Quarantine Diaries: New Mexico Edit
/It’s hard to even know where to begin this post, so much has happened in the past six months! My last blog was in February, and was about a large group outing that Sean and I took with Duke’s dog park friends. That reality feels like a decade ago now.
After it became clear that lock-down was going to last much longer than two weeks, Sean and I decided it would be smart to head to New Mexico for a while. I grew up there, it’s wide open with less people, and has a much lower cost of living. All great features for riding out a pandemic. Our lease in LA was already up, and as luck would have it, my brother had a rental property in Rio Rancho open up for May 1, so we snagged it.
(In hindsight, this was a very wise decision even though it felt rushed and uncertain at the beginning of April when we had to start putting this plan in motion.)
Packing is the worst no matter what. This move makes #13 for me in the last 18 years since moving out for college (yes, I’m nuts). We somehow still needed two additional Home Depot runs for packing supplies, except this time, a quick “run to pick up more boxes” meant standing in line for 45-60 minutes to get in. It was the end of April, masks and social distancing were new, stores were all running on 20% occupancy, and people were fleeing big cities by the droves. As if suddenly deciding to move home didn’t feel odd enough, the dystopian are-we-in-a-movie-with-a-terrible-ending vibe in the air made it downright bizarre.
One last Tabor Street photo. We will miss you fireplace!
Packing is tiring business
My favorite neighbors. Luckily I still talk to them as I handle all business operations for their court reporting businesses.
View from our bedroom window. Will always love palm trees!
We decided to do the drive in one shot as staying in a hotel felt too dangerous and risky. We rented a 15” U-Haul for our stuff, and a tow trailer for the car. On paper it’s only a 12 hours drive, so we figured it’d be long, but doable. We of course left later than we wanted, but were finally on the road around 7:30 AM. Navigating a trailer while TOWING A CAR through LA highways is not for the faint of heart. And I wasn’t even driving!
Once we got on the open road it was relatively smooth sailing. Because we were in a huge truck during COVID with a 90 pound puppy, we had to rely on truck stops for food. Again, as this was during the beginning of shut-downs, most of the restaurants (and even fast food and gas station bathrooms!) were closed. So we had Wendy’s for breakfast and lunch, and questionable pre-packaged sandwiches and chips for dinner. Yum.
The last two hours of the drive dragged. It was dark, late, and we were all getting cabin fever from being in a three passenger cab for 12+ hours. But we finally arrived into Rio Rancho at 1:30 am. Because it was so late, we were way too tired to think about unpacking, so we pulled some pillows out of the back and slept on the floor for the night.
Sean was a trooper and drove the whole way
Somewhere outside Flagstaff Arizona
Somewhere near the California / Arizona Border
Duke was a champ. We we all cramped in a tiny cab but he still found some joy as he does.
The month of May was spent unpacking, waiting for WiFi, finding a grocery store we liked, etc… all the usual just-moved-to-a-new-town routines. But this move was also different. We didn’t come because one of us got a job here or because we had been planning on moving to New Mexico. We came because the world as we know it essentially evaporated overnight, which made for an odd transition to say the least.
But it hasn’t been all shock and awe. The food in New Mexico is AMAZING, we smother everything with a red or green chile sauce, and it is delicious. In addition to good eats, it’s been fun to hang out with my family as an adult. We’ve also taken some cool day trips around the state. Sean wrapped up a quarantine film project, and he needed some remote looking landscape to film on… well, take your pick! And Duke is living his best life with all the nature and wide open spaces. He loves being off leash, playing in water, and sniffing new things, all things he can do easily here.
Day trip to Galisteo, New Mexico. The landscapes and wide open spaces in this state are beautiful.
Pizza pick-up run quarantine style
After a river swim, one of Duke’s favorite things to do
Unpacked and enjoying more space, a garage, and a washer / dryer!
Gave myself a haircut, because you know, lock-down
September skies. The sunsets in New mexico are the best!
For now both Sean and I are working on remote projects, and it doesn’t seem like that will change anytime soon (for anyone!). The entertainment industry has also been very slow to return to full production, so Sean has been working on independent projects and networking with film people out here.
It feels like as a society collectively we’re all getting used to not knowing what the heck is going on, and are adapting the best we can. So for us and the foreseeable future, we will be here in New Mexico. The temps are finally cooling, and fall is my favorite season here anyway, so we’ll continue to carry on while enjoying the changing landscapes, the crisp mornings, and hot air balloons in the skies every morning.
