The South is also more laid-back, more FRIENDLY, less stressful, and cheaper to live. There's a sense of unity and a small-town mentality, even in larger cities. We also have sweet tea, boiled peanut stands on the side of the road (I highly recommend Cajun flavor), country fried steak, sausage gravy and grits. Some of us are even close to the beach!

As far as places to live:

I've been to Knoxville and it's extremely cheap to live there, but I ran into a lot of people who didn't seem very intelligent. My best friend lives there now and she jokes about the "Cowboy Up For Jesus" stickers on the pickup trucks, so maybe that's the "redneck" mentality you are looking for?

North Florida also has many places like what you describe. There are many places right outside of Jacksonville where you can buy land and have peace and quiet and still be close enough to the city if you ever need to go there. (Actually, some places are still considered "Jacksonville" but technically they aren't.) Green Cove Springs, Middleburg, parts of St. Augustine, even a few minutes away in Southern Georgia. If you travel southwest, there are places like Ocala which has a plethora of farmland. You can even look off of I-10 between Jacksonville and Pensacola (most boring drive EVER). There are LOTS of places around here considered the "country".

The "country" folk even go to all the Jaguar games. Sometimes I'm amazed at how they just appear out of the blue.

(Go Jags, by the way. They kicked Raider ass today!)