Category: Albuquerque

Bowled Over

Timothy Price42 Comments

6º F @ 6:00 AM

What once was a staple, got bowled over by Staples and Strings. Thai’d, nailed, clipped and financed into other uses.

Intermission: cute cat photo — Spunk and Glenda

Coronado Center, a large split-level mall, was all the rage for many years. The mall was open from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday, with many stores and activity-oriented businesses being open from 9 a.m. to 11 p.m. on Friday and Saturday. It was open from 12 p.m. to 6 p.m. on Sundays. After the long COVID lockdowns and restrictions, plus so much gang and criminal activity in Albuquerque, most stores now close at 8 p.m. or 9 p.m., and stores that used to stay open 24 hours close at 8 p.m. Many restaurants that were open 24 hours close at 11:00 p.m. It’s a sad commentary on the state of business in Albuquerque.

One business that has thrived through thick and thin, with not a lot of changes, is the McDonald’s at the corner of San Pedro and Menaul. It’s been there for as long as I can remember.

Jake’s Big Adventure

Timothy Price47 Comments

While my car was in the shop for maintenance, Jake and I took a 3.8-mile (6.1 Km) walk down, up, and all around the Albuquerque flood diversion channel. I was surprised how much Jake liked running down and up the steep sides of the flood control channels. Whenever we came up to the top of a channel, Jake would hop onto the road and give whatever was in front of us a look of intense interest. It was like a game for Jake.

The route

Jake peed on a high-voltage transmission line pole. He thought it was electrifying.

Serious security: An electric fence behind the cyclone fence and barbed wire.

Needless to say, Jake was worn out after his big adventure.

Ch-Ch-Ch-Ch-Charging

Timothy Price58 Comments

Ch-ch-ch-ch-charging (Back-in to get a boost)
Ch-ch-charging, need to be on that super source
Ch-ch-ch-ch-charging (I know I might be a bit off course)
Ch-ch-charging, to be charging near an Apple Store
It takes time to charge me
But I can charge fine

Spunk Art

“Sign, sign, everywhere a sign
Blockin’ out the scenery
Breakin’ my mind…” — Five Man Electrical Band

I had to drive into town today to go to the Apple Store to get my iPhone checked out. It’s been eight months or longer since I’ve needed to go to the Apple Store. The Face ID on my iPhone is not working most of the time now. After lots of diagnostics, it turns out the Face ID camera is on the fritz. I dropped the phone a few times in the three years I’ve had it. That probably contributed to the demise of the Face ID camera.

Whenever I go into town, I get culture shock. Most of the streets around the shopping centers in Uptown are torn up and blocked off, so traffic was snarled. Most of the parking lots were filled up, and people were waiting for spaces to open up. I always park in the far lot where few people park because most people are either in a hurry or too lazy to walk a few hundred yards. I pulled into the lot and discovered that the places I usually park are now taken up by Tesla superchargers.