Patty, I know that area, and have camped at City of Rocks State Park—it's an amazing formation. Lots of wildlife, beautiful sunsets, and so many stars at night. (And up the road from it is the unincorporated community of Dwyer, New Mexico. I noticed it on the map and had to drive past; as I recall all we saw there were a few mailboxes and an abandoned gas station on the county road.) I drove through Silver City and was interested to see the (at that time) old fashioned dirt roads and the little houses in the old neighborhoods, but then the big box stores that had all built up along the main drag. It's like a lot of small towns in the middle of seemingly empty landscapes - a magnet for shoppers in the surrounding region. I've stayed in Deming a time or two on road trips and it is a regular stop for food and gas off I-10. Deming has a tiny little old downtown area with the 2-3 story brick buildings and the rest of it kind of sprawls. I also went through one time to find Rockhound State Park for camping (we were there in cold rainy weather so didn't do any rockhounding ourselves).

I had to look up "mini splits," they sound interesting. I have all of the duct work of a heat pump here, but that sounds like it was easier to install around the house (retrofit) without ducts being added.

It sounds like you'll have a good time settling in once you take possession! Given time to get to know the area, if you decide it's time to move into town later you'll have an idea of where to go. (My friend who stayed recently moved to Arizona for about 15 years and lived in a retirement community, from age 70 to 85, made a lot of friends and was socially active. Four years ago she decided it was time for the next phase and has moved back to Texas where she lives with her oldest son. She visits the Arizona town where her sister still lives.)