Saying that life in New York City is great every minute of everyday would be lying. Somedays I experience pure Euphoria when I walk around and notice that I'm standing where my favorite movie or TV show was filmed, and somedays the comments people make make me want to take a bat out and start swinging at everyone that walks past me. I thought New Yorkers minded their own business and didn't care about anyone other than themselves. I was wrong, at least about the ones in my neighborhood. The predominant Dominican population in my neighborhood seem to have an opinion about something I do or something about my daughter everyday. In random strangers eyes I do everything wrong and they can't help but tell me.
New York is a tough city (understatement). It chews you up and spits you out, and the toughest are the ones that can take it over and over and over. I love some of the experience that I'm having here. It is the most amazing and unique city in the world, just not always for good things.
Noticing the difference between the East Side and the West Side is kind of funny, the west side is a little more low key. My favorite hangouts are Columbus Circle, Lincoln Center, and little miss's favorite, the Museum of Natural History. The East side however is it's own universe. 5th avenue splits the island in half and does it ever! If you were a child coloring New York in a coloring book, I'd use bold earth tones for the west side and gold, silver, white, and pink to color the east side. My Endocrinologist is over on the East side in "Gossip Girl" territory and as I left my appointment and walked back toward the park I observed the east side "prep" teenagers coming home from school. Prestigious looking uniforms on young men carrying their lacrosse sticks, and girls with VERY short skirts (yes their uniform skirts), knee high stockings and designer handbags made me wish I had worn more than yoga pants, a tee shirt, and sneakers in their presence. However I have not yet purchased this season's fashion must have's (and probably will never have the money to), so I wasn't about to wear something totally uncomfortable when I had to walk from 86th West to 81st East by way of Central Park.
So what's the good about living in New York City? Experiencing a place that is truly unlike anywhere else on the planet. In every other city in the country you can compare it to another, or describe one as a mix of two. Not New York. It stands alone. The good: historic locations and unmistakeable must see landmarks; The bad: Sometimes the people here suck and can't mind their own business, it's exhausting taking subways all day long with an over active three year old; The Ugly, how I feel most days when I compare my life or myself to the people that can go shopping where the like and buy whatever they want, and my jealousy of those who get to live in the nicer neighborhoods when I live in "The Heights" even though I can guarantee my apartment is bigger than theirs.
It's been a tough adjustment here, but even after the darkest storms, the sunshine eventually comes out.
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