Not just you, Reading is just shit (I moved from Whitley, to Lower Earley, to Wokingham to Three Mile Cross).
Oakford is OK as a meeting point, but like all good pubs in Reading is only OK. The Ale House is much nicer to drink in though as you can actually have a conversation (and decent beer). The Hop Leaf has nice beer too.
The rest of Reading town center is just shit, or really shit unless you happen to find a good local.
That is unless you like paying £35 for two Gin and tonics in Sakura, of catching clamydia on the dancefloor of Q-bar, in which case Reading is the cultural center of the t*** universe.