Actually, I was hoping for “A #1”. Darn.
Thanks for all the great info, I appreciate it. (Keep it coming!)
As an update, my hubby spoke to his boss who said keeping the house, staying for two years only and them paying for an apartment was “No problem, that’s easy.” She had to get back to him on the Paris commitment.
:sigh:
I suppose I’ll be there next weekend to look for places.
Whew, since Manhattan brought it up first, I can go ahead and make a case for Brooklyn without fearing for my life. Since it seems like Toddlernym is at the age where you are more interested in a backyard than in the school system, Brooklyn might be an ideal choice for you. If we can get Ike in this thread, I think he could tell you all the joys of living in Park Slope (Brooklyn). If Mr. Nym is working in say, the Wall Street area, then the commute from Brooklyn would be about the same as the commute from the Upper West Side.
If you are planning to move avec your furniture, then a Park Slope brownstone would actually hold all your furniture, probably better than an apartment in the same price range in Manhattan.
Plus, it is a bit easier to have a car in Brooklyn, should you want one.
In a more abstract sense, Brooklyn is a joy. It is so close to Manhattan, yet it has its own flavor and unique neighborhoods. A few years ago, lists of “hot bars” in New York Magazine would have been exclusively in Manhattan, now bars, cafes, restaurants and shops in Brooklyn are getting extensive city-wide coverage. Brooklyn has Prospect Park, the Brooklyn Museum of Art (see great art AND piss off the Mayor, ya can’t beat that with a stick), BAM, and the Botanic Garden. And they’re doing fantastic things with the Esplanade.
I lived in Manhattan for ten years, and swore I would never move out. Then I moved to Brooklyn, and cried because I hadn’t moved ten years earlier.
Is the company getting you a realtor? That’s the best way to find apartments, especially since you will have limited time to make a decision. Insist on a good realtor. Corcoran is good (sort of, but if you’re not actually the ones paying them, it doesn’t matter) and will be able to show you things in both Brooklyn and Manhattan.
As one of the lucky few who have met Sue, I’ll just have to shake my head at the unlikely concept of “dork” and “Sue Duhnym” appearing in the same thought. In fact, if that had been said by anybody else, I’m sure fisticuffs would have ensued.
Now, Sue, if you have to leave, baglady and I would be happy to sublet your your outdoor grill. Seriously, though, after all the work you two did on making it such a nice place it would really be sad to have to abandon it so soon.
One final question you need to have answered, though: “Would people mind if we played strip darts in the garage and how much would I have to bribe the super to make sure nobody else used the garage while we’re in there?”
em, ms dyhnym, to get here (bay area) to there (manhattan) wouldn’t you have to go through (gasp) donnor pass?!?!?!
Sue Duhnym asked–
Blow in his ear, so they say…
I found some “information” for you, Sue. This is more of a philosophical point of view and, I must admit, the New Yorkers make a good point.
New York City: Filthy, Stinking Cesspool or Modern Day Mecca? 
I just read over that thread and it seems kinda grim, so I wanted to add a note.
I think it’ll be a really great experience for you, especially since ToddlerNym won’t really have to deal with it. Actually, I’d love to spend a year in that city just to be able to say that I’d done it. Knowing you, you’ll have everyone there being nice in no time. 
{puff puff} I finally made it! Thank yous to manhattan and Delphica for evoking me.
Nah, skip the car in Manhattan. As others have said above, the public transport, plus cabs, fills the bill.
I hate to contradict Del, but if you and your family are only here for a year or two, find a place on Manhattan Island. Especially if you have 6-8 grand of company money to throw around for a monthly rent. You can live LARGE in Manhattan on that kinda rent money.
Brooklyn is okay for us old farts (me, SuaSponte, Biggirl, Vix, SaxFace, etc.) who want space and air and stuff. Vibrant young bucks like manny crave the “living on the edge” feeling you can only get in the City. And you can obviously afford to live high, so take advantage. Be in the middle of it. You can look back in your declining years and say “Yeah, when I was living in MANHATTAN…”
(Psst…they’re all teasing you, and planning on pointing and laughing when you arrive. Throw out all your clothes NOW and replace everything with black.)
If you want to know how to get to Manhattan ask Rachelle(check the online Doper map) It’s about 50 odd miles west of Topeka.
Uke. Uke. Uke. They always want Ukulele Ike when it comes to NYC advice.
Well, let me tell you something. The guy is a transplant from some Godforsaken midwest cowtown.
Stuyguy on the other hand is a trueblue, lifelong Gothamite since birth. Gowanus Canal swill flows through my veins, Apple Tours bus exhaust fills my lungs, and boyhood memories of the Lindsay Administration crowd my brain.
To quote the Original Ray’s pizza box, “You’ve tried the rest, now try the best.”
Sue, I’m at your service.
[Uke you know I love you to death, but I owe it to my sense of self-esteem to make a grand entrance in this thread, and if I have to do it at your expense, so be it. I know you understand.]
Sue, you’re keeping your house and you already have plans to leave in two years. What you’re talking about is not moving to NYC; you’re just considering an extended visit. With that in mind, NYC is a great place to visit. Twenty four months should give you just enough time to hit all the highlights, soak up the ambiance, attend a few dopefests, and develop a surly attitude that you’ll be able to use in Paris.
I opened this thread KNOWING that someone was going to have beaten me to this line.
Anyway, Sue, from Northern California, you head east, until you smell it, then north until you step in it, and you’re THERE!
[sub]No, I don’t really hate Manhattan or New York generally, I’m just tired of all the LA Bashing posts[/sub]