Third installment. Hopefully you know the drill by now.
- Finding a good apartment can be difficult but is not impossible. My experience will be different next time as I will be local so I am sure that will make it easier. I should also have more time to look and be more knowledgeable about the areas. My best advice to anyone wanting to move to New York is to be patient and be flexible. I found out my first apartment had bed bugs and passed on it then had to work with a broker from a thousand miles away. I finally ended up driving up without a place and staying in a hotel in Jersey with my two cats and driving into NY every day to look. I found a great place within two days of looking. Be specific with your broker, be realistic about your needs and wants, and go with your gut. I signed the lease and got the keys to my apartment within an hour of seeing it. I’ve been here for almost two weeks and I haven’t regretted the decision once and it has felt like home since the second night.
- Shopping for furniture can be problematic but is not impossible. I packed a good deal of furniture but opted not to move my heavy ass a truck bookcase. I knew that this would mean a trip to Ikea to buy something to house my books. Luckily, I have a good friend with a car who agreed to schlep me over there and help me carry stuff back up to my third floor walk-up. It was all good except for the carrying huge boxes up three flights (a total of 6 landings) of stairs. Ikea does have a delivery service as does many of the places in and around the city, though. If I need to purchase any large furniture in the future, I will be looking into having it delivered.
- The stores are different here. In Manhattan I can find a lot of the big name stores I am accustomed to, however, as far as groceries, pharmacy and even hardware stores goes I am a little lost. I am still learning who carries what and for most of last week was really frustrated by it. Deliveries have helped to get me what I need right away while I am learning. Even in terms of the big name stores like, Target, they don’t care all of the same stuff as they do down in Florida. I have yet to find a place that sells light switch covers or if they do, the one I need (single switch with two outlets).
- Delivery service is your friend – that is as long as you are going to be home to get your packages. I have had several things delivered already ranging from groceries to pet care supplies. You can get most anything you need delivered including your laundry (pickup is available, too!). Once I start working I will need to make other arrangements for UPS deliveries because I can’t schedule a delivery window for those but for services l can. I would really like to get in the habit of venturing out on the weekend to some of the great GreenMarkets they have here to pick up local produce, baked goods, and meats. If I end up working in the city I can grab things and bring them back home after work easily, too.
- MTA will f*** your day (or night) up. Weekend and late night service, switching trains onto different lines, station construction, delays, and very poor communication will leave you wanting to stab someone in the face. The two stations I was frequenting when I first got here are both under construction on the Manhattan bound platform so I have to truck my ass an extra quarter mile to a station I don’t like and catch a train I like even less until they fix the other two stations. There is no information as to when the construction will be done. You can’t even find the construction on their site. Add to this the fact that they do not have their own commuting app and I now have FIVE apps that I use for commuting – all of which give me different information.
I feel the need to add that different does not necessarily equal bad in my book. I am still treating this as an adventure and everything right now is a learning experience. I feel like I am adapting quickly, though, and I can’t wait to find a job and get into a good routine!
bkbc 