I've lived in NYC now for over 4 years. Longer than I had originally planned. Of course I never planned on moving up here jobless, homeless and living in a hostel for 5 months (which is a brief bio of my first 5 months living in NYC). So planning isn't my best attribute, but finding ways to survive might be. I'm like MacGyver meets Bear Grylis meets Sex in the City. Just with better hair, no alligator wrestling and no real desire to own $500 pair of shoes. But I managed to "make it" if by making you mean still breathing. Do not get me wrong there are the perfect days. These days are generally in mid-spring/fall time where the weather is perfect, the people are calm, everyone is chill and everything seems right in the world. You can almost feel it in the air, it feels relaxed, even amid the hustle and bustle. The best example I can think of is dusk in Union Square. You have lots of people sitting around watching the skateboarders, bike riders rollerbladers. You have others playing chess. The vibe is just very laid back. I LOVE New York at this time. I love traipsing around NY after midnight with friends looking for food and fun. I love when it first starts snowing. Picnics in Central Park. Food.
But there have been plenty of times that I just groan and think, why did I move here?!? When rent is due and I realize I pay about 3 times the amount for my one bedroom apartment than I did for my two story, two bedroom townhouse in AR. When it rains (nothing survives getting gross). Car alarms. Dogs chained to things. Car horns. The price of pretty much everything. After it snows. The accents. Not connecting. The subways.
New Yorkers are in a hurry to wait. This is a pretty good description. The drivers rush and speed only to get the the stop light. They rush and speed only to spend 30 minutes looking for parking. Walkers (and I am part of this group) get pissed when anyone walks slow, stops suddenly or is in any way/shape/form not walking like they "should" walk. Even if the walkers have no place to go or no real rush. Just pissed off for the inconvenience.
So what will happen if I am not invited to the Peace Corps? Hopefully this is not a question I will have to answer. And it is a question I am working hard to make sure never receives a negative answer. Will I stay in NYC? I'm leaning towards no, but who knows. I have been thinking about this a lot lately, if I was to move away where would I move to? Truth be told I can not think of a place that I really, really want to move to. I have always wanted to live in Maine, but I see that more as a retirement place for me (my dreams of being a lobsterman might just be a dream). I love Boston, but the cost of living is not much different than NYC. So where should I go?
1 comment:
Boston is on my list of places to move, way higher on the list than NYC. If I don't end up getting in to PC, I'll reopen that can of worms of picking a new city. I love the way you describe NYers (In a hurry to wait) it's not dissimilar to the way I describe SoCal - really intense about how laid back they are :) Good luck to you!
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