Wednesday, February 28, 2007

Sour Grapes, Moot Point

“Listen, New York is like Joan Didion says, for the very young or very rich. Anywhere in between and it's miserable. It's cold half the year, the other half it's pouring rain and that's supposedly during the fun spring months, and then summer is a hot blast of humidity and stench. All year long it's dirty, it's overcrowded, it's overpriced, it's a pain in the ass just to go grocery shopping (and that's a disappointment in itself, and why do you think Fresh Direct didn't originate out of California?), rents aren't just expensive, they are *inhumanely* expensive, I mean, the $1200 studio is looking like a bargain. Going to the deli, squeezed next to 12 people waiting in line for your $3 gallon of milk is itself a depressing and exhausting experience. I get catcalled on the street by men even if I am wearing a full length coat and scarf that covers my eyes. You can get nearly every great thing that New York has in other big American cities--fine food, the best art house movies, top bands, and even some yes, art. (And when's the last time any of you went to a museum or a Broadway play--bet it was when your friends from out of town were visiting.) There are plenty of places in America you can live that allow you to have access to all of the great things New York offers, minus the bullshit. L.A. is not perfect and has many of the same problems as New York, but the weather makes it all better. You can live a rich, creative life in Seattle, Portland, Austin, for a fraction of the cost of what you pay here. No small minded Republican towns, those. I don't understand why New Yorkers get so upset at the mere suggestion that where they live isn't paradise. It's not. The reason I stay--and the reason many people stay--is opportunity. The media and publishing center is here, so I hold my nose and swallow the good with the bad. But I think many of the anti-NY haters don't want to admit that maybe working your ass off for that 2x5 $1500, or more likely $3200 apartment, isn't worth the New York zipcode, and that maybe just maybe, we all got sold on the mythology of New York. Rose colored glasses make everything look better.”

On a Gawker thread full of self-love and self-loathing about living here, and the only thing offsetting my scared-as-hell attitude to leave the city, if I do get into grad school…

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

Screw New York...or love it. Either way.

Sabrinas said...

i can understand hating nyc, but lord do i love it. the diversity, the energy, the food, the people! i've been to chinatown in san fran and chicago, but neither of them compare even a little to manhattan chainatown, brooklyn chinatown, and the queen bee of them all, flushing. queens alone and the food and people there are a reason to be here. and then you have brooklyn, which is like most other major cities, if they were connected by subway to manhattan AND on the ocean. and the bronx, wth the zoo and the botanical gardens and arthur avenue and city island. and the 24 hour subway! other cities have cleaner, nicer, more efficent trains, but they don't have as many, running, allbeit slowly and odiferiously, 24 hours, most places you could want to go. and if you life in manhatttan, or even many nabes in the boros, you can walk anywhere you want to go! try doing that in most major cities. than again, in chi town i know folks that have 2 floors of a brownstone in the chicago version of the les/w-burg foor 700 a month. sigh.

Unknown said...

I read your comment on SK's blog... and, I have to say, WOW! It was very well stated. And, I just have to ask... are you the friend in question???

Anonymous said...

Yes - was your comment about her? I hate her so.

Frannie Farmer said...

I didn't (don't) think it was you .. since you only met last summer - not long before Stephanie moved, right. I remember being envious at the time the 2 of my fav's were going to hang out -- and if I recall, it was you that made the "date" ... I am still hoping that it isn't you because I enjoy you both ... and have for the past year.

Buffy said...

Ok Ok. SK blog reader too.

The friend who made you change because you looked cuter....and all that garbage...so high school. And even in high school, high school was over rated.

People like that are always more hyped up in their own minds than anyone elses. Problem is, we feed into it when we try to make friends.

Who needs the drama. Or the negative energy.