Friday, July 6, 2012

Living in Brooklyn


I lived in Westchester for three years. I was isolated. Yes, I had a car, but my job provided housing on a college campus. Because of that, getting out and being social was an endeavor. Going out for a drink was an event that approached Herculean levels (drive to the bar, drink, wait to sober up, drive home). My life stagnated. I hated it.

I now live in the heart of Brooklyn. When I run in Prospect Park, I literally run into people I know. Today, I decided to walk to work (something I do often, but was totally ill-advised in the heat). I stopped into a shop for an iced coffee, and saw a friend of mine from college- one I hadn't seen since graduating 6 years ago.

We caught up.

This would have never have happened if I still lived in Westchester. Not because people didn't live there, but because I just never had the opportunity to be out and see people. After moving to Brooklyn, I had dinner with a Westchester friend and his friends (a couple with a child who lived in Westchester). When I said I was much happier living in the city, the wife in the couple declared that I liked Brooklyn more because I was single.

That's only partially true.

I like Brooklyn more because there are people here. People my age. People I can run into in coffee shops, and talk to about the past 6 years like it was nothing.

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