I recently had the (dis)pleasure of another apartment hunt in New York. At the same time a good friend told me she was done with the hassle of the hustle and ready to skip town. It coincided with a spate of like-minded essays calling New York an unaffordable hell-hole devoid of creativity. I get it. Living in New York (which for some only consists of North Brooklyn) is tough. ////
But it’s always been tough. ////
Joan Didion’s essay Goodbye to All That, which helms the eponymous collection of Dear John letters to New York that has spurred this pestilence of eye-roll ephemera, was written in 1967. Shit’s been tough for a long time. ////
With my recent hunt there was a feeling that if I didn’t find a place now-before summer hit and market prices surged again- that I’d be screwed & stranded and I’d have to move to a small town where I’d have to drive a car again and I’d die in a parallel parking accident. My (tiny black) heart goes out to those that are on the hunt now with the weather worse than it was a month ago. Apartment hunting blows, but if you think it’s worth it, it is. Forty-five percent of traffic accidents happen in parking lots. ////
Here are some inspiring words from America’s favorite (ex)New Yorker: ////
“When I was living in New York and didn’t have a penny to my name, I would walk around the streets and occasionally I would see an alcove or something. And I’d think, that’ll be good, that’ll be a good spot for me when I’m homeless.”
-Larry David
