Going Southwest

We made a trip last weekend to New Mexico to feel things out before we moved there. On the trip I learned a few things about myself and the Southwest.

 = Most of New Mexico is on the other side of the Continental Divide
 = This weird, late spring has really made the landscape nice here in Utah. Its actually green!
 = Albuquerque used to be Alburquerque.
 = In New Mexico a common get-to-know-you question is "Red or Green?" They are, of course, referring to chilis.
 = When someone asks you if you like chili, they are not referring to a stew of beef and beans. It's stewed chilis, red or green. It's kind of a sauce, but not like an enchilada sauce or salsa. Its just chili. It is smothered on everything: Mexican food, hamburgers, eggs, turkey sandwiches, etc.
 = Now days it is sometimes hard (at least for me) to separate the Native American aspects of culture (art, architecture, etc.) from the Spanish influences. Both are entwined in modern New Mexico identity. It is one of the most plural societies I have seen in the US. Historically, the Spanish were there 400 years ago, yet they are only celebrating their state centennial in 2012.
 = I love Colorado. Yeah, we went to New Mexico, but we came back through Colorado because of a detour up to Santa Fe. I realized why I loved horses and the outdoors and why I wanted to be a cowboy when I was a kid. The Southern Colorado mountain prairies felt like home. I realized on this trip that I had had a lot of Colorado pride, and I truly loved that land. I think that might have been one of the reasons why I never connected to Idaho - it just wasn't Colorado.
 = The job market in Albuquerque is rough. It's also fairly rough back here in Utah, but there's a lot of openings for teachers still. But, another thing I learned is that the eggs in basket metaphor is silly.
 = Albuquerque is a place where people stay. Not too many people go there, like Utah or California. That's why its still so small. People leave, but they also come back. It felt like home, in a way. Not like family. Net yet, at least for me. But like a friend's place that you're going to for the first time. You can tell it's theirs because you know them, so everything is at once familiar and new.
 = I learned a bit about New Mexico design, but I'll do another post about that later.
 = There was never a disappointing sunset the whole time we were there.
 = I love wildflowers! Indian paintbrush have been my favorites my whole life (I also really like Honeysuckle and Dogwood blossoms). All along the road down there were washes of subtle purple with flashes of pink in the middle of it. I think I like wildflowers because I always root for the underdog and they just seem so idealistic - bringing out beauty and always surprising you when you didn't think it was possible.