Today’s post is about a different subject: the decision to leave my beloved New York City. 🗽 I’m a born-and-bred New Yorker, and I know everything about this city - from where you’ll likely be sitting next to a celeb at dinner (Cafe Chelsea for a swanky night out, Gemma for a more casual-yet-cool vibe) to where to get the best pierogies (Veselka) to what subway lines are the nicest (the new N/R/Q). However, the combination of the outrageous rent prices plus the fact that I don’t take advantage of the city in my forties the way I did in my twenties has paved the way for a path leading elsewhere. In two months, my boyfriend and I will be headed to the most beautiful and charming suburb right outside the city that’s just a quick train ride away from our offices in The Big Apple. 🍎 So I’ll still be here all the time, which I’m grateful for. I just won’t be living here, which at this point, I’m also grateful for!
And with that, I’ve decided to write the top twenty things I will and won’t miss about living in New York City 📝:
What I’ll Miss:
Walking somewhere because it’s “not that far” (10+ blocks) 🚶♀️
Egg and cheese from the bodega 🥯
Drinking coffee out of these cups from one of the carts on every street corner ☕
Walking past Lincoln Center and hearing the orchestra tune up for an outdoor summer concert 🎻
#megryanfall 🍂🍃
Getting museum or Broadway show tickets at a moment’s notice 🎟
Seeing celebs in their natural habitat: Matthew Broderick taking his little girls to use the bathroom at Starbucks! Amy Adams buying dishes at Anthropologie! ✨
The New York Knicks…haha just kidding…I don’t give a shit 🤣
Having anything - from takeout to coffee - delivered at any time, day or night 🥡
That famous NYC skyline 🌃
Christmastime: The beautifully decorated store windows lining Fifth Avenue, twinkly lights EVERYWHERE! 🎄
The subway: It’s convenient and I get to people-watch or read my book 🚃
The restaurants - from the fancy to the casual, like Artichoke Pizza 🍕
The fashion - particularly the chicest older ladies I’ve EVER seen 👗
Eating lunch/having ice cream/drinking iced coffee on a park bench 🏞
Musicians and performers on any street corner 🎷🎵
Passing iconic film/TV spots on any given day (The apartments from Friends and Sex and the City! The exterior of You’ve Got Mail’s The Shop Around the Corner!) 🎬
Times Square buzzing at 8PM, when the Broadway shows are about to start*
Becoming jaded to crazy situations**
The (1st) official NYC aroma: roasting chestnuts from street vendors in winter***
What I Won’t Miss:
Times Square when it’s full of tourists*
Crazy situations**
The (2nd) official NYC aroma: garbage stank in summer***
The fear of falling through those metal sidewalk cellar doors 😳
Schlepping groceries on the subway 👝🥖
Communal washers and dryers 🧺
Cockroaches 🐜
People who stand in the middle of the subway steps to text during rush hour 📱
Slow walkers on the sidewalk 😤
Elmo in Times Square not wearing his head and smoking a cigarette 🚬
Trusting a psychotic cab driver with my life 🚕
Worrying an AC unit will fall out of an apartment window and onto my head🤕
Being one of millions trying to get around with an umbrella in the rain ☔
The accumulation of dirty, brown, slushy snow in the winter 😩
Unrestricted rent hikes 💰
Crazy people feeding pigeons in parks or the middle of the sidewalk 🍞🕊
Walking my dog on garbage day and seeing rats run by 🐀
Sirens and car alarms 🚨
Constant construction EVERYWHERE ALL THE TIME 👷♀️🚧
Seeing someone peeing on the street - sometimes discreetly, sometimes not 🙈
THIS WEEK’S BRAIN CANDY 🍭
This vid of Joey King paying homage to her A Family Affair costar Nicole Kidman’s AMC commercial is just *chef’s kiss* 🤣
This TikTok was made in a lab for me:
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Jon Stewart’s take on The Hamptons vs. The Jersey Shore is as REAL as it gets! 😂
NO SPOILERS, I promise! Just some fun with the cast of The Bear! 🐻
I’ve juuust started coming around to this way of thinking. PREACH! 🙌
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Enable 3rd party cookies or use another browserI highly recommend seeing Thelma, which conveys the message that we can be a badass, no matter our age! (If you do see it, stick around for the sweet little surprise after the credits!) Peep the adorable vid below of June Squibb meeting the real-life Thelma - the director’s grandmother - who inspired the film! 🥰
@magnoliapicsThelma, meet Thelma. 🧓🏻 The 103-year-old woman that inspired #ThelmaMovie, director Josh Margolin’s real-life grandma (who is actually named Thelma Post), met #JuneSquibb for the first time. 🎥🔁 @CBS Sunday Morning @cbsnews @CBS Mornings #movie #movieclip #filmtok #fyp #film #action #comedyTiktok failed to load.
Enable 3rd party cookies or use another browserThe 4th of July pic below reminds me of this scene from Curb Your Enthusiasm. Speaking of Curb, Larry David celebrated his birthday last week! 🎂 In honor of the big day, check out this video of his Seinfeld cameos!
I feel this in my soul:
Friendship 101:
The only time in history a Joni Mitchell CD wasn’t appreciated, and I don’t blame Emma one bit:
This is me, even though it’s literally 90 degrees in NYC this week: 🥵
Insecurities:
Oh man, I'm already grieving this day for myself, even though I don't know when it will happen. But reading this made me feel like it will all be okay. I'm sure you've read it, but in the off chance you haven't, you should read Joan Didion's Goodbye to All the That about her own decision to leave New York. Thank you for sharing your New York, and congrats on this new chapter!!
I know i’ll leave new york in a year and it makes me sad already. loved reading your list of things you love and hate about the city!