Albuquerque vs. Portland

One of the nice things about traveling, it makes it fun and easy to imagine what life would be like if we lived somewhere else. Since we are in Portland this week, we have both been discussing what it would be like to live here in the sunny gray Pacific northwest. My criteria and irrational judgments:

1. The Climate
It comes down to sun versus green things. Things up here are lush, green, verdant. Beautiful gardens and lots of trees. The flip side to this coin is that it rains here. A lot. Annual rainfall 37.5" with only 70 days of full sun. Albuquerque, on the other hand, annual rain fall 9.75" with 167 days of full sun. While the green here is beautiful, I find the stark beauty of the Southwest also appealing with the added bonus of sunny weather. Winner: Albuquerque.

2. The Natives
Official census data shows the greater Portland metro area with a total population of 3.5 million versus 845 thousand in ABQ. My expert sources (Wikipedia) claim the demographics are about 70% whitey with 40% hispanic for ABQ, versus 80% whitey with 9% hispanic (disclaimer - I still can't figure what this means exactly nor does it seem correct). My observations - Portland certainly seems like a very homogeneous population.

One demographic not counted in most recent census is the (white) hipster doofus population. By my estimations I would say it is around 10% for ABQ and around 95% in Portland. Granted, I am one of these people. But what is the fun in being a hipster doofus if everyone else around you is too? Winner: Albuquerque

3. The Food
Portland has a pretty amazing foodie scene. Lots of great restaurants, lots of fresh local ingredients from local farms (see next point), a strong sense of local, and a huge microbrewery and burgeoning mirco distillery scene add up! While we have some good restaurants too, I think the greater appreciation for food by the general populace and the higher population gives the edge to Portland. No good chilis, but we can let that slide. Winner: Portland

4. The Farmers Market
This category combines all the points above: rain, whiteys, and foodies. Portland's rainy weather produces much more amazing produce that ABQ possibly could. This and the greater emphasis on food in general (plus the all the hordes of hipster doofusi) combine to make the farmer's market in downtown Portland absolutely amazing - a destination in and of itself. The one in ABQ is pretty nice, especially in the summer with the live music, but the winner on this one is clearly Portland. So winner: Portland, but only partial credit since it is a subset of points 1-3. So +0.5 to Portland.


Enjoying a morning at the farmer's market

So out of the 4 categories considered, it is 2 for ABQ and 1.5 for Portland. So it looks like we will be staying in ABQ a little longer. Who knows what the future holds though. Technically our next move will be Ali's choice, since I chose ABQ last time. If she is going to be my sugar momma, I could probably grow to love anywhere she put me.