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Jeez! Thats not good... Maybe ABQ isn't such a great idea after all, don't get me wrong I'm not an easily scared person. Most people are intimidated by me being a fighter and all but I can't have my girlfriend getting raped or someone breaking in my apartment or shooting me...
I was really getting excited about this place too, I've never seen a roadrunner before.
I love Albuquerque and the area and have lived here 11 years. People want to talk away/minimize the threat or exaggerate it. Various factors increase your risks. Drug deals gone bad, hanging out in the wrong areas or with the wrong people. You have to make you own decisions.
You really need to come down for a visit, somehow the "statistics" really do not paint the appropriate picture.
Big cities seem to have more crime than smaller ones. That's just one of many drawbacks of a place like ABQ. I'm afraid the drug cartels of Juarez are going to get a foothold there one day.
On the other hand there are many pro's to ABQ. You just want to weigh out the good and the bad.
I'm 21 and I live in Iowa, I have a dog that I refuse to leave behind and a girlfriend. I'm a mixed martial artist/cage fighter/ ufc fighter what ever you want to call it.
One of the best training camps in the world is located there, I originally wanted to live in California but I don't think its doable I don't have the money and I only have 2 years of community college. I know nothing about New Mexico, other than the weather is nice and there is the world renowned Greg Jackson training camp there. I want to possibly move here by this August. I plan on spending this whole year preparing for it.
1. Is it an affordable place to live, with most likely a minimum wage paying job with out living in some crazy ghetto or something?
2. I have to bring my dog, I love her. do they allow dogs in most apartments?
3. Is it hard to find a job, like I said I'll take what ever I can get as long as it can support me and my needs?
4. I am big on nutrition, would I be able to afford groceries? Preferably organic whole food stores.
5. Is it a fun place to live, is there any type of city life? Young people? Things to do?
6. Is there a good mix of elasticities and culture, blacks whites etc?
7. Is there good community colleges there so I can stay educated?
I want to get my life started and make something of myself, I don't want to stay in Iowa my whole life. I am dedicated to mma and feel like I need to do this. I've never moved away from home before, is it realistic for me to drive down there with my dog and girl and set up camp? Obviously I'd have to secure a job and place to stay before that?
Thanks
Matt
Yes, MMA is big here. Lots of cage fights, etc. On to your questions...
1. It's hard to imagine living on minimum wage here. I struggled to make ends meet making $14/hour here, but maybe I'm just bad with money .
2. There are probably plenty of apartment options that allow a dog. Many have a weight limit. Is your dog big? You'll have more options if it's a smaller breed.
3. It depends on what kind of job you're looking for. You might have more luck in health care. One example is you could work as a mental health tech at one of the psych hospitals. I made about $40k per year doing that and it doesn't require any education. I thought of this for you because sometimes that job can get physical, like having to restrain a violent patient, and your fighting skills might come in handy (not that you would be fighting, but you would have the skills to restrain a patient without hurting them or yourself). Or maybe corrections? You can always pull in decent money working as a server or bartender too.
4. Plenty of organic/health grocery stores. Not necessarily cheap, but if you shop smart you can stay within budget.
5. Yes it's fun. Tons of outdoor things to do, events, etc. The population is fairly young.
6. Albuquerque is very diverse and unique in that the various groups represented live in relative harmony. There is less racial tension here than a lot of other places.
7. CNM is the community college here and is decent from what I understand.
Good luck to you and your decision. It would be wise to come out here for a visit and see what you think. Yes, there is a lot of crime here. However if you use common sense you will most likely be fine. I am female and don't know how to defend myself worth a lick (outside of screaming hysterically), and have lived here 25 out of my 33 years and have never had a problem. Try to rent a place with a garage to park your car in. Almost everyone I know who leaves their car outside ends up with a broken windshield or stolen stereo at some point. Just take precautions that you would take in any city with crime. Get your girlfriend some pepper spray and teach her some moves. Take care!
I'm 21 and I live in Iowa, ...
I know nothing about New Mexico, ...
It is an easy two-day drive to Albuquerque from Iowa
or a hard one-day drive. Most of the people here visited
in person before they ever moved or considered moving.
That's what I did. That's what you should do.
In the mean time, use the search function since every one of
your questions has already been discussed in detail on here.
Waiting for replys to dribble in is not worth it.
You can have instant gratification by looking at old threads.
Most people, having answered a question five or six times are
simply not going to do it again when the answer is already out there.
MCARNAGE, if those are your big concerns, I'm thinking you'll like Albuquerque okay. I'm someone who does not like New Mexico... Santa Fe in-particular, but I do really like Albuquerque. It's a good size city without being too big or impossible to drive in. Aside from professional sports or a decent amusement park it has all the big city amenities you would want and with less drawbacks. It doesn't usually get too hot or too cold. Of course like any decent sized place it does have some issues, but overall it isn't a bad place. If I end up staying in New Mexico permanently I will definitely move down there.
I'm 21 and I live in Iowa, I have a dog that I refuse to leave behind and a girlfriend. I'm a mixed martial artist/cage fighter/ ufc fighter what ever you want to call it.
One of the best training camps in the world is located there, I originally wanted to live in California but I don't think its doable I don't have the money and I only have 2 years of community college. I know nothing about New Mexico, other than the weather is nice and there is the world renowned Greg Jackson training camp there. I want to possibly move here by this August. I plan on spending this whole year preparing for it.
1. Is it an affordable place to live, with most likely a minimum wage paying job with out living in some crazy ghetto or something?
2. I have to bring my dog, I love her. do they allow dogs in most apartments?
3. Is it hard to find a job, like I said I'll take what ever I can get as long as it can support me and my needs?
4. I am big on nutrition, would I be able to afford groceries? Preferably organic whole food stores.
5. Is it a fun place to live, is there any type of city life? Young people? Things to do?
6. Is there a good mix of elasticities and culture, blacks whites etc?
7. Is there good community colleges there so I can stay educated?
I want to get my life started and make something of myself, I don't want to stay in Iowa my whole life. I am dedicated to mma and feel like I need to do this. I've never moved away from home before, is it realistic for me to drive down there with my dog and girl and set up camp? Obviously I'd have to secure a job and place to stay before that?
Thanks
Matt
it sounds like Albuquerque might work for you. Is is realistic just to take off and move? Probably not, specially considering you have never moved before. What would be better, go and visit for a week or so. Then decide if NM is right for you.
Is there a good CC, sure, but you mentioned you already have your 2 years so why would you want to continue at a Community college?
Albuquerque would be a much better place for you than California at this time in your life.
Yes, they have organic stores just like everyplace else, but of course organic will be much more expensive and yes, you should be able to get a job.
thanks for the input so far! A friend told me that he heard New Mexico has a lot of crime. This isn't true is it? Not ABQ anyway? Are there ghettos?
Albuquerque does have a lot of crime. Much of it is within a certain locale and gang related or family related. Any city over a couple hundred thousand people will have a higher crime rate than maybe you are used to. Remember the big city is not the same as "small town, USA"
1. Is it an affordable place to live, with most likely a minimum wage paying job with out living in some crazy ghetto or something?
It is possible. I did it to get through college at UNM.
2. I have to bring my dog, I love her. do they allow dogs in most apartments?
I lived in a condo in the Montgomery/Candelaria area with two dogs. One pit bull cross and one a little smaller.
3. Is it hard to find a job, like I said I'll take what ever I can get as long as it can support me and my needs?
It depends on what skills you have.
4. I am big on nutrition, would I be able to afford groceries? Preferably organic whole food stores.
I actually think that groceries here are cheap. I love Sunflower for staying in my budget.
5. Is it a fun place to live, is there any type of city life? Young people? Things to do?
There are tons of things to do. If you have a car you can even go further south and check out Las Cruces and El Paso.
6. Is there a good mix of elasticities and culture, blacks whites etc?
There are different ethnicities here but it can be a touchy subject. I am white and married to a hispanic. There are very mixed cultures here.
7. Is there good community colleges there so I can stay educated?
CNM is a great community college. Check it out at cnm.edu.
Also I want to address the crime issue that seems to bother you. We do have crime here because we have both a drug and gang problem. But if you don't associate yourself with those things you ahould be fine. I moved here from a really small town to attend UNM about eight years ago. I have never been the victim of a crime. Your girlfriend will be fine here.
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