I lived in Albuquerque, NM for several years, and it’s truly the most beautiful place I’ve ever lived! Not only do I love the beauty of the land, but I fell in love with its culture, art, and food. I’ve always loved Mexican food – then I discovered NEW Mexican food…. I even have fond memories of working in the film industry and playing volleyball where I met some great friends, one of which became a best friend. ABQ = Friends, food, film industry, and fun volleyball. In June, we picked up CLT-ABQ, and I finally got this trip!
I flew with a fantastic crew who always buddy bids this ABQ trip. They bid for the same trip, so they can fly together. One of them was from ABQ, and his parents live in Santa Fe. Basically, he gets paid to work trips to “home!” Too bad we don’t fly into my home airport… Not only is this an easy and great trip, but the people going to and from ABQ are so laid back. Even the lady was nice and apologetic about my asking her to please take her baby to the lav. The tray table is not a baby changing station….People eat off there, and now I’ll bet you’ll bring anti-bacterial spray when traveling!
I met up with some friends from the film industry! Jim DeMente, Bill DeMente, and Alex Sanchez met me for lunch as we reminisced about working on various movies together! It was so fun catching up with each other and talking about the “good ole’ days!” I also got to see my best friend, Nayana Cohenour, her family, and meet her son’s new family!
New Mexican food has its own flavor. They use more yellow cheeses, and the dishes are all bursting with flavor and a kick! You order either red or green chile, and neither come in a Tobasco bottle! We’ll talk more about their food next time I go there.
When Nayana picked me up, I told her I needed to see the Candy Lady, Debbie, to tell her my love story. Years ago, when I was divorced and was working in the film industry, our production office was downtown. I used to walk to get “Brownies” (my favorite chocolate candy) from the Candy Lady. I was having a hard time finding direction in my life, and Debbie always gave me good advice. One thing she said was, “Make a list of everything you want in a man – all the qualities. Every time you go out with a guy, compare him to the list.” Well, it was actually a very good idea as I love to write. It was enlightening and thought-provoking. My list included shallow and deep qualities, and I stopped at 60. Would you believe my husband has every single quality?? I had to tell her about that list! She actually remembered me, and I’ll be sending her a small package that includes my list and a poem I wrote about my husband being my list!
When you visit Albuquerque, go see beautiful Old Town. Not only do they have tasty restaurants, but visit Debbie, the Candy Lady. She’s a real sweetie – no pun intended! 🙂
Crew Chew 