I should move to Park Slope in Brooklyn. The architecture is splendid and the rent is cheaper than Manhattan. There are ood restaurants in the area, though not as varied in choices. For the price of what I am paying for rent right now, I should be in a huge one bedroom if I moved to Park Slope. And still it would be just half an hour away from the city on the subway.
Heck, I’d be home in half an hour if I walked from work right now! From my apartment I am 15 minutes away on the bus and about 10 minutes if I took the subway.
But Park Slope has the promise of a bigger apartment -real living space with separate entertaining space from sleeping space. But who would I be entertaining? Who would want to come to my apartment if I lived in Brooklyn?
In Manhattan I could just walk and be blocks away from the grocery, the library, Central Park, the movies and everything else. And of course, freshdirect.com delivers in the city. Living in Manhattan means I can stay out until past midnight and be a cab-ride away from home. How much would it cost to take the cab home to Park Slope? And the idea that I would have to cross the Brooklyn Bridge to go home is frightening. They found someone floating on the East River last week - they say he fell from the Brooklyn Bridge...tsk, tsk, tsk.
Everything happens in Manhattan. Someone once told me that there were just two ways you could feel about New York City – either you loved it or you hated it. I am one of the many millions who fell in love with it the first time I came to visit in 1995 and have returned many times before finally pursuing my dream four years ago. Now I am living my dream.
How many people are fortunate enough to have the chance to say that they are living their dream? I am and sometimes I still pinch myself when I am walking down Fifth Avenue or when I am enjoying a quiet afternoon in the park. It's surreal - I used to just daydream about this and then here I am - a true blue Manhattanite who can direct you to the best hotdogs in town (Gray's Papaya on the West Side) or the most romantic dinner restaurant in the city (Le Bernardin in midtown).
Maybe I might leave Manhattan eventually. Maybe when it becomes the main deal breaker to which a major decision will lie and I will know if the trade-off would be worthwhile. For now however, in this jungle of metal and glass when sirens blare and where it never sleeps, this is where I belong. This is the city that embraces me and which makes plays a major role in the story of life that I continue to write everyday.
Park Slope is tempting but maybe another day. Gramercy I heard, has the same breathtaking architecture. And it comes with a park as well, albeit smaller...
