I’ve always been enamored with city life. Between Los Angeles and New York City, it’s New York all the way. This is possibly because I was born and raised in Florida–I guess I’m desensitized to the sun and the beach, some snow and dry air would be a welcome change. That being said, I would definitely need time to adjust to the cooler weather.
It wasn’t until I had moved out on my own that I began to really take a liking to the big city. As a young adult, I was becoming more aware that my current location was lacking in activities. My girlfriend (or wife depending on the timeline) and I were going to the same restaurants every week, and all of the popular concert tours generally avoided my city. She and I agreed that moving to a bigger city would likely fix both of those issues. New York City would have so many places to go whether nightclubs, bars, comedy clubs, restaurants, or concerts, that there would never be a dull moment.
Although a dream was born, it never really took root. I would have needed to give some things up in order to start a new life in NYC, likely starting rungs lower in my career and with a higher cost of living. My wife would have to be in the same situation. Additionally, think of the chaos that occurred this year in NYC due to COVID-19! I would have been right in the thick of it.
I won’t say the dream is dead, but it is pretty close at this point. Loads of research is required regarding suburbs surrounding Manhattan and their associated property costs. I’m uncertain how long it will take before the stink of COVID-19 is erased where nightlife is no longer taboo. Lastly, there is still an allure of a more rural type of life where my wife and I can buy a large lot and build a sizeable warehouse/garage. That would likely be less financially reasonable in New York versus other states due to real estate value. The older I get, the more concern I have regarding my future and debt management.
I have been to New York City on three separate occasions for vacation trips: November 2012, April 2017, and September 2018. In November 2012, my wife and I were visiting a friend who had moved up there. It was near Thanksgiving so we made a holiday of it–I recall a sophisticated dinner party with other successful young adults. The city lived up to the very high expectations we had for it. Here are a couple snaps from our Brooklyn Bridge excursion.
In April of 2017 we made an excuse for another trip to align with a Bonobo (musician Simon Green) live set. Read more about Bonobo here. The city was as beautiful as always.
September 2018 was similar in that it was to see a concert–Jamiroquai (read more here) in nearby Forest Hills. The city always comes with the scenery–another perk!
I was looking for an excuse for another concert as two more artists were coming to NYC last year: Phantoms and Elderbrook. My wife and I instead ended up saving money as this was during my Porsche ownership period…
NYC is easily my go-to vacation paradise, although it always comes at a financial cost. As of a few years ago, another annual activity for my wife and I is a wintertime trip for either bed and breakfast or hotel. Generally I like the trip to have some tie-in with the ocean. The expectation is that while most folks are going home with their families, she and I instead head for the water.
I would close out this blog post with an embed of the music video for “Empire State of Mind” by Jay-Z and Alicia Keys, but it looks like the video was removed from Youtube for some legal reasons so instead I’ll just reference it.