Miscellaneous questions about Albuquerque (Santa Fe, Las Vegas: appointed, apartment, rent)

[vegaspilgrim]

Originally Posted by yukon

An additional observation on accounting jobs here - if you opt to go into public accounting (especially tax), you'll be exposed to a very wide variety of businesses here. I thought I'd seen a bunch in TX and FL, but I'm encountering additional industries I've never been exposed to before, like ranching, oil production, filming, etc. Makes things much more interesting.

That sounds very interesting, yukon! I definitely want to get exposure to many different fields. That's actually one of the reasons I want to become an accountant; I'm not sure if I want to look at the books my entire life, but having the experience of analyzing the financial records of many different types of industries might give me ideas as to my eventual dream pursuit. I didn't know that Albuquerque had a film industry!? Sounds cool-- I'll look into that. Have you heard the "big fish in the small pond vs. the small fish in the ocean" theory? Do you think that applies to being a professional in a city of about a half million people?

[mortimer]

vegaspilgrim wondered about:

> ... 2. ... NM have license plates on both the front and back ...
------------------------
then abqsunport warned:

a> 2.) ... make sure you get the plate with the Scenic Sunset,
a> ........ not that dumpy yellow one.

Hey! I like that old-fashioned plate. It was always so unique.

Back in 1981 I was trying to find a job in Denver and was told by someone I met that I should check out Albuquerque. I drove down and spent some time and found it favorable.

Failing to find work, in CO, but finding a job in OH, I went back, but could always pick out a car from NM due to that ubiquitous plate. Part of the reason that I like it is that it is so ugly on most cars.

I also liked the old-fashioned CO plate, but the new 4-Peaks plate that AZ now uses is better than its old one.

Lets put abqsunport down for a "NO" vote on the old-style plate and mortimer down for a "YES"

(Maybe we need a poll for this just to find out if one of us is out of touch.)

> ... 7. Does ABQ have a decent bike route system?

Decent and better than average, but likely to frustrate the hard-core bicyclist.

Here is the official city gov page: (pdf page)
http://www.cabq.gov/bike/pdf/2007ABQBikeMap.pdf

I commute via bike around 2/3rds of the time when morning temperatures are 50 or above. The off-street trails are shared with walkers/dogs/bladers/etc and many bikers are like many drivers who feel that everyone else out there is just 'in their way.' If you don't mind slowing down and warning people you are passing, then the off-street trails are a great way to get around via the many arroyos that traverse the city in both the E-W and N-S direction.

If you are moving here and planning to commute via bike, I'd wait to commit to a place till you have checked out the paths and routes.

Note that if you don't mind sharing the road with cars, your horizons expand quite a bit. You can ride Tramway on a nice wide shoulder from I-40 in the SW part of town to I-25 in the N part of town. Many other streets work well for bicyclists and have a 'lane' marked off for you, but I can't speak much about them, because I am a wussy when it comes to mixing it up with automobiles and I don't agree with the concept of 'slowing down the motorists.'

That's the commuting bit.

Many also ride up Tijeras Canyon to the top of the Sandia Crest for a 'bit' of a workout.

> 10. What is your opinion of Gardunos Mexican Restaurant? They
> .... have one in Chandler, AZ, and it's pretty popular here. Is
> .... that considered a good example of New Mexican style food?

I've seen lots of responses saying that it is not a good place, but I also lived in Chandler for seven years and was extremely happy when the built the first place in Scottsdale and happier when the Chandler mall location was selected.

The AZ stores are more of a 'bistro-type' atmosphere which I don't care for, but the food is always decent New Mexican and the chile is good.

I tend not to select Gardunos for a meal when it is just the spouse and I, but I won't hesitate to take out-of-town guests there. I might go with the original location or the Academy or Montgomery location - depending on my mood. Note that the Margaritas are always a crowd-pleaser.

(For impressing out-of-town guests, El Pinto on a summer night can't be beat.)

As others have said, you can get better for less in many Albuquerque locations.

[vegaspilgrim]

Thanks for the post, mortimer! No, I'm not planning on bike-commuting, just bicycling for recreation. When I go to visit Albuquerque I'll take my bike with me and try it out myself!

As for the old school yellow license plate, it can look good, depending on the color of the car. Once I saw a yellow Mustang driving around here with the old yellow NM license plate; it blended right in and looked pretty good. I'm not really that big on the balloon plates, personally. I drive an older car, so if I moved to NM I would probably get the old school plate, more "rustic" looking, whereas if I had a brand new car I'd probably want the newer "designer" version with the balloon festival.

[AndyJ]

Quick anecdote about the balloon plate - when I was going to school in Tucson, I took my truck and found myself playing chauffeur for many of my friends who didn't have cars. On at least 5 or 6 occasions, friends would glance at my license plate, see the gondola of the balloon, and ask "Is that a shot glass?" without recognizing it as part of the balloon. I didn't know whether to laugh or sigh as apparently New Mexicans have a reputation as heavy drinkers amongst college kids in Tucson.

I've since switched to the ole yellow plate with the zia.

[ABQConvict]

Re: Sports

I have found that of Albuquerqueans with in-state roots, those from northern NM, mostly hispanic, like the Broncos. Those from eastern NM, mostly anglo, go for the Cowboys. Many people couldn't couldn't care less about either team since half the population of Albuquerque comes from distant lands.

nota bene: The above is a huge generalization ;-)


ABQConvict

[Tim Rankin]

Originally Posted by vegaspilgrim

I have a bunch of random questions about Albuquerque...

1. What kind of fences do Albuquerque neighborhoods typically have? - Cinder block - this is one of my biggest gripes about Albuquerque. You can actually hear the sound of community spirit being sucked out of neighborhoods.

3. Where is the nearest decent ski area to Albuquerque that offers a wide variety of terrain and plenty of snow? How long does it take to get there, assuming you drive the speed limit? - Just over an hour to Ski Santa Fe.

Ski Santa Fe New Mexico

6. Does ABQ have problems with scorpions? cockroaches? black widdow spiders? brown recluse spiders? termites? Africanized bees? rattlesnakes? - Our only encounters have been with black widows in the garage. It hasn't been a "problem" though, except for concern for our 2 yr old. I use a fogger twice a year.

7. Does ABQ have a decent bike route system? Bike trails? Low traffic pedestrian grade intersections with stoplights? - Albuq won a bronze medal for being a bicycle-friendly community, in 2005.

October2005awards

8. Do any homes in Albuquerque use xeriscaping, desert plants, rock gardens etc? Do they have turf lawns? - All of the above. If you get a house with a lawn, the city will pay you 40 cents/sq ft to convert it to low-water use.

10. What is your opinion of Gardunos Mexican Restaurant? They have one in Chandler, AZ, and it's pretty popular here. Is that considered a good example of New Mexican style food?[/quote] - It's a chain, but I like their food.

Here's one answer to a question you didn't ask: For local phone calls in Albuq, you don't have to dial an area code!

It's true most people pull for the Broncos or Cowboys, or at least they used to. But so many areas of the country are represented here, you're just as likely to find Steelers/Giants/Jets fans as you are dirty, rotten Cowboy fans.

[ABQSunseeker]

But Tim, good fences make good neighbors. I love the fences here, especially if they're painted or stuccoed.

[yukon]

Have you heard the "big fish in the small pond vs. the small fish in the ocean" theory? Do you think that applies to being a professional in a city of about a half million people?

Good question. I haven't been here long enough to get a feel yet. Ask me again in about 6 months, when I've had time to get involved in stuff I have, however, seen a lot of networking between business people in the short time I've been here - always a good sign.

[Tim Rankin]

Originally Posted by ABQSunseeker

But Tim, good fences make good neighbors. I love the fences here, especially if they're painted or stuccoed.

Well, I grudgingly accept them, as it's the norm. Stuccoed cinder block looks pretty decent. I just remember the good ole days of childhood in western PA - nobody had fences. We used to cut through everyone's yard on the way to the bus stop. Everyone loved it - except for the homeowners.

[vegaspilgrim]

EnjoyEP, I have a question for you (or for anyone who cares to answer), since you've lived in Albuquerque and have been to Denver many times-- this might be a very, very stupid question, but is there any part of Denver that reminds you of Albuquerque at all? Obviously the two cities are very different, can't really be compared, but if you had to take a wild guess, what is the most ABQ-like part of Denver? For me, Central Ave reminds me a lot of Colfax Ave. Would you agree with that? Any other similarities?