Living in a small neighborhood can be difficult when you need access to goods and services that are only available in a city or metropolis.
- While my trips into Albuquerque from Tijeras were actually long, that was nothing compared to the small neighborhood where I was born in northern Michigan.
Both of us had to drive many minutes just to get into Lansing! This is a part of the state that is heavily wooded and hilly, while having only a smattering of small to medium sized towns. Anything that you would take for granted in a big city is completely absent when you live in the backwoods. Moving to Tijeras was a similar experience because I found myself consistently needing to drive into Albuquerque on interstate 40. However, the distance is a fraction of what I was dealing with residing in northern Michigan as a child. One thing that aggravated me about Tijeras—and influenced my decision to finally buy a cabin in Albuquerque—was the lacking selection of various contractors. When I needed a new air conditioner in my little bungalow, I could only find many companies from which to gather price quotes. Now that I have moved to Los Volcanes in Albuquerque, I have many Heating and A/C companies within walking distance of my house. However, my modern heating and cooling contractor is based out of West Mesa just a few more miles east of Los Volcanes. Heating and cooling companies are crucial in the southwest because of the severely warm temperatures all of us experience throughout the Summer season. On top of that, all of us get Wintertide weather that is chilly enough to justify indoor heating as well.