I Love Farmington: Barry Digman & Valerie Uselman

Episode Transcript

Bunny: (00:00)
Hi there. I’m Bunny Terry, and you’re listening to the I Love New Mexico podcast. Whether you’re a native new Mexican, who’s lived here for your entire life, or you’re just considering a visit, this episode is for you. Join us as we share a lot of New Mexico’s stories. Talk about all things New Mexico, and include topics like what’s magical here, where you ought to visit, what’s happening, and the things you absolutely cannot miss in the land of Enchantment. We’re excited that you’re here, and we can’t wait to show you what an amazing place New Mexico is, because let’s face it, I love New Mexico. So if you’re a regular listener to the podcast, you know that I always say, wow, I get the meet the most interesting people that I never would’ve met otherwise. But I’m telling you, my guests today are people that I have met, I’ve had them in my home, or I’ve been at conferences or meetings with them, and they’re two of my favorite people in the world, and they both, um, currently live in Farmington in the Four Corners area. And, and I just confirmed that they both grew up there. So they’re, we’re gonna hear some cool stories about what it was like to grow up there and also, um, why ya oughta consider visiting or even moving to Farmington. I’m gonna tell you, it’s a lot less expensive than Santa Fe where I live. But first, I want my guests to introduce themselves. I’m gonna tell you my Valerie Eselman and Barry Digman are both realtors in that area, but more than that, there are people who know everything there is to know about Farmington and the Four Corners areas. So let’s just start, Valerie, tell folks, first of all, what you do right now, and one thing you love, love, love about Farmington, and how long you’ve lived there.

Valerie : (02:02)
Thank you, Bunny. Thank you very much. I am Valerie Selman, uh, currently working, uh, as a broker with Keller Williams Realty. Um, I had quite a path to get here, uh, but uh, I used to teach at Farm Farmington High School. Um, Barry and I have lots of good stories about Farmington High School, but, uh, you know, ultimately I have a very dear friend who has passed away who was the deputy director of the Southern Nevada Water District, which, or which, uh, you know, would include the Colorado River, lake Mead, everything that goes south and flows from there. And she’s, you know, she and I were talking one day and I said, I sometimes struggle with still living in Farmington. And she said, are you crazy that she’s traveled all over the world? And she said, it’s my favorite place. It’s the most beautiful place I have ever, you know, lived in and, and been to. And I, she said, if you don’t recognize the beauty there, you need to rethink things. So I, uh, you know, I was born in Farmington. We have, my husband and I have five sons. We’ve raised our children here. And Barry, I think it’s a pretty good place to be.

Barry : (03:39)
, can’t beat it.

Valerie : (03:40)
Pretty good place to be. So, anyway, yes, Barry and I are both, uh, with Keller Williams in Farmington. And, uh, we are discovering that there are many people who want to move here because there is so much to offer.

Bunny: (03:57)
I love that. What about you, Barry? What’s, first of all, um, in, uh, I, I, I mean, we know you’re a realtor with Keller Williams, and you’re one of the most hilarious humans, Dr. He’s got the driest sense of humor in the world. Um, but, but I also know that you went away for a while, went to U N M, right? And then, um, came back. Were you born in Farmington?

Barry : (04:21)
No, actually I was, I was born in Albuquerque Presbyterian Hospital. Um, and my parents moved up here with the oil boom in the early fifties, 1953. Okay. So I grew up here, and then I went to U n m, went to school down there, and I worked down in Albuquerque for Bella Bema Corporation. So a lot of your, a lot of your people that are gonna be watching and listening, they know who Bema was. And, uh, my wife and I were down there for several years, and then we decided to come back to Farmington. And I’ve been back up here ever since. Um, my background was accounting, that’s I, Anderson School of Business, u n m. Everyone’s a Lobo, right? Uh, yeah, , uh, came back up here, worked in the real estate industry in accounting and finance, and then, uh, got my license and, you know, started selling listing real estate.

Barry : (05:19)
Um, I met my lovely wife in Santa Fe, which is a whole story unto itself. Santa Fe in the early seventies. What an awesome place. And I’m sure it still is, but I’m not there. I’m here and I’m here because I love it here. I love the access to, you know, the outdoors. Um, I love the people here. They’re, you know, it’s just one of those communities that pulls together because we’re, we are not in the Rio Grande corridor. So we’ve learned to, to kind of take care of ourselves. And, and I think we’ve done a fabulous job of, uh, building this community up.

Valerie : (06:05)
I agree, Barry. I think that a above all else, Farmington has a very keen sense of community. The people who were here when the oil boom began in the fifties realized that this was a special place. I don’t know if I have my, uh, information correct, but is, is it two thirds of all water that runs through New Mexico, runs through San Juan County? Exactly where we are. We have the San Juan River, the Animus River, and the La Plata River. And I, I believe it’s,

Barry : (06:49)
Yeah, it’s

Valerie : (06:50)
Two-thirds. It’s a significant amount of, of all the water in New Mexico flows through this area. So, um, um, and as Barry said, you know, the people who moved here banded together to create more than just a workplace. It, they banded together to create some activities and some special places where people could enjoy life. I mean, you know, in the early days, they founded the college, San Juan College, which is an incredible community college, offers a diverse, uh, pro diverse programs, certificates and education, nursing, um, dental hygiene. Um, the list goes on and on. And they, they, you know, there, there was, there was a realization that, uh, not only was this a good place to work, but it was, it’s also a great place to play. And, um, and you guys that,

Bunny: (08:06)
Go ahead. I’m sorry. What you guys don’t know is that I, I lived in, well, I think Valerie might know, remember I lived in farming for a couple years when I was 19, and I left to go back to you and m and finish my degree. Cuz you know, I was one of those kids who went to school, and then I quit, and then I went to school, and then I quit. And, um, but I remember that my favorite thing about Farmington was that everything we did, we did outdoors. I mean, that’s, that I, so I want, you know, we’re, we have a lot of listeners from New Mexico, but I have listeners in Canada and in, you know, on the Eastern starboard and some in India. So, so I want people to know that Farmington is, uh, is this like the fifth largest community in this state? What do you, what do you think your population is here?

Barry : (08:54)
You know, our, our population in Farmington proper is about 45,000. Okay. Now, the san, the county and, uh, is about 150,000 on a good day, probably. Yeah. You know, it, it varies. Um, but yeah, it’s, it’s the right size, you know? Um,

Bunny: (09:17)
What was the size when you were children? What do

Barry : (09:20)
You think? 5,500. And we were, my

Valerie : (09:22)
Goodness, was it even that much Barry?

Barry : (09:24)
And we were, we were children on the same block,

Valerie : (09:28)
In the same hood. We were in the same foot. And that is where we derived our sense of, you know, we built such a fabulous foundation. There were so many cool kids in the hood, man, there were, we, we kicked around and we, I mean, and people still talk about it today. Yeah. Um, we were very fortunate. What

Bunny: (09:53)
Street did you live on?

Barry : (09:54)
Mesa Verde. I’m on Mesa Verde now. She grew up on Mesa Verde. Um, I grew up actually on Laguna a block over.

Valerie : (10:03)
You did? Yeah.

Bunny: (10:04)
Okay.

Valerie : (10:04)
Which house?

Barry : (10:05)
1232 Laguna.

Valerie : (10:07)
So that was

Barry : (10:08)
next door to Pigford,

Valerie : (10:10)
Next door to, that’s right. That is absolutely right. . I do remember that.

Barry : (10:16)
So where were you, bunny?

Bunny: (10:17)
I lived on Dustin. Okay. In some apartments above the, what’s the park? Oh, yes. What’s the

Valerie : (10:22)
Big part? Oh, yes.

Barry : (10:23)
Yeah. Oh, those were the cats meow when they were built up their sunset house.

Valerie : (10:28)
Oh, absolutely.

Barry : (10:29)
Oh, yeah. Yeah.

Bunny: (10:31)
very fancy. It was very fancy for me. And I think our rent was like $112 a month, you know, it was like, like 1979. And I lived with a woman named Phyllis Begay, who swore that she was gonna be the next, the fe female president of the Navajo Nation. And I, I would love to find her again. I know there are many Phyllis BGAs in the Four Corners area, but, um, we worked at the college and I was the assistant registrar to Valerie’s old friend, Ray Lynn Shropshire Sh

Valerie : (11:06)
Shire. Yes.

Bunny: (11:07)
And, um, you know, I worked with Fred Zaki, he was my boss, and I thought it was the coolest place I’d ever lived. I had so much fun.

Valerie : (11:16)
Well, you know, to compare, as you have stated, Santa Fe is a world unto itself. There is incredible, um, appeal in Santa Fe. However, we have, you know, we have just as much to offer as Santa Fe does with more reasonable real estate prices. And, um, you know, Southwest Colorado is realizing that there are many people who are choosing not to live in Colorado, choosing not to live maybe in Santa Fe, looking for, for a place here. And, um, I understand that I, I worked with a woman last week on a transaction who was a mobile notary. And she is from, you know, I don’t recall where she, Oregon, I believe. And she moved here. And I said, why did you choose to move to Farmington? And she said, because the real estate is reasonable. And also there is incredible opportunity here, recreation, cultural diversity, proximity to so many destinations that are sought after internationally. I mean, you know, we’re a couple, three hours away from Telluride, from Moab, from Lake Powell, from Silverton, uh, from cco. Canyon, Mesa Verde Mesa, I should say. Um, fluent,

Barry : (13:10)
Fluent in Spanish.

Valerie : (13:12)
. No, it’s

Bunny: (13:12)
A, it’s a, I love that. It’s a good, I love that

Valerie : (13:15)
.

Bunny: (13:15)
Um, so, so, so, so you’re also, I mean, you’re very, I I, I mean, you’re close to Navajo Lake.

Valerie : (13:22)
Oh, yes.

Bunny: (13:23)
And you’re certainly very close to skiing in Durango. Um, but I, tell me, um, you said you had a lot of stories about Farmington High, but where, what elementary school did you guys go to? Because I know there’s gonna be somebody listening who’s from there.

Barry : (13:39)
McKinley Elementary School.

Valerie : (13:41)
Ditto. Yes. Yeah, it was the cool

Barry : (13:46)
Place. It was, it was the cool place. It was the cool place. Oh, the cool kids went there. What can I say? You know, so yeah, McKinley Elementary, TI Junior High, Farmington High School. Now, when we were, you know, when we were in high school, there was only one high school in Farmington. And since then, they’ve built a beautiful new high school. How old is Pi Vista?

Valerie : (14:08)
PTA is probably 10 years. 10 or more? Probably 10, yeah. Anyway, yeah, they’re both wow. Beautiful schools. And of course there is a rivalry. Of course there is. And of course there are attendance, uh, enforcements today that perhaps there were, they were not necessarily in placement

Barry : (14:29)
when we went to school.

Valerie : (14:32)
I can wait a second.

Barry : (14:35)
Yeah. It was, uh, you know, growing up in Farmington was the typical small town, you know, um, you, you cruise Main Street, you know, we used to call it Dragon Main. I, you know, and the kids call it Cruise Main, but it was just like that. And, and Valerie and I, and a lot of other people talk about, you know, it was such a magical time and place then. Um, my, my children have all grown and they’re, they’re gone. They’re from all the way from Rhode Island to California. I don’t know that, you know, they’re gonna have that same experience. They did not have the same experience I had, but they had an awesome experience here. Growing up as children, it was wonderful. We have, you just have to come and see the park system that we have for kids, you know, soccer, baseball, softball. We just finished the most marvelous pickleball courts here. Um, we have indoor racquetball, and of course we host, uh, the premier baseball tournament for amateurs here in Farmington every August. The Connie Macel World Series draws in the best kids, you know, in that 18 year old age bracket from across the country. It’s a, it’s a, it’s a really big deal. We also, and about the same time we have the Rock crawling Championships here Yes. Up in choke Cherry Canyon. And you would not believe the rigs that show up for that from all over the country. It’s outstanding.

Valerie : (16:17)
It would rival Moab. Oh, yeah. In many ways. Yeah. It would rival Moab to competition.

Bunny: (16:22)
And I know my cousin who lives in, um, Aztec, they host, I mean, you, you host those kids that come to the Connie Mac World Series. Right. And then, and then some of those kids go on to be pro, I mean,

Valerie : (16:37)
She’s gone to Yes,

Bunny: (16:40)
I know you do. You’ve host those kids, don’t you, Valerie?

Valerie : (16:43)
Oh, we have hosted them, uh, for I believe, 22 years. We were not able to host last year, cuz I was, I took a, an excursion to Michigan that I would not have missed. But yes, there are a couple of players now who play professionally. Joey Bart play is a, um, he’s a fabulous catcher with the San Francisco Giants, uh, Kyle Farmer, uh, please. Now I believe that he is going to Minnesota, but he played for the Dodgers in the World Series. I mean, yes, we have posted many who have played professionally. And it’s, that’s what I, that’s what I mean when I talk about sense of community. You know, when the, when the group that traveled to Chicago to bid on bringing the series here, that was one of the, one of the strong points that I believe allowed Farmington to receive that opportunity was we, we offered to host the players instead of the teams teams having to pay to, you know, house the players when they’re in Farmington, it, it, it has continued for, it’s over,

Barry : (17:57)
Gosh, how long has it been? 50, 50, 50 plus years. 55 years. Yeah. That, that we’ve been doing that. Doing.

Valerie : (18:03)
Yeah.

Barry : (18:04)
Um, and we ha you know, we have smaller local events, uh, you know, uh, balloon rallies and marathons and bike races and all those kind of things. You know, I, I wanna touch on something else, bunny. And that is the, uh, the cultural diversity here that we enjoy. We have very distinct, uh, uh, groups here, our Native American, uh, uh, Hispanic, you know, and, and they each have, you know, their own their own cultures here that, that we embrace. And for folks who like a little bit of difference, you know, gosh, you know, I mean, it’s, you know, at the very least it’s spiritual, but it’s even elevated to holy here. Um, in a lot of ways. This is, this is a special land for a lot of people. And if you stick around here for a while, the light goes on and it’s like, wow, I get it. This is, this is not just geography. There’s a whole lot more here for people that are looking for that.

Bunny: (19:11)
Well, what I would say is that, that’s what I learned when I lived there. And I didn’t live there a long time. I lived there a couple of years. But, um, what I found was, I mean, I learned so much, first of all about the Navajo culture. Mm-hmm. , and, and also because I worked up at the college, you know, we, that there was a real diverse, um, group of students. And I w I, you know, I was young and energetic and I worked all the time, but I also went to school full-time and I was on the student. I somehow talked, tucked them into changing the rules for student government. And if I ran for president, I should get to be on. Right. I mean, you know, um, I think, um, uh, Pete Krek cabbage beat me out. Pete

Valerie : (19:59)
Kre ca Oh, I did . Okay.

Barry : (20:03)
She, she tell her Pete lived

Valerie : (20:07)
Is this Pete, the Pete lived a couple of doors down when we were growing up, and I see Pete still Yeah. At the post office. He

Barry : (20:20)
Works at the post office.

Valerie : (20:20)
Yeah. Pete, but you I’m gonna, next time I see Pete, I’m going have to ask him if he knows you.

Bunny: (20:29)
His great friend was Darrell Polson Yeah. Who I dated Oh, yes. For about 20 minutes. Um, and, and, but there was this huge, broad swath of kids from all different cultures that I never would’ve met if I didn’t go to Farmington to live. And it really, you know, during the pandemic there was so, um, the Navajo Nation lost so many of their elders. And in fact, I just talked to somebody on a podcast last week, um, from Lone Hawk Hats down in Madrid, who did a fundraiser for the Navajo Nation and raised a hundred thousand dollars.

Valerie : (21:06)
Oh, that’s amazing. Wow. That’s amazing.

Bunny: (21:10)
Um, and so, but, but at the time that that happened, I thought, I’ve been there. I know those people. I understand those issues. And it, and so I’m gonna say for me, living in Farmington was, was life changing. And I think I’d go back if I didn’t have a lot, so much family in Santa Fe. It’s the the one thing that, that people wanted. I, I mean, I think that you’ve got in incredible potential, and I’m sure it’s not potential. I’m sure it’s happening as a, a great place to retire. Am I right?

Barry : (21:40)
Absolutely. And we actually have a group here, uh, little subcommittee I’m on with the Chamber of Commerce called Retire Northwest New Mexico. And we actively recruit, you know, people who have had a wonderful career somewhere, uh, it’s time for them to retire, to sell that big house and to move somewhere else and farmington’s it. You know, as far as I’m concerned, if you are an active senior, um, you just can’t beat Farmington to be outside, to become engaged in the community. We have encore classes they call ’em at the college. It’s all kinds of stuff that you’re able to do here. We also just completed a, how big is that re home over where American Plaza used to be.

Valerie : (22:27)
Oh my goodness. Couple of

Barry : (22:28)
Hundred

Valerie : (22:29)
Community. Yeah. Yeah. They, they’re, they’re, they’re recognizing that there will be many who will want to stay here and they’re building a facility to house. Well, people who, like Barry and I, who probably will be there in a couple weeks. Right. My, I mean, one never

Barry : (22:52)
Knows. Now there’s, you know, we have a lot of other facilities here, you know, traditional assisted living and those kinds of things. Um, well, and

Bunny: (23:01)
You have a good hospital

Barry : (23:02)
Yeah, too. We

Valerie : (23:03)
Do. We do. And,

Barry : (23:04)
Uh, absolutely. You know, now I would encourage the, you know, your, uh, your developers, you know, that are gonna see this. We need a beautiful gated community of here subdivision. We do, you know, we do for people who wanna live in Farmington, who wanna be able to just lock their door and be gone. Right. We need that in Farmington.

Valerie : (23:26)
Well, and the other, the, the, uh, caveat to that is that in San Juan County, there is only, I believe it’s six to 7% of all land that is privately held. There’s not a lot left. So developers out there, uh, heed this call and, uh, call Barry or me, and, uh, we’ll take care of

Barry : (23:55)
You. . Yeah. It’s, it’s Prime. The other thing, bunny is, as you know, uh, Durango, you know, an hour’s drive from here is more closely aligned with Santa Fe when it comes to home prices. And people can’t really afford to work there and live there. They’re looking to migrate a little bit south of the border. So, um, yeah, we could, we could use some more housing here for, for those folks that are gonna become commuters,

Valerie : (24:27)
The potential is great.

Bunny: (24:29)
Say somebody here’s this podcast, and they’re like, wait a second, I, I think I’m gonna run up to Farmington for three. You know, I’ll come up and spend two or three nights . Um, I know what I’m gonna say, first of all is if you’re interested in Native American art or jewelry or rugs, which are also, I mean, that’s all art. Um, you, the prices are much better in Farmington. I’ve got some great things that I bought downtown that were really, really, I think about half, maybe 60%, but half of what I would’ve paid for them in Santa Fe or Albuquerque. So that’s one thing. But if somebody was coming for, and they had like two full days, what would you tell them to do when they’re visiting and where should

Barry : (25:13)
They eat? Well, it, where, where should they eat? Uh, in one of the best Mexican restaurants in, you know, Northern New Mexico cuisine, uh, the Chili Pod, right. Downtown Farmington. But, you know, we’ve got a, we’ve got an amazing diversity in restaurants here. Um, we have excellent Thai food at Boones Thai downtown.

Valerie : (25:35)
Oh, it’s, it’s,

Barry : (25:36)
It, it really is good, you know, and, and so, and as I mentioned the chili pod, we’ve got a little place called Olive Tree, not Olive Garden, that is Mediterranean food. And it’s, it’s outstanding too. . And then we’ve got all the traditional guys. But you know, if you want the best hamburger in New Mexico, hometown hamburgers, I know the Alka and all the rest of them think they’re the best. They’re not. Yeah.

Valerie : (26:02)
They’re

Barry : (26:03)
Definitely not.

Valerie : (26:04)
And there are some other, uh, Mexican food restaurants. Yeah. Uh, Los Ed Edman Nitos,

Barry : (26:12)
Yeah. Yeah. Out on the west side,

Valerie : (26:14)
Uh, Los Rios. Los Rios. Mm-hmm. , uh, that I would put them up against anybody in Albuquerque or Santa Fe any day.

Bunny: (26:23)
. So tell me where the burger is.

Barry : (26:24)
The burger is on Main Street, right? On Main Street, uh, east Main and what’s it called? Hometown Hamburgers.

Bunny: (26:30)
Oh. Well, of course

Barry : (26:33)
Now for reference, I will say, you know, it’s right across where the Valley Drive-in used to be , which hasn’t been there for 40 years, 40.

Bunny: (26:41)
So do you, you still have an A and W That was my favorite place to get the, uh,

Barry : (26:46)
No, from We do not. There’s one in Aztec. There is, there’s one in Aztec. That’s

Bunny: (26:51)
True. Yes.

Barry : (26:51)
It’s 15 minutes delay.

Bunny: (26:53)
And I, steak

Valerie : (26:54)
Fingers Jaquita. Oh, we forgot Taco Box.

Barry : (26:58)
Oh, yeah. Taco

Valerie : (26:59)
Box. Oh my goodness. Taco Box. Oh, that. Yeah.

Bunny: (27:02)
,

Valerie : (27:03)
No Taco Box on Broadway.

Bunny: (27:05)
Yeah. And what about attractions? I mean, I know there’s some things that people need to see.

Barry : (27:10)
Yeah. You know, if I was just gonna be here for a couple of days, it would depend on what time of the year, you know, I was here, um, and what I was interested in. Um, you know, I would, you know, I, I might wanna see all of the local trading posts if I wanted to, you know, see Native American arts crafts, that kind of thing, I’d, I’d for sure go down to fifth generation. Yeah. You know, which is oh my gosh, what beautiful stuff they’ve got down there. But, you know, Mr. Beal’s got a place on Main Street, and you know, where Negras used to be. Um, he’s got nice stuff in there, Fouts chaining, you know, right there at the corner.

Valerie : (27:51)
Right there at the corner.

Barry : (27:53)
Um, so, you know, and then if I wanted to, well, you, you and your sweetheart were up here to fish, right?

Valerie : (28:00)
Yes. The quality waters right. Quality

Bunny: (28:02)
Waters below the, below the dam at

Barry : (28:05)
Navajo best trout fishing in the United States. Yes.

Valerie : (28:09)
Uh, we have, you know, if you’re, uh, a golf enthusiast, uh, there is Pinion Hills. It’s a public golf course. I haven’t golfed since 1,992, but, um, pinion Hills, uh, I, I’m looking to, I’m, I’m looking to start my golf game up again. Oh,

Barry : (28:31)
Yeah. Well go for it. I

Valerie : (28:32)
Think call, I think golf. Go

Barry : (28:34)
For it.

Valerie : (28:34)
Yeah. I hang out at Pinion Hills. It was at one point ranked in the top 10 public golf courses in the United States

Barry : (28:42)
Yeah. By Golfing Magazine. Yeah. Yep. And, and they have just finished a, a major overhaul of it. So I can’t wait to see it this spring when it’s, you know, when it’s all greened up and everything and looks gorgeous. It’s gonna be outstanding. Well, so have a river walk. Becky and I just walked, I was just, we just did the river walk, you know, and, and you know, our parks department has done incredible job. So, you know, get down to the

Valerie : (29:07)
River. I, when Jamma was here, she said, I wish Santa Fe had a river walk. Like you have. It is. It is. Yeah. Really, really nice. Yep.

Barry : (29:18)
And we’ve, we’ve got a, uh, we’ve got, uh, uh, a little thing we call Riverfest coming up over the Memorial Day weekend, come up, lots of food, lots of music, lots of, uh, rafting on the Animus River. And I’ll tell you, the river’s gonna be outstanding this year.

Valerie : (29:38)
This year.

Bunny: (29:39)
Good. And I’m sorry, but you live there, so this is all obvious to you, but not, it’s not very far to go to Shiprock and the,

Valerie : (29:50)
An icon Yeah. Of the Southwest. Yeah, absolutely. And it is gorgeous.

Barry : (29:56)
Yeah. Shiprock, uh, charco Canyon, you know, I mean, that is an experience all in itself. If you’ve never seen Chaco, um, and you need a, you know, you need a full day for those, those chips because they’re just so encompassing.

Bunny: (30:09)
Let’s take, why don’t you explain to folks what Charco Canyon is real quickly, because that’s,

Barry : (30:14)
Well, Choco Canyon is, is, um, you know, it, it, it’s a series of, uh, kiva’s apartments, those kinds of things that were built by the Anasazi. And around 1100 is when they, when they finished that up. And it was a central marketplace, a religious center, all kinds of things for, um, you know, the Anasazi culture. And then it was abandoned. And those ruins were, you know, they were rediscovered, you know, um, found, uh, and excavated. And they’ve done a tremendous job of, uh, you know, explaining what was there.

Bunny: (30:56)
So is that a, that’s gotta be a national park, doesn’t it?

Barry : (30:59)
It’s a national monument. Yeah. Yeah. National Monument. National Park. I

Bunny: (31:02)
Think it’s a national, national monument

Barry : (31:04)
Cultural, a cultural, cultural monument. I think that’s the name of it. Now,

Bunny: (31:09)
I, I would say for people who, you know, they’re gonna hear, uh, you know, if you’re in New Jersey, you’re gonna hear apartments. But I’m telling you, these are complex. It’s a huge area. Complex systems where people lived kind of reminiscent of the way the Mayans lived.

Valerie : (31:24)
Yeah. Yes. Yep. Yes. And there’s great, isn’t there something there every winter solstice berry?

Barry : (31:32)
Well, there’s a sun dagger. There’s a, there’s a, a consent, there’s a spiral that is, uh, carved into the rock there and hot, the winter solstice, you know, is it the winter or the summer? I forget now. Anyway, that’s the winter. I believe the, the sunlight only once a year hits that dead center. It’s, wow. You know, it’s kind of a testament to, you know, you know, their connection with astronomy. Um, it’s pretty cool.

Valerie : (32:05)
It is pretty cool.

Bunny: (32:07)
So, so I’m telling you, I I, you know, I’ve lived in Farmington, but you guys are making me wanna come back. . So, so what I wanna do is, what we’re gonna post with this, um, podcast are links, you know, we’ll lease, you know, visit Farmington or your chamber, or whatever that is, and ways that people can find the two of you, because I think that if somebody comes up and wants to take a look around, you’re who they should call.

Barry : (32:35)
Be happy to do that for people. Happy. We’d love it.

Valerie : (32:38)
Be happy to

Bunny: (32:39)
Nice. You know. Nice. Well, I’m sorry we’re not together, so that we could now sit down and have a cup of coffee or, you know, something different. And I’m, I’m sorry that Valerie and I are not in Austin this week, so that we can go see James McMurtry play at midnight. Isn’t I at

Valerie : (32:55)
Midnight coming? Oh, it was like maybe one o’clock. I mean, it was perfect. Everybody was invited and I was the only one who took Bunny’s invitation up and Yes. Bunny Austin was that we, we went

Bunny: (33:09)
To the cocktail club at, at midnight. So, I’m sorry. Let’s go do that again, but

Valerie : (33:14)
Let’s do it. But you also are welcome to come visit us in the northwest quadrant of New Mexico in the Land of Enchantment. Anytime, any, any time, we’d love to have you. We’d love to have everyone. Yeah.

Bunny: (33:35)
Yep. Thank you so much for being on the podcast. This is a fun conversation. In fact, why don’t we plan to come back and do this again maybe in the summer when you’ve got some summer events coming up. Oh,

Valerie : (33:47)
Let’s do, it’s,

Bunny: (33:48)
Talk more

Valerie : (33:48)
About Connie Mac,

Bunny: (33:49)
Then. Let’s do it. How does that sound? Let, when is Connie Mac, when are the, when’s the Connie Mac World series?

Valerie : (33:52)
It, it was typically in August, but it has kind of migrated earlier because many of the, the players needed to get to college. So it’s probably the end of July. Yep. The end of July.

Bunny: (34:05)
Cool. We’ll put a link up to that too. Thank you guys so much.

Valerie : (34:08)
Thank you.