in a word...
New Mexico was great. I'm thinking it's going to be my new home. I'm waiting for an opening in the place I want to work, but I've been assured that they are expecting new positions to open up in the next year.
I'm not in a rush, as I need to do a lot of sorting through possessions, which I tend to accumulate, and I have a fair amount of conference travel scheduled between now and mid-November. So a December move would be just about right.
Things wot I like about Albuquerque: While Santa Fe is the high tone cousin, with its gorgeous mountain scenery, beautiful adobe architecture, and amazing art galleries, Albequerque is in fact a far more livable place for those who aren't arriving with tons of money in hand. Real estate is affordable, it's small enough for most commutes to be under 20 minutes, but large enough for me to have found the great independent bookstore (and attend a very nice poetry reading of 4 local authors), a delicious women's day spa with fantastic massage therapists and enclosed garden with hot tub, the *cough* sex toy shop *cough*, the pagan/ herb/ spirituality store next door to that, the relaxed yet with varied menu of tasty foods local chain of diners, and the high end VERY scrumptuously done restaurant/wine bar. Oh, and at least 3 fantastic and affordable bead stores (*lust*). People were friendly, warm, and relaxed. There are several synagogues of note, and an interesting history of "crypto-Jews" -- people descended from the original settlers from Spain, 400 years ago, now fully "Hispanic" in identity, but with traces in their family lineage of Jewish practice. Most likely Jews who converted to escape the Inquisition, but who secretly kept onto some part of their identity. There are fascinating hints and clues such as six-pointed stars worked into the stars in Mary's robe, and so on.
The surrounding desert has its own beauty, and the dry climate will be good for my bones. There is much to learn about the local Native American cultures -- Navajo and a number of different Pueblo groups. If I wish for galleries or Santa Fe's other delights such as the Opera Festival, the Chamber Music Festival, or its many museums, it's an hour's drive away, and there will be a commuter train in a couple of years. The alternate, older route to Santa Fe, the Turquoise Trail, is a gorgeous, winding road with many charming stops along the way.
So that's the state of things vis a vis me and Albuquerque. Anyone want to come help me clean out my closet? *grin*
I'm not in a rush, as I need to do a lot of sorting through possessions, which I tend to accumulate, and I have a fair amount of conference travel scheduled between now and mid-November. So a December move would be just about right.
Things wot I like about Albuquerque: While Santa Fe is the high tone cousin, with its gorgeous mountain scenery, beautiful adobe architecture, and amazing art galleries, Albequerque is in fact a far more livable place for those who aren't arriving with tons of money in hand. Real estate is affordable, it's small enough for most commutes to be under 20 minutes, but large enough for me to have found the great independent bookstore (and attend a very nice poetry reading of 4 local authors), a delicious women's day spa with fantastic massage therapists and enclosed garden with hot tub, the *cough* sex toy shop *cough*, the pagan/ herb/ spirituality store next door to that, the relaxed yet with varied menu of tasty foods local chain of diners, and the high end VERY scrumptuously done restaurant/wine bar. Oh, and at least 3 fantastic and affordable bead stores (*lust*). People were friendly, warm, and relaxed. There are several synagogues of note, and an interesting history of "crypto-Jews" -- people descended from the original settlers from Spain, 400 years ago, now fully "Hispanic" in identity, but with traces in their family lineage of Jewish practice. Most likely Jews who converted to escape the Inquisition, but who secretly kept onto some part of their identity. There are fascinating hints and clues such as six-pointed stars worked into the stars in Mary's robe, and so on.
The surrounding desert has its own beauty, and the dry climate will be good for my bones. There is much to learn about the local Native American cultures -- Navajo and a number of different Pueblo groups. If I wish for galleries or Santa Fe's other delights such as the Opera Festival, the Chamber Music Festival, or its many museums, it's an hour's drive away, and there will be a commuter train in a couple of years. The alternate, older route to Santa Fe, the Turquoise Trail, is a gorgeous, winding road with many charming stops along the way.
So that's the state of things vis a vis me and Albuquerque. Anyone want to come help me clean out my closet? *grin*