Las Cruces Memories

Las Cruces has quite a bit of unusual architecture to enjoy. Here is a snapshot of what used to be a very popular dancehall connected to an early drive-through liquor store, Lamar's. 

The round structure is falling to ruin, unfortunately. Behind it, just literally perhaps an inch separating them, is the venerable hardware store, Hayden's, in business since 1960. Hayden's was established by Hayden and Elnora Wiley. Over the years, the family business was expanded and continues to grow with Las Cruces and the surrounding neighborhoods. It's a small store where you can find almost any piece of hardware you could ever need, no matter how obscure.

That's handy to know, if you are considering retiring to Las Cruces! And I hope you will!

Guardian of the East Mesa

In the very beautiful, very new residential/commercial area centered around Sonoma Springs Road and Northrise Boulevard, the medians and sidewalk areas are very beautifully landscaped. A light version of xeriscaping is used, with many plantings of Palo Verdes trees, mesquites, Texas Mountain Laurels, lantana, and other desert-y plants.

One of the developers near Sonoma Springs Elementary School placed a beautiful bronze mountain lion statue at the beginning of their particular stretch of homes. I love traditional public art, and the lion looks quite at home with the Organ Mountains to his back. 

We have actual mountain lions here, as well as many other desert denizens, such as roadrunners, gray foxes, coyotes, cottontails and jackrabbits, and the occassional coatimundi passing through. We also have elk, deer, and amazingly,  the African Oryx, settled here decades ago on the White Sands Missle Range by the New Mexico Department of Game and Fish and now residing up in the Organs in sizable numbers.

Trees Getting Ready for Thanksgiving in Las Cruces

The NMSU campus is an especially good place to find trees that are changing color in autumn. This photo was taken on the main campus in Las Cruces. Once COVID is in the past, the campus will again be a wonderful resource for retirees. Retire to Las Cruces and enjoy all the learning opportunities and beauty it has to offer!

Las Cruces Begins Holiday Decorating for Christmas 2020!

Yes, it's true: Perhaps it's due to COVID-19, but Las Cruces has caught something else, too: Holiday Fever. 

It seems everyone is starting early for the winter holidays.

One of the favorite light sets to use is the lighted Christmas Chiles strings! We love our chiles here (not chilies or chilis -- we spell it C-H-I-L-E-S!) and it shows.

It's also time for new ristras. I have one on order through Ristramnn's in Old Mesilla, right next to Las Cruces. For the long, long ristras, early in the season you have to order them, as they are bought within minutes otherwise. Later in the season, you might be able to get a long one without pre-ordering. 

The smell of the red chiles drying in the ristras is heavenly! You may not know it, but the green chiles will ripen to red. That's the chiles you see in the ristras. Some smaller chiles called serranos are also used in ristras.

Thank you for dropping by, and see you Wednesday!

 

 

All Four Seasons in Las Cruces: Autumn Leaves Now Changing

 Las Cruces, despite being in the desert, is not just a 2-season place, "Hot" and "Not Quite As Hot," as some may think. No, it has all four seasons, which is delightful.

All the markers of each season arrive each year. Our leaves turn beautiful colors during autumn, especially on the NMSU campus, in Mesilla Park neighborhood, and in most neighborhoods with established trees, such as Telshor.

This tree is in our back yard, and is a wonderful Mountain Ash, with golden leaves and vivid red berries during fall. 

Come experience a temperate, wonderful climate in Las Cruces! It's a wonderful place to retire, with reminders of "home," and great new experiences as your NEW home!

Our Amazing Cold Snap in Enchanted Las Cruces

So much more snow fell after the first night of our cold snap. My little courtyard burro, bought from a roadside vendor up from Juarez, Mexico, stood patiently in the cold, decorated for Halloween, which is tomorrow.

We are still under the governor's lockdown here in New Mexico, so I doubt there will be any trick-or-treaters. We are prepared, just in case! Our neighborhood, Telshor, can get quite a few trick-or-treaters. 

Early Snowfall in Las Cruces

We had a very surprisingly early snowfall today, and it is still snowing almost 24 hours later! In fact, it's a record for earliest snowfall since recordkeeping began. 

The desert looks lovely in snow, and so do our yards. Unlike many areas of the country, our snow usually is gone quickly and dry conditions reign again, making travel and errand-running easy. And snow shoveling is not something we do here.

Consider retiring to enchanted Las Cruces if you love temperate weather with a few surprises thrown in to spice it up!