Episode 50– You can also listen on Apple podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google podcasts, and Amazon Music
About the Episode:
Bunny talks with Davi Telford about all things Las Cruces, NM! We thought it was about time we showed some love to the Southern part of the state. If you want recommendations on events, restaurants and an insight to the culture in Las Cruces, you won’t want to miss this episode!
Links
Las Cruces Chamber
I Love New Mexico blog page
Bunny’s website
I Love New Mexico Instagram
I Love New Mexico Facebook
https://hatchchilefestival.org/
https://lescombeswinery.com/
https://haciendademesilla.com/
https://www.nps.gov/whsa/index.htm
https://www.wsmr.army.mil/
https://bataanmarch.com/
https://www.lapostademesilla.com/
https://www.facebook.com/chopesbar/
Original Music by: Kene Terry
Featuring:
Davi Telford
“David Telford has lived in Las Cruces for the past 40 years, during which he has served on various boards and committees and worked as an advertising consultant, sales manager and promotions manager for radio stations throughout the city.
David Telford grew up in Chihuahua, Mexico and attended school on both sides of the border. He enlisted in the U.S. Army at 19 near the end of the Vietnam War. Some of Telford’s experience also includes serving on the local March of Dimes Board of Directors, the marketing committee for the Whole Enchilada Fiesta, the city’s 4th of July event committee, the Las Cruces Health and Human Resources Advisory Committee and serving as treasurer of the Southern New Mexico Press Club.” – Las Cruces Sun News
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 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.
Bunny : (00:50)
One of the coolest things about doing this podcast is that I, and Johanna Medina, who is my producer, we get to pick our guest. And recently we were talking about how some of the best podcasts we’ve done are podcasts where we just speak with members of the community, not politicians, not somebody who’s paid to promote a specific organization, but just friends and family and folks who have stories to tell. Because the coolest thing about New Mexico is that everybody has a story to tell. And so today is no exception. Um, I’m talking to an old friend of mine, in fact, we dated each other for about 15 minutes back in the late seventies. And, um, he came up to me and asked me to dance at the caravan in Albuquerque, um, on Central Avenue in September of 1979. And I gotta tell you, the reason I remember when it was is that it was during, um, the state fair because my cousin David and I had just been to the horse races with, um, friends of mine, high school, friends of mine, and we had , um, one on a trifecta on the long shot and had made about 350 bucks that we split. And $175 was the most money that I’d had in my pocket ever. I was 19 years old. So, um, that’s where I met Davi, was at the caravan, and then we hung out. He lived in a cool house down in the South Valley off of Rio Bravo in Albuquerque. And the very best thing is that we remain friends for decades. And so today I get to visit with him, but what I wanna say is that if you are a new Mexican and you have a story to tell, and you, you’re not promoting a business and you’re not talking about an event or an organization, you just wanna tell your story, we wanna hear it. Even if it’s only 10 minutes long, we’ll, we’ll put you together with two other people and we’ll turn it into a podcast because that’s what we’re doing. Everybody who lives here has a love story about New Mexico and we can’t wait to hear yours.
Bunny : (03:08)
So be sure if you are interested in telling your New Mexico story that you email us at, I love New Mexico blog gmail.com. Let us know. We’ll put you on the show if it works out, and I can’t wait to meet you and hear your story. But for now, here’s my visit with my old friend, David Telford. Today’s a special treat. And, and, and I gotta tell you, I always say that, but today really is a special treat because I’m getting to talk to an old friend of mine, um, who is, um, like me, a long time resident of New Mexico, and we’ve known each other since, uh, I think 1979 or 1980. Introduce yourself. I want people to know who you are.
Davi : (03:59)
Okay, well my name is David Telford. My friends call me Davi, which is Spanish for David. And so that came about from the fact that I was raised and educated in Mexico. My dad was a cattle rancher down there, so, you know, I’ve grown up as a cattle rancher in Mexico. And, I’d been around Las Cruces when I was younger, cause we ran some stockyards there in El Paso. And I’d come up sometime at visit. My uncle was the Prince of Alameda Junior High, and my aunt, who was a school nurse, you know, so, I would come up here and visit them and all my cousins. So, and I always really liked Las Cruces. I ended up coming back here in 81 because, college, you know, I started college up in Phoenix when I got back from the Army. And I was just getting kinda burned out up there. I was working full-time days, going school full-time at night. And my cousin said, Hey, you oughta come down and, and see it. Help us build some houses down here. You know first of all, when I met you I had come over to Albuquerque. I was taking a semester off, you know, trying to regroup and clear my head. So I went there and just spent one semester chilling out, as they say. That was kind of my college career. I chilled out a lot, . And I finally got through it. , you know it took as long my bachelor’s as it took my wife to get her doctorate. So enough said, well.
Bunny : (05:45)
It took, it took me as long, you know, when I was a junior and I got pregnant with my son. I said, well, I’ll finish before he gets outta high school. And it was sort of tongue in cheek, but, but I really, I finished two weeks before he graduated from high school, so, so I don’t know. I may win that argument, but, um, Hey, hey, we did, we did it.
Davi : (06:08)
That’s a good juxtaposition. Did you guys have a big party together and everything?
Bunny : (06:13)
That’s Right. That’s right. Yeah,
Davi : (06:14)
We did. That’s great. Yeah. So I came down here, in August of 81 and you know, helped my cousin and friends. We built some places and I registered at New Mexico State. It was great. I mean, beautiful college, beautiful campus. First time I’d been on campus during the daytime , cause I was working days and then going to school at night in Phoenix. And I got down here and I thought, wow, look at all this grass and all these trees, and it’s daytime. This is what college is really like, you know, . I liked it so much, I kept going and going. But anyway, uh, I did that and, uh, since I was an air quotes older student, you know, cuz I had waited till after I got out of the army and I did some traveling stuff. So I was an older student, so I was in my degree was in journalism, PR, you know, and it had a lot of it advertising involved. And so what I would do is I would, I’d be kinda like the liaison with the community because I was older, you know, a lot of these college kids were a little afraid to go out and see these guys. And I said whatever, you know, so, and that’s how I overcame that situation of not being able to get a job without, um, experience, but not being able to get experience without a job. You know, I, you can get the experience if you do it free . So I did a lot of free stuff. I was on the whole enchilada yesterday committee and marketing and I’d line up bands. We got, uh, Selena, you know, like the last year that she was affordable shut. She had shut the right.
Bunny : (08:04)
Is that right?
Davi : (08:05)
Yeah, she was just starting to hit it big. We got her, she was on the front, you know, you know, did the main concert on the front steps of city hall. It was great. Next year we looked at it, she was way out of our price range. We got her right on the cusp. Wow. So anyway, that, that was always interesting, you know, doing stuff like that. Got my name out there, got, gave me experience in those things, you know, and fourth July committee, all those things. So I did that. I did an internship with the City of Las Cruces and that’s when I really started, you know, getting the inside, uh, feel of how things worked here. And, and it’s just, it’s a great town. You know, it’s a great place to live. You, you can’t beat it. Day as we say, I live just a few miles from the foothills of the organs and I built my house. There’s a 80 foot porch all along the side facing, uh, organs and outside on the porch and watch. And then the winter cold, you sit inside and it’s all glass. So you can always have that view of the mountains. That’s always been one of my biggest, you know, loves here. You and then go with hiking and camping at a Gary Springs or you know, LA Cueva and stuff. And as we’re talking, I realize I haven’t been up there for a long time. , I need to get up there now. Enjoy what we have here. What I tell everybody is so great about it.
Bunny : (09:43)
So you and I talked before we started we have a lot of listeners who are not from New Mexico who have never ever been here. In fact, I just got a letter from somebody who lives in Newfoundland. So as a point of reference, let tell them where Las Cruces is. I mean, you know, New Mexico is a huge state, so act like you never have been here in your life. Where, how would you know if where Las Cruces is?
Davi : (10:09)
Okay, so we’re down at the very tip. We’re buried in New Mexico. , you go 30 miles one way, you’re in Texas and another couple miles you’re in Mexico. So we’re right down on that point. You know, you see, uh, 30 years in radio and we were always fighting to get our own ratings, you know, our own, uh, uh, uh, market shares and stuff, you know, cuz we were the little kid 30 years in radio and we were always fighting to get our own ratings, you know, our own market shares and stuff, you know, cuz we were the little kids in the big cities market. But we, you know, we’ve got our own stuff now and uh, that’ll tell you where we are. We’re right down there. And it’s so great because you can go so many places in such a short time. Weather’s incredible can play golf in February, which I often do, you know, and can’t beat that.
Bunny : (11:11)
So, that’s one of the things that people don’t ever really get. You know, I, I meet people from New Jersey or, um, you know, from Minnesota and they’ll say, wow, New Mexico is, I mean, it’s just a big huge desert, right? And I’m like, no, we have all of the temperate zones except for Tropical and, and you and down there. I mean, I’ve never been to, is it Drip? Is it Dripping Springs?
Davi : (11:36)
Dripping Springs, yeah.
Bunny : (11:38)
I’ve Never been there. But that’s really verdant and green and gorgeous, isn’t it?
Davi : (11:42)
It’s incredibly so. And it’s, uh, especially now when we had those rains before, I mean, then the streams are running and it’s just right over the hill, you know? And like you’re going over to White Sand, uh, you know, the range. Just go over the hill, come up the backside and, you know, beautiful hiking trails and, uh, you know, running water. I’ve often run a lot of runs around here was did to kinda recover from a bad accident I had. And uh, one of the runs is the Baylor Canyon run. And you start on the, uh, west side of the mountains, climb up over ’em, over the, uh, kind the saddle. And you come down in the Gary Springs and wow. It’s tough. It’s tough cause you’re climbing that mountain, you know? But it’s so beautiful. And then when you get there, you just, well, first of all, you just wanna sit and, and sleep. But , it’s such a beautiful place to be, you know?
Bunny : (12:43)
And what about, um, how long is that? How far is that run?
Davi : (12:48)
Oh, it’s about 10 Ks, you know, but you know, the problem is, is climbing , you’re climbing at about a 40 degree angle and it’s not even so much. You’re tired of your late, your lower back kills you cuz you’re just literally climbing up a deer trail, you know? But it’s so great that that’s there, you know, and it’s just so close to us.
Bunny : (13:11)
And didn’t you do, I mean, you guys are really close to White Sands, haven’t you done? Um, isn’t there, is it the Batan Memorial.
Davi : (13:18)
Yeah. Memorial
Bunny : (13:19)
Run.
Davi : (13:20)
Yeah. That is an awesome, uh, that is just a breathtaking experience. There is, like, last time I ran it, you know, it was shut down for a few years because of, of Covid and everything, but last time I ran it, it was, uh, 7,000 people, you know. Oh, wow. And from wow, from around the world, literally. You know, you go in, in the staging areas and stuff, there’s the giant world, uh, map up there, it with little push pins in it from all the places around the world that people have come. And it’s just awesome. You stand out there and experience it.
Bunny : (13:57)
When is that, because I, that’s one of those things that people will ask us about. First of all, what’s the began death march and when is the
Davi : (14:04)
Run? Okay, well what it is, it’s in, it’s in celebration and, and remembrance of, of the u uh, US Army unit. That was mostly made up of New Mexico, uh, new Mexicos that were forced to march this baton march. And it was a forced march by the Japanese to the Philippines. And a lot of people died cuz it was so hard, you know. And so that’s why it’s called the Baton Death March. So what they’ve done is, is, you know, some years ago, I can’t remember how many years ago it’s been now, but they have this annual remembrance out at White Sands Missile Range. It’s a full marathon, 26.2 miles. Wow. And it’s tough, uh, because you start out there with sweats on and sing and waiting for the, you know, the sun to come up. Cuz it’s like four in the morning, you know? And then as the sun comes up, they play Reese out there with sweats on and fri and waiting for the, you know, the sun to come up. Cuz it’s like four in the morning, you know? And then as the sun comes up, they play rele and they have a giant American flag that they raise up on a huge crane. And I’ll tell you, it just makes you cry when you see that flag. And, uh, then the sun coming up over the Oregon mountains, it’s just the most beautiful site in the world, you know. And a gal that used to work with me at the radio station, she sings the national anthem, just amazing. And you’re talking to people from around the world and hearing stuff and then as you take off, there’s a spot where it kind of slows down cuz they have a line of veterans along there that are survivors from Baton Memorial March. And each year there’s fewer and fewer, you know, I think there’s maybe only two or three surviving members now, you know? So it’s a very incredible event and it really shows off, you know, uh, New Mexico, our terrain definitely. Cuz you start out, you know, in on flat ground, you climb up over the mountains, you come back down and it’s the tough, I’ve heard guys that have run all these marathons, they say this is the toughest, you know, cause of the terrain and everything, but it’s beautiful. And then, you know, you can come back some other time and just relax and camp out there .
Bunny : (16:32)
And you go, you go over the hill, do you go, do you go over the mountain?
Davi : (16:35)
Yeah. Oh, you, you go, you start out right on, on post at Fort on, you know, at White Sands. And then you take off and you’ll cross Highway 70 Uhhuh and go up over the mountain and then go off to, you think you’re gonna end up in Alamogordo so far , you know? Wow. And make a loop and come back and yeah, it’s a really tough run. But, you know it’s really makes you reverent. Uh, you know, you’re thinking about those people.
Bunny : (17:04)
Oh, yeah. So I did a, um, I, this is important and it really, it’s inspired me now to do another podcast, uh, that I, where I can talk about, I did a project, there was a guy in Logan who was a Batan death March survivor. And he, what people don’t get is that the, and I, and correct me if I get this wrong, this is how I remember it, is that, um, you know, the Army said, you know, we’re sending guys to the Philippines. Let’s send all these guys who look like, who, you know, it’s almost as if they, it was, um, based on, um, you know, Spanish speakers and Hispanics being chosen to go to a country as I understand it, with a bunch of people that they sort of assumed were similar. Yeah. I mean, it was, it’s a com Is that what you understand?
Davi : (17:55)
Well, yeah. Basically, yeah. They thought they would adapt better or they would be accepted better or whatever. And you know, not to mention that they were tough as heck, you know, Right. Tough as nails. So they knew they could get the job done, you know?
Bunny : (18:09)
Right. And so all these guys are in the Philippines. My guy who, whose name was Waltman, was a kid who grew up on a horse ranch in Clovis and he was in the National Guard. Most of these guys were in the National Guard.
Davi : (18:23)
Yeah, yeah. It was the National Guard.
Bunny : (18:26)
They weren’t An active duty, but they, I mean, they were active National Guard and they called ’em up and they went to the Phil, they were all a bunch of farm kids from New Mexico and went to the Philippines and were really ill equipped, um, in terms of gun power and, um, technology. You know, if technology in 1942 and 43 and 44 is, I mean, there certainly was more advanced weaponry, but these guys almost all ended up as prisoners of war. Right. And that was what the Batan death March was. I mean, they, most of them were march to death. Right. My, my guy Kike Waltman that I wrote this bio, this biography about was he made the march twice because wow, about a mile and a half from the end, a Japanese guy who seemed to feel bad about what was happening, picked him up on a truck, he and another guy, and, and drove them almost to the end. And the soldiers saw him and they said, take him to the beginning.
Davi : (19:29)
So, wow, man,
Bunny : (19:30)
It was a grueling, and I’m sorry, I don’t recall the, the, the distance, but it was a grueling march that killed Yeah.
Davi : (19:39)
A lot of people.
Bunny : (19:40)
So many of those guys didn’t survive
Davi : (19:42)
Mm-hmm. . Yeah. It, it was, it’s great them honoring them as they have,
Bunny : (19:51)
That’s so cool.
Davi : (19:52)
Thing that, you know, wasn’t honored or, or recognized. And, uh, they were a, you know, bunch of people, you know, they called them the glorious bastards, you know, no mother, no Father , just Uncle Sam. Right. And so they were tough. So it’s awesome to see when you go out there and talk to those, uh, those few survivors that are left, you know, and a lot of the people that were involved in the logistics, it’s just amazing to see what goes into making this happen.
Bunny : (20:26)
So, um, we’ve kind of touched on your history in mm-hmm. in the area, but talk about now, I mean, what’s, what’s what do you love to do every day or where, what, what are you doing in New Mexico that people ought to know about?
Davi : (20:42)
Well, you know, what’s great about here is, well, of course the weather. So you can have festivals and events like year round. I really love thing like the Hatch Chili Festival. You can’t beat that as you’re driving into Hatch, you know, which is just north of Las Cruces a little bit. You can start smelling the roasting green chili, you know, miles away. And that’s one of my favorite times of the year around here in Las Cruces is, uh, you, you driving down the road, you’re going to the stores and stuff. And like the grocery stores and stuff will all have a big old roaster out front. And, you know, they’re rolling the chile over and roast is just heavenly. You can’t beat that.
Bunny : (21:26)
I’ve always, I’ve always regretted that there’s not a way on social media to convey that smell,
Davi : (21:32)
Because Yeah, if you Yeah, that, that Smeller Smeller vision or whatever, we need something. Cuz there is no smell that is that good besides, it just smells good. But then it also smells like the, you know, my history, it smells right.
Bunny : (21:49)
Right. It smells like home. It
Davi : (21:51)
Smells like, yeah, yeah, exactly. And it’s just like, wow, you just get so sentimental. I, and I would always send some to my mom up there, and they lived up in, uh, Salem, uh, uh, Oregon. And while I was in the army overseas, my mom would send me these care packages, you know, with enchilada sauce and corn tortilla and all the stuff to make, you know Mexican food. And when you know, at mail call when we, you know, when I’d get a package, it, all right, Sergeant Telford got a package from home. It’s a party, you know, . So enchiladas. And so as came around, I would stand up each month, each year, uh, a big old , a gunnysack full of green chilies to my mom up in, uh, Salem. Cause she said, you know, they have chili up there, you know, uh, a lot of Hispanics up there, she says, but, you know, the chili grown up there was so mild, it was almost like bell pepper, you know, it was very mild. So I would send her this big deal and she’d roast it and peel it and freeze it. And they’d live on that all winter until, you know, I sent the next year, you know, and the year in 2006 when it flooded so bad and a and a broke, a levee broke up and patch and it just flooded the streets. And it was national news. You could see their streets looked like river. My mom was saying, oh, she, she texted or calls, you know, I feel bad for the people of Hatch man, but, uh, I hate to ask, how’s the chill ? I said, don’t worry, it was on high ground. Mom, you’ll get your batch of chili this year. . That’s, but I love that. And then there’s just so many, like old course travel from all around to go see Ole Mess, which is the original settlement here. And they have their, their mayo, uh, celebration, you know, then they have a big, uh, tequila tacos and, you know, any for festival, you know, and that’s what’s great about here. You know, you can just enjoy anything you want anytime.
Bunny : (24:08)
So what’s, so do they still do the whole Enchilada Festival?
Davi : (24:11)
No, and sadly enough, and I don’t know what’s going on with that, because it seemed like the bigger, we got more things that went away, you know, then the whole enchilada finally went away. Robert Str died, you know, he was like the main guy, you know, he built the, the world’s largest, uh, enchilada. You know, I have a picture of me back then when I was doing my internship with the city in the paper, you know, eating that big old bite of enchilada, you know, this huge 10 foot wide enchilada, that was the world record enchilada. But he died. And then it was so much money to keep. We had a twee balloon. It was like a giant enchilada, the helium balloon that we, as I was in the chamber all these years in the Ambassadors, which is the kind of pr arm of the, of the chamber. And we’re the ones that would sponsor that. We’d walk it down the parade holding this giant enchilada that was floating in here, . But you know, people, you know, the, all the volunteers, you know, we’re starting to peter out. That went away. That’s pretty sad, you know? But we still have our 4th of July, you know, uh, you know, celebration with fourth of, you know, with the, yeah, we have entertainers all day. And then a major, uh, entertainer that night that goes on just before the fireworks a few years ago. It was, uh, John McLean, you know, from Bye by American Pie. Wow. He was here. So that’s always fun, you know, and that’s, that’s a fun thing that goes on now. And, and as we mentioned, there’s the Oregon Mountains hiking in Gear Springs, uh, like the all theaters here, they do in the summer, they do free kids movies. Like every Wednesday they have a, a free kids movie, you know? So it’s great.
Bunny : (26:00)
So, and one of the things that I’ve noticed, because I follow, you know, all these, all these cities across New Mexico and small towns too you know, I sort of follow their calendars and it does seem like, um, there’s a lot of stuff going on downtown all the time. You know, it’s like it’s a, yeah, I don’t know if you’re still involved with the Chamber, but I think that’s a Yes. That’s a pretty, um, amazing, um, amazingly active, um, chamber, if that’s who’s doing all of that.
Davi : (26:36)
Yeah, we’ve worked really hard on it all these years. Revitalized downtown, like so many, uh, cities have, you know, and so we reopened the down main strip in street downtown, and the old is still there. They’ve renovated that. You can see classic movies there and, and all stuff. That was the original, the first two story Adobe in, in New Mexico is this big two story, Adobe, uh, movie house. And they’ve restored it and kept it there. So that’s kind of there. And then right across that, from that is the, we have the big plaza, uh, giant band shell, and they have a lot of concerts and events and then all up and down there, little by little more people are buying up the, the storefronts and, and redoing them. We got a Comet book shop there, two or three breweries we like to drink down here. There’s a lot of breweries, , and hey. And that’s perfect for down there, you know.
Bunny : (27:39)
And don’t you, I mean, you have a wine festival too, don’t you?
Davi : (27:42)
Yes. Yeah. We have the, uh, we have a wine festival up at, uh, the, the, the fairgrounds every year, you know, Lavinia, and that’s huge. That’s been going on for years. And then, you know, cuz we have a lot of wineries down here, LA Combs and, uh, two or three other major wineries down here. And so those are great places to have events, you know, in those giant venues, you know, and they’ll have big parties and, and wine tastings and everybody gets silly. And so it’s, it’s a lot of fun. Unfortunately I came up drinking 37 years ago for Nap . I never went back to it. So I hear it’s great, you know, my kids enjoy it and everything, but it’s great, you know, and a lot of the people here that do their own brewing and stuff, it started up these breweries and stuff and just, you know, any number of things you can do anytime you want, you know,
Bunny : (28:41)
So, so we’ve talked, I mean it’s, we’ve, we’ve done a really good job of, um, talking about, um, what’s there. But if you say, if you have people coming for the weekend or a week, you know, somebody’s gonna come and stay for three or four days. Mm-hmm. , what’s your, like, don’t miss this if you come to Las Cruces.
Davi : (29:04)
Well, any of these are always, uh, start off with a trip to Obia cuz it’s right there. Uh, there’s so many things you can see and do and buy and look at fiestas like they have, uh, uh, what is it called? Mariachi Sundays in the plaza. Old Macia in the, and so that’s always fun. And then, you know, if you want, we’ll take a trip to White Sands, which is about, you know, 50 miles from here, the actual White Sands, uh, national Park. And that’s beautiful. You know, it’s so close. And, uh, in the summer, I don’t suggest it until late evening . Right? It’s hotter than heck up there, you know. But those moonlight, they have like full moonlight nights out there. That’s one thing that they always go to. And then of course, hiking and, and camping the stuff. And in the mountains, uh, they have things like, if it’s that time of year at Miles Farm Valley Maze that’s in crazy incredible, started out as just a maze, but now it’s a whole, you know, like a theme park.And you know, they got the maze, but then they have games and they have food, and it’s always a fun place to go. The blue Moon, which is out in Radium Springs about 12 miles north, you know, that’s a great place at outdoor venue and runs that sitting right on the Rio Grande. We used to go and take canoes, go up stream, and then ride our canoes down, get out at the blue moon and sit down and have a, you know, a beer and stuff. That’s always a nice place to go. And, and one time my sister from Fort Worth used used all these lakes and all these beautiful water, uh, tributaries and everything with ski and everything. Well, she came down here and, uh, she was visiting and said, Hey, let’s go skiing. She says, ok, where’s the lake? I said, well, uh, just wait a minute. So what it was, we would take, we would take the truck and we’d find a place along the irrigation ditch the longest, uh, span between two bridges, you know? So you get in the pickup truck, you stick a stick in one of the corners of the truck, tie the, the ski rope to it, and then just haul along the ditch bank, you know, pulling someone skiing, you know, and at first she thought we were joking, , but, you know, then she took right to it. I mean, that’s just a fun thing.
Bunny : (31:38)
That’s Hilarious.
Davi : (31:39)
. Yeah. And, you know, going down to the river, uh, catching frogs and crawdads, I mean, that’s just great stuff for kids to grow up around.
Bunny : (31:47)
And, I want folks to know it’s the real grande. I mean, it’s, yeah. You know it’s the river. It’s our river.
Davi : (31:55)
It’s our river . Yeah. And this year it’s actually a little more grand, you know, cause of the rain and the snow. It’s actually looking pretty nice for the first time in several years, you know, it was.
Bunny : (32:07)
So tell me about, um, and maybe you don’t do this, but this is one thing that I always thought is really cool about that valley is the pecans.
Davi : (32:15)
Yes. It’s just, it’s, it’s the, you know, the background to our, our, uh, history here, you know, the saex and the, uh, stamens, you know, they put in, at one time they were largest, uh, pecan farms in, in the world, you know, now I think in Australia they’ve got some biggers, and I think that was some of the STAs that went over there to start those. But they’re beautiful. I mean, it is the, one of the cornerstones to our economy here, and as far as the aesthetics is there’s nothing better than taking a, a ride on Highway 28, the old back road that comes out of old Messilla and driving down towards El Paso. And you go through those, uh, pecan orchards and I mean, they create a giant canopy over the highway. And I, you’re driving down in the summer and it’s hot, go through there, and all of a sudden it’s just slush. It’s like you’re in the jungles of Amazon or something.
Bunny : (33:13)
It’s Beautiful. It’s so cool’s.
Davi : (33:15)
Beautiful. Yeah. Yeah. And it’s so peaceful and quiet. I used to ride my bike. Uh, we, you know, you, if you head that way south, you know, that’s famous for, uh, you know, food.
Bunny : (33:31)
I was gonna ask you still go,
Davi : (33:33)
Yeah. Chopes is still there, still the best, uh, anos in the world, and that’s what we do. I’d get on that bike and ride down through that, you know, through those orchards. And it’s just so beautiful and peaceful. It was like being in paradise. And then you get down there and then have that great meal there at Chopes, it’s still going and blowing you, you know.
Bunny : (33:55)
So I’m gonna, I want everybody to know that we’re gonna, I’ve been writing as you’ve been talking, I’ve been keeping a list of all the links that are, that are connected to this podcast. And I’m like, oh, chop is, I, so here’s what I wonder if you would, um, consider, and if not we can, we’ll, we’ll get this at a, we’ll, we’ll put in one of our own, but do you have an enchilada recipe you might send us that we can give our listeners
Davi : (34:22)
Mm-hmm. . Uh, I specifically don’t, my wife does . Oh, good. But I can, I can put something on there, you know,
Bunny : (34:31)
That’s perfect. That’s perfect. So that’s
Davi : (34:34)
Be attached eating my specialty is eating the enchiladas, you know? Oh yeah. So if you need like, some expert tips on how to eat it and not get it all over your dress shirt, well, I’m not the one for that either. That’s why when I was working, I always made sure, you know, man, those enchiladas look good. But I get a big old spot of that enchilada sauce on my tie and I’m done . You know, .
Bunny : (35:01)
So, so we talked, so we’ve, we just talked about Chope, and I know that you probably love, you know, it’s like me when people say, where do you like to eat in Northern New Mexico? I’m like, where do I not like to eat? But if somebody’s coming to town, um, what should they absolutely not miss in terms of
Davi : (35:19)
Food? Uh, definitely, uh, you have to go to Old Messilla to that thing there. Uh, Katie Camus started that like in 1920 something, 1923 or something. I mean, and it has, it’s been a legend. I mean, the best food in the world and it’s expanded. It’s an oia. And then it took up two or three other, you know, storefronts that were next to it because, you know, it was so popular and it was hard to get in. So now there’s all kinds of rooms. So we’d have a lot of our chamber meetings there and stuff, which those are the ones I always made sure to, to attend, you know what I mean? Because you knew the food was gonna be good. Yeah. Even if maybe the meat was gonna be boring. So you gotta go to Chop. I mean chop first you gotta go to here in Las Cruces or Macia.
Davi : (36:07)
And then, uh, Tom Hutchinson, you know, and Jre Huon who run, they opened up another one called La Hacienda. And it’s just on the highway going into Las Cruces, coming out of Ole Missy. It used to be two or three other things. It was even on, I wish I could remember what it was, but it was on, you know, uh, one of those re uh ha, uh, what is it? Restaurant re rescues, you know, where a guy kind of came in there, Bourdain or somebody came in there and tried to show ’em how to fix it up and make it work. It, I’ll just, anyway, it went through three or four iterations, just kept failing Uhhuh. That’s the thing about Tom Hutchinson and J Hutchinson and Lao, whatever they touch turns to gold. They took it over and now it’s just super good. So if you’re in Messilla, you got that. And you also have Salu, A couple friends of mine from back in the hotel business got together and quit their jobs and started it. And like it is a top location Salu. And that’s right there, you know, off the edge of Messiah. And then Lacomb Winery and you, those are all places you, you gotta hit, you know, so many and so many places to go and see. Of course, you know, you got the Allen Theaters, they have a, a, a food truck roundup once a week. I think it’s on Thursday, I’ll have to check the time. But out in the parking lot of, of, uh, the Shor 12 theater, they have, you know, 5, 6, 7, 8 different food trucks that all come over there and, and create like a little, uh, circle there. Like, you know, circle the wagons, you know, and you can go there and they got music playing.
Davi : (37:55)
You just sit out doors and visit and eat off the food trucks and then you can go in and watch the movie and stuff. It’s always a fun thing to, uh, got the great, like the Fountain Theaters here, which is great. It’s a classic old original Adobe theater and Old Macia that plays classics and all kinds of stuff. And then there’s, uh, what’s really fun is each year is the Macia Valley Film Festival, which is really got huge, the Las Cruces International Film Festival. And they bring in some big people that I’ve had a chance to meet. A lot of really cool people doing that. But connection with it, you know, through the radio, which I, you know, I, I worked promoting it all those years. And then the Allens of the Allen Theaters are my in-laws. My oldest daughter married their oldest son, you know. And so we’re involved in seeing, you know, everything’s going on with that. And, uh, so they’ve got, they’re getting ready to build a big, fun family fund. Cause everybody’s always talking about, we need a bowling alley again. We need, they’re gonna start Giant Center that’s gonna bowling Alley Arcade, all that stuff’s gonna be right there next to the theater. So you can play and have fun, go to the movies or whatever. So that will bring something new that we needed for the kids for a long time. You know, a lot of those places have come and gone, but, you know, I didn’t think they had the backing or something to keep ’em going. So that’s something fun. Then we got Black Box Theater, Las Cruces Community Theater. It’s a real active art scene here. You know, we got Friday, uh, uh, art Rambles, you know, where, uh, you just hit, you go on a little tour of all the art galleries around Las Cruces and, and Macia and all that area. So that’s, you know, a very vibrant scene that’s, uh, you know, a lot of people enjoy down here.
Bunny : (39:58)
So we, I, now I wanna go, now I wanna come to Las Cruces and visit, um, it’s been a long time since I’ve been there, but I, but I do remember when I was there for school. I mean, it’s still one of my favorite places, but what I really want people to know is that it’s like, it’s, you know, most people think of Las Cruces as a place for either college students or retirees, and there’s a whole lot of stuff happening in between.
Davi : (40:25)
Exactly.
Bunny : (40:26)
It’s a really vibrant, it’s the second largest city in the state, right?
Davi : (40:30)
Correct. Yeah.
Bunny : (40:32)
Yeah. But it still feels like a small town as, I mean it when I’ve visited, it feels like a small town. So, so I’m gonna come down and do a field trip, but so everybody who’s listening, um, we could talk for another hour about how cool it is there, but I want you to check out the links and, um, and, and, and get there to visit and, um, pay some attention because this is, um, it’s just like every other place in New Mexico. I could never pick my favorite, but it’s just one of those places where people are friendly and the weather is perfect and you’re gonna have a lot of fun. Did I forget anything?
Davi : (41:15)
No, that’s true. That’s what everybody says. The people are friendly, you know, the weather’s great, you know, uh, you couldn’t beat it. Get a little bit cold in the winter, a little bit hot. Well, everything’s a little bit hot right now, ,
Bunny : (41:28)
Right? Summer,
Davi : (41:30)
It’s record summer. I mean it, yeah, you couldn’t ask for better weather, better topography, the mountains, the hillsides, and you know, the orchards and, you know, just a little bit of something for everybody, you know? And I just, I’ve enjoyed it. I’ve been away at times and I always just look forward to coming back, you know, come over that hill and boom.
Bunny : (41:56)
Oh yeah, I’m like, um, anytime I’m away, I think, God, just get me back there. That’s, that’s my prayer. Just get me back there. But David, it’s so nice to talk to you. We haven’t talked in a long time, but it’s right. It was fun to meet you in 1979 and I’m, it’s nice to see you again. Thanks for taking time to visit with us.
Davi : (42:17)
Well, I’ve enjoyed it. I’ve enjoyed, uh, you know, sharing my town, my area, and it’s great. We’re gonna go up this weekend here. Another thing, we’re gonna go up to Elephant Butte, you know, about 50, 60 miles away and go out on the boat and just lounge around, you know? And then if we wanna, when it’s getting too hot, like last weekend we just went up to, uh, Ruidoso, which is an hour and a half away, you know, and then it’s cool. So that’s another thing besides just being here, then you’re so close to so many other things that you can do. That’s another thing that quite often we would do when my folks would come and visit, you know, take them up to Ruidoso or out to Cafe to eat one of those big old cheeseburgers the size of the plate. ,
Bunny : (43:03)
Oh, it’s, it is so quintessentially New Mexico. So get down there and, um, let’s talk again. You want to,
Davi : (43:10)
Okay. Definitely.
Bunny : (43:11)
Okay, cool.
Davi : (43:13)
Okay. Thank you.