1. Small town life

   You won't be stuck in many traffic jams here in Socorro. Better yet - this town is extremely bike friendly. With reasonably good bike lanes, sun almost year round, and mild winters, combined with the fact that you can get across the whole length of town in 10 minutes or less on two wheels, while burning off that beer gut, helping the environment, and reducing our subsidies to foreign regimes at the same time, Socorro is the ideal place to ride on two wheels. And if you need a repair, pedal on over to Karl's bike shop on the plaza; he'll fix you up straight away. Biking is not just for entertainment or exercise; it's also for transportation!

2. The farmer's market

   This little gem features locally grown produce, honey, jellies and jams, arts & crafts (sometimes), and from what we hear, it may feature organic chicken from Pollo Real this season. It meets Tuesday evenings and Saturday mornings on the plaza, starting in April. Eat locally, stimulate our local economy, and save yourself a trip to Albuquerque.

3. Clear skies
   
   If you've ever been in a big city and looked up at night, you'll be surprised at what you find. Or, more accurately, what you don't find: stars. Here in Socorro, when the sun sets, you can look up and see an incredible number of stars. Try this sometime: on a warm summer evening, go outside in the evening with a blanket and your favorite person, lie down, and watch the stars. It's very therapeutic. It ain't just for astronomers at the VLA, either.

4. Alfred Hitchcock-esque frogs
   
   Every once in a while, when the monsoon rains are strong enough, the temperatures are just right, and the moon and stars align, Socorro goes through a worm hole in the space-time continuum and comes out the other end as a town in an Alfred Hitchcock movie. Frogs emerge from underground, where they hibernate and await their moment, to conquer the world. They come out in droves, by the thousands - nay, by the tens of thousands. If you haven't lived here long enough, you may think I'm making this up. But it happens every so often - maybe every few years or so.

5. Restaurants
   

   You must be kidding? No, I'm not kidding. For a small town, we've got some gems: Don Juan's, Socorro Springs, Stage Door, LJ's Branding Iron, Manzanares Street Coffee House, La Pasadita, and my personal favorite for when I have the hankerin' for a milkshake: Escondida Grill. Okay, that last one is not in Socorro, but it's still pretty darned good when you need a weekend outing to get out of the 'big city'. I like to bike there, so that I can justify the large milkshake instead of the small. Yes, there's a maraschino cherry on top.

6. Wide open spaces and few restrictions
   
   Yearning to go hiking? Yearning to ride your bike? Yearning to watch birds? Yearning to fly a kite? Yearning to raise organic, free range, butternut squash? Socorro has an excellent climate, and few restrictions. Nobody cares if your yard is not perfectly manicured or you don't have a mono-culture of artificially green grass in your front yard, maintained by toxic chemicals sold by Dow and Monsanto. In fact, most of us prefer more xeriscaped "lawns" and pull weeds by hand, so that our kids don't have to drink the toxic stuff that runs off into our rivers, streams, estuaries, and ultimately into our groundwater (yes, that's where Socorro's drinking water comes from)! And, hey, clean water is good for adults too.

7. The Socorro Flea Market
   

   Ever wanted to find a 'deal' on an old farm implement? Or maybe some tools for that project you're working on? Or even some jewelry for that special someone, or a few toys for the kids? Well, wait no longer; you can haggle to your heart's delight at the Socorro Flea Market, meeting on the south end of town near Clarke Field off of 6th(?) street, every Friday morning until noon-ish or merchants decide that they've had enough. Be there, it's the in-thing to do. Wear sunscreen. Bring cash.

8. Earthquakes
   
   Okay, this may not be a good thing to joke about after recent events in Haiti and Chile. Our hearts go out to them, and we encourage donations to Doctors Without Borders, CARE, Mennonite Central Committee, or other reputable charitable organizations. Do your homework before donating to charities, to make sure they're well managed. Some famous (and not so famous) charities spend too much money fundraising and on salaries for their over-paid and under-worked executives. But others (like those listed here) don't. But aside from that, and aside from the fact that strong earthquakes are no laughing matter, Socorro is an interesting place to experience weak earthquakes like the recent 2.0 that we had a few months back. But don't kid yourself; Socorro could eventually have a strong one, so stay right with God, Mayor Bhasker, and Donald Tripp.

9. Sun
   

   Need we say more? Sun, year round. Talk about a place to invest in solar panels! And the federal government has tax credits, which can be combined with state tax credits from New Mexico, to offset the cost. Socorro Electric Coop doesn't advertise this fact, but they're required to allow you to hook up a solar installation to "the grid", so that if you generate more than you need, it goes into the grid to offset the cost of your electric bill. And if you generate more than you need on a regular basis - you won't have an electric bill at all! Wear your sunscreen, a hat, and some tinted glasses. And check out your contractor before investing.

10. Macey Center
    

    We may be a small town, but we do get some decent entertainment passing through here, thanks to the Macey Center. We try not to miss a show, and neither should you.

So, these are our ideas for what makes Socorro great. What are yours? Add your comments, below, if you think we missed something. Comments are free, and you can remain anonymous. We won't send you spam. We won't critique your spelling. Nor will we tell you to eat your vegetables (but you should - check out the Socorro Farmer's Market).