New Mexico for me?

MEL101 · Feb 25, 2004

Hi all,
I am seriously thinking about moving out to New Mexico. I like living in a big city as I do now, but I am sick of the INSANELY cold weather and the cost of living is not accounted for in our pay. I am looking to move to a medium sized city where I can make a decent living and enjoy my time off (I like skiing and hiking and concerts and museums). It seems like New Mexico has plenty of natural beauty and a unique cultural mix. I also want a milder climate. Basically, I want to live somewhere where I can really have a life outside of work and get out of the concrete jungle and away from excessively cranky people. Does this sound like New Mexico? I have heard some bad things that make me think twice, but then I hear other people think that it is a beautiful place to live. I guess I just want some opinions.... Do you think hospitals will fly people down for interviews? And do you think the payscales are appropriate considering the cost of living? Is there a particular area I should look at other than Albuquerque? Sorry if I am rambling, it's 4 am.... Any opinions or comments or suggestions would be much appreciated:)

Hey Fergus! I moved to Houston 3 yrs ago after living in Alb for 20+ yrs...

The sunsets are outstanding, the green chili and Blue Margaritas will spoil you and the skiing is great when it snows. Taos and Santa Fe definitely have the better slopes...Santa Fe... is more expensive to live there as a number of Hollywood stars have moved to the area but they have wonderful expensive

restauran food. I believe St. Vincents Hosp in SF is unionized....nurses got ticked off a number of years ago and walked out...hooray for them...Taos much more small town atmosphere but if you like mountains, camping etc, its a great place! Taos has a small hospital...Lots of politics w hospitals in Alb esp between Reg Med Ctr and Pres....its in the history and no one wants to forget about it...well the "big boys" don't forget...hope I haven't scared you, NM really is a beautiful place to be in and such a different part of the world...want a real change?, go to Gallup, NM for a year. Btw my dad just told me St. Joes has reopened the West Mesa hospital (one of those smaller

facilities and Pres is building a new hosp out on the mesa too....feel free to email me for mo'.... [email protected]...

walterrn · Apr 10, 2004

I love NM. I live in the city, where I work and sleep; but I play in the mountains. We are the tail end of the Rocky Mountains, with some of the most stunningly beautiful scenery youll ever see. If you like to fish, I caught a 5#, 24" rainbow trout last year........and that's normal growth for our trout. We also have small mouth, salmon, northern pike (caught a 32 incher about 10 yrs ago).....just about any land-locked game fish you can think of. We also have great hiking with hot springs at the end of many journeys. Ski and snowboarding......I'm starting to sound like the chamber of commerce. Hope you enjoy NM (Come here on vacation, leave on probation).

Walter the Nurse

Hi all,
I am seriously thinking about moving out to New Mexico. I like living in a big city as I do now, but I am sick of the INSANELY cold weather and the cost of living is not accounted for in our pay. I am looking to move to a medium sized city where I can make a decent living and enjoy my time off (I like skiing and hiking and concerts and museums). It seems like New Mexico has plenty of natural beauty and a unique cultural mix. I also want a milder climate. Basically, I want to live somewhere where I can really have a life outside of work and get out of the concrete jungle and away from excessively cranky people. Does this sound like New Mexico? I have heard some bad things that make me think twice, but then I hear other people think that it is a beautiful place to live. I guess I just want some opinions.... Do you think hospitals will fly people down for interviews? And do you think the payscales are appropriate considering the cost of living? Is there a particular area I should look at other than Albuquerque? Sorry if I am rambling, it's 4 am.... Any opinions or comments or suggestions would be much appreciated:)

movealong · Jun 19, 2004

I just got back from vacation to the SW. I had hoped to find a house in Flagstaff, Az, but homes are pricey there for a single person. So I checked out northern NM, and went up to Las vegas, NM. Very pretty area, the drive was lovely. Beautiful wide open spaces.

Since I have a job working from home that I can bring with me, the only absolute requirement is a fast internet conection, which Las Vegas seems to lack. I'll have to keep checking around.

sipapu · Jun 24, 2004

How small or big of a town are you looking for? Land around the Magdalena, NM area is the best kept secret in NM. Magdalena is on Hwy 60, Central western NM, if you continued west in to AZ you would come in to the Show Low area. We have a gorgeous place there, as pretty as anyplace you will find in NE NM and we border on the national forest. Inredible 100 mile views in one direction and Mountains right up to our back door in the other. It is our retirement place. We also have a cabin off the grid about 40 miles north of there. Don't know what kind of internet service they have but the guy behind us works from home doing something internet. Housing would be very reasonable and choice of land can be semi developed to extremely adventurous. I am interested in your tele nursing. I would leave for NM tomorro if I had that kind of a job. Past ER and Occ Health experience, how would I go about checking in to this? I am quite serious, since I already have a place in NM I would divide my time between there and here in TX. Any info would be greatly appreciated. (I LOVE RURAL NM-lived there 7 years-returning every few months for 20!). Please do post on the tele nursing. Hope this info helps on NM.

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I just got back from vacation to the SW. I had hoped to find a house in Flagstaff, Az, but homes are pricey there for a single person. So I checked out northern NM, and went up to Las vegas, NM. Very pretty area, the drive was lovely. Beautiful wide open spaces.
Since I have a job working from home that I can bring with me, the only absolute requirement is a fast internet conection, which Las Vegas seems to lack. I'll have to keep checking around.

Euskadi1946 · Jun 24, 2004

Thanks for all the info guys! I called a recruiter this morning and am getting rolling on moving to lovely New Mexico!!!! I think my dog and I will love it there:)
Love the avatar by the way! I have heard it said that our religious persuasion in Canada is 100% hockey! I'll miss Don Cherry, but I am ready for a change.

I worked as an agency nurse at USPHS Gallup Indian Medical Center in Gallup, NM and just loved it. The Native Americans are so much fun to work with and artwork and jewelry are to die for. But then my parents were born in Northern New Mexico and I have lots of family there and in Durango, CO. ABQ is probably the largest city and if you still want a little bit of the city included, ABQ is the place. There are so many things to do there and there are vacation spots only minutes away with breathtaking scenery. GO FOR IT AND TELL NM HI FOR ME!!!!!!!!!!

susanna · Jun 24, 2004

Hmmmm, maybe i should consider new mexico as a new dreamland to move to after i get all my education done....in the hawaii nuse anesthesia thread, some one has experessed some doubts about hawaiin culure to me already....

As I said in my other post, I NEED TO GET OUT OF HERE!!!!!!!! ALL my friends from Cali(4 in total) say that people are the rudest and meanest here where I've been living my whole life, bad climate, pollution, you name it, we've got it... I WILL HAVE A BURY MYSELF IN A GRAVE IF I STAY HERE MY WHOLE LIFE!!!

Thanks OP, maybe Ill be hitching up to new mexico too if the posts are consistent here that its a nice place...

Anyone want to talk about the negatives of living in nm?

movealong · Jun 25, 2004

How small or big of a town are you looking for? Land around the Magdalena, NM area is the best kept secret in NM. Magdalena is on Hwy 60, Central western NM, if you continued west in to AZ you would come in to the Show Low area. We have a gorgeous place there, as pretty as anyplace you will find in NE NM and we border on the national forest. Inredible 100 mile views in one direction and Mountains right up to our back door in the other. It is our retirement place. We also have a cabin off the grid about 40 miles north of there. Don't know what kind of internet service they have but the guy behind us works from home doing something internet. Housing would be very reasonable and choice of land can be semi developed to extremely adventurous. I am interested in your tele nursing. I would leave for NM tomorro if I had that kind of a job. Past ER and Occ Health experience, how would I go about checking in to this? I am quite serious, since I already have a place in NM I would divide my time between there and here in TX. Any info would be greatly appreciated. (I LOVE RURAL NM-lived there 7 years-returning every few months for 20!). Please do post on the tele nursing. Hope this info helps on NM.
I checked out Flagstaff, then Prescott, then Payson and Snowflake in Az.
I missed Magdalena, NM mainly cause I hadn't heard aything about it. I wanted to visit Silver City too, but I just didn't have enough time. I understood Showlow to be kinda like Snowflake? I did love Gallup.
Go visit the telephone triage forums, I've posted alot there. Just look for stuff posted by me there. If you need more info, let me know. The pay isn't great, I took a cut when I accepted this job. But working from home is just awesome, and no daily commutes saves me alot of miles on my car, I use very little gas now.....
They have a website: www.intellicare.com
Wherever I end up, it can't be too rural. I figure like most jobs these days, it won't last forever. Since I am my sole provider, I would make sure I live somewhere I can get another job if this one folds in say 5 years.
I need a town or small city, I think. I do like having some perks available: places to go eat, some activites to do. 10,000 to 50,000 tops as far as population goes. Though I can be a little flexible.

sipapu · Jun 28, 2004

Thanks for the reply movealong. I just accepted a new position in dialysis but did send the intellicare info to a friend after visiting the web site. She's an addictions specialist and she was interested in the smoking cessation program they have. I hope your location hunt goes well. Magdalena would be too small for you. Silver City is close to the top of my list of NM locations. It's kind of another of the best kept secrets. They have all the great stuff that NM is famous for including the Gila Wilderness in their backyard but none of the hype that can go along with the NE area. Their growing alot but because there's no skiing or reservations there the growth is more laid back than the Taos/Santa Fe area. Thanks again....hope you find paradise in NM.

How small or big of a town are you looking for? Land around the Magdalena, NM area is the best kept secret in NM. Magdalena is on Hwy 60, Central western NM, if you continued west in to AZ you would come in to the Show Low area. We have a gorgeous place there, as pretty as anyplace you will find in NE NM and we border on the national forest. Inredible 100 mile views in one direction and Mountains right up to our back door in the other. It is our retirement place. We also have a cabin off the grid about 40 miles north of there. Don't know what kind of internet service they have but the guy behind us works from home doing something internet. Housing would be very reasonable and choice of land can be semi developed to extremely adventurous. I am interested in your tele nursing. I would leave for NM tomorro if I had that kind of a job. Past ER and Occ Health experience, how would I go about checking in to this? I am quite serious, since I already have a place in NM I would divide my time between there and here in TX. Any info would be greatly appreciated. (I LOVE RURAL NM-lived there 7 years-returning every few months for 20!). Please do post on the tele nursing. Hope this info helps on NM.
I checked out Flagstaff, then Prescott, then Payson and Snowflake in Az.
I missed Magdalena, NM mainly cause I hadn't heard aything about it. I wanted to visit Silver City too, but I just didn't have enough time. I understood Showlow to be kinda like Snowflake? I did love Gallup.
Go visit the telephone triage forums, I've posted alot there. Just look for stuff posted by me there. If you need more info, let me know. The pay isn't great, I took a cut when I accepted this job. But working from home is just awesome, and no daily commutes saves me alot of miles on my car, I use very little gas now.....
They have a website: www.intellicare.com
Wherever I end up, it can't be too rural. I figure like most jobs these days, it won't last forever. Since I am my sole provider, I would make sure I live somewhere I can get another job if this one folds in say 5 years.
I need a town or small city, I think. I do like having some perks available: places to go eat, some activites to do. 10,000 to 50,000 tops as far as population goes. Though I can be a little flexible.

jonnygirl27 · Jul 3, 2004

I've never understood what posesses people to move to Gallup... I've been in NW NM (farmington) for most of my life. Being a non-transplant, i'm not too fond of Gallup. The IHS hospital is gorgeous, and I've had fun with my clinicals there--but living in Gallup is not an idea that I relish.

jonnygirl27 · Jul 3, 2004

I've never understood what posesses people to move to Gallup... I've been in NW NM (farmington) for most of my life. Being a non-transplant, i'm not too fond of Gallup. The IHS hospital is gorgeous, and I've had fun with my clinicals there--but living in Gallup is not an idea that I relish.

dosamigos76, RN · Jul 5, 2004

I've lived in New Mexico for three years and I absolutely LOVE it! I live in Clovis, about 10 miles west of Texas. The people here in the area have something very special. They are polite, conscientious, and just plain nice! They have something called "Character Counts Communities"...and the shocker is that they mean it!

Cheryl

easygz · Oct 13, 2004

Thanks for the replies guys. The more I think about it, the more I want to move. I am tired of living in concrete.
One more question: do you find the salary is appropriate given the cost of living? Like what is the range from new grad on up in Albuquerque?

If you haven't found a position in NM, call or email me, I can help. I have a handle on the current wages. I also know of a position or two depending on your experience and what you want. I personally know some hiring managers who I could introduce you to.

I lived in Albuquerque several years and visit there 2-3 times a year. Great place, great quality of life. Hope to move back some day as well.

Please PM or email me if you want more info.