What's going on, Albuquerque?

Duke City Fix, faceless no more

After nearly 3 years of being naked, blogging in front of thousands of faceless, frequently anonymous readers, watching this new version of Duke City Fix unfold is surreal.

It's like seeing after years of being blind.
It's like visiting a city you've only seen in postcards.
It's like finally meeting your internet lover.

As each new person decides to create a profile at this site (and there are over 140 of you already), I'm fascinated by the details you choose to share, by your photos and your stories. After years of attempting to build community in Albuquerque, I'm all giddy at watching people invite their friends and create their own groups for topics I'd never even considered! (Collectors, anyone?)

It's been a long journey to this point (I started this damn thing in early 2005. Ouch! Sophie was there and so was Johnny_Mango). And honestly I'm not sure how it will evolve. It actually seems to be outta control now and frankly, I think that's a good thing.

What I do know is that I continue to love Albuquerque more than anywhere else I've lived.

It's heartening, despite our frequently negative media coverage and ugly-duckling complex, to see so many people who feel the same way. Thank you for being here.

This morning, I went for a hike in the foothills with my friend Spring (yep, I met her through the blog). As we climbed straight up the craggy granite of the Sandias to a point high above the city, I paused to breathe it all in.
Albuquerque is a truly special place. Sure it sucks from time to time like any city does, but really -- no really -- there's something wild and funky and secretly special about Albuquerque. Looking out over the Rio Grande Valley, I can feel it in my shins.

After nearly 150 hours of work researching, designing, and migrating the new Duke City Fix, all I want to do is eat a fat bar of chocolate and drink champagne in a giant tub with bubbles that smell like cinnamon.

I'm flat-out wiped.

Thanks to everyone who signed on during our pre-launch weekend. It's been rockin.' Here's to Monday morning kicked off by SomeGye and who knows where it'll go from there!

0 members like this

Comment by Spring Griffin on November 18, 2007 at 10:31pm: I hope you're in that tub right now with some dark chocolate and Gruet. Thank you for putting in so much time and so much soul so the rest of us can keep connected to the pulse of our city.

Comment by Jeremy Jojola on November 18, 2007 at 11:25pm: Site looks slick Chantal. Nice work. The site seems more personal. That's awesome.

Comment by Chicosanto on November 19, 2007 at 12:39am: I'm really digging it, since I can't seem to get off the site.
Thanks for all the work you put into this!!!
Cheers

Comment by Diluted on November 19, 2007 at 2:00am: Looking really good. I'm finding it fascinating looking through the member list to see who I recognize that I didn't know read the site.

Can't wait to see how big it gets.

Comment by Adelita on November 19, 2007 at 5:54am: Eeeeeee, Viva la Duke City Fix! It's que bueno, no? Chantal es la reina del internet!

Comment by tomas on November 19, 2007 at 6:40am: this is a much more 'involving' site now. it will take some getting used to, but i think it will be a better community resource in the long run. thanks for all the hard work and fore-thought that went into this.

Comment by chantal on November 19, 2007 at 7:19am: Thanks, all! No chocolate yet, but a decent night's sleep. And yay, 157 creating profiles. Off to go read up on on the new folks...

Comment by Paula Manning-Lewis on November 19, 2007 at 10:10am: I'm loving the new site, thanks for all the hard work! I've been a lurker/reader of DCF for some time now and I love the new interactivity of the new format.

Comment by Michael P. "Martini Mike" D'Arco on November 19, 2007 at 12:55pm: It truly rocks Chantal! Thanks for letting me in on the new groundfloor pre launch. We will have social night soon. Rest. -Ciao