Well, I have 1 week until I move. I’m not going far and will come and visit you at least 4 times a week for work, but considering I spend more time at home than out and about town and it takes a really good reason to haul my ass above 14th street, it’s become pointless to pay this much rent for only a few conveniences. But, here’s a few things that I’ll miss that I can’t take advantage of in NJ:
* MaxDelivery. It took the place that Urban Fetch and Kozmo left a hole for. But unlike those other services if you miss the last delivery window for the day, you’re SOL and hauling your ass to the bodega anyway.
* SeamlessWeb and Delivery.com. Being able to order something to eat at 3am without having to talk to anyone (trust me, at that hour sometimes it’s best I don’t deal with anyone) and have it show up at my door is a treat, but that’s what happens when you share a small refrigerator with 3 other people and have little to no storage space for food.
* A roof deck that overlooks the hippie park and has views of downtown, Brooklyn and uptown that doesn’t have to be shared with the rest of the riff raff in the building. That’s one of the very few things that kept me where I am for this long.
* Being able to get shitfaced on a weeknight at Manitoba’s and only having to stumble a few blocks to get home.
* Being able to drop in at Enchantments and hang out for hours and only have to walk through the park to get home.
* Running late for work and being able to just hop in a cab and be there in 15 minutes for less than $10.
And that sums it up. Really? That’s what I’m paying overpriced rent for a shoebox and an additional 3%+ in income tax for?? And…here’s what I won’t miss:
* Screaming, loud, drunk idiots at 4am every Saturday and Sunday morning.
* Watching more and more douchey people not just move into the neighborhood but into the building.
* Tiger screaming at the top of his longs day and night. Sorry, I respect his plight but it gets really old.
* Being able to walk home from work in the same amount of time it takes to wait for the crosstown bus and ride it.
* Having to keep watch of the time as I’m juggling conference calls to remind Ryan to move his truck to the other side of the street for the street sweeper.
* Not wanting to leave the house because after 6 years of climbing 5 flights of stairs when I get home has just drained me. Not wanting to buy things I could use because they have to be lugged up 5 flights of stairs just to get to the door of the apartment.
* Grocery stores so overpriced and with such poor selection that it makes dining out for almost every meal just as cost effective.
* Not wanting to leave the house from Thanksgiving until after New Year’s because of the hordes that flood in to do holiday shopping.
* Not wanting to leave the house on Valentine’s Day because of the hordes of people that flood in for the bars, clubs and restaurants.
* Not wanting to leave the house on St. Patrick’s Day because of the hordes of people that flood in to drink and otherwise be obnoxious.
* Not wanting to leave the house during the week leading into Pride because of the hordes of people that flood into the east and west village to crowd the bars and restaurants.
* Not wanting to leave the house on 4th of July because of the hordes of people that flood into the neighborhood to watch the fireworks (okay, so 2 years in a row it was over the Hudson so it wasn’t bad over here.)
* Not wanting to leave the house on Halloween because of the hordes of people that flood into the neighborhood to get drunk at the bars and be obnoxious.
* Not being able to go out on the roofdeck from dawn until dusk because of the hive of wasps that formed because douchey neighbors insist on having plant life on their roof deck that attracted them.
And now I must mention the things I look most forward to:
* Entering the building at ground level and only having to lug things up 1 flight of stairs if they go to the office or the bedroom.
* A full size kitchen with full size appliances making runs to real grocery stores realistic instead of only being able to keep a couple days worth of things on hand.
* No more reminding Ryan to move his truck because the sweeper is coming.
* Having a bedroom and an office rather than sitting in bed with a laptop while telecommuting.
* Not sharing a living room so we can watch what we want, when we want.
* Having a guest room so friends from out of town can crash for free without having to negotiate it with a roommate.
* Having a second bathroom in case someone is not feeling so well I can at least take a shower to get ready to go or not have to bang on the door doing the pee pee dance.
* A KING size bed that doesn’t fill the bedroom from end to end so we can spread out a little instead of being crammed together on a full size bed that Ryan doesn’t entirely fit on (lengthwise that is.)
* CLOSETS! I’ve not had my own closet in 11 years, there’s always been sharing and I’m tired of straining to cram my stuff in what little I have.
* STORAGE! Places to put stuff when it’s not needed without having to put it somewhere that it clutters up the space or having to rent a storage unit to keep it.
* (Apologies in advance to those who don’t want the visual) Being able to walk around the house naked without worrying that a roommate is going to walk in and a 90% chance that anyone Ryan brings home would think nothing of it.
* A 3%+ pay increase by not having to pay New York City income tax.
* Still being able to get into the city easily and home at any hour of the night since the PATH runs 24 hours and cabs in Hoboken are less than $10 to get home from there.
* Being able to get to Philly, the Poconos and Great Adventure without having to sit in traffic at the Holland tunnel to get out.
* Being able to get home from almost everywhere without having to sit in traffic at the Holland tunnel to get back in.
* Not having to go down FDR drive to get home from our Stew Leonard’s runs for really good food.
I realize I need 3 months in the new space and I’ll have my laundry list of gripes about the place, neighbors, transit, etc. But until then, I’m going to enjoy the novelty for what it is before I fall into my typical jaded, cynical patterns.
Oh and sorry NYC peeps, the birthday BBQ will be in Jersey this year, and it IS the Friday night of Pride weekend. So I refuse to come to the city for it. ;-P