In Albuquerque, New Mexico, Silver Avenue holds most of my stories. Twice I've left this town-they-call-a-city - with distinct and thought-provoking reasons behind each departure - and when I returned, I usually lived on this street. Its grassy meridians with shade trees shield against the high-elevation desert sun, and dog-walkers and loungers are drawn in. The Silver Hill neighborhood is sandwiched between the University of New Mexico and Central New Mexico Community College, so backpack-laden students regularly stroll by.
The section of Silver I've perpetually resided on, though, is near University Blvd, with street races as loud as hell, the cars' straight-through exhaust systems sending blasts of sound through the neighborhood during the dark hours. And as with any other place, there's also crime.
Still, Silver Ave. has been my heart-home, off and on, across 16 years. And as an amateur digital photographer, I often tried to capture its vibe and my life therein through a lens. In 2008, a little Pentax was the first camera to do so, with other instruments coming and going over the years, all the way up to the camera inside my current device, a seemingly elderly iPhone 8 Plus.
In two weeks, off I go, leaving New Mexico for the third time in my life. This post is a tribute, a gallery of memories, another farewell to Silver Ave. I hope you enjoy.
2008 - 2010
Pentax Optio A10; 8 megapixels (MP)
2013 - 2018
Casio EX-Z80 (8.1 MP)
Samsung SGH-T599 camera phone (5 MP)
iPhone 6 camera phone (8 MP)
2020 - 2024
iPhone 8 Plus camera phone (12 MP)
