The City So Nice, They Named it Twice

It's my last day in NYC. I know I'm moving to San Diego, but I haven't really come to grips with the corollary - that I might never live in NYC again! I remember exactly when this place went from being a urine-soaked sess pool to feeling like home. Kiley stayed over at my apt in midtown, and we got up really early (7 am is obscene to me) and went to Starbucks. The street was still fairly quiet, with porters hosing down the sidewalks in front of their buildings and breakfast carts setting up on street corners. We were dressed like lazy students - not the standard attire for my investment banker neighborhood - and Kiley looked up at the sky and said, "I love this city." That's when it happened for me - like the Grinch Who Stole Christmas, my heart grew inside. My defenses were always so rigid, I hadn't been fully enjoying my life here. When ever I rent a car and drive back into the city there's a point coming out of Queens before you go over the Triboro bridge (which is retarded for only having 2 cash lanes, but that's another post) where you get this amazing view of the city's skyline, and I always say to myself, "Ah, there she is."

So it's a bittersweet parting, New York, I will always love you, and have so many wonderful memories. Who knows if I'll ever live here again, but there will always be a part of me that's a New Yorker (let's keep our fingers crossed that part of me doesn't get me arrested in the significantly more laid back environs of SoCal.)

I thought it a fitting farewell to reflect on some of my favorite things about living in this city:

• My friends - we're all in NY for a reason, and this city will always be part of what binds us
• the diversity - not everyone is tan, blond, fit with perky breasts and Ugg boots for every season, and that's a good thing
• individuality - you can be anyone in this city, and you can change who you want to be day to day, or just find a way to accommodate all the different parts of you every day of the month. I used to look at clothes and think, "I love that, but where would I wear that?" This became a non-issue here.
• Access - I'm literally gobsmacked when I go home to my parents' house, and I can't get tacos delivered at 2 am on a Sunday.
• Public transport - cities are much greener than we think. And even though I've had some bad experiences on the subway, it's an equal opportunity transport system.