New Mexico’s Top 10 Attractions:
New Mexico Department of Tourism
0.20 inches of precipitation Sunday and Monday. Build an ark! Since March 25th Albuquerque has gotten 1.04 inches of rain.
The City of Albuquerque Water Conservation Office is offering a $500 rebate for residents who switch from a swamp cooler to refrigerated air. (I live outside the city limits.)
Swamp coolers, which nearly all homes in Albuquerque have, even those valued at $1 million and more, run water through straw pads (better coolers use cellulose). A fan sucks outside air through the pads, using evaporation to cool the air. The air is then blown through the house. When the humidity is low (which is most of the time in Albuquerque), swamp coolers are pretty effective. They are, however, about as rinky-dink as something can be.
And in Albuquerque alone they use an estimated 4 billion gallons of water a year — 10% of the city’s water usage.
For 50 of the past 55 days the temperature in Albuquerque has gotten to 90º or more. In July the high averaged 96.7º.
Friday the high was 79º. Fall is in the air.
The Albuquerque Isotopes were down 7-0 going into the bottom of the 6th against the Memphis Redbirds Monday night but rallied to win 9-7. I was one of 4,954 in attendance on a beautiful night at the new Albuquerque ballpark, a guest in a corporate suite (free tickets, free food, free Isotopes Amber Ale).
The Isotopes get their name from the Simpsons. According to the Simpsons Episode Guide, in “Hungry, Hungry, Homer”:
Homer becomes a Good Samaritan after seeing the benefit of helping people. When he attempts to get Lenny a refund on his Springfield Isotopes season tickets, Homer discovers that the baseball team’s new owner, Duff Beer, plans to move the team to Albuquerque. Homer tries to rally the town in protest, however, no one believes his allegation. To expose Duff’s plan, he stages a hunger strike by chaining himself to a light pole near the stadium. Days later, the Duff Corporation deems Homer their ballpark attraction. They unchain him and tempt his cravings with an Isotope Dog Supreme. Before eating it, Homer realizes that the Southwestern ingredients on the hot dog prove that the team is moving to Albuquerque.
Actually the Isotopes moved here from Calgary, where they were the Cannons.