) tarp ripped. Some of our stuff got wet. We bought a good tarp ($250) for our next load. I put 2x4 stakes on the sides of the trailer, screwed 1/2'” plywood to the stakes, and boxed in the whole load. The high dollar tarp covered it all and we had it well strapped down. No problems with rain that time. Same deal on the next trip but, wouldn’t you know it, not a drop of rain on the trip.
Our truck is an F-250 diesel, and it was well able to pull the heavy load at highway speeds. The truck will normally get 19 MPG on the highway, but we were able to get only 10.5 average pulling the heavy trailer. That’s a lot of fuel, and with diesel fuel at $4.50 per gallon it cost $140 for a fill up. We were able to drive the 1350 miles in two days. One night in a motel, fuel, and something to eat made the trip cost just over $700. The empty return trip was slightly less costly; call it $1350 for a round trip. We spent $350 for the tarp and plywood. Total moving expense, for two round trips and the final load up: $3750. I don’t know what moving company rates are, but in our case we moved 1350 miles at a total cost of $3750, or $2.77 per mile. This does not include that first trip with the small trailer. Also, the price of the bigger trailer is not figured in but it will be available for other needs. It has already been used several times for some FSW folks to shuffle their stuff around the state.
Whenever we showed up here with a loaded trailer there were always FSW’ers here to welcome us and help unload. I could never have moved the heavy stuff around without their help. They are our new “home folks” and we have really appreciated their willingness to help, and their encouragement.
We sold the old home place to our son for about half its value. He wanted it badly I guess for the same reasons I hated to leave it. It is familiar ground and he is the fourth generation to live there. It was a bargain for him, we were able to pay off the mortgage on our new house, and we have a few dollars left over for one of those rainy days. When he finally decides to bring his family to Wyoming too, he should be able to sell the place for a very nice profit.
We left our old home early on the morning of May 19. As we were standing by the trailer checking the straps our daughter-in-law drove up in her gas hog SUV. The back window rolled down and my little two-year-old grandson (not the one who just finished engineering school) was waving from his government mandated child safety seat, “Bye Poppa. Bye Poppa.” If you think that won’t tear at the fabric of your heart and soul you’re sadly mistaken. All the uncertainties, doubts and fears flood into your old feeble brain, and all the ties that bind you to that certain piece of God’s good earth where you have spent most of your life, scream in your mind, “What the hell are you doing?” Tears flood your eyes and you just barely manage to croak, “Bye Gus. Bye little Son.”
Sorry about that. I didn’t mean to be writing a tearjerker here. But, no more daily visits with that little grandson is a sacrifice, to say the least. We will be visiting though, as circumstances and finances allow, and they will visit here, too. I believe that they will move here eventually, but they’re not ready yet. My kids hate to see us move, but they have been encouraging and supportive. Their comments have been, “Go for it, Old Man!” and “Dream big Daddy. It’s never too late.” and “It takes a lot of guts, Dad. I admire you for it.” But I never thought they expected that when I quit working I would sit on my porch in the rocking chair and drool on my shirt until I died. I’m redundant anyway since my daughter lives in Texas and the other son in (gulp) Oakland. It’s a new adventure, a new beginning, and we have high hopes, Linda and I, for a good life in Wyoming until our time on the Earth is finished. We consider ourselves a part of that remnant of freedom loving people who have been blessed to see the real situation. Instead of living out our lives in temporary comfort and safety back at the old “home place,” we want to help as best we can to make this place a last bastion of liberty.
This is home now, and it’s surprising how quickly that came to be. We are very glad that we made the move. Already we have made new and dear friends. There are about a dozen of us FSW’ers nearby, and that is more friends than we had back yonder in the past 20 years. The neighbors are friendly and courteous but circumspect, mostly leaving us alone. We have grown to love our wonderful next door neighbor, a lovely widow lady from Iowa. She is an avid fisherperson (notice the politically correct title), and has been fishing with us many times already. This new home of ours has far exceeded our expectations. We have visited the old home place two or three times, once when our twin grandsons were born last year. We are still hoping (and praying) that our son and his wife will wake up and move. We’ll see.
I urge you to consider joining us here in Wyoming. Count the costs. Weigh the benefits. Resolve to make a move toward freedom. If you do it, I expect that, like us, you’ll be very glad you did.
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Great read SeniorTech.
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Yeah! That's great stuff!
Mac
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Pretty moving stuff there, Seniortech. :) Something for us youngsters to consider. It takes a lot of courage to uproot your life like that. I am happy things have turned out so well for you here...
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Thanks for writing that Seniortech, lots of good things to ponder.
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:) I know ya'll probably moved primarily for more personal liberty, and I respect that. However, I wanna know what the liberty movement is like up there. Is there a vibrant movement towards more freedom with lots of activism? Or do FSWers mostly keep to themselves in terms of politics and vote every now and then? ??? I'm just curious. I know the liberty movement in Wyoming probably is nowhere near as active as in NH, but I wanna know the specifics (if possible) so I know where to move if I need a lot more freedom and feel threatened by statists any time soon.
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As you can imagine, I'm very interested in politics and the issues and plan on becoming at least quasi-active sometime in the near future. ;)
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:) I know ya'll probably moved primarily for more personal liberty, and I respect that. However, I wanna know what the liberty movement is like up there. Is there a vibrant movement towards more freedom with lots of activism? Or do FSWers mostly keep to themselves in terms of politics and vote every now and then? ??? I'm just curious. I know the liberty movement in Wyoming probably is nowhere near as active as in NH, but I wanna know the specifics (if possible) so I know where to move if I need a lot more freedom and feel threatened by statists any time soon.
Some do and some don't. It's a personal thing. Unlike the FSP, there is NO official FSW political activity. Members may be as politically active as they wish, of course, but they can't use the FSW name in the process. There are other active groups here, such as the Sons of Liberty, and WSSA for gun rights, but it is much more subtle than some other places.
The folks in Wyoming pretty much like things the way they are (whether that's good or bad is up to your perspective, of course) and are not going to be too eager to accept people from elsewhere who come and tell them they need to throw out this or that and do things differently - whether that would actually be a good thing to do or not. Most small communities have an instinctive suspicion of those from outside who come in with grand ideas for their lives, regardless of the newcomer's motives or intentions. Just the way it is.
So, even those who are politically active here go slowly and don't make big waves.
Good luck. :) Just go slow and get to know people first.
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Well said MamaLiberty.
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SeniorTech, you said it! You described what we are going through right now.
We are yearning for those big, wide open spaces that make my heart sing. We want more liberty, more freedom & some good freedom loving new friends and neighbors.
But we are definitely in a southern state & have lived nowhere but down here. Our kids & grandkids are here, our parents are buried close by, our families are within a 100 miles or so. (and they all think we're crazy as bed bugs for even thinking about moving at this stage in our lives) We're not quite at the retirement age but it ain't far off. Funny thing is, we found a job with a conveyor company in Gillette that sounds very enticing just tonight.
Thank you so much for that great epistle! The scene with your little grandson made me cry. And I know that scene will be played out for us before too much longer.
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SeniorTech, just now saw your "epistle". Thank you for taking the time to write it. Like you I'm approaching retirement age and we are pondering where we will retire. My wife is dealing with major health issues or we would have already been out to Wyoming several times to look it over. Your description of your move and the FSW folks there is very helpful.
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Steve & Sunny, Thanks for your nice comments. It has been three years since we moved to Wyoming and we are very glad we made the move. We love it here, no regrets at all. Well, there is one regret and that is that we didn’t do it twenty years ago.
Sunny, I truly understand your feelings. My kids and grand kids are back there too, and they also thought I was crazy, although they hesitated to put it in those words. My parents are buried back there under the live oaks too, but the operative word is “buried.” Incidentally, they moved to that place from somewhere else many years ago, and their parents are buried in that far off somewhere else place. Since we met you and Jeff on your visit we think y’all are the kind of folks who can make it happen, and the kind of folks we would like for friends and neighbors.
There are bound to be a few problems with such a move. For instance, Arkansas claimed that we were still residents for an extra year and tried to make us pay taxes. We won that round but not without some hassle. We were used to much lower real estate prices back there. Prices are higher here, but we managed to live with that too. Where we came from 20 degrees was severe cold and we were uncertain about the weather here and its effect on us. We have made it just fine, even during the times of sub-zero cold, and the climate in Wyoming actually suits us better than "back yonder." It’s probably not necessary to even mention the change in demographics, and the attitudes of the local folks, but it is wonderful.
I could go on and on with stuff like that but the bottom line is we’re glad we’re here, hallelujah!
If anybody wanted my advice it would be that there is never going to be an ideal time and circumstance; it’s just life its own self and you work it out every day, as you go. Just like anything else, you set your goal, plan your course, do what you have to do, make it work some way. I wish you both well in your efforts.
John
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Ok so I'm moving to WY because of a job. But I have been looking for a job in WY, in a big part because of the FSW project and I love the idea of getting together with other liberty loving people. Ill admit that I wouldn't have moved here just for the FSW; I wouldn't have moved here if I didn't have a job lined up. I learned my lesson moving to NH for the free state project. Although I did have a job lined up in NH before I moved, it was only an interview and although I did get the job, there was great uncertainty about the hours and income.
After I got the job in Casper, I started realizing why Wyoming was voted #2 when the FSP voted for the states. I believe WY actually has a good amount more economic and personal freedom than NH. I think maybe NH was chosen for the port and border to Canada. So if you aren't looking for secession as the goal and you don't need a huge circle of friends, then WY maybe a better place to be free.
WY is definitely a better place to be if you want to escape the state, live off the land and live with a great deal of privacy.
I love the natural beauty of WY and the attitude of many of the locals. There isn't floods of liberals coming in from Massachusettes.
I'm really excited about exploring the area and making new friends!
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Why I moved to Wyoming and Why I'm So Happy I Did:
I grew up in the midwest very close to Lake Erie and aside from hearing older members of my family chat about politics and politicians once in a while (about once every four years, close to the general election), we did not discuss politics at home. I've always known how I feel about particular issues and political figures, but I've not been open to discuss them with most people as those conversations generally lead to, well, nowhere. Double that for religious issues. I learn a lot by reading and listening to others' discuss politics, but I'm simply not interested in engaging in conversation on those two topics. I know how I feel and that's what matters to me.
For the last 11 years I traveled around the US and lived in a few different states, some of that time spent attending college... always sort of searching for two things: climate that suits me and the type of people I want to spend my time with. Most recently I lived in Colorado basking in the lack of humidity, almost year-round sunshine, and amazing opportunities to spend time outdoors in or near the mountains. However, I found that Colorado has way too many people and not enough fresh water.
I toyed with the idea of returning to my home state for only one reason: to be closer to a few very special family members and spend time with my nieces and nephew as they grow up. My home state is beautiful, to be sure, and I certainly have friends there I'd love to see more often. Thank goodness for letter-writing, email, and the occasional plane ride to keep in touch, but that particular state is not inhabited with (overall) the type of people I want to spend my time with (read: brainwashed politics and mind-numbing tunnel-vision choice of lifestyle). And, what "wide-open" spaces I enjoyed growing up are becoming more and more populated.
A few years ago my brother and sister-in-law let me know that they were researching the possibility of moving to a more rural, freedom-oriented and liberty-loving region of the US and I was overjoyed! I said, "I'll be more than willing to join you, as long as it's not too humid" (I'm easy to please, especially considering these are two very fine folks I'm speaking of). Imagine my excitement when I got a call earlier this year and they said "we've narrowed it down to Wyoming"! Well hot dang! Rural, freedom-oriented, liberty-loving, low humidity... honestly, what more could a girl ask for?
So, for me, my move to Wyoming is about (more) freedom, family, and meeting new like-minded friends and associates along the way. I had a chance to meet some pretty cool people at this years Jam and am looking forward to meeting more of you in person as time goes on. I was able to sign my SofI with ease, as I have always been and will always be a good neighbor. I like that this loosely-organized group is not a political organization and is, in fact, quite a diverse group of individuals.
Some of you reading this have been here a while, some are just checking out the website, and quite a few have been in the process of making the move for some time now. For the latter, I'll tell you it just happened to be really good timing for me to make the move and I'm quite accustomed to re-locating. I wish you the best in finding your way here as soon as you can.
I've been here ten days now and am thrilled I made the move. I found a place to rent in a superb little community in North Central Wyoming, with an upclose and personal view of the BigHorns. We have a post office, a gas station, a few bar/restaurants, a volunteer fire department, a few small churches, a vintage store, a general store, a coffee shop, LOTS of deer, and a couple of stop signs- but not a one traffic light.
Some of my favorite things so far: my dog hasn't been on a leash once in the last 10 days, the blanket of stars every night- and I mean billions of them!, chickens and roosters next door, horses and/or cows on just about every property, the slower pace of life gereral, the Cowboy on my license plate (yup, I said that), watching the wild turkeys fly up to roost every night just before dusk, I've had three offers to go out shooting already, for the first time in my life I will receive a paycheck with no state income tax witheld, and MOST importantly: the friendly and welcoming attitude of everyone I've met so far. Check this out- the day I moved here, miles before I even pulled into my new driveway for the first time people who'd never seen me or my truck before were giving me the ol' small town nod and wave as we passed on the street, and that's what I love. That's the America I want to live in.
Today I got a key to my place of employment on a silver keyring. The front has a Buffalo on it. The back says, "Wyoming- Where life's worth living."
I couldn't agree more.
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A hearty Welcome to you AIM! I look forward to many conversations and dinners with you in the future.
Kelly
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Welcome! And I'm so glad you made it. Awesome to find that special place! Hope you'll come to visit us sometimes. :)
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That's a great story. Really reveals some of the important attributes of small town living in Wyoming.
Welcome.
Mac
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A story as charming as you are, AIM. I like the small and telling details of your America and
am sure the locals will welcome as many 'Atoms' as they can get.
Here' a song for the occasion dedicated to yourself and all the wonderful women on
this forum who've blazed their own 'Rugged Road' to the mountain states:
There's a Rugged Road
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1IHE09lOjyU
Terence
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AIM,
A long life filled with joy for you and yours.
It couldn't happen to a better person!
Vince
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Thanks, all, for the warm welcome! I'll come around to visit once I get a bit more settled, looking forward to it.
am sure the locals will welcome as many 'Atoms' as they can get.
:D
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@ AIM Welcome to Wyoming 8)
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Thanks Shawn!
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What a coup for the FSW and Wyoming you are, AIM.
I am delighted that you're so pleased with your move!
Thank you for that great bio, so nicely written and so inspiring.
~W~
Boston
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I moved to Wyoming because I spent my entire life in NY and NJ >:( We looked at New Hampshire for a while, but we noticed WAY too many Massachusetts license plates. We also looked at Georgia, Florida, and Texas. While each of those places had its own appeal, we knew after our trip to Wyoming this past August that we found our home. My wife began going on interviews while we were on vacation! We were living in Wyoming within 45 days of returning to NY from our vacation. The frantic pace and stressful drive cross county with everything we own in a truck (and two cars) was difficult, however. I recommend better planning. But we had a sense of urgency because of where we lived at the time. And sure enough we missed Hurricane Sandy and the Nor'Easter with a month to spare! With 911, a major blackout, an earthquake, and the Hurricane of 2011 in recent memory, I felt it was truly a "numbers game" living there. And I'm not a gambling kind of man.
Having good, like-minded friends, from the FSW, established before moving here offered us a tremendous advantage. But the people in Wyoming overall are truly special. Their senses of humor I find to be as dry as mine (like drinking a glass of sand! But funny HA HA is better than funny as in BIZARRE...) The folks are sincere, practical, and intelligent. I got to know more of my neighbors here in two weeks than I knew living at my last residence for the past six years in NY. I go to pay the water and garbage bill in person and the folks know who I am. I go to the bank and the tellers know my name. I go to the post office and he knows my name.
Finally, the physical beauty of the state is awesome. The spaces are wide open and the sky is huge. The Black Hills are beautiful. The Big Horns are spectacular, and then there's the Tetons and Yellowstone (which are unfortunately too close to Jackson...) I love it here and I love all my new friends.
The best thing for me is not having to keep my enthusiasm for guns "in the closet", so to speak. I enjoy seeing people open-carrying "Loud and Proud!"
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And Welcome to you, B. Howell!
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Great timing B. Howell! Getting off the coast before Sandy hit, I mean. Welcome to Wyoming! We have hurricanes here too, but they're generally a lot drier.
I was speaking with a retired New Jersey cop living in Laramie (which is too liberal for my taste, but a nice little town none-the-less) His quote: 'I can open-carry or concealed-carry here with no hassles; but I never feel like I have to. In New Jersey, I always felt I had to, but if I hadn't been a cop, it would have cost too much and been too much government paperwork!' My reply: 'We don't charge anyone for exercising inalienable, God-given rights here. And if I have my way, we never will.'
Congratulations again on your timely escape!
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We were living in Wyoming within 45 days of returning to NY from our vacation.
B. Howell,
Thanks for sharing your adventure. I admire a person who just makes up their mind and runs with it, and it only took 45 days! That is truly impressive!
I hope you don't mind me asking, but what area are you and your family living in? I'm having a difficult time deciding but I am sure I want to be in a town that is smaller then 3,000 people. We moved from Wisconsin for many of the same reasons you moved from the East Coast. We decided on North Phoenix, AZ. I'm not feeling like we fit in here and Wyoming is sounding better and better with ever bit of information I can find. I can see that we will have to take a trip up to WY in order to know. My biggest concern is my wife an I finding a jobs that will support us.
Regards,
Brian
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We settled in the NE corner of the state. Close enough to cities with employent and shopping. Good luck with your searching.
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Hi Bill,
Thanks for your post, and it was good to meet you
and your family recently.
Congratulations on your quick and dedicated move!
Great timing indeed. You've a right to gloat!
Thanks for joining the FSW and participating on our forum.
Keep us posted along your new Wyoming way.
~W~
Warm regards,
Boston
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Hi Bill,
Thanks for your post, and it was good to meet you
and your family recently.
Congratulations on your quick and dedicated move!
Great timing indeed. You've a right to gloat!
Thanks for joining the FSW and participating on our forum.
Keep us posted along your new Wyoming way.
~W~
Warm regards,
Boston
Hi Boston,
Thank you. I hope you had a Happy Thanksgiving!
I am starting work this week, and I am looking forward to learning new things and getting my first Wyoming paycheck!
Thank you for your passion and all the research you did in order to create this great map. It's up to us as individuals to choose to be free regardless of where we are, but being here is giving us an incredible jump start!
Warm regards from all of us here,
Bill
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The folks are sincere, practical, and intelligent. I got to know more of my neighbors here in two weeks than I knew living at my last residence for the past six years in NY. I go to pay the water and garbage bill in person and the folks know who I am. I go to the bank and the tellers know my name. I go to the post office and he knows my name.
Finally, the physical beauty of the state is awesome. The spaces are wide open and the sky is huge. The Black Hills are beautiful. The Big Horns are spectacular, and then there's the Tetons and Yellowstone (which are unfortunately too close to Jackson...) I love it here and I love all my new friends.
The best thing for me is not having to keep my enthusiasm for guns "in the closet", so to speak. I enjoy seeing people open-carrying "Loud and Proud!"
Thanks for sharing this. The first two paragraphs are identical to my experiences in NW Montana, so I think Wyoming will be a good fit. I carry open or concealed almost all the time, so I expect my freedom (comfort?) level experience to improve in Wyoming.