Poor Albuquerque

We really get a bad rap

Transplants to Albuquerque seem to be happy with their choice. Based on what I read in “Nextdoor,” the social network for neighborhoods and communities, I make that statement. Newcomers will often post that they just moved here, and a few will welcome them on the site.

Primarily, you see lost and found dogs and cats, the occasional turtle, and news of whose catalytic convertor or whole car was stolen the night before.

I didn’t even know what Nextdoor was when I moved here three years ago. But if you’re snoopy like Mrs. Kravitz (from the 1960s television sitcom “Bewitched” if you’re young), you need to know what your neighbors are up to! It’s a great place to stir the pot. But in the end, it is one more thing to suck the time from your day.

Albuquerque. How did I get here?

I love it now, but I spent the first half-year crying over my failed eight-year relationship. During this time, it was all his fault. My friends had the Albuquerque Police Department do two well-being checks on me based on things I said on Facebook.

I moved here because we were going to retire here. There was no reason left to stay in Chicago, and besides, it was too expensive. Another reason was the weather. I missed the sun. The constant gray of winter in Chicago did nothing for my depression.

In the second six months, I became a bit more reflective about it all and began to see how I contributed to the breakup. Finally, 18 months later, life was peaceful, and I was content. Then Covid-19 hit. At that time, I lost my job. So I decided to become a full-time freelance writer. It’s been rewarding but not as remunerative as I’d hoped.

Breaking Bad

Big admission: I never watched the show. My ex and I watched the first episode, but he didn’t like it. At that point, I could have watched it in another room, but I wasn’t much of a TV watcher anyway. It’ll always be on somewhere!

Albuquerque was founded in 1706, and after 316 years, what we’re best known for is Breaking Bad. Better Call Saul, a prequel to Breaking Bad, is just now concluding a successful seven-year run. But, unfortunately, I never watched it either. In fact, I don’t even own a television! But I do have a streaming service on my devices.

Breaking Bad popularized crystal meth as a way of life here and a haven for drug traffickers and users. A lot of unassuming people here are into it. I’d never tried it until I moved here, and I’ve tried almost everything. I’m pretty curious in that respect. Maybe too curious.

Longtime meth users say what’s on the street today is much weaker than it used to be. They say if you have ADHD, you probably won’t “tweak” on it, and I didn’t tweak. It was more like a booster for Adderall. I got a lot done!

Speaking of drugs, sales of recreational marijuana in New Mexico began on April 1. Give me some sugar-coated Sativa gummies, and I’m as happy (and productive!) as a clam. (Are clams productive? Are they happy?)

Many can thank Bugs Bunny for even knowing that Albuquerque, or Albakoikie, exists. Others might remember that this was Ethel Mertz’s hometown in the famous sitcom I Love Lucy.

Crime and Hot Air Balloons

We do have a civic problem here, and it is linked to drugs. In 2021, the city saw 117 homicides, which set a record from the previous record of 79 set the year prior. But don’t let that scare you. For violent crime, of all cities in the U.S. with 100,000 or more, we rank down at number 25*. However, last I saw, we were the number one city per capita in auto theft. Unfortunately, statistics for catalytic convertor theft don’t exist, but I’m sure we’d be in the top ten if they did.

Before the negative press we got from Breaking Bad (although some say any PR is good PR), it was all rainbows and unicorns for us. We are the Hot Air Balloon Capital of the World. Before they went under, it was known as the Kodak Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta. A past sponsor was Canon, and ExxonMobil will have the billing for the next three years. It is unofficially known as the most photographed event in the country. The spectator count during the nine-day event is around one million. It is a significant economic contributor to the city, so you can imagine how we were affected by the cancellation in 2020 due to Covid-19.

Let’s talk about the weather

Seriously, it is downright pleasant here. We lie in the northernmost area of the vast Chihuahuan Desert. At an altitude of more than 5,000 feet, there is a significant diurnal change in temperature, no matter the season, of 25–30 degrees. Most associate us with Phoenix, which is in the lower Sonoran Desert. Whereas Phoenix has, on average, 111 days over 100°, we have two or three. Phoenix has 164 days over 90°, and Albuquerque has 56. It’s all about the elevation. We also get two or three snowfalls per year. In January, the schools were closed for two days because of two inches of snow that, for the most part, melted by noon the first day!

The problem is precipitation. In this current “megadrought,” the entire state is in severe, extreme, or exceptional drought. And as you’ve probably heard, we are literally burning up with the current Calf Canyon/Hermit’s Peak fire, which has consumed more than 300,000 acres of forest. Albuquerque typically gets 9–11 inches of precipitation per year. This year we’ve had .55 inches and it hasn’t rained since March.

I’m afraid there is no normal anymore.

And in the end…

Albuquerque seems to have a poor perception among those who have never been here. Many fly into Albuquerque and bypass it altogether, instead heading to the oh-so-chic Santa Fe, 65 miles up the road. We are hundreds of miles from the next largest metropolitan area, which is El Paso. As a major crossroads in the West, we also attract an element and their problems we’d rather not have. But the city is dealing with it best as we can.

Like all cities, it has its ups and downs. We have most everything every other city has and what you would expect of a metropolitan area of nearly one million. We even have an Apple store! At street level, it’s not the prettiest, but we always have the Sandia Mountains to look at to the east and gorgeous sunsets over the West Mesa.

But don’t call us cosmopolitan. We’re still a little rough around the edges.

• Source: World Population Review, Most Dangerous Cities in the U.S. 2022

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