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Journal North: Home | Sports | Opinion | Obits | Entertainment
Sunday, July 20, 2008
You CAN Live in Santa Fe on the Cheap
By Jackie Jadrnak
Journal Staff Writer
We all have heard the stereotypes about living in Santa Fe. You either have to be a trust fund baby or you're working two or three jobs just to get by.
Not true. There are plenty of us in the middle, and with prices of gas and food going up, we're on the hunt for ways to live cheaply in Santa Fe — although some may argue putting "cheaply" and "Santa Fe" in the same sentence amounts to an oxymoron.
But at least there are ways to live more cheaply in Santa Fe. I found myself investigating those avenues last year when I took a leave of absence for 12 months. I called it "spreading my retirement around" as I lived off my savings.
That hiatus challenged me to find ways to indulge my interests while keeping that bank statement from shrinking too quickly. Here's how I did it:
Books. When people ask me what I did on my year off, I tell them, "Sat on the couch and read books." That's not much of an exaggeration. I had to do it, though, while stifling my impulse to walk out of book stores with a bagful of new books.
So I discovered the library. I know, I know. Duh. But if you haven't stepped into a public library in years, you may want to reacquaint yourself with the delights of browsing though shelf after shelf of books, picking some that look interesting and taking them home to read. All for free! If one turns out to be a yawner, you can stop reading it and return it without the guilt of having wasted your money.
Do you like magazines? Check out the racks at the Washington Street entrance of the downtown library. It's a magazine exchange, where you can drop off the ones you've already read, pick up some you haven't.
Depending on the branch, you also can find a used book corner, or occasional special used book sale, where you can pick up a book for $1 or less — and make a contribution to the library at the same time.
Entertainment. This is a case where, if you have the time, you might not need the money. At many locations around town, you can exchange volunteer work for free entrance to events. Of course, that means you have to work.
And there might be so much demand for some gigs that volunteers are turned away. I tried signing up to usher at The Lensic and was told they didn't need any more people at the time. But volunteer work for the Santa Fe Film Festival netted me 10 free tickets — and that doesn't even count the entertainment value of the hours spent screening submissions as a juror.
Cleaning up garbage at the Thirsty Ear Festival meant I could listen to some good music without having to pay admission.
Free entertainment, especially in the summer, is rampant in Santa Fe even without putting in work. Music on the Plaza and at St. John's College is open to all this time of year. One of my most treasured discoveries: free, open rehearsals by musicians performing with the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival.
It's pot luck. You might get an uninterrupted run-through of a performance, distinguishable only by the shorts and sandals replacing the tuxes and gowns. Or you might get disconnected, endless repetitions of particularly difficult passages. Either one can be interesting. The Web site — santafechambermusic.org — lists the open rehearsal schedule, or you can find it posted outside the auditorium at the Museum of Fine Arts.
Exercise. Well, of course, you can do all kinds of exercise for free. Walking, hiking and biking don't cost anything (at least if you already have a bike). You can do jumping jacks in your living room.
But if, like me, you sometimes need a class to help you get moving, the Santa Fe Community College probably is one of the under-appreciated resources in the area. Yes, it does charge tuition, but if you sign up for a semester's activity class — yoga or Pilates are my favorites — you also get access the entire semester to the college's Fitness Center. Swimming pool, weights, exercise machines, and more for a little over $100. It's like belonging to a health club, with reduced rates.
And the city's community centers — Genoveva Chavez is on my end of town — offer access to classes, racquetball courts, an ice-skating rink, gyms and more for bargain rates.
Clothes. OK, call it my guilty pleasure. Also call it a result of the fact that my size keeps shifting. I love to shop for and buy clothes. Not a good thing when you're not making money. But I discovered that, if you have time to really go through the racks, you can come up with some great finds at the Salvation Army.
Honest! Not only are most items priced $5 or less, but they have periodic sales. Recently, for example, I ended up walking out the door with eight items in excellent shape for $6. Give them a wash when you get home and they lose that "thrift store smell."
I haven't explored all the other thrift stores, but I bet similar deals can be found. And your money goes to a charitable cause in the bargain!
So what do you think? What ways have you found to cut costs in Santa Fe? Do you know of any deals or (legal) steals? If you have some good ideas, I'll pass them on.
Please send cost-cutting tips to jjadrnak@abqjournal.com.