Bootleg CDs! Damn, I almost forgot. I found this brutal music shop in Greenwich Village that sells European bootlegs, B-side collections, rarities and who-knows-what for twenty dollars a pop. I loved that place. Generation Records, I think it’s called. I got this R.E.M. album of non-album tracks that would’ve cost me forty bucks in Seattle, and two Oasis B-side collections that had a message on the back “For radio airplay only.” You can pry 'em all out of my cold, dead hand…
I was born and raised in NYC. And it was sort of like a “red badge of courage.” I used to joke that track in high school was being chased by thugs who wanted your crap.
A city with 8.5 million people is not supposed to be pretty. 40% of NYC residents use mass transit, the highest ratio in the country. The buses and subways get you from here to there. They’re not too clean and not pretty and understanding station announcements takes years of practice, but they move millions of people a DAY, with speed and efficiency.
Growing up in New York is being the only white kid on a packed subway at 2AM, and feeling safe. It’s hating New Jersey with a passion for no real reason and it’s loathing the suburbs, because they make you weak. It’s jaywalking and street hot dogs. Those smells are people cooking meals from thousands of different countries. That noise is people speaking thousands of different languages. You have to know Spanish to read half the signs in the city. It’s not a city like San Diego or Seattle. It’s a whole other world and once you get in it, you better run like hell to catch up or get out of the way. Cesspool? You bet. My home for the rest of my life? You bet.
I like you DW, even if you hate New Jersey. 
Try not to have a good time…this is supposed to be educational.
-Charles Schulz
I grew up on Long Island, 1.5 hours away from New York City. I’ve also lived in Bayside, Queens. These days, I live in lovely Manhattan on the Upper East Side.
My job calls for frequent travel to many major U.S. cities. IMHO, none compares to New York. Here’s why:
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All the bars in New York are open until 4 AM, and if you feel the need to stay out all night, there are many after-hours places that are easy to find and easy to get into.
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If you cannot buy it in New York, it doesn’t exist. Go down to Bleecker Street for bootleg and import CDs. Try the camera stores in Midtown for illegally imported electronics. Restaurants, shops, and even your friendly neighborhood drug dealer all deliver to apartments.
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New York is the cultural center of the universe. All music groups come through New York. The theater can’t be beat. Even the street performers are unparalleled.
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If you love sports, New York is a great place to be. Yankee Stadium, home of the world champs, is 10 minutes from my home via subway. Madison Square Garden is 10 minutes by public transportation, in case I feel like catching a Knick game, boxing match, etc. If I feel like watching the Mets, Shea is only 30 minutes by train. The Meadowlands (Jets, Giants) can be easily reached by train (an hour or so.)
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New York’s job market is still exploding. Whether you want to work in legal, consulting, media, Internet, etc. Doesn’t matter. The jobs are here.
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New York’s people are its greatest asset. People come here from all over the world, and most are chasing a dream. For some reason, NYC is a popular place to go in order to chase your dreams. Everybody seems to have a great story, whether it’s the cabbie who fled his home country due to persecution, the 5 guys who sold everything they had to come to New York to book gigs for their band on the club scene, or the guy who has lived here all his life and can tell you about New York during the Great Depression.
And what’s the downside?
- Some parts of town are gross. Find me a city that doesn’t have a couple depressed areas…
- Sometimes you smell urine when you’re coming up from the subways. It’s only on occasion.
- Housing costs are insane. Everyone wants to live here. What do you expect?
- Life is lived at a faster pace. Bad for some things, good for others.
- The Yankees occasionally lose a game or two.
That’s about it. And I didn’t even have to mention the Disneyfication of 42nd Street…
Hi Dem. This message is from the Beer Chick(who was mad enough at you for misidentifying her in the pictures as BTL friend)
[Beer Chick] San Fran is really just a wanna be New York. In all ways and from the beginning of its history, that city has tried to be New York. In some areas it looks like NY, tastes like NY and --by God-- smells like NY.[/Beer Chick]
All spelling errors are mine, all sentiments are Beer Chicks.
And after I took all that time fixing the labels last night…
Sorry 'bout that Beer Chick, I was wearing Beer Goggles that night. I just figured I was seeing double. 
Hmmm, anyway, I don’t live in San Fran, I live in the burbs. I guess I’m just not a city person, I appreciate them from afar and on occasion. My quality of life is somewhat dependant on having fresh air, green fields and hills, lakes, rivers, forests, all within minutes of my house. I’m also a “personal space” type person. The feeling of people crushing in on me from every side is very uncomfortable(unless I put myself in that situation, i.e. a club). I know this is not for everyone. I’ve never felt there was something I had to go to the city to get that I couldn’t get here or mail order. If I just want to hang out and have fun in the city, I go. It’s only 45 minutes away. I feel like I have the best of both worlds here.
I’m glad you city dwellers aren’t really “just settling” or miserable like I had assumed.
I have chainmail underwear.
I have lived in both NYC and San Francisco. I can assure you SF is by far the stinkier, filthier cesspool.
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