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I am from Phoenix and a friend I grew up with moved to Albuquerque to go to Sipi college. He ended up graduating and getting a job at Intel. He told me how great it was up there, so I moved in with him in January of 2005. I only stayed there for a month and about died, I ended up coming back. I did not hate the city, but I cannot fathom how anyone would say the winter is nice. The winter in Phoenix is nice, the winter in Albuquerque is brutal. I remember days only getting up to the high 30's, and lows in the teens. If I had come in the summer, I am sure I would have liked it better, but I didn't.
Been lurking for a while, but this is my first post. That was an EXCELLENT list!
My wife was born and raised in ABQ, and after 3 years of living in Japan and a year of Hawaii, we are moving (back) in less than 3 weeks. I love my home here, but crisp winter mornings, desert vistas, and plates of "christmas" enchiladas have been calling for too long.
Been lurking for a while, but this is my first post. That was an EXCELLENT list!
My wife was born and raised in ABQ, and after 3 years of living in Japan and a year of Hawaii, we are moving (back) in less than 3 weeks. I love my home here, but crisp winter mornings, desert vistas, and plates of "christmas" enchiladas have been calling for too long.
19 days and counting, see you at The Frontier!
What a great first post, dubious! This is the type of stuff I love, and the type of stuff you see posted all over the ABQ forums from legions of members through the years. ABQ is polarizing - not for everyone - but for folks like us, it is a very special place.
Another great post EP! You have been so helpful in supplying information to me helping me make my decision and you just continue to reaffirm that ABQ is the place for me. Really, really great list.
the Albuquerque winters are not as bad as some people make it out to be,especially those who see it on paper and think that we have freezing cold winters like Denver cause our average low is in the low 20's for the 3 winter months. But its not really that bad cause those temps are in the morning hours and who's out at 2am in the morning anyways.
The average high in January is almost 50 degrees and with the sun shining it feels really good, just cold enough for a hoodie or a light jacket in January. When the sun rises in the morning ,whatever frost there is on the windshield usually melts before I even go to work so I dont have to scrape. In the winter days I dont even have to use my heater in my car cause the sun is shining and that heats up the inside. Before I moved here from Eastern NM(where daytime temps are warmer) I though ABQ was a cold place but not anymore, the lack of wind in the winter here in ABQ makes a for a perfect winter day.
"...the Albuquerque winters are not as bad as some people make it out to be,especially those who see it on paper and think that we have freezing cold winters like Denver cause our average low is in the low 20's for the 3 winter months. But its not really that bad cause those temps are in the morning hours and who's out at 2am in the morning anyways."
I don't want to start a spate of "where I'm from, winters were so bad that..." posts, but....my first winter in the Twin Cities it snowed in October, stuck to the ground, and that same snow was still there next spring. That was my introduction to Minnesota; that and when we had a minus 27 degree temperature with a wind-chill factor of 67 below zero. That following first summer, it hit 100 degrees with 98-99% humidity...oh, but it was green though! Thought I was gonna die. Now perhaps you see why I love all of Albuquerque's seasons, even winter...but my favorite is spring when all the trees begin to bud then flower. BTW, my hottest day in Phoenix was 124 degrees F. You can HAVE that too!!!
In passing I will say that "A River Runs Through It," our muddy old Rio Grande and the beautiful bosque. What a place to stroll or take a bike ride! Can I add that to your list?
I am from Phoenix and a friend I grew up with moved to Albuquerque to go to Sipi college. He ended up graduating and getting a job at Intel. He told me how great it was up there, so I moved in with him in January of 2005. I only stayed there for a month and about died, I ended up coming back. I did not hate the city, but I cannot fathom how anyone would say the winter is nice. The winter in Phoenix is nice, the winter in Albuquerque is brutal. I remember days only getting up to the high 30's, and lows in the teens. If I had come in the summer, I am sure I would have liked it better, but I didn't.
Clearly, you have never lived in the upper Midwest!
Mother Nature dishes out one injustice after another... after another... after aaaaaaannnnother.
And, instead of winter being a "season", winter is more like two seasons. It's not unusual for winter weather to pop in and out of the picture until late April, just to return as early as late October. Did I mention the precipitation and theere were days when I would look outside and say to myself, "If it's cloudy for one more day, I am getting the hell out of here and never coming back."
Midwestern and northern summers are anywhere from pleasant to very nice, but are far too short, with a quick return to the insanity of winter.
And it isn't just "one" thing that makes Midwestern winter so bad. It's everything. It's the inconvenience. It's the cold. It's opening your gas bill and seeing more zeroes than you thought possible. It's the daily horrors of scraping windows, shoveling snow, breaking your rear end on the sidewalk. It's a thousand dollar repair bill to your car after slamming into a few potholes. It's not seeing the sun.
It is the nickel-and-diming that winter does to your psyche.
Obviously weather is a personal thing. Some like it cooler, some like it warmer. One thing I'm sure of: If you don't appreciate winter in the high desert, all you have to do is spend one in Chicago, Minneapolis, or Milwaukee!
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. If I had come in the summer, I am sure I would have liked it better, but I didn't.
