NM Cities

[RedLocks]

Well, my wife and myself have been thinking about getting out of jerz and moving somewhere. One of the destinations we have been thinking about is NM, I liked it when I stopped by years back, even though I was told to leave the state by some state police or something, or was that AZ, shrug.

Anyways, was wondering what cities would good possibilities? We're used to a NYC type of feel to our cities, I know a NM city is a lot different than a NY or NJ city, but I mean where you see every color of person walking around you, art, culture, clubs, etc. My wife is an artist also, so was wondering what cities have major art galleries in them (not just SW art) Also are there any communities with Rasta living in the area, would hate to have to go Harlem every time I need a new hat or headwrap..

any lil piece of info appreciated :D

[irkenelite]

I would say Albuquerque. The price of living here isnt too expensive, Downtown has pretty much everything you are looking for and the mountains are very close and extremely beautiful.

[soppo51]

HI From NM
Im glad to here you want 2 move here. But its hard to make a living here,Stay in the larger citys--ABQ OR las Cruces Even then its hard to make Good $$$$ NM is a good place to live Good luck.

[coolslayer]

Yeah,definitely good luck.

[Totah Sam]

I think you both will enjoy Taos. It is named after the Taos Pueblo people who live nearby. It started out as an artist colony and has a unique cultural mix. Plus the vistas are amazing.

[bedrockbob]

There are more artists, per capita, in Taos than any other city in the world. It is NOT anything like NYC. There are more artists, per capita, in Santa Fe than in Paris. It is NOT anything like NYC.

Both Santa Fe and Taos are the most diverse and open minded place that you will ever experience. But they are unique in many ways. There is not any sophistication here, and you are not going to see multi racial culture outside of Santa Fe really. This is NOT a racially integrated society at all.

A hell of a lot of people move here because it is extremely beautiful and the landscape goes from one extreme to the other. It is absolutely beautiful...and terrible...and a lot of other adjectives. Lots of outdoor activity 365 days a year.

Most people that move here are apalled at certain things they see. Quite a few people hate it. Those that dont hate it love it. I would suggest an extended visit before you commit. New Mexico is truly the third world. I say that with the utmost respect for her but it is true. Colorado is a LOT more upscale, and Arizona would be more suited to the "New York" type personality.

I have a new neighbor that just moved down the road from me a few months ago from New York and I have never heard such bitching. Just as I could not stand living in a city, she can't stand living here. She has always had this idea of what a "Native American" was...she is into Native spirituality. Now she is surounded by rez. She has had this idea of "hispanic culture" and she is having a hard time coming to grips with that one too. The extreme poverty and the reality of what life is here is shocking to those from elsewhere.

[coolslayer]

It is not for the timid or close-minded.

[chance942]

Most people that move here are trying to get away from the hectic lifestyles of the east or west coasts. Santa Fe is one of the most open minded,non judgmental cities in the US. I'm admittedly not that much into art but not by choice. I used to be interested but my condition leaves little room for that now. I live in Las Cruces and I can tell you that original Dali,Monet and Van Gough have passed through here on tour. I would NOT recommend an NYC'er moving here however. People do things that they would be shot for without a second thought in Jersey,NYC. You'd be in shock!! So Santa Fe for art of all types and I presume Taos as well would be your best shot. Is Georgia O'Keefe all "southwest" to you? There is a museum dedicated solely to here in Santa Fe. You simply aren't going to find the total package you described here in one place. The population of Santa Fe just about doubles in the summer time so you are likely to see people of all cultures and color then. This truly is the Land Of Enchantment and if you live here long enough it becomes the "Land Of Entrapment". New Mexico speaks to your soul,you feel it. I agree and recommend an extended stay. I warn you though...if you happen to come across some fungi and consume it here you are one. One with the earth,here you will feel the mother that is our earth warmly embracing you. You will have such an appreciation for life and want to see it all here and our neighbors to the north are just as in tune. A bit brash you might think at first but salt of the earth people. I've had many opportunities to leave and have for awhile but always came back,my soul forever will remain here until I die. When I get my legal right to use Cannabis I will be able to enjoy it as I once did.

[chance942]

There are more artists, per capita, in Taos than any other city in the world. It is NOT anything like NYC. There are more artists, per capita, in Santa Fe than in Paris. It is NOT anything like NYC.

Both Santa Fe and Taos are the most diverse and open minded place that you will ever experience. But they are unique in many ways. There is not any sophistication here, and you are not going to see multi racial culture outside of Santa Fe really. This is NOT a racially integrated society at all.

A hell of a lot of people move here because it is extremely beautiful and the landscape goes from one extreme to the other. It is absolutely beautiful...and terrible...and a lot of other adjectives. Lots of outdoor activity 365 days a year.

Most people that move here are apalled at certain things they see. Quite a few people hate it. Those that dont hate it love it. I would suggest an extended visit before you commit. New Mexico is truly the third world. I say that with the utmost respect for her but it is true. Colorado is a LOT more upscale, and Arizona would be more suited to the "New York" type personality.

I have a new neighbor that just moved down the road from me a few months ago from New York and I have never heard such bitching. Just as I could not stand living in a city, she can't stand living here. She has always had this idea of what a "Native American" was...she is into Native spirituality. Now she is surounded by rez. She has had this idea of "hispanic culture" and she is having a hard time coming to grips with that one too. The extreme poverty and the reality of what life is here is shocking to those from elsewhere.

Has she even been to Espanola or Pojaque yet?

[bedrockbob]

Has she even been to Espanola or Pojaque yet?


Hell no. She cant get to the road because her Jeep Liberty that she is VERY proud of is stuck dipstick deep in a big puddle that freezes solid every night. She is on five acres of sabino and pinon but she doesnt know how to use a chainsaw, cant swing an axe, is afraid to use a hatchet so split kindling, and it is 12-18 degrees each night. She aint good looking so I am not cutting wood for her and nobody else lives out here.

I beleive she is living on the table scraps I am feeding to her dogs. She moved in right after elk season and I offered her dinner when we first met. She lectured me on the killing of animals. She used the word "cruel" and such. I offered her a few bags of green chile and some Estacia beans and she almost turned up her nose.

There is a lesbian playwright/author that lives a mile down the road that takes her into town once a week to get some bean sprouts or some damn thing. She huddles in a sleeping bag and shes looking pretty skinny. I figure she probably eats more pussy than bean sprouts.

Then there is the propane fiasco, and I am not going into that story. If NYC Woman can learn to make fire she will survive until spring thaw. I am sure she thinks she is on "Survivor". By runoff she will wear a beard of bees for sure.

[chance942]

Hell no. She cant get to the road because her Jeep Liberty that she is VERY proud of is stuck dipstick deep in a big puddle that freezes solid every night. She is on five acres of sabino and pinon but she doesnt know how to use a chainsaw, cant swing an axe, is afraid to use a hatchet so split kindling, and it is 12-18 degrees each night. She aint good looking so I am not cutting wood for her and nobody else lives out here.

I beleive she is living on the table scraps I am feeding to her dogs. She moved in right after elk season and I offered her dinner when we first met. She lectured me on the killing of animals. She used the word "cruel" and such. I offered her a few bags of green chile and some Estacia beans and she almost turned up her nose.

There is a lesbian playwright/author that lives a mile down the road that takes her into town once a week to get some bean sprouts or some damn thing. She huddles in a sleeping bag and shes looking pretty skinny. I figure she probably eats more pussy than bean sprouts.

Then there is the propane fiasco, and I am not going into that story. If NYC Woman can learn to make fire she will survive until spring thaw. I am sure she thinks she is on "Survivor". By runoff she will wear a beard of bees for sure.

Bob I haven't laughed that hard in a LONG LONG time!! I bet she bought her independent front and rear Liberty especially for New Mexico too. What do you think will happen when she really realizes that only about 10% of the people in Santa Fe are living comfortably and the other 90% aren't? My parents retired to Sandia Park and I know exactly where you are coming from on the lectures. I was out clearing some prickly pears when one of their neighbors came up and asked where I was going to replant them. I said these damn things are going in the trash. She was appalled,"my husband is working on a cactus garden for our front yard!" I explained to her that my Mom spent most of her life in Tucumcari and she didn't want any of them on HER land. I offered to leave them in a pile for her husband to come pick up but yeah they went in the can. Besides the coyotes running rampant they have a lot of rattlers. One neighbor finally realized that when he stopped leaving his garage door open he didn't see them inside his house anymore. They apparently had one in their bedroom last year and the conclusion has been made that they aren't too far from the den. Now in contrast my parents had their dog enclosure made as snake proof as possible,I swear the wall is at least 8 feet tall too, for the coyotes. My Dad(step dad really) grew up in the Black Hills just south of Rapid City so he's seen a few to say the least. They decided too retire in NM too get away from the bitter cold winters and snow only to have this unusual amount of snow in the Sandias,San Pedros and Carson. I bet you've crossed paths w/ them while hiking. They have been doing quite a lot of that now that they are settled in and actually have a place to call "home", they lived in various cities along the way. My Mom sent me some pics of them riding the lift up Baldy in the summer/fall and it just looks awesome. That whole region from the San Pedros to the Colorado line speaks to my soul. Of course being high atop a rock near Bishop's Cap watching the sun go down in summer certainly does too.

[coolslayer]

Most people that move here are trying to get away from the hectic lifestyles of the east or west coasts. Santa Fe is one of the most open minded,non judgmental cities in the US. I'm admittedly not that much into art but not by choice. I used to be interested but my condition leaves little room for that now. I live in Las Cruces and I can tell you that original Dali,Monet and Van Gough have passed through here on tour. I would NOT recommend an NYC'er moving here however. People do things that they would be shot for without a second thought in Jersey,NYC. You'd be in shock!! So Santa Fe for art of all types and I presume Taos as well would be your best shot. Is Georgia O'Keefe all "southwest" to you? There is a museum dedicated solely to here in Santa Fe. You simply aren't going to find the total package you described here in one place. The population of Santa Fe just about doubles in the summer time so you are likely to see people of all cultures and color then. This truly is the Land Of Enchantment and if you live here long enough it becomes the "Land Of Entrapment". New Mexico speaks to your soul,you feel it. I agree and recommend an extended stay. I warn you though...if you happen to come across some fungi and consume it here you are one. One with the earth,here you will feel the mother that is our earth warmly embracing you. You will have such an appreciation for life and want to see it all here and our neighbors to the north are just as in tune. A bit brash you might think at first but salt of the earth people. I've had many opportunities to leave and have for awhile but always came back,my soul forever will remain here until I die. When I get my legal right to use Cannabis I will be able to enjoy it as I once did.

Excellent post! I couldn't have put it better.

[chance942]

Why Thank You Sir.

[bedrockbob]

That whole region from the San Pedros to the Colorado line speaks to my soul. Of course being high atop a rock near Bishop's Cap watching the sun go down in summer certainly does too.

Yeah, I am having a hell of a time up here exploring new territory. I drove every canyon south of I-40 but had never ventured from Santa Fe and to the North. I was raised at the foot of the Dona Ana Mts. in a trailer house with tires on the roof. Walked four miles to Dona Ana to steal cigarettes.

There is a water tank in a deep canyon with a dam, on the north edge of a solitary peak BEHIND Bishops Cap that I spent a lot of time at. Great dove hunting and good varmint hunting. Back in the day we found a whole lot of artifacts in that triangle between the solitary peak, the face of the Organs, and the old ruins where the Organs dipped into the Mesquite gap.

No Wild Bill, although I know a prospector that some people call "Wild Bill" he has no connection to T or C. I have connections in Hillsboro, and I have a few gold claims near there.

Gadsden? My deepest sympathies. Very rough counry. To the extreme. Betcha know how to bob and weave pretty good. Dona Ana is rough, but nothing to compare with the south valley. I have many friends from down that way. I worked in the onion sheds and the lettuce harvest down that way when I was a kid. Chope's is the food of the gods. Of course it is gang hell in Anthony now. Officially the violence hasnt spilled over into the US yet. I am not sure what the hell they think is going to happen.

[coolslayer]

Cool!

[Rainie]

I couldnt agree more you either love it here or you hate it. Im kind of inbetween. I dont like the desert, I dont like brown everything ground, trees, etc. I miss greenery of grass and evergreens and flowers. oh my how I miss flowers and rain :) Im from Oregon, hence why I was named Rain.

The people here in nm are definitely nicer than the ones in oregon, but there are differences for sure. Racism exists in oregon and it doesnt here. We moved here because our daughter was being called a "squaw" (she was 10) and wouldnt want to go to school (3 different schools were racist against her) and shes shy and sweet and it killed us, so we moved here. Although.. now she is 13 and has "questionable" friends here. I guess that would be so considering the age, but the amount of alcohol consumption here is alarming.

I cannt stand santa fe, every time we go there it feels like im back in oregon. the *ahem* caucasian people there glare at us and sneer at us, so I no longer visit santa. I too came here thinking there would be alot of native american activities but they are different here too. The puebloes dont have pow-wows, they have feasts. I like to dance and I like to see all the different nations , but there are no pow-wows here. The big gathering one, but the rest of the year.. nothing. In oregon there were university pow-wows and school pow-wows and its dissappointing here. Back home when you see another indian, youd smile or say hi.. but HERE? they look at you and look away. Im told the puebloes are very cliquey and keep to their own kind. I kinda see that and it makes them look bad. They also dont have indian preference when they hire and they do not discount other natives in their motels or casinos like they do in oregon.
I like living here, but its lonely and I have no place to drive to to search out haunted places, because due to the high catholic population, no one believes in the paranormal, or they dont talk about it. We were so excited to go to roswell to their ufo festival there, and it sucked. It was just bars and partying. the alien parade was pitiful and the one in McMinnville Oregon where the first ufo photo was taken, is wayyyyy bigger.

If I had my choice.. Id move back to oregon, but the racism there drove us away. I hate that you dont see many minorities drinking coffee and going to borders. why is that????? drive thru coffee places are everywhere there, and here.. its starbucks only. I dont get it. and I dont like it. sorry to ramble..

peace all ~

[coolslayer]

It could be worse......you could have moved to texas.

[Needmymeds]

Get out!! We dont' need ya!!

[boaz]

Rainie, you need to come to here to Native America to see a real pow wow. :smokin: They have a big one in Tahlequah that I would like to check out some time. I grew up in Missouri and live down here in OK now and I really have never seen much racism here, especially towards Indians, this is Indian Country. :cool: and its about to get really green here, too. :jointsmile: I can't wait, I'm not a big fan of grey winters.

You just can't grow here but were working on it. If we can bring MMJ here to Oklahoma then it can happen anywhere. :greenthumb:

[coolslayer]

Good luck with that in Oklahoma......you'll need it.

[boaz]

^ thanks. yeah, we'll need a miracle here. :( There were some fairly strong activist here at one time, but I think they keep hitting a brick wall. I think if the fed's would reschedule then it might have a better shot, but... until then, it will be geurilla farming only around here. :jointsmile:

[coolslayer]

I sometimes talk to a woman that I dated in high school who lives in oklahoma now.
What part of the state are you in?

[boaz]

^ sorry, I just now saw this, I live in the eastern part of the state on Lake Eufaula.

[coolslayer]

Looks like pretty country.

[boaz]

^ thank you, yeah, I like here. except for the grow laws. :jointsmile: I love New Mexico, too. I've only got to do the drive up north from Santa Fe to CO once but it was beautiful. :rasta: I've driven thru central NM about a million times when I lived in so cal, but that was usually at about 3 in the morning. :stoned: We did make down to Carlbad Caverns years ago when me and buddy made our first big move to cali at 19. We crashed down in Hobbs with our old soccer coach from HS. :hippy: :jointsmile:

[coolslayer]

I'm in the Ruidoso/Tularosa area.